Tenacious... umm.... why is this thing so damned good?

Insipid Moniker said:
Gotta be honest, I'd much rather lay down the money for a Byrd Cara Cara 2 than a Tenacious. I don't have any particular need for G10, nor do I feel it's meaningfully better that FRN, it has the same steel, almost all the advantages of an Endura, you get more knife and you get it at half the price. I still think the Byrd line is incredibly underrated around these parts.
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No doubt they are great. My Byrd Cara Cara 2 Rescue is my boating knife of choice. I love the way that long fully serrated blade just blows through pretty much anything that can be cut.
Makes a hell of a bagel cutter too!

As for steel choice, I was thinking about it. If we pick a really high end steel, we could easily turn this into a $100 knife. By the time they pay for, and ship M4, or CTS-HXP or some other such stuff to China, wear and tear on tooling etc... it kills one of the big draws of the value line up... low cost.

I think, if I'm not mistaken, there is a Chinese equivalent to D2. Id bet that Spyderco could get their hands on some, make sure it's the real deal with careful QC, and give it a proper HT. You'd be getting a great hard use steel, and I'd bet it could be done for not much cost over the standard model.
 
Insipid Moniker said:
Gotta be honest, I'd much rather lay down the money for a Byrd Cara Cara 2 than a Tenacious. I don't have any particular need for G10, nor do I feel it's meaningfully better that FRN, it has the same steel, almost all the advantages of an Endura, you get more knife and you get it at half the price. I still think the Byrd line is incredibly underrated around these parts.
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I would get a byrd if not for the funky bird shaped opening hole, just me.

Sent from my MHA-L29 using Tapatalk
 
19-3ben said:
No...seriously.

I purchased it on a whim about three weeks ago. I was screwing around and i thought to myself, "Well, self, here's this knife in front of you, and you like knives. You especially like Spyderco knives, and this happens to be a spyderco... People give it good reviews, so why not just give it a shot?" Makes sense, right?

Well, that day I just happened to be carrying my Manix 2 G10- S110v. The comparison was immediately there. roughly the same size, but the Tenacious had a longer cutting edge due to lack of choil, so it really maxes the blade length better. It's much shorter than my PM2, and also has a longer cutting edge by a good margin.

I do think my PM2 and M2 came out of the box with smooth operation, but a little Militec and open/close a could dozen times, and the Tenacious is as smooth as anyone could ever need. The crazy thing is, I can get the Tenacious sharper on my Sharpmaker than either of the other two knives. The only Spyderco I have that I can get sharper is my Delica, and even then, it's close. The Tenacious flicks open more easily than the others.

I can't believe the quality of fit/finish on a knife at this price point. Centering was perfect. It has the same countersunk screws as my PM2 and my M2.

I'm just in shock that for 1/3 the price of my Manix or PM2, I actually find myself carrying the Tenacious just as much... maybe.... could it be... more? Is that possible?

Of course, now I need a Persistence, Resilience, and Ambitious.

Edit to add:
I feel like I'm butchering a scared cow here, so let me clarify before you all see fit to murder me. I am not downing the PM2, nor the Manix. They are iconic knives for a good reason. They are truly excellent. The Manix still feels more "substantial" and I think is the all star of my knife collection just because it checks every single box for me. But that doesn't stop the Tenacious from being an amazing knife in its own right.
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You nailed it.

Especially the part about a full cutting edge. I absolutely DESPISE finger choils.

Unless it's a tiny knife, a well designed handle should do its job. You don't need to cut another handle into the blade for crying out loud.

Personally, I have no need for a dedicated finger groove just for when I need to choke up. I do it with my tenacious all the time, and so far I still have all my fingers. Just takes some simple technique and awareness, both of which are super easy!

I love spyderco, but there's only a few I will carry on account of finger choils on knives that don't need them.

I dunno what is wrong with everyone else's steel, but the steel in my tenacious performs just fine. I base my conclusions more on what I see vs what I read, and I see a knife that will cleanly shave hair after chopping up several cardboard boxes, whittling hardwood, and even shredding carpet.

Plus it is an absolute JOY to sharpen.

Maybe I got lucky.

The tenacious is my absolute favorite Spyderco so far. Until I get the GB2, I hope! ☺
 
What people seem to miss in the discussion of an upgrade Tenacious design, is that at least in my case, I'm not looking for something that remains a value folder. I want the thick steel liners (like those a lot), G10 handles, and a nice steel. And no finger choil. Show me an equivalent Taichung or Golden Model. I don't think there is one. At least I haven't found it.

I think plenty of people would buy what I am describing. If it was made in Taiwan, people would be lined up to purchase it.
 
The Tenacious is the one I carry the most, for all of the reasons you stated. I too find it easy to sharpen, it may dull faster than the better steels but like I said, it's easy to sharpen! I have lots of Spydercos, the Tenacious is my favorite daily work knife, in rotation with an Endura 4. The great ones get weekend rotation : )
 
The Polestar expected later this year is sort of like the Tenacious with upgraded steel. It uses CTS-BD1.
 
My Spyderco Cat is a favorite, but don't consider its CTS-BD1 much of an upgrade over 8Cr13MoV.
 
nick800 said:
What people seem to miss in the discussion of an upgrade Tenacious design, is that at least in my case, I'm not looking for something that remains a value folder. I want the thick steel liners (like those a lot), G10 handles, and a nice steel. And no finger choil. Show me an equivalent Taichung or Golden Model. I don't think there is one. At least I haven't found it.

I think plenty of people would buy what I am describing. If it was made in Taiwan, people would be lined up to purchase it.
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Yessir!!
 
nick800 said:
What people seem to miss in the discussion of an upgrade Tenacious design, is that at least in my case, I'm not looking for something that remains a value folder. I want the thick steel liners (like those a lot), G10 handles, and a nice steel. And no finger choil. Show me an equivalent Taichung or Golden Model. I don't think there is one. At least I haven't found it.

I think plenty of people would buy what I am describing. If it was made in Taiwan, people would be lined up to purchase it.
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I agree with you 100%, but I think we'd be in the minority. Most people think "Tenacious" and the first thing that comes to mind is value, which it is. It's a tremendous value at $40.
But just like when Mora introduced the Garberg, and pants were shat over the idea that a Mora was going to cost $75, I think people would scoff at the idea of paying $90-100 for a Taiwanese made Tenacious in M4.

Now, just as a direct comparison, the closest competition for the Tenacious is probably the Rat 1/2 from Ontario, and they do have a D2 line with CF scales at $60 instead of the usual $30, and people seem to be pleased...

I think that if Spyderco could do an upgrade but keep the Tenacious around the $60 mark, they'd be golden. More than that and I just see people whining...
 
Give it a name other than Tenacious. People pay a lot more for Taichung M4 knives than $100
 
For last couple of years I just settle on one folder as EDC.

Right now I use Tenacious and can't move to other knife. Compact, ergonomic and etc.

Only drawback is the steel but then it is very easy to sharpen or strop.
 
The Polestar is going to be interesting, very similar design but using BD1, price not much higher.

Hopefully, we will see it out in the next couple months since they put it in the 2017 catalog.
 
The blade style is almost the same. But the niple at the end of the he handle and the overhang by the pivot (when closed); I don't know. Something about that look bugs me. To the point where even with BD1, I can't overlook it.
 
anycal said:
The blade style is almost the same. But the niple at the end of the he handle and the overhang by the pivot (when closed); I don't know. Something about that look bugs me. To the point where even with BD1, I can't overlook it.
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It does look lousy. Same kinda thing as the gap between the back of the tang on a Delica/endura and the FRN when they are closed. It gives a crappy look to an otherwise great knife. Although it doesn't bother me enough to keep me from loving my Delica.

Oh, and DAMNIT! I misplaced my Tenacious yesterday.. was doing a ton of work around the house and I know it's at home somewhere, but now I don't know where it is.
 
anycal said:
The blade style is almost the same. But the niple at the end of the he handle and the overhang by the pivot (when closed); I don't know. Something about that look bugs me. To the point where even with BD1, I can't overlook it.
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Right??

I got so excited when I was complaining about finger choils in another thread, while praising the tenacious. Sal told me about the polestar being similar, but when I saw it, went "Bleh?"

We really can be petty with this stuff to me times, can't we?

Lol.
 
Great knife. My only gripe is the steel. Im no snob by any means and I do like the ease and the degree of sharpness I can get it... But, and its a big "but" the edge dies on me way too soon.
 
I made it a point to carry my Tenacious every day for almost a year just give a $40 knife a proper work out. I wasn't afraid to use it hard and it passed with flying colors. Many people note that the steel could be better but I say it's perfect for the price point. It can be touched up so easily. Most knife enthusiasts that carry higher end steels also have higher end sharpening systems at their disposal. Not necessary for a Tenacious. Really my only disappointment was the lack of traction of the g10 compared to other Spydercos. Still g10 though which is better than the plastic scales of knives of a similar price point. There aren't many knives for ~$40 that can compare to the Tenacious line. The Rat 1&2 come to mind. That's about it.
 
Insipid Moniker said:
Gotta be honest, I'd much rather lay down the money for a Byrd Cara Cara 2 than a Tenacious. I don't have any particular need for G10, nor do I feel it's meaningfully better that FRN, it has the same steel, almost all the advantages of an Endura, you get more knife and you get it at half the price. I still think the Byrd line is incredibly underrated around these parts.
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I agree....The Tenancious is a great knife, but for me like the Byrd better when I think of a cheaper Spyderco. As you say, I think the Byrd line is underrated.
 
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