I'm sure many of you have seen this or know it already but I wandered across it and thought it was interesting. There is info about other knives as well but since getting my CF Military, I have more interested in this model. I had a G-10 Military but I didn't like it. I actually thought it was too large to be useful. I should have kept it since now I know every thing has it's place. It may have been too large for me to EDC but it makes a great camping/back packing knife. Lots of knife, not a lot of weight.
MILITARY
This model was designed as a tool that combined fairly heavy-duty cutting ability with light weight. The knife's chief venue was seen as the outdoors, and it provides for gloved use. The impetus to develop the Military Model was the result of a shadowy request from somewhere in the federal government. Explains Sal,
This model had an interesting beginning. A guy called and said he was with some secret combat dive unit. He wanted some Police Models with a liner lock, G-10 handle, and a blackened blade. He would only give us his first name and, whenever he called, he refused to let us put the call on the speaker phone at our end, so we figured he was a spook. I didn't think the C07 was the right knife for his unit because the police and the military have different needs. So I didn't want him designing the knife.
As the months went by, we started working on a design that would be right, but we lost touch with him. None of our military contacts could locate his mysterious unit. In the meanwhile, Benchmade came out with their A.F.C.K. Model and I figured our caller had bought some of them instead. He never did call back, and I now think this guy wasn't what he claimed to be. But he did get us working on what became the Military.
I decided it would be an interesting challenge, to create the all-around military cutting tool. I approached the design of this knife as though it would be the one my own son would use if he entered the military and went under extreme conditions where the toughness and performance of your knife could make the difference between living and dying.
....I don't think of the Military Model as a fighting knife: to me fighting knives have to be much larger. I think of the C36 as a cutting tool that the military person carries to use for whatever the applications of a knife may be. If you're involved in combat with somebody, your gun is a whole lot more effective than your knife. So, using it as a combat weapon wasn't part of the plan or I would have built a much larger knife.
At this point, I think this model is probably one of my better designs.
Students of Spyderco designs may see in the C36 a considerably refined Police Model, plus a blade of materials, size, and shape appropriate for field and survival use. I decided to use CPM 440V because it was the toughest, most high-tech, durable steel around. I chose G-10 for the handle because of the same reasons - it was just tough and durable and again high-tech and would put up with saltwater or anything else. A liner lock was a good solution, especially for those wearing gloves. My plan was that this knife could be used by someone who wore gloves all the time, without (his or her) having to take the gloves off. The hole was enlarged to 14mm again for that glove size.
Though I used the length of the Police Model, I added about 25% more width. I created a quillion between the hump behind the hole and the beginning of the choil - I actually created a quillion that's an inch wide - probably about as wide as a quillion you would find on most boot daggers, and yet it's still a folding knife. Then I added expansion at the back like the Civilian so that if it did happen to get caught in something, like if you stabbed a metal tank and you wanted to pull out the knife and the metal tank was trying to hold the blade, then the knife wouldn't fall out of your hand because the expansion in the back would give you something to grab onto.
The Military's overall usefulness and willingness to work quickly earned it the additional role of test bed at Spyderco, where its design is used to try out experimental materials and blades.
Blade
Other than its large, friendly shape (in profile the blade almost seems to smile like a porpoise), the first refinement one notices about the C36's blade is its flat grind: from the spine down to the beginning of the edge bevel, anywhere along the length of the blade, there is one flat surface. Even when made from other than CPM 440V steel, this is a strong blade, and a 5/32 inch it's the thickest ever to come from Spyderco. "We used a flat grind for strength," explains Sal, "and the belly of the blade is moved forward so that you can start a cut with the cutting edge."
A 14mm opening hold, minimally chamfered to enhance traction, allows opening by even a gloved hand.
The Military became the first Clipit to offer a blade made from CPM 440V steel and is the first production knife in the world to feature particle-metallurgy steel. CPM 440V is described in the "Technological Frontiers" section under "Some Useful Types of Knife Steel," so we will only highlight its importance here.
Both plain and SpyderEdge versions are available. Black-Ti titanium carbonitride coating was offered initially but discontinued. Spyderco regularly tests other coatings with the promise of protection from wear and corrosion.
Handle
G-10, with its friendly feel and ideal weight/size ratio, was an obvious choice for the handle material on this fairly large knife. The handle itself is designed to resist the tendency of the hand to slife off in either a forward or backward direction. In the rear the handle is expanded (but not thickened); in the front a number of devices provide traction:
the 50/50 choil which, on the blade side, includes deep lugs or notches ground into the blade
the hump, which also includes deep lugs ground into the blade
the exposed area of the liner lock, which features tiny teeth for about an inch
The back-spacer of the handle was reduced in length to allow for easy cleaning and drying of the blade slot. A lanyard hole with stepped metal sleeve is provided at the rear of the handle. Sal says,
We went through numerous wooden and plastic prototypes before I was satisfied with a shape that worked well. The spacer in the back was made as small as was possible so that you could rinse the knife out. Part of the requirement was that you could easily rinse out saltwater or anything else that happened to get caught in the knife, and using very small back spacer was a way to do that. The other end that keeps the knife rigid is the lanyard hold, and rather than just using a tube like most companies, we have a stepped lanyard hole. It helps keep the back end of the knife rigid by preventing the scales from being squeezed toward one another.
That "stepped lanyard hole" is a good example of the little things that make a big difference in Spyderco knives. Much more complex and expensive than straight steel tubing, it will probably be noticed by few customers as it does its job, yet this Military Model's anticipated use called for extra rigidity, so Spyderco included it.
Clip
The very effective standard Clipit clothing clip is used. The large attaching screws go through the G-10 handle and anchor into the steel liner. On the current model no provision is made for changing the position of the clip, which provides tip-down carry for right-handers.
Lock
A Walker Linerlock is used. The liner adds no extra width to the knife, since it is recessed into the handle. Machining the handle to provide a cavity for the liner lock is expensive but further strengthens the knife. Sal explains,
I nested the lock into the handle so that we could make the knife thinner. I believe that a folding knife, carried close to the body, or in a pocket, in some way clipped to you, should be as thin as is possible and still maintain control. Otherwise they become bulky on your body and hard to get out of your pocket.
Here is the link with more info on Spydercos.
http://knife-collecting.com/interest.htm
MILITARY
This model was designed as a tool that combined fairly heavy-duty cutting ability with light weight. The knife's chief venue was seen as the outdoors, and it provides for gloved use. The impetus to develop the Military Model was the result of a shadowy request from somewhere in the federal government. Explains Sal,
This model had an interesting beginning. A guy called and said he was with some secret combat dive unit. He wanted some Police Models with a liner lock, G-10 handle, and a blackened blade. He would only give us his first name and, whenever he called, he refused to let us put the call on the speaker phone at our end, so we figured he was a spook. I didn't think the C07 was the right knife for his unit because the police and the military have different needs. So I didn't want him designing the knife.
As the months went by, we started working on a design that would be right, but we lost touch with him. None of our military contacts could locate his mysterious unit. In the meanwhile, Benchmade came out with their A.F.C.K. Model and I figured our caller had bought some of them instead. He never did call back, and I now think this guy wasn't what he claimed to be. But he did get us working on what became the Military.
I decided it would be an interesting challenge, to create the all-around military cutting tool. I approached the design of this knife as though it would be the one my own son would use if he entered the military and went under extreme conditions where the toughness and performance of your knife could make the difference between living and dying.
....I don't think of the Military Model as a fighting knife: to me fighting knives have to be much larger. I think of the C36 as a cutting tool that the military person carries to use for whatever the applications of a knife may be. If you're involved in combat with somebody, your gun is a whole lot more effective than your knife. So, using it as a combat weapon wasn't part of the plan or I would have built a much larger knife.
At this point, I think this model is probably one of my better designs.
Students of Spyderco designs may see in the C36 a considerably refined Police Model, plus a blade of materials, size, and shape appropriate for field and survival use. I decided to use CPM 440V because it was the toughest, most high-tech, durable steel around. I chose G-10 for the handle because of the same reasons - it was just tough and durable and again high-tech and would put up with saltwater or anything else. A liner lock was a good solution, especially for those wearing gloves. My plan was that this knife could be used by someone who wore gloves all the time, without (his or her) having to take the gloves off. The hole was enlarged to 14mm again for that glove size.
Though I used the length of the Police Model, I added about 25% more width. I created a quillion between the hump behind the hole and the beginning of the choil - I actually created a quillion that's an inch wide - probably about as wide as a quillion you would find on most boot daggers, and yet it's still a folding knife. Then I added expansion at the back like the Civilian so that if it did happen to get caught in something, like if you stabbed a metal tank and you wanted to pull out the knife and the metal tank was trying to hold the blade, then the knife wouldn't fall out of your hand because the expansion in the back would give you something to grab onto.
The Military's overall usefulness and willingness to work quickly earned it the additional role of test bed at Spyderco, where its design is used to try out experimental materials and blades.
Blade
Other than its large, friendly shape (in profile the blade almost seems to smile like a porpoise), the first refinement one notices about the C36's blade is its flat grind: from the spine down to the beginning of the edge bevel, anywhere along the length of the blade, there is one flat surface. Even when made from other than CPM 440V steel, this is a strong blade, and a 5/32 inch it's the thickest ever to come from Spyderco. "We used a flat grind for strength," explains Sal, "and the belly of the blade is moved forward so that you can start a cut with the cutting edge."
A 14mm opening hold, minimally chamfered to enhance traction, allows opening by even a gloved hand.
The Military became the first Clipit to offer a blade made from CPM 440V steel and is the first production knife in the world to feature particle-metallurgy steel. CPM 440V is described in the "Technological Frontiers" section under "Some Useful Types of Knife Steel," so we will only highlight its importance here.
Both plain and SpyderEdge versions are available. Black-Ti titanium carbonitride coating was offered initially but discontinued. Spyderco regularly tests other coatings with the promise of protection from wear and corrosion.
Handle
G-10, with its friendly feel and ideal weight/size ratio, was an obvious choice for the handle material on this fairly large knife. The handle itself is designed to resist the tendency of the hand to slife off in either a forward or backward direction. In the rear the handle is expanded (but not thickened); in the front a number of devices provide traction:
the 50/50 choil which, on the blade side, includes deep lugs or notches ground into the blade
the hump, which also includes deep lugs ground into the blade
the exposed area of the liner lock, which features tiny teeth for about an inch
The back-spacer of the handle was reduced in length to allow for easy cleaning and drying of the blade slot. A lanyard hole with stepped metal sleeve is provided at the rear of the handle. Sal says,
We went through numerous wooden and plastic prototypes before I was satisfied with a shape that worked well. The spacer in the back was made as small as was possible so that you could rinse the knife out. Part of the requirement was that you could easily rinse out saltwater or anything else that happened to get caught in the knife, and using very small back spacer was a way to do that. The other end that keeps the knife rigid is the lanyard hold, and rather than just using a tube like most companies, we have a stepped lanyard hole. It helps keep the back end of the knife rigid by preventing the scales from being squeezed toward one another.
That "stepped lanyard hole" is a good example of the little things that make a big difference in Spyderco knives. Much more complex and expensive than straight steel tubing, it will probably be noticed by few customers as it does its job, yet this Military Model's anticipated use called for extra rigidity, so Spyderco included it.
Clip
The very effective standard Clipit clothing clip is used. The large attaching screws go through the G-10 handle and anchor into the steel liner. On the current model no provision is made for changing the position of the clip, which provides tip-down carry for right-handers.
Lock
A Walker Linerlock is used. The liner adds no extra width to the knife, since it is recessed into the handle. Machining the handle to provide a cavity for the liner lock is expensive but further strengthens the knife. Sal explains,
I nested the lock into the handle so that we could make the knife thinner. I believe that a folding knife, carried close to the body, or in a pocket, in some way clipped to you, should be as thin as is possible and still maintain control. Otherwise they become bulky on your body and hard to get out of your pocket.
Here is the link with more info on Spydercos.
http://knife-collecting.com/interest.htm
). I pair it with a trusted sak, and I'm good to go.
