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Spyderco Military Mini-Review
Black & Orange Spyderco Military Folders
Introduction
I received a black Spyderco Military as part of a passaround here. Thank you to Sal Glesser and the fine folks at Spyderco for making the knife available and for BladeForums member JH for coordinating the pass-around.
The Military might be Spyderco’s most iconic folder. It has been my go-to tool for cooking on the grill for years and I’m happy to finally give it a review. My Military has orange G10 scales and an uncoated blade. The passaround version (C36GBK) has black G10 scales and a matte black DLC blade. The MSRP is $269.95 and our favorite online retailers sell it for about $172.
The Military is available in plain edge or a combination edge (partially serrated.) The blade steel is CPM S30V. The current lineup includes Digicam G10 and Titanium models, as well. All Spyderco Military knives are made in Golden Colorado.
Size
The Military is one of the longest knives Spyderco has ever made. It has a 4” blade and a 5.5” handle. At 4.2 oz., however, it is remarkably light for its size -- about half the weight of a Zero Tolerance 301. That is because Spyderco designed it for soldiers on the march, using G10 with nested liners and a liner lock to reduce weight.
In Use
Despite having owned a Military for nearly 10 years, I don’t carry it that much. Although it is light, it is too big for easy pocket carry and I’m concerned about scaring onlookers if I use it in public. Before I bought some nice Shun Classics, the Military was my preferred kitchen knife. It is a terrific slicer with the length you need for food prep and the long, curved handle is arguably more ergonomic than the one on the Shuns. Now, however, I just use my Military for cooking on my outdoor grill.
For everyday carry, I tend to reach for my Spyderco Paramilitary instead -- similar light weight, world class ergonomics, and lots of slicing power, but in a smaller package.
The Spyderco Endura is another alternative. In fact, one of the timeless debates on BladeForums involves the Endura vs. the Military. The Military is the better slicer with better ergos, the Endura is the thicker-tipped more utilitarian blade.
Military vs. Pineapple
The Black Blade
The passaround Military has a matte black DLC coating. It takes a knife that already looks intimidating and raises it a notch to downright scary. I’m not a fan of coated knives -- S30V is already very rust resistant and the matte surface tends to drag a little when cutting -- but the DLC has proven to be very durable. I have an DLC Endura and the only wear I’ve seen is where I abraded the coating off when sharpening with a stone.
Conclusions
I have owned a Military for many years while over 100 other knives have come and gone. Why? Because the Military is a unique and special knife -- it incorporates all the things the folks at Spyderco have learned about making highly ergonomic, highly utilitarian tools in the years that they have been making knives. It opens smooth as “buttah” and the liner lock is much stronger than its looks. The flat ground blade slices like crazy and the extra length of the 4" blade makes it very useful. The Military is on my short list of “must have” knives.
Thank you again to Sal Glesser and the folks at Spyderco, plus BladeForums and JH. for putting the pass-around together.
Sprint Run in Earth Brown G10 with CTX-SHP Steel
Black & Orange Spyderco Military Folders
Introduction
I received a black Spyderco Military as part of a passaround here. Thank you to Sal Glesser and the fine folks at Spyderco for making the knife available and for BladeForums member JH for coordinating the pass-around.
The Military might be Spyderco’s most iconic folder. It has been my go-to tool for cooking on the grill for years and I’m happy to finally give it a review. My Military has orange G10 scales and an uncoated blade. The passaround version (C36GBK) has black G10 scales and a matte black DLC blade. The MSRP is $269.95 and our favorite online retailers sell it for about $172.
The Military is available in plain edge or a combination edge (partially serrated.) The blade steel is CPM S30V. The current lineup includes Digicam G10 and Titanium models, as well. All Spyderco Military knives are made in Golden Colorado.
Size
The Military is one of the longest knives Spyderco has ever made. It has a 4” blade and a 5.5” handle. At 4.2 oz., however, it is remarkably light for its size -- about half the weight of a Zero Tolerance 301. That is because Spyderco designed it for soldiers on the march, using G10 with nested liners and a liner lock to reduce weight.
In Use
Despite having owned a Military for nearly 10 years, I don’t carry it that much. Although it is light, it is too big for easy pocket carry and I’m concerned about scaring onlookers if I use it in public. Before I bought some nice Shun Classics, the Military was my preferred kitchen knife. It is a terrific slicer with the length you need for food prep and the long, curved handle is arguably more ergonomic than the one on the Shuns. Now, however, I just use my Military for cooking on my outdoor grill.
For everyday carry, I tend to reach for my Spyderco Paramilitary instead -- similar light weight, world class ergonomics, and lots of slicing power, but in a smaller package.
The Spyderco Endura is another alternative. In fact, one of the timeless debates on BladeForums involves the Endura vs. the Military. The Military is the better slicer with better ergos, the Endura is the thicker-tipped more utilitarian blade.
Military vs. Pineapple
The Black Blade
The passaround Military has a matte black DLC coating. It takes a knife that already looks intimidating and raises it a notch to downright scary. I’m not a fan of coated knives -- S30V is already very rust resistant and the matte surface tends to drag a little when cutting -- but the DLC has proven to be very durable. I have an DLC Endura and the only wear I’ve seen is where I abraded the coating off when sharpening with a stone.
Conclusions
I have owned a Military for many years while over 100 other knives have come and gone. Why? Because the Military is a unique and special knife -- it incorporates all the things the folks at Spyderco have learned about making highly ergonomic, highly utilitarian tools in the years that they have been making knives. It opens smooth as “buttah” and the liner lock is much stronger than its looks. The flat ground blade slices like crazy and the extra length of the 4" blade makes it very useful. The Military is on my short list of “must have” knives.
Thank you again to Sal Glesser and the folks at Spyderco, plus BladeForums and JH. for putting the pass-around together.
Sprint Run in Earth Brown G10 with CTX-SHP Steel
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