Spyderco QC Issues?

[loonybin]

I agree with that, I have had terrible QC with Spyderco models though so maybe I'm just biased.

I am surprised that Spyderco has terrible QC. I am a Benchmaniac through and through, but the two Spydercos that I used to own (a Taiwan-made Tenacious and a Manix2) were near flawless in quality.

All my knives are safe queens. I just like to look at them.

But seriously, one of the only things I'm obsessive about is asymmetry. It drives me nuts.

There is therapy for OCD, you know...

On a production knife, you will be lucky to get perfectly symmetrical grinds. It's a production knife, and an inexpensive one at that. Just use it, get it scratched up, and you won't notice the grind lines (just scratch it symmetrically).

 

[amflud]

Question: if you don't use them, and just like to look at them, what do you use to cut things with?

From my experience, most people that don't carry their own knives usually get other people to cut things with their knives.

 

[SaintZe]

I am surprised that Spyderco has terrible QC. I am a Benchmaniac through and through, but the two Spydercos that I used to own (a Taiwan-made Tenacious and a Manix2) were near flawless in quality.

My Ritter mini-grip's blade grind is so off-center the base of the blade was contoured outwards. Thus, Benchmade must have terrible QC.

Anecdotal evidence is exactly that- anecdotal.

 

[RedLynx]

My Ritter mini-grip's blade grind is so off-center the base of the blade was contoured outwards. Thus, Benchmade must have terrible QC.

Anecdotal evidence is exactly that- anecdotal.

He wasn't bashing Spyderco by any means dude, no need to go ragging on his favorite brand there. This whole thread is made up of anecdotal evidence. If y'ain't got it in some capacity, might as well skip this one altogether.

 

[harronek]

I just got a Delica Titanium Damascus today and even though I think I'm going to love this knife , I'm actually very disappointed with the lack of finishing touches that I thought would come with a knife that is touted as being at the higher end of the Delica models .
I think it was the grittiest - roughest feeling new knife I have ever opened , I'm not one to complain easily , but this was seriously bad .
I bought a Byrd Medowlark recently while I waited for this Delica to arrive , it is ten times smoother than the Delica .
Instead of playing with my new toy I spent the first two hours trying to get it to a state that I'm vaguely happy with .
Adjusting , cleaning , blowing out with compressed air , removing rough burrs on the Titanium scales , lubricating and just opening and closing it again and again and again has helped some .
I'm confident that it will smooth out in time , but it has taken away some of the " excitement " of a new knife purchase .

Ken

 

[knives_in_nature]

My Ritter mini-grip's blade grind is so off-center the base of the blade was contoured outwards. Thus, Benchmade must have terrible QC.

Anecdotal evidence is exactly that- anecdotal.

All I was saying was from my experience. From the grinds, to the finishing on the handles my Spydercos have been sub par. Smoothness on my manix 2 and paramilitary 2 is awful as well. I've only had 4 Spydercos but all have had problems and only one came sharp out of box. Do they manufacture the Ritter Grips blade's at the Benchmade facility?

 

[Fanglekai]

Here's the uneven grind on my Gayle Bradley

Where the arrow is you can see the grind dips downward instead of remaining straight across the blade

Here you see that the blade is not symmetrical either. Look at the grind lines on both sides of the blade. The left side in the picture is steeper than the right.

I was annoyed at first, but I got it for slightly over $100, I think I paid $108 so I figured I'd ignore the grind. I decided it wasn't going to be a safe queen so I used it a lot. Now I don't care about the grind at all. It gets used, sharpened, and a drop of oil in the pivot every so often. It doesn't bug me one bit and in fact that flaw helped me start using the knife right away. Now it gets carried and used all the time. I had a job where I needed to break down dozens of boxes a day. It would go for days in between touch ups on the ultra fine Sharpmaker stones.

Obviously not every knife is going to be perfect. I've seen at least 2 threads recently about off center blades and other issues on Sebenzas. On a $400 knife known for its tolerances I'd expect to receive those tolerances. On a sub $100 knife that's going to get used a lot, meh.

On the issue of smoothness, I can open my Stretch by giving a gentle thumb flick (with no wrist movement). It took a little practice. I prefer using the Spyderhole as intended because it opens fast and smooth that way every time. I don't see a need to flick it open. Flippers are best for that type of fast opening, IMO.

 

[stonproject]

I've never owned a Spyderco knife before, but lots of people rave about them. I got a Pacific Salt in the mail today, and I noticed an issue with the knife right away. The grind on the blade is not symmetrical, so the point that I circled in the image below does not meet up in the same spot on each side of the blade. Is this a typical problem with Spyderco? I'll be returning the knife, but I'm wondering if a replacement would likely have the same issue. Another issue with the knife is that it doesn't open very smoothly. I've seen videos where people just flick these knives open very quickly.

To be honest, you arent even close to the price range to be that picky.

Like nature said, any production knife will have some flaw, regardless of how miniscule. If you spend 500$ on a knife, yeah the uneven grind might bother me. but for a sub 100$? Just use it.

 

[RevDevil]

I've never owned a Spyderco knife before, but lots of people rave about them. I got a Pacific Salt in the mail today, and I noticed an issue with the knife right away. The grind on the blade is not symmetrical, so the point that I circled in the image below does not meet up in the same spot on each side of the blade. Is this a typical problem with Spyderco? I'll be returning the knife, but I'm wondering if a replacement would likely have the same issue. Another issue with the knife is that it doesn't open very smoothly. I've seen videos where people just flick these knives open very quickly.

It's a production knife, made in large batches. The asymmetrical thing will not hinder it's functioning and would more than likely be within their "spec". Since we cannot see the other side or the spine, it's hard to see how off kilter it really is. I cannot tell what if anything is wrong based on what you are showing. Since it's not necessarily a custom one of a kind item I'd say just keep it and use it for whatever your needs are.If you want a perfect specimen, buy 5 or 10 of them, inspect them all thoroughly and send back the remaining 9. Or if you can, go to a store and look through all their Pac Salts and pick the one you like the best. Seriously, there are people that buy 10 and send back the rest. You're going to get hit with restocking fees, but it's a solution.

 

[GatorFlash1]

I have a couple of Pacific Salts in my tackle box, plain & serrated.

The only problem I ever had was breaking off the plastic pocket clip from the scale when I stepped on it. Amazing what 200 pounds will do to a plastic Spyderco Salt pocket clip.

You would think Spyderco would have better QC for 200 pounders that accidentally step on their Salt when it is lying on the deck of a boat. I'm really PO'd??!

Want me to post a picture of it?

Of course I'm being facetious! Why do you think I carry two of them in my tackle box?

 

[skyhorse]

Thread: Spyderco QC Issues? I don't see an issue with your knife. I've never had one single QC issue with any of my Spyderco knives. There is a break in period and you've only had your Salt for less than one day.

 

[Yo Mama]

All my knives are safe queens. I just like to look at them.

But seriously, one of the only things I'm obsessive about is asymmetry. It drives me nuts.

Why buy a knife, especially at this price point, and not use it!?!?! If you're obsessive about symmetry, the knife world is not for you. Sorry, but it's an art, one done with a human hand. Enjoy it as such.

 

[spketch]

OP, I wasn't going to respond to this until I saw you disparaging spyderco's QC on another thread.

This is NOT a QC issue.
I've never checked grind symmetry on my knives, and I think it's a silly thing to worry about, but that's your prerogative. Whatever makes you happy. If absolute cosmetic perfection is what you're after though you need to go way over the $60-$70 price range.

The salt is a relatively low budget working knife, not a piece of art to be admired. Could spyderco make sure they all came with perfectly even grinds? Of course. But that would take more time, costing them money, and the price of the knives would have to be higher.

Maybe one of the Taichung made knives with a full flat grind would suit you better.

 

[calc]

OP, these knives aren't magically made by elves. It's impossible to have perfect grinds no matter what the production process. No two knives are going to be 100% clones of one another, that's just the reality of actually making products. There is variance in everything, it's literally impossible not to.

It's fine if you're unhappy with your knife. Nobody can tell you how to feel. But starting a thread alleging QC issues over something as trivial as this is overkill.

What did you pay for that Pacific Salt? Roughly $80?

...

If this is a genuine post, not just someone trying to bag on Spyderco then I will say this. MAN you set your expectations WAYYY too high. It's a pin construction, low budget production blade.

...

The fact that you can't flick the knife open very quickly has nothing to do with QC. It's a lock back to start, thus it is a little more difficult to flick. Also, it will require some time to break in.

...

To close, just use the damn knife and forget about the little things. Does the knife lock up solid? Did it come sharp? Is the blade centered? Does the blade function as it's supposed to? Those are the major things, and at this price point they are all that really matters.

Hit the nail on the head.

This is NOT a QC issue.
I've never checked grind symmetry on my knives, and I think it's a silly thing to worry about, but that's your prerogative. Whatever makes you happy. If absolute cosmetic perfection is what you're after though you need to go way over the $60-$70 price range.

It is a silly thing to worry about. Unless it's blatantly bad - I'm talking bad enough to make you wonder if Spyderco hired a gorilla to do their grinding - it's 100% cosmetic, and even then it's barely noticeable.

 

[EricV]

I do not believe H1 steel is not ground in the same process as traditional steels. When the steel was first being used Spyderco wasn't the only manufacturer trying it out, they were however the only company to adapt to the manufacturing needs. H1 is hardened when its worked which is why the SE models have a slightly harder edge than the PE versions due to the additional grinding. I can't recall exactly how the process went, but it was either typically knives are ground both sides at once or one side at a time, and H1 required the opposite. Sorry I can't remember better, but this goes back to when H1 first showed up on the scene, I'm sure there are more details in the Spydie section if you dig.

I just wanted to point out the extra bit of trickiness that's involved with the particular steel as no one had brought it up yet. Comparing grind lines will drive you crazy, also if you want a flickable Spyderco you want one with liners it adds a good bit of refinement.

 

[Ankerson]

OP, I wasn't going to respond to this until I saw you disparaging spyderco's QC on another thread.

This is NOT a QC issue.
I've never checked grind symmetry on my knives, and I think it's a silly thing to worry about, but that's your prerogative. Whatever makes you happy. If absolute cosmetic perfection is what you're after though you need to go way over the $60-$70 price range.

Agreed. :thumbup:


Precision costs money, the higher the tolerances the more the knife will cost, that's just how things work.

 

[RedLynx]

Agreed. :thumbup:


Precision costs money, the higher the tolerances the more the knife will cost, that's just how things work.

That, and any user knife wouldn't remain cosmetically perfect for long, no matter how much it cost. Seems a shame to worry about it.

 

[roughedges]

The Salt series are utilitarian working knives designed for wet and corrosive environments, not safe queens. I own far more folders than I need and my salt seldom leaves my pocket. To each their own I guess, but I can't imagine having any problem with this "QC issue".

 

[d0nut]

I like how the OP complains about symmetry then proceeds to post a picture of one side of the blade, not both.

jerk it (( leave it for Whine & Cheese ))

 

[RedLynx]

I like how the OP complains about symmetry then proceeds to post a picture of one side of the blade, not both.

jerk it (( don't quot it if you know it's wrong ))

I agree but I don't think we're supposed to use that emoji here. Just sayin