Spyderco's SD Blades: Your Favorites?

KaliGman said:
Many of the good ones have already been mentioned.

I'm surprised that the Lava, Kris, Karambit and Rock Salt have not seen more attention. They are all quite capable.


http://www.albokalisilat.org:/folding.html (Two Kris videos and a Lava video)
http://www.albokalisilat.org:/beginner.html (Spyderco Karambit videos)
http://www.albokalisilat.org:/rock_salt.html (the Rock Salt video)
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The KRIS model is another one I've yet to own. I've seen them, held them but I have not yet to take title deed to one. Thus far my favorite Spyderco recurve has been the Spyker but I'm looking forward to test driving the KRIS. IT's been out long enough now that I'm sure I'll locate a used one before too long. I can't wait to test my sharpening skills on the KRIS. It's a true blue recurve and maybe the best blade design recurve in the Spyderco line up at this time. I'm looking forward to it.
I've had 3 different versions of the Karambit including Spyderco's. I've viewed Steve Tarani's training videos and I'm impressed with what I saw. However to be painfully honest with myself I just don't think I'm a Karambit man :o I did own the BLADE-Tech Tarani model with the G-10 handle and the S30V blade and I must admit that I liked it better than I did the stainless handled Spyderco model. If I ever was to get serious about a Karambit and give them another try I would probably go back to Tarani BLADE-Tech model. And it's rare for me to prefer something else over a Spyder. But I've got to give credit where credit is due. The Tarani Karambit it one helluva a blade.
I reserve my opinion for later on that Salt model. But being it is a Spyder I have no doubt that it's quite capable. I sure hope we can get Sal to really consider an H-1 version of that Spyderhawk that Clovisc suggested. I'm looking forward to more blades in the SALT series.
 
KaliGman said:
Many of the good ones have already been mentioned.

I'm surprised that the Lava, Kris, Karambit and Rock Salt have not seen more attention. They are all quite capable.
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I really like my Kris and Lava.
I just think the others are a tad more capable. But the Lava IS superb for areas where blade length is a concern.:thumbup:
 
Endura 4 waved
P'Kal
Delica

That's right..... I said Delica;)


actually unless I missed it I'm surprised noones mentioned the lil' Delica, it doesn't look tactical (in case that came up in court), its a great backup knife, if you needed it, and the ergos are great.
 
I'm not a fan of knives for self-defense, but if I had to pick a favorite Spyderco for that purpose, it would be the P'Kal.
 
- Fixed blade
- Compact
- Ergonomic
- Retention
- Multiple Carry modes

= SWICK it is!
 
I think the Lava would be quite capable in self defense situations, especially when the length of the blade is an issue.

Chad Los Banos knows how to make some great, small knives with plenty of power in their designs---the Lava and the Boker Subcom designs are some of the ones in repertoire.

:thumbup:
 
steelscout30 said:
I think the Lava would be quite capable in self defense situations, especially when the length of the blade is an issue.

Chad Los Banos knows how to make some great, small knives with plenty of power in their designs---the Lava and the Boker Subcom designs are some of the ones in repertoire.

:thumbup:
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Steelscout I have to totally agree with you. I can't say enough about Brother Chad Los Banos genius design of the Spyderco Lava. I've been known not to be a fan of smaller, short blades for SD. But my 3 and possibly 4 exceptions are the following>>
Chad's Lava model for sure
The Spyderco Ronin
The Spyderco Yojimbo
And the Spyderco Dodo
Those are 4 smaller, shorter blades I want to keep in my SD arsenal. Again Chad's design is nothing short of genius in my opinion and he has been a great friend to me from the very first month I joined the spyderco.com forum. I would highly recommend checking out any blade designed by Chad Los Banos :thumbup:
 
P'kal is great looking knife, don't how well it'd be in SF, next would be the police models. Rather use a baseball instead of a knife for SF though.
 
IMO after handling a waved E4, I won't go back. When you can go from an idle standing position to having a knife ready in a defensive position faster than the blink of an eye, nothing compares. Other than that whatever you have on hand is what works best.
 
For sheer SD, I think the P'Kal's the quickest into action of the Spyderco models. It's just so fast & designed for SD, IMHO.

Aside from that model, the Yojimbo would get my vote (I'm expecting a waved Yojimbo in a couple days that I got on a trade...really looking forward to that one). Another good SD Spydie & it doesn't look like one, is to reverse the clip on a waved Delica/Endura & you now have a "cheap" P'Kal (IE: for right handers, put the clip on the left side, but clip it in your right pocket, so it's come out edge forward in an ice pick hold).

Of course, in the right hands, just about any Spydie can be a good SD knife.
 
CL01 said:
For sheer SD, I think the P'Kal's the quickest into action of the Spyderco models. It's just so fast & designed for SD, IMHO.

Of course, in the right hands, just about any Spydie can be a good SD knife.
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That P'Kal model just keeps coming up over and over again. I've just got to get one of these ASAP.

I agree with that last statement "CLO1">> But I do also believe that some models are just more geared for SD than others. I do see where you are coming from however>> because I would rather be a clone of Bruce Lee with a Spyderco Kiwi than to be a Gomer Pyle type guy with a Spyderco Military model for sure :D

But for myself with a limited amount of training I just feel somewhat confident with my Spyderco Massad Ayoob model and/or my Matriarch. But again your point is well taken.
 
The best spydie SD is the one you have in your pocket. Design and everything else aside I would rather have a swiss army knife in hand in a knife fight then a Civilian sitting in a drawer at home. The Civilian is a wicked looking blade that cuts like crazy but if you use it for anything other then defense people will be giving you a wary look.... Spyderco makes some great looking SD folders, and I have owned several, but the best EDC pure SD blade is one that can be readily deployed and that is a fixed blade, and something that you are going to be able to use for other tasks. My vote would be for a Perrin street beat. Now if you have your head set on a folder I would carry one that isn't to "scary" so you will have it when you need it. The wave opening system is a great way to deploy your blade in case of an emergency. Delica, Endura, or Pkal all have this feature.
 
The only one I really carry when concerned with SD is the Matriarch inside the waist band. I have a Pikal but I havent really got used to it yet- maybe I need to get a trainer to play around with.

CivvieAyoobmatriarchIMG_0052.jpg


But like the poster said- anything you're carrying is the best one for SD!

IMG_5627crsmall.jpg
 
I just noticed I neglected to mention all the fixed blade models - legalities in Cali and all that ;).
I'm a big fan of the Perrin stuff - both the full size and the Street Beat.
Re: neck/skinny knives - The Ronin is no slacker either, though for concealment, blade size, and retention, I can't imagine much better than the Swick.

Folder addendum:
The Police model is fantastic closed and open, if only in G-10 IMO.
 
I think most everyone, including myself, failed to mention FBs because they're "usually" illegal to carry & it just "seemed" that the OP was asking about folders even though he didn't say that, lol.

IMHO, the Perrin & Ronin are great SD knives. However, "senoBDEC", unless you're carrying your FBs open carry, it's illegal in Calif (FYI) & that includes neck knives. That's not to say LE will bother you & many seem to think 2" blade or less is OK, so depending on what you're carrying, you might be OK.

The Ronin's great & was specifically designed for SD. It's basically the same as the Yojimbo, but it's a FB &, of course, the handle's smaller & the blade's a little bigger, IIRC. I believe the Ronin's blade is 3" vs the Yoji's 2.75" & the handle's 4" vs the Yoji's 5", but the Yoji's larger handle is mainly to hold the blade & have a little extra hanging off the end to use if the blade's not opened.

As an aside, I mentioned that I was expecting a modded (Waved & bead blasted) Yojimbo soon. Well, it came in & WOW. The wave changes it immensely. While it's still not as quick to action as the P'Kal, it's close & just as good or better, than the waved Delica/Endura. I flipped the clip on this one, too, & now it opens with edge forward in an ice pick grip.

Having said all that, IF you really need a knife for SD, a FB is probably the best & although the Perrin Street Beat is probably considered the best Spyderco FB for SD, I'd have to say I prefer the Ronin, but that is just me (& ONLY) my opinion.

For neck knives, though, I still think the SPOT (Not the Swick) is one of the 3 top neck knives.

Interesting thread...
 
CL01 said:
I think most everyone, including myself, failed to mention FBs because they're "usually" illegal to carry & it just "seemed" that the OP was asking about folders even though he didn't say that, lol.

IMHO, the Perrin & Ronin are great SD knives. However, "senoBDEC", unless you're carrying your FBs open carry, it's illegal in Calif (FYI) & that includes neck knives. That's not to say LE will bother you & many seem to think 2" blade or less is OK, so depending on what you're carrying, you might be OK.
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Yes, I did know that, thanks ;) - hence why I hardly mention my SW Clinch Pick, Spydie Street Beat, CS Braveheart, etc - very cool items, but quite illegal carry by state law concealed, and honestly, open-carry can get you hassled or go to court pretty easily too. Best stick to folders IMO, especially around the major cities and Sacramento (capital).

That said, the Hideaway Knife seems to hold up to casual glances much better than most. Looks kind of like a carabiner or something.

Having said all that, IF you really need a knife for SD, a FB is probably the best & although the Perrin Street Beat is probably considered the best Spyderco FB for SD, I'd have to say I prefer the Ronin, but that is just me (& ONLY) my opinion.
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If there's a blade limit, but FB's are allowed, I'd say the Ronin or Street Beat are superb options. I do like the Swick, but it takes some fiddling to set it up for comfortable, and accessible carry.
 
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