Review/comparison of Meadowlark2, CaraCara2, Persistence, Tenacious, Delica4, Endura4 for EDC
Have seen quite some reviews on these knives, but thought it could be nice to do some comparison review. Have had (and used in EDC rotation) these knives for more than 1 year. Hope you like the long text
Note: used an Endura in ZDP-189 not in VG10 for the pictures
Specs
[table="width: 700"]
[tr]
[td]Knife[/td]
[td]Byrd Meadowlark2 FRN Handle[/td]
[td]Byrd Cara Cara2 FRN Handle[/td]
[td]Spyderco Persistence[/td]
[td]Spyderco Tenacious[/td]
[td]Spyderco Delica4 FFG[/td]
[td]Spyderco Endura4 FFG[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Steel[/td]
[td]8Cr13MoV[/td]
[td]8Cr13MoV[/td]
[td]8Cr13MoV[/td]
[td]8Cr13MoV[/td]
[td]VG10[/td]
[td]VG10[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Handle[/td]
[td]FRN[/td]
[td]FRN[/td]
[td]G10[/td]
[td]G10[/td]
[td]FRN[/td]
[td]FRN[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Blade length[/td]
[td]73 mm[/td]
[td]95 mm[/td]
[td]70 mm[/td]
[td]86 mm[/td]
[td]73 mm[/td]
[td]96 mm[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Closed length[/td]
[td]102 mm[/td]
[td]123 mm[/td]
[td]105 mm[/td]
[td]113 mm[/td]
[td]108 mm[/td]
[td]127 mm[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Overall length[/td]
[td]173 mm[/td]
[td]217 mm[/td]
[td]173 mm[/td]
[td]197 mm[/td]
[td]181 mm[/td]
[td]222 mm[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Blade thickness[/td]
[td]2.5 mm[/td]
[td]3 mm[/td]
[td]3 mm[/td]
[td]3 mm[/td]
[td]2.5 mm[/td]
[td]3 mm[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Weight[/td]
[td]67 g[/td]
[td]97 g[/td]
[td]102 g[/td]
[td]117 g[/td]
[td]64 g[/td]
[td]117 g[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Price (MSRP)[/td]
[td]$19.95 (29.95) G10 handle $29.95 (45.95)[/td]
[td]$19.95 (30.95) G10 handle $31.95 (49.95)[/td]
[td]$34.95 (54.95)[/td]
[td]$38.95 (59.95)[/td]
[td]$63.95 (99.95)[/td]
[td]$66.95 (104.95)[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Link to Spyderco[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]
Handle
Both Byrd knives have ugly FRN handles; they look cheap and squared. The Bi-Directional handle gives it a good grip, but the squared shape makes it less comfortable. I’ve had cheaper knives that were more comfy in hand and had a better finishing. Plus point: the steel liners are skeletonized and the handle is also solid. The Meadowlark handle is just a bit small for my hands, but the finger choil compensates a bit for this.
The G10 handle of the Persistence and Tenacious is grippy and nice. The G10 seems to be of a cheaper variant compared to the more expansive spyderco’s. Only problem I find is that the G10 wears down my pocket faster than the FRN. The steel liners are skeletonized and handle is solid. The Persistence is again a bit short for my hands, but doesn’t have a choil like the Meadowlark.
The Delica and Endura are very comfy in hand, again skeletonized steel liners and a solid handle. The handle could be a bit thicker so it would fill my hand better, but that’s personal and this way its slimmer in the pocket. The handle length of the Delica is just a bit longer than that of the Meadowlark and Persistence. That little extra length gives the feeling of a more secure grip. The handle has a great grippy texture, but it fills up with dirt.
Blade centering
Byrd knives = adequate
Persistence, Tenacious, Endura = good
Delica = perfect
Pocket clip
The pocket clip of the Byrd knives is similar to that of the Spyderco knives, but lacks the logo on it and is less polished. The pocket clips can be positioned in 4 ways; left and right, and tip up and down. The clip of all knives is solid, springy and gives a good retention. Unfortunately it digs a bit in the hand. Preferably I would have a pocket clip that allows more deep carry, like the wired pocket clips on the Caly etc.
Jimping
The jimping on all 6 knives is functional, but different from each other. The jimping on the Byrd knives looks ragged and unfinished. On the Persistence and Tenacious the jimping looks good and the “teeth” are larger and further apart from each other, which is still functional, but makes it a bit less comfortable. On the Delica and Endura are small “teeth” like the Byrd knives, but here it’s nicely machined and finished perfectly. The latter type of jimping gets my preference since it gives good traction, but doesn’t hurt when you push hard on it.
Opening and lock
The Byrd opening “eye” looks funny. Once you are used to it it’s just as functional for opening the knife as the Spyder hole. Only problem I find is that in eg. food prep at the “angle” of the eye it fills up and it’s more difficult to clean (especially in field). For the Spyderhole it’s not a problem, you just put your pinky through and it’s clean.
Both Byrd knives, the Delica and Endura are backlocks. The Persistence and Tenacious have a liner lock. The backlocks are more difficult to flick open, where the ones with the liner lock flick open very easily. The Meadowlark is the most problematic to flick open entirely (tried to adjust the pivot), but just normal opening is not a problem. With the liner locks you have to be more careful not to cut your thumb when closing the knife, especially with the Persistence and Tenacious since they don’t have a choil or unsharpened part that stops on your finger. In all knives the lock seems to be secure.
Blade play
I experienced only some side to side play in the Meadowlark. Adjusting the pivot does improve it a little, but opening becomes then less smooth. For all the other knives I didn’t experience blade play.
Grind
All knives are FFG, which I prefer over the saber grind on some of the older versions. The Byrd knives are sharp out of the box, but the grind is uneven and coarse. I sharpened them already several times, but at a slightly different angle, so only just a little of the original grind can be seen. The Meadowlark seems to be thinner towards the tip compared to the Delica. The Persistence, Tenacious, Delica and Endura have good finishing of the edge. The spine of the Delica and Endura seems however to be less polished compared to the Byrd knives, Persistence and Tenacious. Both Byrd knives have a finger choil, whereas the Delica and Endura have only an unsharpened part. I don’t really miss the choil on the Delica and Endura, maybe it would make it slightly more comfortable when choking up. I do miss however a choil/unsharpened part on the Persistance and Tenacious (not that I cut my finger when closing).
Coarse Factory grind on the Cara Cara. The polished edge part is from my own sharpening
Conclusion/Verdict
Both Byrd knives in FRN look cheap; both handle and blade (I don’t know for the G10 version, but assume the blade quality is the same). The handle is squared and therefore not very comfortable. The grind is uneven and coarse, but sharp. The Meadowlark resembles the cheap version of the Delica and the Cara Cara resembles the cheap version of the Endura. Although this second generation is a great improvement from its previous version, I’ve seen knives in the same price range (and cheaper) that had a much better finishing (Eg Kershaw Chill)! Although the finishing is bad they are solid and functional EDC knives. I don’t use them often, only in case I’ve a chance of losing my knife or the need to abuse it. I wouldn’t buy them again. For a few $ more I would buy a Persistence, Tenacious or any Kershaw.
The Persistence and Tenacious look good. Although a cheaper G10 type is used. I wouldn’t expect these knives are the budget line from their first impression. I use them a lot and can see why they are so popular. They have a much higher value compared to the Byrd knives and the fit and finish is very good. The handle and blade are a bit wider. The wider blade is great in food prep. The Persistence and Tenacious are very great value knives; just one thing: pay attention not to close the blade on your finger.
The Delica and Endura look good as well. The FRN handles look much better than the ones from the Byrd knives; these are nice and rounded, what makes it more comfy as well. But you see off course in more aspects it’s a higher quality knife. Only thing is that they could have applied a smoother polishing of the spine, if they could do it for the budget ones it should be possible for the Delica and Endura as well. A pity that they don’t offer a standard G10 handled version of them anymore. Extra cool factor, the FRN handles come in different colors. The Delica is my favorite of these six knives; you don’t notice you have it with you, small with lots of control, it’s comfy and can handle most EDC tasks. The Endura is for those who prefer a larger blade.
Have seen quite some reviews on these knives, but thought it could be nice to do some comparison review. Have had (and used in EDC rotation) these knives for more than 1 year. Hope you like the long text
Note: used an Endura in ZDP-189 not in VG10 for the pictures
Specs
[table="width: 700"]
[tr]
[td]Knife[/td]
[td]Byrd Meadowlark2 FRN Handle[/td]
[td]Byrd Cara Cara2 FRN Handle[/td]
[td]Spyderco Persistence[/td]
[td]Spyderco Tenacious[/td]
[td]Spyderco Delica4 FFG[/td]
[td]Spyderco Endura4 FFG[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Steel[/td]
[td]8Cr13MoV[/td]
[td]8Cr13MoV[/td]
[td]8Cr13MoV[/td]
[td]8Cr13MoV[/td]
[td]VG10[/td]
[td]VG10[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Handle[/td]
[td]FRN[/td]
[td]FRN[/td]
[td]G10[/td]
[td]G10[/td]
[td]FRN[/td]
[td]FRN[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Blade length[/td]
[td]73 mm[/td]
[td]95 mm[/td]
[td]70 mm[/td]
[td]86 mm[/td]
[td]73 mm[/td]
[td]96 mm[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Closed length[/td]
[td]102 mm[/td]
[td]123 mm[/td]
[td]105 mm[/td]
[td]113 mm[/td]
[td]108 mm[/td]
[td]127 mm[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Overall length[/td]
[td]173 mm[/td]
[td]217 mm[/td]
[td]173 mm[/td]
[td]197 mm[/td]
[td]181 mm[/td]
[td]222 mm[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Blade thickness[/td]
[td]2.5 mm[/td]
[td]3 mm[/td]
[td]3 mm[/td]
[td]3 mm[/td]
[td]2.5 mm[/td]
[td]3 mm[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Weight[/td]
[td]67 g[/td]
[td]97 g[/td]
[td]102 g[/td]
[td]117 g[/td]
[td]64 g[/td]
[td]117 g[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Price (MSRP)[/td]
[td]$19.95 (29.95) G10 handle $29.95 (45.95)[/td]
[td]$19.95 (30.95) G10 handle $31.95 (49.95)[/td]
[td]$34.95 (54.95)[/td]
[td]$38.95 (59.95)[/td]
[td]$63.95 (99.95)[/td]
[td]$66.95 (104.95)[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Link to Spyderco[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[td]Link[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]
Handle
Both Byrd knives have ugly FRN handles; they look cheap and squared. The Bi-Directional handle gives it a good grip, but the squared shape makes it less comfortable. I’ve had cheaper knives that were more comfy in hand and had a better finishing. Plus point: the steel liners are skeletonized and the handle is also solid. The Meadowlark handle is just a bit small for my hands, but the finger choil compensates a bit for this.
The G10 handle of the Persistence and Tenacious is grippy and nice. The G10 seems to be of a cheaper variant compared to the more expansive spyderco’s. Only problem I find is that the G10 wears down my pocket faster than the FRN. The steel liners are skeletonized and handle is solid. The Persistence is again a bit short for my hands, but doesn’t have a choil like the Meadowlark.
The Delica and Endura are very comfy in hand, again skeletonized steel liners and a solid handle. The handle could be a bit thicker so it would fill my hand better, but that’s personal and this way its slimmer in the pocket. The handle length of the Delica is just a bit longer than that of the Meadowlark and Persistence. That little extra length gives the feeling of a more secure grip. The handle has a great grippy texture, but it fills up with dirt.
Blade centering
Byrd knives = adequate
Persistence, Tenacious, Endura = good
Delica = perfect
Pocket clip
The pocket clip of the Byrd knives is similar to that of the Spyderco knives, but lacks the logo on it and is less polished. The pocket clips can be positioned in 4 ways; left and right, and tip up and down. The clip of all knives is solid, springy and gives a good retention. Unfortunately it digs a bit in the hand. Preferably I would have a pocket clip that allows more deep carry, like the wired pocket clips on the Caly etc.
Jimping
The jimping on all 6 knives is functional, but different from each other. The jimping on the Byrd knives looks ragged and unfinished. On the Persistence and Tenacious the jimping looks good and the “teeth” are larger and further apart from each other, which is still functional, but makes it a bit less comfortable. On the Delica and Endura are small “teeth” like the Byrd knives, but here it’s nicely machined and finished perfectly. The latter type of jimping gets my preference since it gives good traction, but doesn’t hurt when you push hard on it.
Opening and lock
The Byrd opening “eye” looks funny. Once you are used to it it’s just as functional for opening the knife as the Spyder hole. Only problem I find is that in eg. food prep at the “angle” of the eye it fills up and it’s more difficult to clean (especially in field). For the Spyderhole it’s not a problem, you just put your pinky through and it’s clean.
Both Byrd knives, the Delica and Endura are backlocks. The Persistence and Tenacious have a liner lock. The backlocks are more difficult to flick open, where the ones with the liner lock flick open very easily. The Meadowlark is the most problematic to flick open entirely (tried to adjust the pivot), but just normal opening is not a problem. With the liner locks you have to be more careful not to cut your thumb when closing the knife, especially with the Persistence and Tenacious since they don’t have a choil or unsharpened part that stops on your finger. In all knives the lock seems to be secure.
Blade play
I experienced only some side to side play in the Meadowlark. Adjusting the pivot does improve it a little, but opening becomes then less smooth. For all the other knives I didn’t experience blade play.
Grind
All knives are FFG, which I prefer over the saber grind on some of the older versions. The Byrd knives are sharp out of the box, but the grind is uneven and coarse. I sharpened them already several times, but at a slightly different angle, so only just a little of the original grind can be seen. The Meadowlark seems to be thinner towards the tip compared to the Delica. The Persistence, Tenacious, Delica and Endura have good finishing of the edge. The spine of the Delica and Endura seems however to be less polished compared to the Byrd knives, Persistence and Tenacious. Both Byrd knives have a finger choil, whereas the Delica and Endura have only an unsharpened part. I don’t really miss the choil on the Delica and Endura, maybe it would make it slightly more comfortable when choking up. I do miss however a choil/unsharpened part on the Persistance and Tenacious (not that I cut my finger when closing).
Coarse Factory grind on the Cara Cara. The polished edge part is from my own sharpening
Conclusion/Verdict
Both Byrd knives in FRN look cheap; both handle and blade (I don’t know for the G10 version, but assume the blade quality is the same). The handle is squared and therefore not very comfortable. The grind is uneven and coarse, but sharp. The Meadowlark resembles the cheap version of the Delica and the Cara Cara resembles the cheap version of the Endura. Although this second generation is a great improvement from its previous version, I’ve seen knives in the same price range (and cheaper) that had a much better finishing (Eg Kershaw Chill)! Although the finishing is bad they are solid and functional EDC knives. I don’t use them often, only in case I’ve a chance of losing my knife or the need to abuse it. I wouldn’t buy them again. For a few $ more I would buy a Persistence, Tenacious or any Kershaw.
The Persistence and Tenacious look good. Although a cheaper G10 type is used. I wouldn’t expect these knives are the budget line from their first impression. I use them a lot and can see why they are so popular. They have a much higher value compared to the Byrd knives and the fit and finish is very good. The handle and blade are a bit wider. The wider blade is great in food prep. The Persistence and Tenacious are very great value knives; just one thing: pay attention not to close the blade on your finger.
The Delica and Endura look good as well. The FRN handles look much better than the ones from the Byrd knives; these are nice and rounded, what makes it more comfy as well. But you see off course in more aspects it’s a higher quality knife. Only thing is that they could have applied a smoother polishing of the spine, if they could do it for the budget ones it should be possible for the Delica and Endura as well. A pity that they don’t offer a standard G10 handled version of them anymore. Extra cool factor, the FRN handles come in different colors. The Delica is my favorite of these six knives; you don’t notice you have it with you, small with lots of control, it’s comfy and can handle most EDC tasks. The Endura is for those who prefer a larger blade.
Last edited:
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