Spyderco Advocate

S

Stays Sharp

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Nov 21, 2013
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I was excited to hear that this just dropped however early reviews on the Spyderco forum and Youtube claim that the bearing and washers are very flimsy and are executed poorly making for terrible action. I know that Ti flippers on bearings aren't Syderco's forte but still a bit concerning as the Mantra, some Dominos and perhaps their other bearing flippers are said to be affected as well.

Here's some vids that discuss the problems.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LG7Mq-XuEDQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQv_nm85UKs

Anyone got there's yet and want to chime in?
 
I was so excited for this and the day I was going to order one I saw Rob's video about the washers and was so disappointed. Apparently the Mantra has the same issue and they've not fixed it so I'm not holding my breath. I want one so bad haha


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Thanks OP for bringing this up! I too have been anticipating this knife and am sad to hear the news. I'll definitely be following this thread to hear others' experiences.
 
I just received one and I really like it. In fact, I like it better than my Bradley 1 and the Bradley is my favorite Spyderco. It has a great form factor-thin and light compared to its' big sibling. I love the blade. It flies very well, but not as well as other bearing flippers that I own.

But, there is an issue in either the pivot or the detente ball. I cannot tell which one is causing the "grinding". It is noticeable when I open it slowly without flipping it and when closing the blade I can feel the bearings moving. It is well lubed. It almost feels like they torqued the pivot too tightly. I have not and will not disassemble it since Spyderco refuses to honor its' warranty if they even think that you moved a screw.

I will wait to see if they are going to come up with a fix. However, in spite of this issue, I still really like this knife. I just hope that it does not get worse. My Southard was doing the same thing, but one day it fixed itself! It doesn't grind anymore.
 
Can't wait until everyone gets off this stupid bearing craze, leave it for the toy knives. I'll take large smooth bronze washers any day of the week.
 
Daniel said:
I just received one and I really like it. In fact, I like it better than my Bradley 1 and the Bradley is my favorite Spyderco. It has a great form factor-thin and light compared to its' big sibling. I love the blade. It flies very well, but not as well as other bearing flippers that I own.

But, there is an issue in either the pivot or the detente ball. I cannot tell which one is causing the "grinding". It is noticeable when I open it slowly without flipping it and when closing the blade I can feel the bearings moving. It is well lubed. It almost feels like they torqued the pivot too tightly. I have not and will not disassemble it since Spyderco refuses to honor its' warranty if they even think that you moved a screw.

I will wait to see if they are going to come up with a fix. However, in spite of this issue, I still really like this knife. I just hope that it does not get worse. My Southard was doing the same thing, but one day it fixed itself! It doesn't grind anymore.
Click to expand...

Yes a few have already said that this grinding actually gets worse. Please keep us posted.

Glad to her that everything else about the knife is golden.
 
Mick_1KRR said:
Can't wait until everyone gets off this stupid bearing craze, leave it for the toy knives. I'll take large smooth bronze washers any day of the week.
Click to expand...

Bearings didn't seem to turn this knife into a toy...

Haar5gG.jpg


Jxb4mq9.jpg


Used that knife for tasks from regular to what might be considered abusive, and the bearings have never been a point of concern.
Never had I said "If only it had washers, I could have cut this better."

If you don't like bearings, that's cool. :)
But it is not a thing which makes a knife less useful or tough.
 
If they stick with bearings in a redesign let's hope the other models like the Mantra that uses the same flimsy bearing system also get updated. Most of all, a solution for all the knives already in the wild would be great for the end users. Probably would be a nightmare for the warranty department though.
 
stabman said:
Bearings didn't seem to turn this knife into a toy...

Haar5gG.jpg


Jxb4mq9.jpg


Used that knife for tasks from regular to what might be considered abusive, and the bearings have never been a point of concern.
Never had I said "If only it had washers, I could have cut this better."

If you don't like bearings, that's cool. :)
But it is not a thing which makes a knife less useful or tough.
Click to expand...

See now here's what my point is. Any blade, no matter what will push or baton/wedge it's way through wood with force, it's steel pressing back against a stop pin, there's little to no issue. But over time, what you don't realize, is the bearings being much harder on the rockwell scale than your titanium handles are carving a nice track into the handles in the pivot area. Any strong lateral force can even put indents into the titanium. There is no way in gods green earth that bearings will provide as much lateral strength or longevity to a knife used in hard conditions than large flat supportive washers. Bearings are just a craze right now, cos guys like to flip their knives out fast and feel cool. Yeah, they'll last and do the job, but they aren't a structural upgrade of ANY kind. It's an engineering fact not just my opinion. It's a shame, cos ZT's like the one in your pic while having super strong thick blades and edge geometry seem pretty tough, but are only as strong as their weakest links - the frame lock and the bearings. Take a simple cheap code 4 from cold steel or ultimate hunter even and it will beat any ZT knife in hard use, it's just a matter of build strength and weakest links. Please don't think i'm bashing your knife, i'm just trying to be real about facts, heck half the enjoyment of knives is the fun, and you have a right to use and enjoy what makes you happy :)
 
Well, according to Sal Glesser posting today there is not a problem with the Advocate. Only a few knives and they have sold a thousand

That is encouraging??? No admission that there is a problem--much like the Mantra
 
^ Ouch.

Let's see what kind of pressure Bodog can put on them in their forum. Credit him for being persistent and chasing the big man around threads for a response.
 
I just copied and pasted this from over on the Spyderco forum , so that there can be no mistakes of misquotes .

( Quote - )

As near as I can figure, there might have been a few that didn't satisfy their customer. Though I can say there are thousands of satisfied customers out there and we've not received any back with complaints. We believe that the washer could be a few thou thicker and we'll carefully study the issue, but we don't think it's on the lever of "Consumer warning".

sal

( End Quote .)

So there you go , there's no need to worry or complain , and Spyderco hasn't received even one knife back .

Ken
 
harronek said:
I just copied and pasted this from over on the Spyderco forum , so that there can be no mistakes of misquotes .

( Quote - )

As near as I can figure, there might have been a few that didn't satisfy their customer. Though I can say there are thousands of satisfied customers out there and we've not received any back with complaints. We believe that the washer could be a few thou thicker and we'll carefully study the issue, but we don't think it's on the lever of "Consumer warning".

sal

( End Quote .)

So there you go , there's no need to worry or complain , and Spyderco hasn't received even one knife back .

Ken
Click to expand...

The knife just came out last week. You give the USPS too much credit ;)
 
The bearings look the same as my domino. I have had it for years and it still flies open just like it did 3 years ago. It has been opened a few thousand times. I will also say my particular advocate is smooth and shows no signs of issues. I have been carrying and using it since christmas eve. I think time will show that spyderco builds a quality product but if this product has issues Sal will take care of it.
 
Mine is going back tomorrow or Saturday. I only live one state away, so he should have it early next week.

I am sending in another knife with it.
 
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I received two days ago, handled it for a few hours, then shipped it back. I was concerned after watching the Youtube videos, and my concerns were disappointingly accurate. I REALLY looked forward to this knife, but it was very gritty, and it sounds like they won't improve over time. I love Spyderco, almost exclusively carry Spyderco, and they they are far and away my favorite knife company. This was a disappointing knife for me, but perhaps I set my expectations too high. Great design, but I hate bearings in general and no longer own any bearing knives. I am in the woods muddy and dirty a lot, and my bearing knives have always gotten really gritty. I would love to see Spyderco use washers on the Advocate, but if not I will just have more money to buy other Spydercos.
 
I was more excited about the advocate than I have been about any knife in a while but I've decided to wait and see if there's any fix. I'm not buying a knife just to turn around and send it back in. Pretty disappointed.

Mike
 
harronek said:
I just copied and pasted this from over on the Spyderco forum , so that there can be no mistakes of misquotes .

( Quote - )

As near as I can figure, there might have been a few that didn't satisfy their customer. Though I can say there are thousands of satisfied customers out there and we've not received any back with complaints. We believe that the washer could be a few thou thicker and we'll carefully study the issue, but we don't think it's on the lever of "Consumer warning".

sal

( End Quote .)

So there you go , there's no need to worry or complain , and Spyderco hasn't received even one knife back .

Ken
Click to expand...

There are people who've sent knives back and had then returned without being fixed. Or, according to them spyderco said there was no issue. The whole thing is based on it not being as good as the competition, not that there is something that makes the knife inoperable. Most people won't send in knives just because the competition is better. They'll just not buy or keep the knives. I figure that's something spyderco would want to know about since it's an obvious issue, easily fixed, and would keep more customers happy. I'll say this, there's not one person who would complain if spyderco made the action better.
 
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