Spyderco Southard: Excessive Praise and Hype? (Or: Purchase One Now!)

FCM415 said:
I would not consider the Southard bulky in any stretch of the imagination. Am I alone in this? Its the same size as my FRN Spyderco Stretch roughly... I dont know...
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Talking about thickness about the blade spine and across handles I believe. Somewhere I saw a thread that showed the thickness of various Spyderco knives, and the Southard was right near the top of thickest. The blade could be thinner to increase cutting performance. Although, I don't find it too thick in my pocket, and it has sliced well for me so far.
 
bobnery said:
I think the idea of keeping it simple will always win the day. Things like bearing systems are at heart things that are "cool" and not needed for knife function. I like opening knives over and over just like many guys on here. I know though at heart it is a cutting tool and not an opening tool. Knife enthusiasts (me included) often times get hung up on non essentials, at the end of the day all you need is a sharp edge. The rest is all fluff.
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True, but if we'd stopped at the sharp edge, we'd still be using fixed blades, or slip joints. :D BTW, is it correct that the only manual knives using ball bearings are flippers? That seems to be all I remember seeing.

FCM415 said:
I would not consider the Southard bulky in any stretch of the imagination. Am I alone in this? Its the same size as my FRN Spyderco Stretch roughly... I dont know...
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Perfect length IMO, but possibly a tad thick - it probably did not need the non-locking side liner? No biggie, I like the knife as it is. :thumbup:

nccole said:
Talking about thickness about the blade spine and across handles I believe. Somewhere I saw a thread that showed the thickness of various Spyderco knives, and the Southard was right near the top of thickest. The blade could be thinner to increase cutting performance. Although, I don't find it too thick in my pocket, and it has sliced well for me so far.
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I think the thickness is due to the double liners. I know I'm not saying anything you don't know, but blade stock and the type of grind are only part of the equation. The relatively thick, hollow ground Gayle Bradley is a great slicer because the hollow grind is so high.
 
knifehunt said:
Please do your homework next time!
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I have the BS, the 560, 550 & 301. All good knives. I like alot of foriegn mfg knives. from a mfg standpoint, the 560 has more processes involved than the BS. i like the BS, but the fact is that the mfg in taiwan typically results in much lower labor costs. For this particular knife, those savings are increased profit. thats all good, and spydercos perrogative. but it is the case. gotta go, evidently i have some homework to do!
 
FCM415 said:
So are we looking at the Southard as a midtech? Im just saying that I assume there will be more knives like the Southard and 560 in the future in reply to someone who feels that it is just a passing trend which it still may be who knows. Wasnt really out to identify the start of anything. You know, modern folders with higher end features more commonly seen from today's customs and midtechs
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Since Brad isn't doing any work in the production of these, I don't see how they would be mid-techs. Of course, I don't see how mid-techs came up with the brands I mentioned. I do enjoy high end features like the bearing systems used on a handful of CRKT knives.
 
Not 'bulky' but if I could change anything about it,I'd give it a thinner blade.
 
As mentioned most folders we use are way over built. It is what we have been conditioned to like. I wish I had half the money I've dropped over the years in knives back, all would be nice, but dam I'd settle for half. Knifenuts are addicts. Some like hard use, some class, some steels, some tech, some name, some a mix of all or some. At the end of the day it is a sharp edge, and yes as mentioned in response to one of my other posts, we could all be fine with a basic fixed blade. The Southard is a nice knife I am not denying that at all. At the end of the day though it just cuts stuff
 
Seriously. I've always driven foreign cars, although I would of preferred American. The truth is, up until recently, American cars were junk compared to their foreign competition. I prefer to be a patriot as much as the next guy, but I don't base my purchases on where they were manufactured. If a knife like the Southard is produced in Taiwan, so be it. I like the design, and certainly the knife.
 
I haven't handled the Southard yet. But based on feedback from people whose opinions I respect, I'm sure it's well made. The design of the knife doesn't appeal to me, however. It's heavier than I like in an EDC, the hole in the blade serves no useful purpose in a flipper design and detracts from the knife's aesthetics, and I don't much care for wavy spines. That's just my opinion, of course.
 
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Today I carried the southard and my sebenza 25..... I was playing with the southard 95% of the time.
 
michaelsmith said:
I have the BS, the 560, 550 & 301. All good knives. I like alot of foriegn mfg knives. from a mfg standpoint, the 560 has more processes involved than the BS. i like the BS, but the fact is that the mfg in taiwan typically results in much lower labor costs. For this particular knife, those savings are increased profit. thats all good, and spydercos perrogative. but it is the case. gotta go, evidently i have some homework to do!
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The other possibility is that Brad's royalty (or whatever the right term would be in this context) is responsible for the pricing difference.
 
nccole said:
Talking about thickness about the blade spine and across handles I believe. Somewhere I saw a thread that showed the thickness of various Spyderco knives, and the Southard was right near the top of thickest. The blade could be thinner to increase cutting performance. Although, I don't find it too thick in my pocket, and it has sliced well for me so far.
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The Southard feels just fine to me. Handle thickness is 0.530" with a 0.160" blade thickness and well-backed-up G10. Very strong knife. 204P is great blade-steel; thick-spined and will hold an edge.

My Sebenza is 0.450" and has a blade thickness (S30v) of 0.125". The blade-steel is not h-t'd very hard, for toughness, and it doesn't hold an edge particularly long. Which one of those two would I take to the woods? Not hard to answer. To clarify, I LOVE Sebenzas for casual EDC; NOTHING better.

My CRK Umnumzaan is 0.465" thick handle with a 0.140" blade thickness. The Southard, in shape and design, reminds me of a heavier-duty Zaan and carries a similar tactical appearance in the blade. I am very fond of the Zaan; my first CRK.

THICK knives are like my BenchMade 755 MPR, which has a 2" or so blade and is 0.640" thick. This is a monster brick and I'll NEVER carry it. It was a gift or I'll throw it away. The only saving grace is the M390 blade-steel, which is strange, because BM is so stingy with their steels. I'm used to seeing 154cm or something.

A thick knife is better if it's also a longer knife, like ZT 550-560 series, although I even sold those as they were too much/too big/too heavy for my EDC.
I can carry a Southard forever and not feel that it's a big knife. I've carried this one for 2-3 weeks now, and am enjoying it. I haven't found one thing to complain about; the flipper is smooth, quick and solid and easy to put away again. I know my blade is sharp and that I won't break it unless I try to. I doubt that it will replace my Sebbie, but they might form a partnership along the way.

Hey, what does all of this mean to you? IMO, buy a Southard. I promise you will like it and carry it daily and it will serve you very well. Later, perhaps, if you have some extra bucks, ALSO pick up a Sebenza to see what all of the fuss is about. But do NOT sell the Southard. I won't.

Sonny
 
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It seems simple to me. If you don't like it don't buy it. I have not cut a thing with mine, but I feel a spare coming on. Not many knives do I buy a spare.
 
I'm still trying to figure out why they would make a flipper and then use a framelock? I understand that there are some folks who have developed the bad habit of having to flip open their knives all day long in order to survive, but that seems contradictory to the use of a framelock that gets worn out more so than other lock types by just that type of action.
 
Brasso3 said:
I'm still trying to figure out why they would make a flipper and then use a framelock? I understand that there are some folks who have developed the bad habit of having to flip open their knives all day long in order to survive, but that seems contradictory to the use of a framelock that gets worn out more so than other lock types by just that type of action.
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What sort of lock would you suggest they use.
 
but the fact is that the mfg in taiwan typically results in much lower labor costs. For this particular knife, those savings are increased profit. thats all good, and spydercos perrogative. but it is the case. gotta go, evidently i have some homework to do!
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You have no idea how Spyderco prices it's goods. You are just taking a shot in the dark and from reading some old posts from Sal I'd say you are incorrect. You also don't seem to know a great deal about Taiwans cost of living, wages of machinists & CNC operators, Etc.If you did it still wouldn't mean jack as you have no idea what that companies workers get paid, their costs, and other things you would need to know to make real judgements. Are you confusing Taiwan with China? Maybe next time do some homework before making pronouncements and judgements.
 
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