Spyderco Caly3 CF/ZDP-189 or Stretch CF/ZDP-189?

O

Outdoors Fanatic

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Sep 6, 2007
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Which one is better as a general purpose/camping/kitchen/light duty tasks at home folder? Price or size and weight don't matter.

Thanks in advance.
 
I much prefer the Stretch pattern. I have an older Caly Jr., and while it's a great small EDC knife, the Stretch is head and shoulders above it for the uses you listed. The bigger size, blade shape, and fuller sized handle all make it a much nicer knife. My FRN Stretch gets used daily, the Caly gets used occasionally.
 
Both!
One thing I would emphasize is that the cutting geometry of the Caly3 is about the best I've seen of any production knife. If you want a thin edge out of the box, a slicing demon, the Caly3 may be the one for you.
Aesthetically I don't like how the Caly3 scratches easily due to the laminated blade.
Carbon fiber on Caly3 has a smooth finish that is easy on the pockets.
Stretch carbon fiber has a rough texture that provides a lot of grip.
 
Hard to go wrong with either. FWIW, I sold my CF Stretch and FRN Stretch, but kept my CF Caly3. Just fits my hand better. Plus, I like the low-rider wire clip.
 
Stretch gives you a bit over 1/2" more cutting edge, has a larger Spyderhole, provides the option of tip down carrry, has a more hand filling handle, and its peel ply CF provides more grip than the Caly 3's matte. Caly 3 is more compact, lighter, and rides lower in the pocket. In fact, it's almost invisible when ciipped. Solid ZDP blade on the Stretch is more scratch resistant but may not be as "tough" as the Caly 3's laminated blade. Some folks find the lamination line on the Caly 3 attractive, some don't. Stretch's narrow blade allows it to follow curves more easily when cutting thick material so, for example, it might be better than the Caly 3 for carving pumpkins. Stretch can be fully disassembled, Caly 3 cannot. Both blades are the same thickness, both are full flat ground, but the Caly 3 does appear to be a bit thinner behind the edge, which give it a slight performance advantage. It also has a more acute tip, so it makes a better splinter picker, but is also easier to damage.

Honest answer is, you can't go wrong either way, they are both excellent knives in their own ways. Which is better for you is a matter of taste, and use. I prefer the longer, narrower, blade of the Stretch.

Paul
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I have not had a ZDP Caly, but have had a couple of the VG-10 ones. I have had a CF Stretch 2 ZDP.

I just didn't warm up to the Stretch for whatever reason. I just felt there were other largish knives that felt better to me.

For a small folder, I think the Caly 3 design is great.

For around the house & light duties, I think the Caly 3 would be better. It's lighter (Despite you saying that isn't an issue, it usually is), has the wire clip & is just a handy little knife.

For heavier duty &/or camping chores, if you're not going to use a FB, the Stretch, I would think, is better. The blade shape & length just lends itself better for that. Also, while others might disagree, for strictly edge holding, I prefer the solid ZDP blades to the laminated ones.
 
Cranberry Lum is my grail!!! I have never seen one for sale, and I am not even sure if they are a production knife or a prototype, but it is the only Spyderco Lum I dont own. Any body got a spare???
 
I find the Stretch 2 CF a little narrow in handle thickness for my taste. I still have one, but I parted with my back up of the Stretch 2 CF. I recently acquired a second Caly3 CF that I have been carrying quite a bit! It is a user that has spent some time with Tom Krein for regrinding. As far as I can tell, I'm the third owner.

Both are excellent, but I seem to favor the Caly3 in CF. I'm hoping to get an FRN Stretch 2 as soon as I can.
 
Thanks for all the imput! I ended up buying a Caly 3 VG-10/G10 and a Stretch FRN as beaters. Dependind on how things turn out, I'm gonna invest on their high-end Carbon Fiber versions later...

Cheers.
 
CL01 said:
Also, while others might disagree, for strictly edge holding, I prefer the solid ZDP blades to the laminated ones.
Click to expand...

Care to elaborate?

I would think that since the sharpened edge is ZDP on both that the edge retention should be the same? Or are you saying they have a different heat treat and behave differently? Just wondering!
 
Outdoors Fanatic said:
Thanks for all the imput! I ended up buying a Caly 3 VG-10/G10 and a Stretch FRN as beaters. Dependind on how things turn out, I'm gonna invest on their high-end Carbon Fiber versions later...

Cheers.
Click to expand...

Excellent plan. Only note I'd add is that while I love the blade in the CF/ZDP Caly3, I am not wild about the smooth CF grips. YMMV.
 
FlaMtnBkr said:
Care to elaborate?

I would think that since the sharpened edge is ZDP on both that the edge retention should be the same? Or are you saying they have a different heat treat and behave differently? Just wondering!
Click to expand...

I don't know the why. There was a discussion about ZDP-189 & laminated versions of it in the General section a while back. What I noticed (& apparently some others) was that the solid ZDP blades just seemed to hold their edge better & when sharpening, seemed to take longer to do so (Using the exact same diamond stones, etc).

Maybe it's psychological (Although as I said, others experienced the same thing) or possibly the heat treat or the type of blade grind, I honestly don't know.
 
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