- Joined
- Apr 5, 2000
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Through a series of events, I received three passaround Spydercos. FrankK offered to let me play with the knives and evaluate them, I didn't hesitate accepting his offer 
.
The three knives I received are; Catcherman, Pacific Salt, and Vagabond. I'll post my thoughts comparing the three knives to each other .
I was impressed with the knives out of the box; nice action, lockup, finish, and good edges. The knives were obviously used; there were some scratches and some edge "deformation." The user marks certainly didn't detract from the knives though.
First test, push cutting. My push cutting tests are paper, cardboard, and hard wood.
*The Vagabond was the best performer, it sliced through all three materials very well. I was actually surprised by this, the knife is rather thick at the spine (slightly over 1/8"), deep hollow grind, and thick(er) edge. The Vagabond did an excellent job of cutting wood into fuzz sticks.
*At first I thought the Catcherman would be the best performer in this test, the spine is quite thin, probably 1/16, and a fairly thin edge. The knife did perform the best slicing paper, but did not push cut through thicker materials as well as the Vagabond. The Catcherman performed fairly cutting fuzz sticks. For me, at least, I didn't have enough control over the blade to exert enough pressure to slice into the cured maple.
*The Pacific Salt came in third. The blade is fully serrated, the grind to the edge is somewhat thick (much thicker than I would like). The Pacific had a very hard time push cutting card board. The blade would bind as soon as the cardboard reached the top of the grind. The Pacific would not cut hard wood into slices, the serrations are really a draw back in this test.
Slice cutting
*The Pacific really did a great job slice cutting, draw cutting, and "sawing" through card board, tall heavy grasses, twine, banding.
*I would rate the Vagabond next in slicing. This really surprised me, deep hollow grind...etc...
*I would rate the Catcherman third, again because of the lack of control.
Carry
Both the Pacific and the Catcherman are very easy to carry and comfortable. The clip on the Pacific is spring steel and does a great job in retention. The Catcherman has an integral FRN clip, which also does a great job holding the knife to the pocket.
The major draw back to the Vagabond is the integral sheath/guard. I am very tempted to carry the knife in the pocket. The guard has a tendency to come off the blade when carried in the pocket. My concern is reaching into my pocket and cutting myself on an unsheathed blade. I think the integral guard is a very good idea, and certainly not a novelty. But, I think it is more suited to car, tool box, tackle box, etc. carry, where an unsheathed edge isn't a concern.
At first I wasn't impressed with the FRN handles, I thought they looked somewhat "cheap." After using the knives for a period I have really changed my mind. The FRN offers an incredible amount of grip and offers a great purchase on the knives. I wasn't concerned in the slightest when using the knives in a gloved hand.
Along with the gloved hand, I was impressed how easy it was to open the knives when wearing a thick wool glove. Opening certainly was not as efficient as a bare hand, but I could open the knives easy enough that I did not have to take off my glove. That is definitely a plus when it 15* outside.
Unfortunately, I did not sharpen the knives, so I can not comment on ease of sharpening. I do not have the equipment to sharpen serrated edges, and the Vagabond still has a pretty good edge.
I did not notice edge deterioration on any of the knives, even after extended use.
Overall, all three knives really impressed me, I think for the money all three knives are a great value. The cutting performance is good, easy to carry, good lock up, action, light enough for carry, and comfortable in use.
My personal preference would be a 2 7/8", lock back, FRN handle, non serrated edge.
Matt
.The three knives I received are; Catcherman, Pacific Salt, and Vagabond. I'll post my thoughts comparing the three knives to each other .
I was impressed with the knives out of the box; nice action, lockup, finish, and good edges. The knives were obviously used; there were some scratches and some edge "deformation." The user marks certainly didn't detract from the knives though.
First test, push cutting. My push cutting tests are paper, cardboard, and hard wood.
*The Vagabond was the best performer, it sliced through all three materials very well. I was actually surprised by this, the knife is rather thick at the spine (slightly over 1/8"), deep hollow grind, and thick(er) edge. The Vagabond did an excellent job of cutting wood into fuzz sticks.
*At first I thought the Catcherman would be the best performer in this test, the spine is quite thin, probably 1/16, and a fairly thin edge. The knife did perform the best slicing paper, but did not push cut through thicker materials as well as the Vagabond. The Catcherman performed fairly cutting fuzz sticks. For me, at least, I didn't have enough control over the blade to exert enough pressure to slice into the cured maple.
*The Pacific Salt came in third. The blade is fully serrated, the grind to the edge is somewhat thick (much thicker than I would like). The Pacific had a very hard time push cutting card board. The blade would bind as soon as the cardboard reached the top of the grind. The Pacific would not cut hard wood into slices, the serrations are really a draw back in this test.
Slice cutting
*The Pacific really did a great job slice cutting, draw cutting, and "sawing" through card board, tall heavy grasses, twine, banding.
*I would rate the Vagabond next in slicing. This really surprised me, deep hollow grind...etc...
*I would rate the Catcherman third, again because of the lack of control.
Carry
Both the Pacific and the Catcherman are very easy to carry and comfortable. The clip on the Pacific is spring steel and does a great job in retention. The Catcherman has an integral FRN clip, which also does a great job holding the knife to the pocket.
The major draw back to the Vagabond is the integral sheath/guard. I am very tempted to carry the knife in the pocket. The guard has a tendency to come off the blade when carried in the pocket. My concern is reaching into my pocket and cutting myself on an unsheathed blade. I think the integral guard is a very good idea, and certainly not a novelty. But, I think it is more suited to car, tool box, tackle box, etc. carry, where an unsheathed edge isn't a concern.
At first I wasn't impressed with the FRN handles, I thought they looked somewhat "cheap." After using the knives for a period I have really changed my mind. The FRN offers an incredible amount of grip and offers a great purchase on the knives. I wasn't concerned in the slightest when using the knives in a gloved hand.
Along with the gloved hand, I was impressed how easy it was to open the knives when wearing a thick wool glove. Opening certainly was not as efficient as a bare hand, but I could open the knives easy enough that I did not have to take off my glove. That is definitely a plus when it 15* outside.
Unfortunately, I did not sharpen the knives, so I can not comment on ease of sharpening. I do not have the equipment to sharpen serrated edges, and the Vagabond still has a pretty good edge.
I did not notice edge deterioration on any of the knives, even after extended use.
Overall, all three knives really impressed me, I think for the money all three knives are a great value. The cutting performance is good, easy to carry, good lock up, action, light enough for carry, and comfortable in use.
My personal preference would be a 2 7/8", lock back, FRN handle, non serrated edge.
Matt
