Spyderco m4 steel: Golden, CO vs Taichung, TW?

[TennToadsticker]

I'm curious if anyone knows anything about how Spyderco's m4 steel produced in Golden (Manix 2, Mili, Mule Team) stacks up against that made in Taichung (Gayle Bradley). I wonder if there is any variation in HT or performance. Thanks for any information and insight you can provide.

 

[res1cue]

Take this with a grain of salt, but I am pretty sure since M4 is made by CPM (an American company), both will be HT in the US. I assume this means the taiwan made knives just includes handle/clip, and final assembly is in US? It would make no sense to take a US blade and across the world to attach a handle to and then ship it back

 

[kreole]

Take this with a grain of salt, but I am pretty sure since M4 is made by CPM (an American company), both will be HT in the US. I assume this means the taiwan made knives just includes handle/clip, and final assembly is in US? It would make no sense to take a US blade and across the world to attach a handle to and then ship it back

No, all assembly is done in Taiwan, and Sal has said a few times now they send the steel over

 

[res1cue]

No, all assembly is done in Taiwan, and Sal has said a few times now they send the steel over

I stand corrected then. Sounds inefficient to me, but I would have no idea of the logistics behind it

 

[marthinus]

Link to the same thread in the Spyderco forum:

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/947374-Spyderco-m4-steel-Golden-CO-vs-Taichung-TW

 

[CrimsonTideShooter]

Take this with a grain of salt, but I am pretty sure since M4 is made by CPM (an American company), both will be HT in the US. I assume this means the taiwan made knives just includes handle/clip, and final assembly is in US? It would make no sense to take a US blade and across the world to attach a handle to and then ship it back

If that were the case then the laser etching on the blade wouldn't be any different than the etching on the Golden models, which it is. Taiwan has their own etching method, and you can easily tell the difference.