The Appeal of Spyderco - What is it?

Well, I also like spyderco folders for edc.

- I prefer the spyderco hole over any thumstud

- VG-10 is a very good steel for a reasonable price

- the company is ok. (at least they don't make silly movies like cold steel does)
 
Me personally, i prefer the "hole" over studs any day;don't knock it 'till you've tried it.:)
Many of my Spyderco's have outlived and outcut some other brands i own. All the while remaining light, ergonomic and affordable...and their Spyderedge is untouchable in the serration category IMHO. Plus many of their designs truly are unique.;)
 
its really hard to understand how high their quality is from just pictures on the internet, but like many others have mentioned, as soon as you hold one for yourself in person, that lightbulb just goes off above your head, you immediately realize the quality is on a different level than most other knife companies.

the hole is also very reliable, it always catches on your thumb.
 
If spyderco made their FRN models stronger I would have a million. The steel liners are too thin for anything other then light duty EDC. I still carry one every now and then but I reach for other knives more and more.
 
It's just preference.

I respect Spyderco but 98% of their knives do not appeal to me in the slightest.

As in, not even a cursory glance.

Tostig
 
mat_890 said:
If spyderco made their FRN models stronger I would have a million. The steel liners are too thin for anything other then light duty EDC. I still carry one every now and then but I reach for other knives more and more.
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i disagree, their frn models are very strong, and can handle hard jobs. i carried a basic spyderco endura 4 combo edge on a construction site for 3 or 4 months everyday and it performed all kinds of jobs, even ones i shouldnt have been using it for. i never even sharpened the knife once, and it was still pretty sharp.
 
Buy one and find out for yourself.

Many companies are guilty of designing knives to look good rather than perform good or feel good. Not Spyderco. Ergonomics and performance are their number one priority.

Spyderco fans know, enough time spent using a Spyderco makes all other brands seem a lot less appealing.
 
mat_890 said:
If spyderco made their FRN models stronger I would have a million. The steel liners are too thin for anything other then light duty EDC. I still carry one every now and then but I reach for other knives more and more.
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Excuse me, but can I have some of whatever you've been smoking? The only person I've heard of breaking a Spyderco FRN handle had the blade stuck in the ground and ran over it with a skid steer loader. That was an unlined FRN handle. The lined ones are even stronger. What do you do with a folding knife that could possible exceed the strength of Spyderco's FRN? I would really like to know.
 
I don't think I'm really gonna add much that hasn't already been said. The only thing I will say is this: 2 Months ago, I was in the same boat as the OP, I thought Spydercos were ugly and they didn't interest me. About a month ago, I bought a Manix 2 on a whim to try it out figuring that Spydercos have good resale on here and I could easily sell it and get something else. I used the Manix 2 the day I got it to chop up some boxes and whittle some kindling to start a fire. I now own 4 (Manix 2, Manix 2 CTS-XHP, Para 2 and Gayle Bradley) and I have 6 more pre-ordered. I just didn't "get it" until I used one. Now I am wishing that I didn't miss out on some of the sprints of the models I really like due to my own "ignorance".

Do some research, think about what you like about some of the knives you like currently (my edc was a BM 950 rift - I picked a Manix 2 because it had some of the features I liked about the rift and was a similar size and weight) and try out a model from Spyderco that has some of those features. You will probably love it once you use it, and if you don't, I haven't seen many Spydercos last too long on the classifieds.
 
JeremiahWeaver09 said:
i feel very sorry for you :(
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I've had a couple of Spyderco knives in the past.

An old school Endura , Meerkat..

I've been on forums enough to know that people like what they like and IMO one man's preferred knife may not be another man's preferred knife , regardless of materials used.

Kershaw and EKI tickle my funny bone , but that is me. :D

Tostig
 
Spyderco has cost me a shit load of money...I hate the way most look. So I have spent a lot of money on Benchmades, Emersons, Kershaws and a ton of others looking for that perfect knife that also looks good....But after all these years I only seem to EDC Spydercos. They are like a kick ass pair of underwear. They may not win any beauty contests, but they work great and keep my junk happy....

As for the hole....well, It just brilliant.
 
It looks like you got some good answers already but I'll add my two cents. After using both, I'll take the hole over the thumbstud every time. Spyderco's wire pocket clip is my favorite clip and most of their designs are thin making pocket carry easy.
Those points and a few more all add up to spyderco being the best production knife co. on earth IMHO.
 
Of all the opening mechanisms thumbstud is my least favorite. In most cases the stud is too far forward and limits the effective slicing length of the blade. It might be a 3" blade, but if the thumbstud is .5" forward of the handle then basically I got only 2.5" for slicing. For liner/frame lock knives the stud can be placed rather close to the pivot, but for midlock/backlock folders there must be enough distance as leverage to overcome the stiff backspring. As the basic Spyderco is midlock Delica and Endura, the hole is the best choice.

Now, my favorite opening mechanism is the flipper (fast, doubles as a guard, allows narrow blade), but it's not compatible with midlocks. As such I'm sticking with thumbhole for all midlocks.
 
mat_890 said:
If spyderco made their FRN models stronger I would have a million. The steel liners are too thin for anything other then light duty EDC. I still carry one every now and then but I reach for other knives more and more.
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:confused:
The FRN knives are working knives. If you decided to use a 2mm thick blade to say pry the lid off a paint can, and the tip broke that would not be the knife's fault for being too thin. Not all knives are prybars. Just like you would not use a 3 ton bottle jack tofix a flat time on a bicycle. I don't know what you consider "light duty", but I would be willing to bet that it might consist of dutures that would probably require a fixed blade or a prybar.
 
yablanowitz said:
Excuse me, but can I have some of whatever you've been smoking? The only person I've heard of breaking a Spyderco FRN handle had the blade stuck in the ground and ran over it with a skid steer loader. That was an unlined FRN handle. The lined ones are even stronger. What do you do with a folding knife that could possible exceed the strength of Spyderco's FRN? I would really like to know.
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I guess you and a few others misunderstood my post. My bad should have explained it better. :foot:

Its not the handles that break, like you suggested, the tip that breaks like RevDevil suggested or the edge as weaver09 suggested. Its the FRN and steel liners that bend introducing blade-play....a lot of it. My 4 month old stretch has a good 4mm of blade-play at the tip and I never abused it. Its happened on two Spyderco knives I own. If you accidentally apply torque to the blade, the handle part near the pivot screw actually bends. On mine you can hold it to the light and see the wiggle room the knife has. Keep in mind it came out of the box solid. Of all the folders I own this has never happened to any one of them other then spyderco's steal lined FRN and these are the knive I use the least and take the best care of.

I doubt I got a lemon and I never abused the knife to any extent. Before someone says to adjust the pivot....yes I have tried. You can disagree, thats fine but I have no reason to lie and my issues are purely factual. I like spyderco's knives and like I said previously if the FRN was stronger I would own a million...but for now I avoid the cheaper models and I avoid doing anything other then light EDC with them.

RevDevil said:
I don't know what you consider "light duty", but I would be willing to bet that it might consist of dutures that would probably require a fixed blade or a prybar.
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I have openly said on other topics I have no issue with prying...but I hold the blade not the handle that way the steel takes the strain not the pivot...either way I save the prying for other knives, not spydercos.
 
I feel that the spyder-hole is much easier to manipulate underwater than thumb studs.

The reason is because you can't really "flip out" a manual blade underwater with any kind of inertia/ speed. For one-handed opening underwater your thumb has to accompany the blade all the way to the open position to ensure that it locks.

With the hole, the overall control you have over the blade is much more secure than any thumbstud and it is bidirectional.
 
I think Spyderco and Kershaw are the "Standard example of morally correct companies". They both barely have any criticisms and their owners are great people (Especially Sal)

If you ask me, I bought a Delica, and despite what people say, I'm not obsessed with getting another Spyderco.
I don't know about any of you, but I'd buy Spyderco knives just for the thought of supporting Sal.
 
As a Spyderco collector, I can tell you that my attraction to the products is the principle of designing with an eye toward function rather than form. They do what they are supposed to do better than anything else in their price range. They are knives designed to be used. Extremely practical. That's why I like them.
 
I got my first Spydie a few weeks ago (Manix 2), and it's been my EDC ever since.

One thing I'm curious about after reading through this thread. What is everyone's fascination with fast opening? For 99.9% of us, the 0.5, 1.0, or 1.5 seconds it takes to flip open a knife isn't gonna make a damn bit of difference. :rolleyes:

Having said that, It is still pretty cool how fast you can deploy a Spydie :D
 
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