Wire clips - need your input

Sal, my only experience is with my Reverse S Meerkat. The wire clip is too tight, even in thin fabric. Good for rock climbers, maybe, but not EDC on the ground! :)

I'll have to reserve judgement on wire clips in general until I can try the new Native III, which I've been told is not as tight.

Aesthetically, I don't mind the wire. In an ideal world, every one of us would get the exact combination of features we love on our favorite knives, but that ain't practical for you to offer! Your SKUs would be in the thousands!

Perhaps some day consider a "Spyderco Custom Shop?" :)

Keep up the good work and thanks for asking. You know we all appreciate your participation here!

Karl
 
IMO wire pocket clip is not bad idea at all. Of course if it is properly shaped and profiled, wide enough to do not twist and placed at the right place. I can’t elaborate what I have in my mind saying “right” and “proper”, this depends on the knife design. Generally I’m pleasured with my Ti-Salsa wire clip although I would like entire knife to sit in the pocket somewhat deeper.

The advantages of wire clip in comparison with conventional flat on:
  • It holds the knife somewhat firmer at the same tension. This is because wire clip presses a part of fabrics between two wires. At the same time it “chews” the pocket edge somewhat calmer than conventional flat one and significantly calmer than for ex. Lil’ Temperance one. Maybe this is because wire, especially reasonably thick one, has rounder edges than flat conventional clip...
 
I sold my Native lll to a dealer at a gun show today,getting together the cash for the forum spyderhawk.He said it was the first one he saw and asked "Wonder why they didn't use a better clip?".
Looks like it wouldn't be to hard to design a knife that you could interchange a wire clip for a classic clip or visa versa depending on wich you prefer.
 
Personally, I feel the wire clip is better suited for the smaller models, i.e. Meerkat. It gives a low ride in the pocket and holds very well. As far as the larger models (the ones I prefer) such as the Military it seems the traditional clip works better and also looks better.
 
U812 said:

"Looks like it wouldn't be to hard to design a knife that you could interchange a wire clip for a classic clip or visa versa depending on which you prefer."


I second that. You'd need an indent for the flat clip and wire indents on each side. The barrel screw design would probably be the same. Just design the FRN to accept both types, and redesign the wire clip to fit properly? You might have to go to a thicker wire?

Just a guess. Sal, would this work? Could it be phased in? Seems like a mod which could please a lot of people!

Karl
 
I personally like the wire clip. I like the discrete carry and the fact that mine don't seem to snag or scratch things as much. I was wondering though? Sal, could you design the clip so that a wire clip and a standard clip were interchangeable? If you could standardize on maybe three sizes of clips, a knife could come "standard" with one clip and you could then just order a replacement clip if you didn't like that style.
 
I don't like the way wire clips feel, especially in a tight grip. Plus, they look horrible, and incredibly cheap.
Recently got a renewed interest in Spydercos, have been checking out several of them, and am about to get a couple more.
Just my opinion (and I can see why people might like the looks of a wire clip on some of the smaller knives, whose clips seem abnormally large in comparison to the handle size), but after handling the Meerkat, and Salsas, I would never buy a knife with a wire clip, personally, and on the larger knives, it seems like a solution for a non-existent problem.
 
Haven't have anything but the Salsa, and the wire clip is perfect. I think it's much more lower profile despite that it's not black.
 
My only experience with the wire clip was spending a week with the passaround Salsa.

It seemed to work out just fine, and the "low profile" factor was appreciated.

I don't see it having any huge advantages over a standard clip, but if I had to choose between two otherwise identical knives I'd probably go for the wire clip on anything but a dressy folder.
 
Interchangeable clips with a "low rider" option would be a great thing. I love my Lil Temp and the current clip is great for access. But having the handle of the "little, big knife" poking over the top of my pocket looks like I'm carrying a lot more knife than I am. For most of the time I'm carrying it I have to unclip it and let it drop to the bottom of my pocket.

WWill
 
Seems like it boils down to this.Will those of you that like the wire clip not buy a knife because it doesn't have a wire clip?Will those that like the classic not buy a knife because it has a wire clip.For myself a wire clip on most knives would keep me from buying it.
 
Wire clips look cheap to me too and do steer me away from certain models.

I freely admit that I have no experience with them, but since I haven't had a problem with the standard clips, the wires just seem like an (ugly) answer to a question I never asked.

Please, please, please keep them the heck away from the Military!! :)
 
Compression lock,wire clip Military.Fixing something that ain't broke.If this ever happens I will buy 3 or 4 of the good ones to do me the rest of my life.
 
This thread is providing some very good R & D info, thanx much.

Some of the comments against the wire clip is that they "look" cheap or "look" weak, etc. Just how much emphasis is placed on looks? Especially as comparing a lower cost but still hi-perforfmance piece like an FRN piece as opposed to a more expensive and more sophisticated model such as the Military.

BTW, the wire clips are more expensive to produce than the stamped clip.

What I'm hearing basically is that wire clips are more acceptable on FRN models but not perceived as a good thing for upper scale models?

What would an "upper scale" wire clip look like?

sal
 
Maybe the main objection is that the clip looks plain. Would it be possible to dress it up with a TiNi gold colored coating or maybe make the wire itself oval instead of round? I really like the wire clips so I'm probably not a good judge. How difficult would it be to make wire clips and regular clips interchangeable? I realize that this would require some reengineering but it seems that both types of clips could be made to use the same base and screws. But I'm not an engineer just a tinkerer.:)
 
I have a Salsa and like the tension. I would love to have the meerkat's style clip on more knives because it rides deep and I highly value that #1 so the knife won't get lost, and #2 it's low profile and the center of gravity is down deep in the pocket. -Aaren
 
This is a good thread. I like the wire clips but would like them even more on high end models if they were dressed up a little more. Maybe a Military with a black hard chromed finish applied to the wire. How about a SS police with chromed or polished SS wire clip.
 
I agree with what WWill said. It is very hard for me to buy into the fact that the wire clips offer discrete carry when you have so much knife sticking out of the pocket.

A wire clip, in and of itself, will not keep me from buying a Spyderco. What will, and has, is the lack of low profile carry (Gunting exempted). Spyderco needs more knives that carry deep in the pocket IMHO. Look at the SERE, the AFCK (in tip down), the old Viele, the old Standard, and so on. It's ok on some knives...but not all of them. Wire, to me at least, is not the deciding factor...depth of carry (in these days) is.

So...my advice...find a way to keep the knives (at least some of them) lower in the pocket.
 
IMO if it rides to deep in the pocket it may as well not have a clip.Dont get me wrong I don't want one that half the knife is out of the pocket.To me the perfect depth is like a Military and Native,just enough sticking up to grab with your thumb and forfinger.
The wire clips is just a matter of opinion.People that are in the loop with knives are more likely to like them and the average every day buyer will be less likely too.The Native 3s clip worked alright but IMHO it did not work as well as the standard clip.
 
Sal, a High end wire clip should gold anodized or a custom colour.... some suggested pink but why not green, blue or a wack of other avaiable colours so we the knife guys can customize our knives a little.

The only problem I have had with the wire clip is it hangs up on the rivet in my jeans sometimes and that since it has a hollow center I am worried of branches or something getting caught between the wire.

You could have a little off shoot custom company supplying coloured wire clips and the classic clips in different colours.... look at the demand for the silver gunting clips, imagine if you could get gold, blue, red, pink, orange or a variety of different clip colours for your knife.
 
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