- Joined
- Nov 18, 2006
- Messages
- 2,011
Just got my Caly 3 in today. I chose the Caly 3 over the Mini Manix mostly because of size concerns. I wanted something similar in size and overall shape to my Mini Griptilian because, well, I just love that knife.
First Impressions:
The knife came (literally) shaving sharp out of the box. It really has to be held to appreciate the thought and time that must have gone into designing the ergos. The checkered G10 is nice and grippy, and the knife feels very solid overall. I really like the wire clip, especially after having accidentally 'keyed' my own car with the clip on my Mini Griptilian.
The knife stinks. Either the lube Spyderco uses or the G10 smells strongly, almost like the smell of military surplus gear, but I'm sure in time that will dissipate. It's no big deal, I just found it odd.
It opens with a very solid CLACK! sound, and I instantly found faith in the lock just by opening the Caly 3 for the first time.
Likes:
The VG-10 has a keen, almost scary edge. I'm interested to see how well it will hold up. Because of the blade profile, this knife feels sharper than the S30V knives I own.
It slices like a demon. One of the reasons I bought the Caly 3 was to try out a full flat-ground knife, and I have to say I'm impressed. I cut up a few plastic bottles, and the way it slid right through them was impressive.
The Spyderhole is much more intuitive and comfortable to use than I expected. This is my first Spyderco, and I found the hole to be perfectly positioned for opening. The Boye-dented lockback is also very intuitively placed, easily accessible by moving your thumb back on the spine. The knife can be one-hand closed quite easily by moving the thumb back and pressing the lock.
This is another well-thought-out point by Spyderco: when you push the lock, the blade drops down slightly, allowing for one-hand closure. Initially, I worried that with wear, the blade would swing further, possibly causing injury. But in actuality, the blade is stopped by the tension of the lock, and even if manually pressed to swing all the way to the finger, there's still part of the finger choil to protect the index finger from the sharpened edge.
A look inside the handle of the knife shows some beautiful drilling of the liners for weight reduction, a nice detail.
The tip aligns within the handle very well when closed. This is nominal, but it's a pet peeve of mine. Tips that don't line up when the knife is closed bug me.
The Caly 3 feels very solid in the hand, and is comfortable to grip either using the finger choil or back further on the handle.
The clip does not interfere with grip, rather it adds some depth to the knife.
Sal's signature on the knife is a nice touch. It's hard to tell from some pictures of Spyderco knives that that small triangle of letters is his initials, but it's very refreshing to see a stylized spider on one side of the blade, and Sal's monogram on the other. That's it. Just a few simple, elegant blade markings.
Dislikes:
Fit and finish are high, but not as high as on similarly or lesser priced knives such as the Benchmade and Lone Wolf knives I have owned. The blade shows some scratches probably from manufacture or inspection. The grind on the sharpened edge is slightly irregular; it doesn't appear even when you look at the knife edge-on. There was also some scratching on the spine of the knife and some circular marring on the G10 out of the box. I also found that the rivets near the spine were unevenly pressed. All of which isn't enough to be upsetting, but enough to be annoying.
The base of the blade nearest the pivot is showing scratches from being opened and closed just a few times since it's been out of the box. I was aware of this issue before purchasing the Caly 3, and it still strikes me as a design flaw, and due to the "washerless" design.
The finger choil near the blade is more shallow that I thought it would be from the pictures. I don't feel this is a safety issue, more of an ergonomic or perceived one.
There are rivets where I would have preferred screws.
Closing Thoughts:
Overall, I'm impressed with the knife. I don't find it quite worthy of the $100.00 I paid for it, but that's partially because I'm used to getting knives like the Griptilian off eBay for around $60.00, and bought the Caly 3 relatively new because I "had to have it" before the resale price went down.
This is my first Spyderco, but it most definitely will not be my last!
***Edited to add Pics.*** Please note, these pics were taken to point out some irregularities with the knife, part of a dispute with the seller. I'm curious to know if these details are standard fit and finish irregularities, or if something else is going on, so I re-posted them here. Please don't take this as "bashing" Spyderco in any way, I still very much like the knife.
Slightly irregular grind:
Some scratching out of box:
Back spacer marring:
Another scratch out of box:
I'm curious to know if these are common on the Caly 3. There were a couple other scratches on the blade out of the box that I couldn't photograph.
Again, I love the knife, and if these are unusual irregularities I'd be hesitant to send it back and have to be without it! In fact, I think the quality and subtle design of the Caly 3comes through more than anything else in the above photos.
First Impressions:
The knife came (literally) shaving sharp out of the box. It really has to be held to appreciate the thought and time that must have gone into designing the ergos. The checkered G10 is nice and grippy, and the knife feels very solid overall. I really like the wire clip, especially after having accidentally 'keyed' my own car with the clip on my Mini Griptilian.
The knife stinks. Either the lube Spyderco uses or the G10 smells strongly, almost like the smell of military surplus gear, but I'm sure in time that will dissipate. It's no big deal, I just found it odd.
It opens with a very solid CLACK! sound, and I instantly found faith in the lock just by opening the Caly 3 for the first time.
Likes:
The VG-10 has a keen, almost scary edge. I'm interested to see how well it will hold up. Because of the blade profile, this knife feels sharper than the S30V knives I own.
It slices like a demon. One of the reasons I bought the Caly 3 was to try out a full flat-ground knife, and I have to say I'm impressed. I cut up a few plastic bottles, and the way it slid right through them was impressive.
The Spyderhole is much more intuitive and comfortable to use than I expected. This is my first Spyderco, and I found the hole to be perfectly positioned for opening. The Boye-dented lockback is also very intuitively placed, easily accessible by moving your thumb back on the spine. The knife can be one-hand closed quite easily by moving the thumb back and pressing the lock.
This is another well-thought-out point by Spyderco: when you push the lock, the blade drops down slightly, allowing for one-hand closure. Initially, I worried that with wear, the blade would swing further, possibly causing injury. But in actuality, the blade is stopped by the tension of the lock, and even if manually pressed to swing all the way to the finger, there's still part of the finger choil to protect the index finger from the sharpened edge.
A look inside the handle of the knife shows some beautiful drilling of the liners for weight reduction, a nice detail.
The tip aligns within the handle very well when closed. This is nominal, but it's a pet peeve of mine. Tips that don't line up when the knife is closed bug me.
The Caly 3 feels very solid in the hand, and is comfortable to grip either using the finger choil or back further on the handle.
The clip does not interfere with grip, rather it adds some depth to the knife.
Sal's signature on the knife is a nice touch. It's hard to tell from some pictures of Spyderco knives that that small triangle of letters is his initials, but it's very refreshing to see a stylized spider on one side of the blade, and Sal's monogram on the other. That's it. Just a few simple, elegant blade markings.
Dislikes:
Fit and finish are high, but not as high as on similarly or lesser priced knives such as the Benchmade and Lone Wolf knives I have owned. The blade shows some scratches probably from manufacture or inspection. The grind on the sharpened edge is slightly irregular; it doesn't appear even when you look at the knife edge-on. There was also some scratching on the spine of the knife and some circular marring on the G10 out of the box. I also found that the rivets near the spine were unevenly pressed. All of which isn't enough to be upsetting, but enough to be annoying.
The base of the blade nearest the pivot is showing scratches from being opened and closed just a few times since it's been out of the box. I was aware of this issue before purchasing the Caly 3, and it still strikes me as a design flaw, and due to the "washerless" design.
The finger choil near the blade is more shallow that I thought it would be from the pictures. I don't feel this is a safety issue, more of an ergonomic or perceived one.
There are rivets where I would have preferred screws.
Closing Thoughts:
Overall, I'm impressed with the knife. I don't find it quite worthy of the $100.00 I paid for it, but that's partially because I'm used to getting knives like the Griptilian off eBay for around $60.00, and bought the Caly 3 relatively new because I "had to have it" before the resale price went down.
This is my first Spyderco, but it most definitely will not be my last!
***Edited to add Pics.*** Please note, these pics were taken to point out some irregularities with the knife, part of a dispute with the seller. I'm curious to know if these details are standard fit and finish irregularities, or if something else is going on, so I re-posted them here. Please don't take this as "bashing" Spyderco in any way, I still very much like the knife.
Slightly irregular grind:
Some scratching out of box:
Back spacer marring:
Another scratch out of box:
I'm curious to know if these are common on the Caly 3. There were a couple other scratches on the blade out of the box that I couldn't photograph.
Again, I love the knife, and if these are unusual irregularities I'd be hesitant to send it back and have to be without it! In fact, I think the quality and subtle design of the Caly 3comes through more than anything else in the above photos.
