Spyderco for EDC - which edge?

philthygeezer

philthygeezer

Joined
Aug 6, 2002
Messages
746
I am looking into getting a Spyderco for EDC. Which edge should I get?? For general purpose use am I best off with a combo plain/serrated edge? Perhaps serrated only or plain only? It will do everything from cutting bread and cardboard to rope and wood. Perhaps even the odd piece of electrical wire.

Please comment on your preferences if you have used all three types of edges as general purpose blades.
 
First--Welcome to the Forums!

I would tend to go with a plain edge for EDC. I think you'll get much more general, overall use out of a plain edge and it's easy to keep sharp. You can always pick up a serrated edge if you need the more specialized cutting abilities of that type of blade.

Good luck with your choice.:)
 
I find serrations great for some types of cutting, bread, rope, etc, but prefer a plain edge for everyday carry for when I do need to make a cleaner cut or whittle. I find combination edges the worst as you end up with too little blade of either type, while others think it is the best of both worlds.
 
Philthygeezer,
For general purpose, only carrying one knife, I say a combo-edge. Every now and then those serrations come in handy. Now days I carry all plain edge, except for my Endura SE. :)


Blades
 
Thanks for your welcome.

I stumbled onto this site a few days ago. I cannot believe how amazingly comprehensive this site is! I think that Cold Steel should join in if they want to keep their credibility. :D They distance themselves from their customers to their own peril.

I am also awestruck by the sense of community between the enthusiasts and the manufacturers here. I have learned more about knives in the the last two days than I would have ever thought possible.

Thanks to the powers that created this site!

Oh and HELLO EVERYONE!:)
 
PG,
I forgot to say welcome to Bladeforums!!

James,
That was weird. We both posted at 9:05, we both been here since Oct 1998...interesting.

:eek:


Blades
 
How about the Spydie Dyad? That would give you BOTH a full plain edge AND a fully serrated edge.:).
 
If I'm carrying one knife then it's a plain edge. Usually it's an SAK and the second knife is a serrated Spyderco Military.
 
Hi and welcome.Most here seem to like plain edge.I Like plain and 50/50 when done right,which to me is on a larger blade(4 inches or so)and maybe more like 60/40.

Not bad you got two hot topics in one post.Thats is combo edges and Where is Cold Steel?:D
 
Welcome to the forums Geez,
For the materials you listed, a serrated edge would generally work best for bread, cardboard and rope.
A plain edge is better for working with things like wood and wire.
I prefer a plain edge for EDC, but I sometimes carry a fully serrated knife. I don't much like combo edges, although many people do.
Check out Joe Talmadge's excellent article on plain vs serrated edges: http://www.bladeforums.com/features/faqser-plain.shtml
 
Welcome to the BladeForums, philthygeezer!:)

The PlainEdge is best, IMO, for EDC for a wider variety of uses(slicing food, general cutting, etc.). I have found that a SHARP PlainEdge can cut as well as the SpyderEdge, unless you are doing some REAL aggressive cutting.

If you can't compromise between edge types, you could just carry two Spydies, one plain and one fully serrated. (I tend to carry my Military in PlainEdge, and my Endura with the full SpyderEdge for work, as this works best for me.)

Although I have Spydies with all three edge types, I tend to stick to what works best for me...the PlainEdge. :D

Good Luck.
 
I have a combo edge Endura, and I believe that a full Plain edge would serve me much better.
I don't think serrations would generally help cutting cardboard, however I've encountered some very tough cardboard before.
Unless you're cutting rope or really tough cutting, plain edge would be more than fine from Spyderco
 
Originally posted by philthygeezer
Perhaps even the odd piece of electrical wire.
Click to expand...

Just tried that last week. Busted 2 of the smaller serration tips off.

Go plain edge.

PS....Welcome aboard.
 
Welcome to the Forums Philthygeezer!
Check out that link Frank K posted to Joe Talmadge's edge essay. Joe is pretty concise in his writings and they are always informative.

BTW, I like plain edges unless I'm cutting a loaf of bread.:)

All the best,
Mike U.
 
Here's what I do sometimes, maybe it'll work for you:

My main EDC knife is plain edge. As a minimum, I always have one fully plain edge blade, just because there're things you can do with one (scraping, whittling, etc) that a serrated blade just can't do, or can't do nearly as well.

In addition, I keep a small serrated blade (look at a Spyderco Ladybug II -- it's a LOT tougher then I thought it would be) to cut cord and cardboard. Fits just fine in the watch pocket of my jeans (I don't really have a keyring, but if you do, that'd work too.)

I think it's a great combination. All of the advantages of a combo-edge without the disadvantages, as far as I can tell. Also allows you to have a large knife for serious use and a small knife for use around easily frightened folks, if that matters to you.
 
The only plain edge knives I have are the Scallion and the Delica; the rest are combo. To me, the serrated portion of the blade seems sharper for some reason, even though the plain edge is hella sharp already. On bigger folders like the BM 710 I have, it doesn't really matter because there's probably more than enough unserrated edge for me to work with anyway. I'd say it depends on what you're going to use the knife for. For my general EDC, I try to carry a plain edge and combo so I have the best of both worlds.
 
My first knife was an Endura and it was a combo. At first I liked the 50/50 but then later wished that I got it in PE instead.

Even for cutting things like wire, wood and going through boxes I still prefer the PE. It's easier to maintain...even little obscurities in the edge come out with a little care but with a serrated knife you might spend hours and hours trying to get the original condition back.

I've used all three and the PE works best for me. My EDC right now is a 60/40 AFCK and I never use the serrations on them. They're just a waste on my knife.
 
Welcome to BFC.
Yeah, for EDC, plain edge would be better because as a EDC, it'll be used the most so you want it to be easily sharpened. Serrated knives and combo is also good but for EDC, I like PE. Serrated knife is great when camping where you have to cut a lot of rope.
 
Plain edge can cut cardboard, rope, and bread, if you plan to cut these kind of materials often then you should get a full dedicated serrated edge knife, otherwise plain edge is MUCH easier to maintain.
 
I like knives in all three formats: PE, SE, and combo.
It depends on the knife what format I want. For some reason I seem to prefer the Endura in all-serrated. I'm split on the Delica. I have the Police model in all three edge styles and like them all, but my current everyday carry is the SS Police with combo edge and SS handle/VG-10 blade. The blade is long enough that the 60% PE and 40% SE is enough for all-around versatility. For fully PE I always carry at least one Swiss Army knife, and also keep a Benchmade 550 Griptilian in my fanny pack. I own a Military and it's fully PE.

I used to be very anti-serrations, but I found that they can be very useful and not as limiting as I once thought. But of course not everybody likes them. It all depends on what types of cutting you are expecting to do. IMO the serrations are not much harder to maintain than a PE if you don't let them become actually dull, and you have the Spyderco 204 Sharpmaker.

BTW, Cold Steel did have a site on Bladeforums a few years ago, but it came and went very quickly.
Jim
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top