What did we do to deserve these blunt tips?

Harry Callahan

Harry Callahan

Fresh outta warranty
Gold Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2002
Messages
1,753
Sheesh. The scales are tipping folks. Used to be a few Rescues and the Spur had blunt tips. Nowadays it seems that over half the catalog has blunt tips. Is it something we did? Was the Warranty department overrun with broken tips? Spyderco finally releases automatic knives and they have blunt tips?? Good grief... Sprint run another Jess Horn lightweight or something, let us know that you are still capable of grinding a blade with a splinter-picker tip on it! According to legend and lore, the Police Model was the result of LE types calling Spyderco and asking for a "Mariner with a tip".

Let this BF Thread ring out in the spirit of those phone calls and letters. GIVE US OUR TIPS BACK!! What have we done to deserve this? :mad:
 
The Para and the Millie both have very pointed tips. I believe Spyderco sells more of the Enduras and Delicas and as such suffered many more cases of broken tips with those models. Thus, when the E4 and D4 came out, they had a stronger, albeit rounded, tip. It makes sense. The more affordable knives that Spyderco makes will see harder use by less knife-knowledgeable people. Thus, it saves Spyderco time and money by making a stronger tip. I for one, have no real problem with it.
 
I usually carry two (or three) Spydies, a Millie or a Para, a Pacific Salt and a Lava.

The Salt gets used for the rough stuff, the Lava if I'm in a public area and want to be low key or if its a delicate job like sharpening a pencil and the Millies and Paras kind of wait around.... just in case.

Although lately the Millies have been working in the kitchen quite a bit. They slice mushrooms like nobody's business. :p

Generally I prefer knives that don't have delicate tips so I don't have to worry about them.
 
There's always the option of grinding the tip to a more acute point. I've seen that done to Salts, Pacifics, Enduras, and Delicas an had it done to an R2 which I had STR customize for me. You could argue that the converse would also be true, but blunting a tip shortens the blade.

Paul
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To each his own........ but I love the blunt tips on my SALTS.
But, I agree; one should have a choice. ;)
 
For some reason I stick to my Military (or RIL Sage) more often then not. I like the tip on the Manix 2 though.
 
:confused:

I don't see very many blunt tips? I see different blade profiles that aren't as pointy as some of the others though. Spyderco seems really into the leaf shape right now, which doesn't really have the ability to have a swooping point like the recent JD Smith Sprint or the Chinook but I think there is still a fair variety. It's all about balance, maybe 2010-2011 will see a swing back into the designs you favor. :thumbup:
 
I might be in the minority but love the new Endura and Delica 4. I like them as rugged user knives and not have to worry so much about breaking the tip off.

Vinny
 
Even the Delica4 tip is not what I would call blunt. A butterknife has a blunt tip. You can still remove a splinter with a D4.

:thumbup:
 
The Deacon said:
There's always the option of grinding the tip to a more acute point. I've seen that done to Salts, Pacifics, Enduras, and Delicas an had it done to an R2 which I had STR customize for me. You could argue that the converse would also be true, but blunting a tip shortens the blade.
Click to expand...

It goes both ways, any grinding be it pointy-ing or rounding will remove blade length and in the latter it will give it a slightly larger belly radius.

Personally I like a nice hard tip angle, not necessarily needle point, but I want it sharp. IMO the tip is one of the most useful parts of a knife, when cutting paper, tape and that sort of thing you press the tip into the material and pierce and cut.

I should mention aside from dropping, how to you break a knife tip? I know my SnG has a rather stout tip, but my Leafstorm or any other knife I had never had a tip break from use, abuse yes, but never use.
 
There are quite a few "sharp tips" out there but for working blades a blunter tip is less prone to break. My knives have allergic reactions to staples while some people use them like small screwdrivers.

Cento3, Stretch, Paramilitary, Military, etc. Those all have pretty fine tips.

For the record, the Rescue and some of the wharncliffe/sheepsfoot blades cut better than the knives with bellies. My D'Allara Rescue has no "tip" but it cuts like a box knife due to edge/tip geometry.
 
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