Spyderco Military vs. Benchmade Griptilian

new graham had the SE police 3 for $109 before they updated their website, im sure glad i got one.
 
I have several observations.. I hope I dont miss any.

- It's nice to see a young teen member here who sounds responsible, willing to ask and learn, and who doesnt troll for once. Kudos bro.

- If you have the $ go Military, however for what you plan to do with it, you could get more than by with an Endura 4, then have some left over to get a nice fixed blade, multi tool, or another folder. Also, I think you should go Military over Police. The blade on the police is too thin for my tastes. I like to know my blade is thick enough to really get abused. I also agree with some others that unless you are the worlds largest handed 14 year old, you might look even closer at an Endura. My hands are big, and the Military has a good 1/4 inch that sticks out the bottom of my hand.

- Dont let the minor blade play in lockbacks affect your decision on not buying one. All of my spyderco, BM, and Buck lockbacks have minor verticle blade play, but they dont wobble, or rattle, or disengage at all. Some of yall are just too darn paranoid. I feel just as safe with a spderco lockback than any Axis locked BM.

- Don't knock the Tenacious, or any of spyderco's Byrd line. Sal Glesser has chosen a fantastic Chinese manufacturer to build these knives and they are very high quality for the price you pay. Most (myself included) will tell you that the Tenacious, or any Byrd is worth a lot more than what they payed. You just wont know how high quality a Tenacious is until you get one. (I myself had to find out that way).

- My dad was also the "why do you need another" type. Good luck with that... my dad cracked after I bought my 4th gun. Once I gave him a good explanation as to why this one was different or what it could be used for that the others couldn't, he gave in.

- Again, dont let high quality manufacturer's liner locks scare you. I have several and none of them have failed me. Even the $35 tenacious has never given in, and I spine whacked the piss out of it.

I hope I didnt miss anything. Sounds like whatever you choose will work for you.
 
 
Consider this...

Which would you choose if all of the candidates had the same locking mechanism?

In other words...
You're buying the "knife", not buying the "lock".

And while it's true that certain locks are slightly stronger, or slightly more reliable than other locks, all of the candidates have well proven track records in both departments.

I like the Military, the Para-Military, and the Police 3 more than I like the Griptilian.
And of the three Spyderco folders, I think the Para-Military probably has the best locking mechanism.

Having said that, I would probably choose the Military.
 
well, let's put it this way: I currently own 4 millies (D2, S90V, BG42, S30V), have #5 on the way (digi camo w/ black blade) and #6 on pre-order
had 2 griptilians and sold/traded both

still, the grip is not so bad a knife for your first purchase, gives you a little taste of the axis functionality at a very good price, plus you won't have to worry about breaking the ultra fine tip
 
Josh K said:
Personally, I don't love the AXIS lock like some do. Plenty of spring failures...
Click to expand...

I have carried an Axis Lock nearly every day for about eight years and have never had a spring break. I carry an Axis Lock safe in the knowledge that, in the event of a spring breaking, the other spring will keep the knife functional and safe until I have a chance to return it to Benchmade, who will fix my knife for free. While it is away I will carry one of my other 30 Axis Lock knives.

Josh K said:
...and you can't take your knife apart. :thumbdn:
Click to expand...

..unless you have T10 and T6 Torx drivers, and a toothpick. :thumbup:
 
allenC said:
Consider this...

Which would you choose if all of the candidates had the same locking mechanism?

In other words...
You're buying the "knife", not buying the "lock".
Click to expand...

my only problem about the different types of locks is that i am trying to find the most blade-play-resistant one
 
I have never discounted any folding knife that I would buy as an enthusiast (spelled someone who knows a little bit about knives) because of it's locking mechanism. As an EDC goes, I hope I'm never in a situation where I need to use a folding knife hard enough to fail the liner lock on a world class folder.

I am fully capable of identifying which locks I think are the strongest and I also know which locks I like. And when I force myself to confess what locks those are I always seem to say all of them . . .

I may be shot by some here for saying this but the fact is, I like a liner lock on a good or really good knife. I like how they work one handed and I like the fact that I can see everything about them that matters when I inspect one. If a liner lock had one category that it is a winner in, it is the ability to see and inspect all the vital components of the lock on a daily basis. Hell, you can even see how it is wearing at a glance. That goes a long way toward my peace of mind when it comes to readiness. Same goes for a frame lock, of course . . .

I have 1-3 FB knives within daily reach of me anyway. Truck, BOB, carry sometimes.

P.S. I should add that there is one thing I DON'T like about the Axis lock and that's the way the detent works. I feel like it starts too late while opening or starts to early when closing. I don't like the snap that is has and where it is, for some reason . . . It makes me feel like I need to move my fingers out of the way fast when I close one, one handed.
 
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Am i the only one who has skin pealed/ripped off from the spyderco round thumb hole? got my first spyderco 3 days ago and its killing me. i love my mini grip thumb stud so much more!
this thing is so sharp i cut my finger twice today lol
 
they are too different to compare...but the millie is much much nicer. of the two definitely definitely the mil
 
I'm going to talk with my dad this weekend (he works/lives out of state during the week) about knives. I'll see what he says.

Current list (in order of preference):
1. Military
2. Endura 4 waved (if military too expensive)
3. Pacific Salt (my bro might be getting the waved endura, and I don't want the whole "oh, you got the same one, how cute" business with relatives. It's actually not that bad, but you know what I mean. Or maybe you don't. Oh well. We have a lot of the same stuff already.)
 
SchneiderMan said:
Am i the only one who has skin pealed/ripped off from the spyderco round thumb hole? got my first spyderco 3 days ago and its killing me. i love my mini grip thumb stud so much more!
this thing is so sharp i cut my finger twice today lol
Click to expand...

Probably. :rolleyes: Never had a problem with those holes.
 
I've been thinking - I don't want to get something that's so expensive that I wouldn't want to use for fear of losing it. I also don't want something that is so expensive that I wouldn't want to use it for fear of harming it.

For me, since I do not have a regular job, $105-125 is a big chunk o' money that cannot be quickly or easily replaced. I'm also tending to think that I wouldn't be needing $120 worth of knife for the amount of use I would be able to require of it. I might be shifting my focus onto something less expensive, something I wouldn't be afraid of losing (well, not as much), something I wouldn't be afraid of using. The military is a great knife, along with the paramilitary and the police models. The 710 also seems to be wonderful as well. But I think that I don't need that much knife for the uses planned. If I wanted to get a keepsake to hand down to my children or something, I wouldn't be looking in the sub $200 range. If I needed a beast that could survive through Armageddon, I would get the military or one of its cousins. But for me, all I need is a good, quality knife that isn't so dear (to me and to my wallet) that I can't boldly use it on camping trips or for EDC or for cleaning up the flower border.

I think I will be considering:

1. Any Endura, mainly the waved model
2. The Pacific Salt, for its cool yellow handle :D and rustproof steel
3. I am open for suggestions! Anything with a 3+ in. blade, solid lockup, quality materials, and is less than $100 dollars (preferably less than $80)

Thanks guys for guiding me to a good choice, even though it wasn't really what it started out being.

Cheers, and good night :)
 
Both Great Knives..
Grip is tougher though...and cheaper....
The military has a cleaner feeling.. and is way different..
Not much of a comparison...
 
onecalledjimbo said:
I've been thinking - I don't want to get something that's so expensive that I wouldn't want to use for fear of losing it. I also don't want something that is so expensive that I wouldn't want to use it for fear of harming it.

For me, since I do not have a regular job, $105-125 is a big chunk o' money that cannot be quickly or easily replaced. I'm also tending to think that I wouldn't be needing $120 worth of knife for the amount of use I would be able to require of it. I might be shifting my focus onto something less expensive, something I wouldn't be afraid of losing (well, not as much), something I wouldn't be afraid of using. The military is a great knife, along with the paramilitary and the police models. The 710 also seems to be wonderful as well. But I think that I don't need that much knife for the uses planned. If I wanted to get a keepsake to hand down to my children or something, I wouldn't be looking in the sub $200 range. If I needed a beast that could survive through Armageddon, I would get the military or one of its cousins. But for me, all I need is a good, quality knife that isn't so dear (to me and to my wallet) that I can't boldly use it on camping trips or for EDC or for cleaning up the flower border.

I think I will be considering:

1. Any Endura, mainly the waved model
2. The Pacific Salt, for its cool yellow handle :D and rustproof steel
3. I am open for suggestions! Anything with a 3+ in. blade, solid lockup, quality materials, and is less than $100 dollars (preferably less than $80)

Thanks guys for guiding me to a good choice, even though it wasn't really what it started out being.

Cheers, and good night :)
Click to expand...

How about the Tenacious then?
 
onecalledjimbo said:
I've been thinking - I don't want to get something that's so expensive that I wouldn't want to use for fear of losing it. I also don't want something that is so expensive that I wouldn't want to use it for fear of harming it.

For me, since I do not have a regular job, $105-125 is a big chunk o' money that cannot be quickly or easily replaced. I'm also tending to think that I wouldn't be needing $120 worth of knife for the amount of use I would be able to require of it. I might be shifting my focus onto something less expensive, something I wouldn't be afraid of losing (well, not as much), something I wouldn't be afraid of using. The military is a great knife, along with the paramilitary and the police models. The 710 also seems to be wonderful as well. But I think that I don't need that much knife for the uses planned. If I wanted to get a keepsake to hand down to my children or something, I wouldn't be looking in the sub $200 range. If I needed a beast that could survive through Armageddon, I would get the military or one of its cousins. But for me, all I need is a good, quality knife that isn't so dear (to me and to my wallet) that I can't boldly use it on camping trips or for EDC or for cleaning up the flower border.

I think I will be considering:

1. Any Endura, mainly the waved model
2. The Pacific Salt, for its cool yellow handle :D and rustproof steel
3. I am open for suggestions! Anything with a 3+ in. blade, solid lockup, quality materials, and is less than $100 dollars (preferably less than $80)

Thanks guys for guiding me to a good choice, even though it wasn't really what it started out being.

Cheers, and good night :)
Click to expand...

You're starting to sound like an Endura or Tenacious would fit the bill. :thumbup:
 
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