- Joined
- Nov 23, 2014
- Messages
- 77
Perspective is everything.
First thing you need to realize when you read a review is the point of view from the person writing it. Many reviews are written by those who have handled hundreds to thousands of knives. This, on the other hand, is written by a knife-newb, and a guy who probably uses his knives for light-duty only.
I recently got into the world of knife collecting (watch collecting was my first love), and I find it a fascinating world that combines chemistry, aesthetics, engineering, and awesomeness. I came to it via knife sharpening, as I have always tried to get the most out of my kitchen knifes, and the desire to figure out why some knifes are able to sharpen up better than others. You can read how I got here through this post. Now that I have both the Dragonfly2 and the Leek, I can begin to contrast them from my perspective.
Most of the duties performed by these knifes are clamshell box opening, cardboard breakdown, and the like. For me, most of the review weight is given to aesthetics, comfort, build quality, and sharpness. Both these knifes are more than enough to handle the tasks I will hand to them. In addition, I also realize that Im comparing two samples of very high run knife models. Someone may have gotten a knife that is better or worse than the ones I have. However, as I said earlier, my perspective is entirely based on my experience with these two knifes.
From the get-go, I have found that the Kershaw is a slightly higher build quality. The blade is absolutely dead centre when closed, and there is no blade play up-down or side to side. The Spiderco has a little up-down, as well as being off centre when closed. It is barely perceptible, but it is definitely there. I can also feel a little rub on the handle materiel when I deploy via the Spyderhole left handed. The Kershaw also came slightly sharper out of the box, but honestly, this is a complete non-issue for me. I have a Sharpmaker (and extra-fine stones), and I really enjoy the act of sharpening a knife. The Leek was sharp enough that I didnt want to mess with the blade (yet), but I felt the Spiderco could use a touch-up. Dont get me wrong, they both were sharp, but I like to bring things to hair-popping razor sharpness. The VG10 steel delivered. After some careful sharpening, it is undoubtedly the sharpest blade I have yet handled. Extremely impressed, enough that I plan on working on the Leek when I get a chance to bring them back to even levels of sharpness.
I can tell that the Dragonfly2 could probably take more of a beating than the Leek. If I were to go hiking, I would probably bring the Spiderco with me, as the leaf-shaped blade would probably perform better for heavier tasks. In addition, I would be less concerned with denting or scraping the handle material. I also really like the D2s wire clip and extreme light-weight. That said, I love the extremely fine point of the Leek. It passes through plastic like it wasnt there. Great for opening boxes or packing material. In addition, the thing that seals the deal for the Leek being my EDC of choice is the Speedsafe assisted opening. It feels great to move the flipper and have the blade snap open. Extremely satisfying. Every. Single. Time. Which brings me to my next point: if I were traveling (I live right on the Canada-US border), I would bring the Dragonfly. I dont want to have to explain to a customs officer why a Speedsafe knife is not considered a switchblade. The letter of the law would be on my side, but that still wouldnt help me if it was to come under scrutiny. The Dragonfly2 wouldnt put me in that situation and is still by all accounts an awesome EDC knife. I actually bought two of them, and am going to give my cousin one for Christmas. I will be interested to see if his has the same blade play as mine. Before I boxed it up, I gave it the Sharpmaker magic, but I didnt check the blade play and I dont want to open it back up again now I have it cleaned and ready to wrap.
So there you go, my perspective one two great EDC knives. It may sound like Im down on the Dragonfly2, but Im really not. Its a fine blade, I just love the Leek a bit more. And Speedsafe is pretty dang fun. Now that Ive entered the knife world, the hard part is not going out and immediately buying something else. The Cryo II Blackwash is the current front runner, but I need to let the pocketbook cool a bit before my next purchase.
Thanks for reading!
First thing you need to realize when you read a review is the point of view from the person writing it. Many reviews are written by those who have handled hundreds to thousands of knives. This, on the other hand, is written by a knife-newb, and a guy who probably uses his knives for light-duty only.
I recently got into the world of knife collecting (watch collecting was my first love), and I find it a fascinating world that combines chemistry, aesthetics, engineering, and awesomeness. I came to it via knife sharpening, as I have always tried to get the most out of my kitchen knifes, and the desire to figure out why some knifes are able to sharpen up better than others. You can read how I got here through this post. Now that I have both the Dragonfly2 and the Leek, I can begin to contrast them from my perspective.


Most of the duties performed by these knifes are clamshell box opening, cardboard breakdown, and the like. For me, most of the review weight is given to aesthetics, comfort, build quality, and sharpness. Both these knifes are more than enough to handle the tasks I will hand to them. In addition, I also realize that Im comparing two samples of very high run knife models. Someone may have gotten a knife that is better or worse than the ones I have. However, as I said earlier, my perspective is entirely based on my experience with these two knifes.
From the get-go, I have found that the Kershaw is a slightly higher build quality. The blade is absolutely dead centre when closed, and there is no blade play up-down or side to side. The Spiderco has a little up-down, as well as being off centre when closed. It is barely perceptible, but it is definitely there. I can also feel a little rub on the handle materiel when I deploy via the Spyderhole left handed. The Kershaw also came slightly sharper out of the box, but honestly, this is a complete non-issue for me. I have a Sharpmaker (and extra-fine stones), and I really enjoy the act of sharpening a knife. The Leek was sharp enough that I didnt want to mess with the blade (yet), but I felt the Spiderco could use a touch-up. Dont get me wrong, they both were sharp, but I like to bring things to hair-popping razor sharpness. The VG10 steel delivered. After some careful sharpening, it is undoubtedly the sharpest blade I have yet handled. Extremely impressed, enough that I plan on working on the Leek when I get a chance to bring them back to even levels of sharpness.
I can tell that the Dragonfly2 could probably take more of a beating than the Leek. If I were to go hiking, I would probably bring the Spiderco with me, as the leaf-shaped blade would probably perform better for heavier tasks. In addition, I would be less concerned with denting or scraping the handle material. I also really like the D2s wire clip and extreme light-weight. That said, I love the extremely fine point of the Leek. It passes through plastic like it wasnt there. Great for opening boxes or packing material. In addition, the thing that seals the deal for the Leek being my EDC of choice is the Speedsafe assisted opening. It feels great to move the flipper and have the blade snap open. Extremely satisfying. Every. Single. Time. Which brings me to my next point: if I were traveling (I live right on the Canada-US border), I would bring the Dragonfly. I dont want to have to explain to a customs officer why a Speedsafe knife is not considered a switchblade. The letter of the law would be on my side, but that still wouldnt help me if it was to come under scrutiny. The Dragonfly2 wouldnt put me in that situation and is still by all accounts an awesome EDC knife. I actually bought two of them, and am going to give my cousin one for Christmas. I will be interested to see if his has the same blade play as mine. Before I boxed it up, I gave it the Sharpmaker magic, but I didnt check the blade play and I dont want to open it back up again now I have it cleaned and ready to wrap.
So there you go, my perspective one two great EDC knives. It may sound like Im down on the Dragonfly2, but Im really not. Its a fine blade, I just love the Leek a bit more. And Speedsafe is pretty dang fun. Now that Ive entered the knife world, the hard part is not going out and immediately buying something else. The Cryo II Blackwash is the current front runner, but I need to let the pocketbook cool a bit before my next purchase.
Thanks for reading!
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