The allure of Spyderco

[sailfish]

My full lineup.

 

[tiguy7]

I came here to look at Spydercos and was reminded of the Fantoni I’ve wanted for while…

Fantoni closed when Dr. Fantoni died, so the stuff is getting harder to find.

 

[P.C.E.]

I knew of them but never had one until I joined the forum.

Now I have:
Shaman with aftermarket Flytanium TI scales.
PM2 & 3 (both Maxamet) with aftermarket Flytanium TI scales.
Native 5.
And will probably get a Smock soon enough, like the blade profile and top flipper.

I'm not really interested in the sprint runs but I've come to like them, appreciate the ease of use and the vast variety they offer.

 

[Bob Denman]

SpydieFan: yes!
But there aren't too many brands that I'm NOT fond of!
Benchmade
CRK
Hinderer
Olamic
David Mary
Busse et al...
Zero Tolerance
Buck
Kershaw

 

[Reswob]

Their claim to fame is supposedly fantastic ergonomics, but if you aren't Sal's hand twin, the finger notches are all in the wrong place!

Add in heavy use of cheapo plastic scales, and rising prices (for mostly overseas manufacture), and they are nothing to write home about these days. Thumb hole opening is maybe the best for gloves, but otherwise give me thumb stubs any day.

 

[unwisefool]

I don't like the design of most spydercos, but the Gayle Bradley 2 quickly became a favorite.

 

[johnnytoxin]

I'm interested in what you like about them.

A family owned company that places a higher value on performance than looks and makes many ( but not all) of their products in the USA.

The models I currently own and recommend are the Pacific Salt in LC200N, a Para 3 in s30v and my wife has a Delica in VG10. Some that I no longer own but still recommend are the Para 2 in any steel, the Manix 2 also in any steel, and the Endela in K390

 

[Another Shepherd]

I absolutely HATE the thread locker.

The Spydie hole is great. The compression lock is usually great. About 5 out of the first 6 Spydercos I got were excellent until I had to clean them, then I hit the thread locker problem. The CTS-BD1N on my first PM3 had very poor edge retention (but I loved the PM3 ergonomics so much that later I got two PM3s with good steel). About 5 of the next 6 Spydercos that I bought were not so good, especially the Lil Native (the blade bounces off my fingernail when I try to close it) and Native 5 (so stiff it took two hands to open it). The lock on the Manix was so hard to release that I had to use a key to push the slider. The serrated LC200N on the Atlantic Salt did not hold an edge any better than H1, and although it was sharp enough out of the box to push cut paper, it snagged badly when I tried to cut other things. The LC200N on the Caribbean Salt is good, but the compression lock is so stiff that I can't flick it closed. The ARK was ridiculously dull out of the box (average BESS score 471).

I really like the fixed-blade serrated Enuff with H1, although some good LC200N would be nicer.

 

[TSR2]

Functional simplicty with the hole, combined with quality and light weight.

 

[ac3boyz]

Well, my conclusion from everyone's input is.

1. The overwhelming majority here either like or love them.
2. Most of them look kinda funky.
3. They're great slicers and have options to cover most needs and budgets.
4. I just need to try one myself to know.
5. anthonycastorena2014 is a badass.

So, I'll probably take my time (yea, right) and pick up a PM2 or PM3 and see for myself.

Thanks for everyone's input!!

 

[photoman12001]

I’m not a super fan but there are definitely some models I like. Some of my favorites are the McBee, Techno 2, & Stovepipe. The McBee is actually one of my most carried & used knives. I will deviate from most others and say I don’t care for the Paramilitary 2.

 

[ac3boyz]

I’m not a super fan but there are definitely some models I like. Some of my favorites are the McBee, Techno 2, & Stovepipe. The McBee is actually one of my most carried & used knives. I will deviate from most others and say I don’t are for the Paramilitary 2.

I appreciate your input. Honestly, that McBee looks like they just got a batch of short steel blanks and said what the hell.

 

[David Mary]

My first awareness of Spyderco was seeing the Military and PM2 on Nutnfancy's channel in the late 2000s early 2010s, and I instantly wanted a Military. Problem was I was just a dishwasher at the time, and I had little money beyond the monthly necessities. But eventually I bought my first Spyderco, a Manix 2 XL. It was big, and heavy, but the first "real" folding knife I ever bought, and I was hooked. After that I grabbed a Resilience, and it became my favorite folding knife, though a steady increase in my disposable income gave me the opportunity to give it many challengers. To this day the Resilience remains my EDC, though an upgraded lightweight version in S35VN.

The opening hole is brilliant, and my favorite opening method because it offers, in my opinion, the most control. You can open most Spydercos with anything from a fast flick to a slow roll or anywhere in between. And the full flat grind is quite nice, though it still leaves a bit to be desired performance-wise if you are used to high thinness custom knife geometry.

Spyderco Resilience S35VN, good size knife, great steel, and at a reasonable price.

These are the knives I carry and use. The modded Resiliences out and about (oot and aboot) and the Tenacious at home.

I don't like the ones with a finger choil using up edge length

I like them, but find them less than perfect for my uses and preferences. I owned two Militarys, and three Manix 2 XLs, 2 Manix 2s, and I ended up regrinding their finger choils into suable edge, and reshaping the handles accordingly. I don't know where all the pics are but here are a couple:

Their claim to fame is supposedly fantastic ergonomics, but if you aren't Sal's hand twin, the finger notches are all in the wrong place!

Yeah.... see above for that as well.

Add in heavy use of cheapo plastic scales, and rising prices (for mostly overseas manufacture), and they are nothing to write home about these days.

Their FRN is really nice. And the bi-directional texturing is fantastic. I don't care that it's "cheap" because the FRN and lightweight models reflect that in their pricing, while being every bit as exceptional in the hand, and in fact the Resiliences I find more so, since they don't suffer from the blocky scale edges like the G10 versions do. That is actually one area where I can say Spyderco was less than perfect for me: their G10 scale edges, and as mentioned handle shapes, especially with a finger bump that puts excess pressure into my middle finger. But my hands are not Sal's hands, and I am not opposed to making changes to a knife to make it better suited to me if I already like 85% of the design and execution.

Functional simplicty with the hole, combined with quality and light weight.

Mostly true, though I definitely felt their G10, stainless steel lined Resilience and Tenacious were a bit too heavy for me. I skeletonized them further. Didn't feel the need on the lightweight versions. The Resilience was a little blade heavy for me, but I had always planned to Resilitary it anyway, and once I did, the balance was perfect (again, for me). On the G10 versions I had to regrind (which always includes crowning the spine on my folders), and skeletonize, and chamfer the scales before the knife felt quite right.

 

[K.O.D.]

My Manix 2 is old, but I will say when new the lock can be stiff. About 6 months in the rotation it lightened up. I will take this trade off over the axis lock as it is at least as strong and more reliable. 8 years of ownership and its easy to use.

 

[loon#r]

Narrowing down to these few things: Designs, models, blade steels, philosophy(ies), communications, customer service. What they do with new designs and offer for blade steels is where they shine the most.

Delica, Endela, endura, military are my favorites; for their track record, design, options of steels, ergonomics, customization, value, etc.

 

[gazz98]

I own 70 knives and 20 Spydercos. 2nd place belongs to Cold Steel with 8 knives. I'm a fan boy.

I like everything about the knives and company. If someone said you could only own one brand of knives for the rest of my life, easy, Spyderco.
* I appreciate that many knives offer 4 way pocket clips.
* I found the Spydie hole easy to use especially with gloves on.
* Plenty of variety of steels and handle materials with sprint runs.
* I like the leaf shaped blade and finger choils on many of the knives.
* I have no issues with their FRN. Their texturing is some of the best. Most of my knives are Delicas, Endelas, and Enduras.

 

[Houlahound]

Spyderco look too weird for me but I bought a Chaparral, it is an extremely excellent knife to f you like small, small , slicey knives.

Will also get a yojimbo and a manix at some point in near future.

 

[elde66]

Knives are okay. Detest their (lack of) parts availability. Hate their runaround automated phone system.

 

[strategy9]

Let me start by saying I am absolutely no fan of Spyderco. They make a very well built knife that works for what it was intended, and lots of options for blade steels and such, but aesthetically I think they are just ugly knives. The vast majority of them at least....

Let me follow that up however with the fact that as I sit here at work, finishing up my shift at 4:45 in the morning, this fugly summnuvabish is in my pocket as I type. It's a solid well built knife without question.

It's the only Spydie I own, and there is 1 other model currently on my short term radar, I'm still not a "fanboy" by any stretch (no pun intended), and am currently safe from said rabbithole of ever having a drawer full of the holey ugly 8 legged freaks... But if you ever do see one that catches your eye, there is no argument here on their build quality, they got their reputation for a reason. If one tickles your fancy, it's probably worth checking out.
*(ETA-2 more if you count the waved endela, little brother model to the waved endura in my pocket now, which I may also grab one day).

 

[000Robert]

I think that they are fugly! I prefer auto's, but I would rather have a thumbhole than a thumbstud.