While I don't hold Chesapeake Knife and Tool in very high regard, I think they may have the right idea on this one. The Spyderench is brilliant - perhaps a little too clever for its own good, though.
When I saw it, Sal, Patrick and Vince together seemed necessary just to remember all the features and manipulations. It was slightly intimidating, but also a bit "gizmo-ish." I do understand its utility and the quality of its manufacturer, but it was hard to get over the "toy factor" of the incredibly complex device.
"Toy factor" is often a good thing, and I bet that's driven the better part of our knife purchases. But I don't think it sells tools like the Spyderench. I fear consumers will see it as more of a novelty than a serious item. Each one will require a salesperson well-versed in the tool to demonstrate it to the customer to get around this.
Combine that with a price that skyrockets out of the top-end of the multi-tool market, and you have a very "hard sell." I'm betting real knife knuts may snap them up for the first few months, but their mass appeal and long-term salesm ay be very low.
I'm just playing with my crystal ball. I think that the R&D crew at Spyderco has done some great work on this piece, but the market may not be ready. We'll see. For the near future, I'm betting on the simpler Calypso Jr. Lite to be the big sales winner.
-Drew
