- Joined
- Jun 29, 1999
- Messages
- 9,934
I’ve never been a real big fan of Spyderco, but while in Denver a week or so back I drove over to Golden and toured their Factory Outlet Store, which was fabulous. I spent just under an hour there, looking through their extensive exhibits, which include a counter full of Randall Knives!!! Just try ordering one from Randall if you don’t appreciate how rare that is. Spyderco features more steel types than any other manufacturer I can think of (you can download their steel chart and even the latest catalogue), as well as more types of blade locks and as many innovative designs as anyone.
I had a nice little Delica serrated blade for a time, often carried it while jogging. It disappeared somewhere, along with my jogging (due to a new hip) but it was a handy little knife although serrated isn’t my usual preference. Was never really attracted by other Spyderco folders as the hole, however ergonomic, just put me off. However, I have never heard of a Spyderco blade failing because of the hole, so I suppose it’s just me. I’m coming around, though.
What caught my eye was Spyderco’s Mule Team Series. I sort of knew about them. As Spyderco notes in its website, “In the knife industry a 'mule' is a sample knife used for performance testing. Spyderco's Mule Team Series takes this concept a step further by offering our customers the same fixed-blade knife pattern in many different steel variations, allowing steel-obsessed knife enthusiasts a unique opportunity to test and evaluate different steels using the same identical design platform. Mule Team blades are furnished without handles or sheaths and are also popular 'kit' blades for fledgling knifemakers and hobbyists.” Not to mention, serious knife nerds.
So I went for Spyderco's 23rd Mule Team blade, which features “CPM 20CV steel, a highly wear resistant, powder metallurgy stainless tool steel. CPM 20CV is unique in that it contains a high volume of vanadium carbides and the highest amount of chromium of any high-vanadium stainless steel currently available. This potent combination of elements gives it a remarkable combination of high wear resistance, superior corrosion resistance, good impact toughness, and excellent polishability. These properties are maximized by the powder metallurgy process, which ensures an extremely clean steel with small carbides and a very fine grain size.” It does have a small hole, but I can live with that.
CPM 20CV's alloy composition is: Carbon: 1.90%, Manganese: 0.30%, Silicon: 0.30%, Chromium: 20.0%, Tungsten: 0.60%, Molybdenum: 1.00%, and Vanadium: 4.00%.” it is almost identical to M390, except for a tiny difference in silicon (0.3 vs. 0.7%).
I also picked up a leather sheath for the Mule (Kydex was also available) and would have gotten the G-10 grips except they were out of stock. So, on the advice of some other Blade Forum members, I ordered a set from Halpern, who makes them for Spyderco, when I got home. They showed up today, only six days after ordering, which is pretty amazing considering they came via Canada Post, which still delivers by mule train. They included the mounting hardware, six tiny T8 screws and three posts, and fit perfectly. I had already waxed the sheath with SnowSeal, and the now-handled blade nestled right in, securely. The sheath is substantial, a good thing, because you do NOT want this little scalpel cutting through. It is absolutely the sharpest factory edge I have ever experienced, hair-topping sharp. Dandy little blade, and it’s going into my daypack when we hike, and a jacket pocket around town.
Tech stuff:
Overall Length 7.63" (194 mm)
Blade Length 3.50" (89 mm)
Steel CPM 20CV
Edge Length 3.40" (86 mm)
Weight 2.7 oz (77 g)
There is an excellent review in the Spyderco forum on the newest Mule, which comes in something called Maxamet, which features 10% cobalt and 6% vanadium. Worth the read.
Now I’m going out to do some whittling. Hopefully not myself.
I had a nice little Delica serrated blade for a time, often carried it while jogging. It disappeared somewhere, along with my jogging (due to a new hip) but it was a handy little knife although serrated isn’t my usual preference. Was never really attracted by other Spyderco folders as the hole, however ergonomic, just put me off. However, I have never heard of a Spyderco blade failing because of the hole, so I suppose it’s just me. I’m coming around, though.
What caught my eye was Spyderco’s Mule Team Series. I sort of knew about them. As Spyderco notes in its website, “In the knife industry a 'mule' is a sample knife used for performance testing. Spyderco's Mule Team Series takes this concept a step further by offering our customers the same fixed-blade knife pattern in many different steel variations, allowing steel-obsessed knife enthusiasts a unique opportunity to test and evaluate different steels using the same identical design platform. Mule Team blades are furnished without handles or sheaths and are also popular 'kit' blades for fledgling knifemakers and hobbyists.” Not to mention, serious knife nerds.
So I went for Spyderco's 23rd Mule Team blade, which features “CPM 20CV steel, a highly wear resistant, powder metallurgy stainless tool steel. CPM 20CV is unique in that it contains a high volume of vanadium carbides and the highest amount of chromium of any high-vanadium stainless steel currently available. This potent combination of elements gives it a remarkable combination of high wear resistance, superior corrosion resistance, good impact toughness, and excellent polishability. These properties are maximized by the powder metallurgy process, which ensures an extremely clean steel with small carbides and a very fine grain size.” It does have a small hole, but I can live with that.
CPM 20CV's alloy composition is: Carbon: 1.90%, Manganese: 0.30%, Silicon: 0.30%, Chromium: 20.0%, Tungsten: 0.60%, Molybdenum: 1.00%, and Vanadium: 4.00%.” it is almost identical to M390, except for a tiny difference in silicon (0.3 vs. 0.7%).
I also picked up a leather sheath for the Mule (Kydex was also available) and would have gotten the G-10 grips except they were out of stock. So, on the advice of some other Blade Forum members, I ordered a set from Halpern, who makes them for Spyderco, when I got home. They showed up today, only six days after ordering, which is pretty amazing considering they came via Canada Post, which still delivers by mule train. They included the mounting hardware, six tiny T8 screws and three posts, and fit perfectly. I had already waxed the sheath with SnowSeal, and the now-handled blade nestled right in, securely. The sheath is substantial, a good thing, because you do NOT want this little scalpel cutting through. It is absolutely the sharpest factory edge I have ever experienced, hair-topping sharp. Dandy little blade, and it’s going into my daypack when we hike, and a jacket pocket around town.
Tech stuff:
Overall Length 7.63" (194 mm)
Blade Length 3.50" (89 mm)
Steel CPM 20CV
Edge Length 3.40" (86 mm)
Weight 2.7 oz (77 g)
There is an excellent review in the Spyderco forum on the newest Mule, which comes in something called Maxamet, which features 10% cobalt and 6% vanadium. Worth the read.
Now I’m going out to do some whittling. Hopefully not myself.
