OK, time for my Mouse story!
I was in Utica Square in Tulsa, OK. That's a very upscale outdoor shopping area. I was just walking around with my sister looking in windows. We were walking past one story that was a "bed and bath" store. I barely glanced at it and was moving on. My sister said, "hey, they've got Spyderco's in there." I looked and in one small window was a multiple display case setup. This in a story that sells towels! I look in, expected nothing much, and the world stopped spinning. There had a couple dozen knives in there and many of them were very hard to find models. We went in!
They had even more behind the counter up front. I asked to see the Bob Lum Tanto that was in the case. It was the first one I had ever held. Then we went to look in the front window. I played with a Civilian ($205) and a SpyderRench. There were Shabarias. There was a Blue Native. As I expected, all the prices were high. I finally asked why they were selling these. The woman behind the counter said her son had gotten interested in them and convinced her to sell some. She laughed and said some days the Spyderco sales were all that kept them in business. She said they were the biggest Spyderco dealer in Oklahoma! The daughter was there as well and she said that they had recently become Spyderco Collector's Club members. That's why many of the rarer knives had the number 66 on them. I asked them why they were selling those (with head still spinning) and she shrugged and said that they kept the ones they really liked but sold most of them. I was just sad that prices were so much higher than I wanted to pay; I'm more of a user than a collector.
That's when I saw they had a Mouse. I hadn't held one before so I reached in and snagged it. Then I saw the price on the blade: $64. And it was the numbered version. I asked the daughter about five times if she was really going to sell this numbered mouse to me for that price. She thought about it a few times but she did it! So I didn't exactly shoplift it but it felt like it!!
It's a great little knife. I've had it for three or four weeks now. It is a far superior knife to a Cricket. Very solidly built. Incredibly sharp VG-10 blade with a deep hollow grind blade. The hole is bigger than on my full size Wegner! It would be a great all around carry knife for city people or for people who go on airplanes. I want to try putting a leather "tail" on it like somebody else on the forum did. It really does fit comfortably in the little "watch pocket" on a pair of jeans.
We all get a great deal every now and then! Now if I can talk them out of their Lum Chinese when it comes in!
Gregg