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UNDER CONSTRUCTION
Contents
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Spyderco Tests |
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Spyderco Articles
and Reviews
Over the years I have made some good
friends and contacts within the knife using/collecting community. In this
area I will be taking advantage of some of their knowledge by having them
submit some Spyderco articles and knife reviews. These articles and tests
will be invaluable to anyone needing to learn how a knife performs before
committing to buying it!
Thank you to all who have contributed
articles and tests to the site......and a special thank you to Chad Los
Banos (Daywalker) for his continued friendship, support and articles!
Contents
Spyderco Serrated Edge
Who better to reference when it comes to
discuss serrations than Mr. Sal Glesser. Listed below is a copy of an
article I saved about modern serrations.
Sal“Our interest in
serrations developed during the 1970’s when we learned that a serrated edge
cuts more effectively. Investigation at that time revealed that they cut
more effectively for a variety of reasons.
1.
You have more linear inches of
cutting surface.
2.
You have single point penetration at
the tip of each serration. The concentration of force at the tip provides
much better penetration than just sliding a sharp plain edge across almost
any type of material.
3.
The center of effort rotates around
the serration as you are cutting with it. This permits a more efficient
separation of the material being cut.
In experimenting, we also
learned that the shape of the serration , size of serration, and angle of
the grind within the serration has significant effects.
We have also found a few
things that serrations don’t do nearly as well as plain edges. That would
include carving, whittling, some skinning applications, the cutting of
certain foods, and scraping.
Some of the advantages of
the serrated edges would be on a cutting board for example. The tip of the
tooth is the only part that hits the cutting board. The recessed edge is
hitting only the softer food and is likely to stay sharper 5 to 10 times
longer than the same knife in a plain edge used on the same cutting board.
We also found that if you
have a very good steel (by good I mean hard and tough), the serrated edge
can be used to cut materials that are much more difficult. For example, a
number of our customers have actually used the serrated edge to saw through
steel cable. The serration allowed the actual cutting of the cable through
the stepping of the serration. That would not have been possible with a
plain edged knife. Naturally the steel in the blade has to be extraordinary
and considerably harder than the cable that was cut. In each case, it did
ruin the knife but it does give an example for the potential of a
serration. We also found that a serration can be used to make a very poor
quality steel appear to be much more effective.
Some people refer to
serration as a saw tooth. This is not entirely true. A saw tooth does not
have a sharp edge between the edge, you have a sharpened edge between the
tip of the teeth so that constant cutting occurs.
The combination edge seems
to be very popular with many customers. The attitude is that it has the
best of both worlds. I’m still not sure if that would work for me as I
personally prefer more teeth and less plain edge. I like only enough edge
to do that scraping or fine cutting that would be necessary, but this is a
matter of preference.”
Submitted by Charles P. Adams
There have been many variations of serrated edges
produced over the years. Even a properly sharpened plain edge will exhibit
vertical scratch patterns with "micro-serrations" that enable the edge to
cut efficiently (Diagram C). Overall, the SpyderEdge provides the most
efficient cutting performance in a serrated edge. We recommend it for all
your aggressive jobs such as cutting rope, seat belts, cardboard, rubber
hose and leather. With proper cutting technique, the SpyderEdge can function
equally well for fine-skilled tasks such as skinning, cutting paper and
slicing. The SpyderEdge is easily maintained with our Tri-Angle Sharpmaker
or Profile sets.
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Aloha ALL!
Well, I finally got a Dodo the other week while I was on Oahu. I
had mentioned earlier that I never did get one of these due to
not "being sure" about the handle shape, and here in Hilo, no
shops carry it. I did find one on Oahu however, and i am glad
that I did!
When my brother in law and I were looking at the
's in a knifeshop on Oahu, I had several other
models in mind, but eventually settled on the Dodo. Now, the
Dodo's tail is known to be applied for less than lethal force,
but when I was handling the Dodo, I closed it, and immediately
found another area of the handle which could be used like the
tail end. Holding the Dodo in this manner, I then did some
pressure point stuff on my brother in law. The salesperson was
very amused by all of this, as well as the other customers
hearing my brother in law's, "Owww!!! Oooh!!! AAAhhh!!!" I
bought him a FRN Cricket for his part in my "mini-demo"
Later, when we got back to the beach house, I noticed that in
the reverse grip, it felt as if I was "piching the tail". While
doing some drills I noticed my range of motion was shortened
holding it in this manner.
So I tried a "gorilla reverse grip" and my rom was better, and i
could make better use of the tail also.
Anyway, I am very familiar with the blade shape of the Dodo, due
to my past experience MBC'ing my Crickets. What I was NOT
familiar with was how this blade shape and size would work on a
bigger handle. Especially one shaped as the Dodo's is. Time to
find out. My brother in law, God bless him, was very
trusting...He "wound up" some cardboard boxes and proceeded to
use them as attack limbs for me. These improvised limbs did not
stand a chance, and I found that in this grip shown, or with my
thump on the spine, the Dodo was very agile and accurate. We
found some old polyrope...about 3/4" in diameter, and again, my
trusting brother in law held the rope at arms length dangling,
and the Dodo slashed it with ease, so long as I did my part. At
home, my wife "attacked" me with a postal tube, and the darn
thing eventually got cut in two...boring. LOL!
We then did some groundwork in which I would draw the Dodo while
I was being choked and what not by my brother in law. I could
see "payback time" in his eyes! Anyway, again he fell victim to
the TWO useful protrusions on the Dodo. I wanted to apply an
infra-orbital "attack" on him, but I was afraid the Dodo would
slip and end up having to be removed from his nose! (FYI: I may
have spelled it wrong, but the infraorbital is a pressure point
right between your nostrils, where your nose connects to your
face). Of course, I used the tail at one point to pound on his
forearms, side of his thigh, etc while he played "non-complying
perp"! Paybacks are a B***H, but so are "refunds"!!!
Next day, normal cutting consisted of cardboard, more polyrope
that we found, and some old, beach hardened rubber slippers.
Using the grips shown, the Dodo excels at both normal cutting
and fine detailed applications. (Whoops! I used the max amount
of attachments!!!) Anyway, for harder cutting, I placed my thumb
atop the curve right in front of the blade hole to apply more
pressure, and my index on the same area for more detailed
cutting. Ergo's for the Dodo shined while the knife is held in
this manner.
Anyway, I must get used to this grippy G10 and tension of the
wire clip. Draw and replacing are a bit more difficult than my
usual FRN
's. Ball lock is VERY smooth, and there is NO way for me to
accidentally unlock it when opened as it is recessed quite
nicely and out of "hands way". Closing is a bit TOO smooth, and
i gotta get used to this also. Opening fast, i like, closing
fast...not really.
All in all, I am VERY impressed with the Eric GLESSER designed
Dodo. My hand is a bit too small to appreciate FULLY the ergo's
of this knife, but I can "make" it work for me. During all of
the testing, the deep 50/50 choil when the Dodo was used opened
was very reassuring! Also note, that when I do "live" testing, I
go ALL out, so having that deep choil was comforting. I also
found that if you hold the Dodo behind the primary choil and
kinda choke up on the tail, you can extend the reach a bit more
and produce some wicked and fast "whipping" slashes and cuts.
The G10 proved beneficial in this not too stable of a grip,
especially when I hung up on the choil a few times.
Well, mahalo for reading, and UK KEN, feel free to use this for
your site my friend! Hats off to Eric for such an interstingly
different design, and as of the time of purchase...03-06-05,
this Dodo has become my new EDC friend.
God bless!
PS: The images are in sequence with my review. Sorry, but I
don't know how to plug them in between paragraphs!
__________________
Proverbs 16:3...Commit YOUR works to the LORD, and YOUR plans
WILL succeed!
Submitted by Chad Los Banos
I bought my first
Spyderco product at a flea-market about 10 years ago, a used
Co-pilot stainless steel Clipit. The unusual shape of the little
knife and the ingenious design of the humpbacked blade that
featured a hole machined into the back of the blade caught my
eye. The Clipit name is derived from the extremely handy pocket
clip featured on the knife's scales. I've learned much more
about the Spyderco product since then. I've also owned many more
of their folding knives (I've also lost a couple).
Spyderco the Company: Spyderco began as a Colorado company that
built tiny bench vices and flexible bench tools to hold small
projects. These tools resembled spiders with their many holding
arms. These tools are what gave the company its unusual name,
but they weren't the reason the company is practically a
household name. The Clipit pocket knife is the product that put
Spyderco on the map.
The Hole Story: If this is the first time you've seen a Spyderco
the first thing you may notice is the hole in the back of the
blade. The hole may appear to be a styling cue, but it has an
extremely practical purpose. The hole is used for deploying the
blade from the scales with your thumb. You cradle the knife in
cupped palm and use your thumb to rotate the blade out of the
knife's scales. With a little practice you can have a Spyderco
knife out of your pocket, open and ready to go to work in a
fraction of a second. The hole is a great design, because with
its continually curved circumference it offers less friction
against the surface of the thumb giving it a smooth action,
unlike angled openings or small studs. It is an ingenious
design. Its the 21st century version of a "nail-nick", the small
nick in pocket knives that you use to pull the blade out with a
fingernail.
You may have seen other knives with a hole in the blade of
similar design. Spyderco has a patent on the design, so at least
for now, other knife makers pay a fee to use the hole. It smacks
of irony that other companies pay to use "nothing" (a hole)! A
notable maker who uses the hole is Benchmade (if you want a
similar knife to the Spyderco product but made completely in the
USA, try a Benchmade Ascent).
The Lightweight Line up: The lightweight collection are the
plastic scaled Clipits that are made from the fiberglassed
reinforced nylon (FRN) as opposed to some of Spyderco's other
knives that are made with steel or carbon fiber scales and metal
liners. The FRN scales are tough and impact resistant, but are
simple and not reinforced with a liner. A person carrying a
lightweight Clipit should think of the scales as a sheath, not
an integral part of the knife because even though the scales are
plenty tough, they will fail under heavy lateral prying. If the
user just uses the knife for its intended purpose, cutting just
about anything, they will never break the knife. Prying is not
recommend (that is true with practically any knife, although
some are tougher than others and you never know what kind of
bind you can end up in).
Delica: The Delica fits in the lightweight Clipit line up right
under the Endura, and may be the most practical knife in the
lightweight collection. The Endura is very large when compared
with the Delica and will definitely call attention when opened.
The Delica is a bit smaller, and when brought out into the light
of day looks like a non-threatening pocket knife, unlike the
Endura which might be seen as more of a weapon by some. Yes,
blade area means cutting power, but rest assured, the Delica is
up to all but the most demanding cutting jobs. The blade lock is
a spine mounted style that is easy to unlock one-handed and even
with gloves. The clip can be mounted on either side of the knife
to suit the user.
Build Quality: First rate build quality is apparent with each
Spyderco you pick up. No loose or wobbly parts, smooth, solid
opening and lock-up. A high level of fit-and-finish is built
into each knife.
Ergonomics: The Delica is a great size for most people. The
average hand will manipulate the Delica with ease. The unusual
design of the Delica lends it qualities not associated with
pocket knives. One quality of most of Spyderco's folders is that
they are extremely flat making them a good choice for someone
who has to carry one in their back pocket (someone mounted on
horseback, for example). Front pocket carry is very discreet,
but it will be easy to see you have the knife because part of
the knife and its clip protrudes above the pocket. The FRN
scales feature the company's Volcano texture to help with grip.
The Volcano texture is especially helpful if you're in a wet
environment. The Delica is very light weight, coming in at under
two ounces. Amazing!
The Blade: The bladesteel used by Spyderco is in a constant
state of evolution, and they always use the latest and greatest
steel. The knives are made in the Seki City area of Japan where
many other makers are based as well. They benefit from the
availability of excellent Japanese steel. Because the knives are
made in Japan you wont find the latest American bladesteel like
154CM, but you find the latest in Japanese metallurgy, which is
excellent. VG-10 is the current blade steel, Gin-1 was in use
for a time, and I remember seeing AUS-8 on some older models.
All of the steel is high-carbon, relatively hard and very easy
to sharpen.
Spyderedge: The configuration of the blade can be had three
ways: Combi-edge (half Spyderedge serrated, half plain), all
plain or all Sypderedge serrated). In the store you're more
likely to find all Spyderedge. If you want a plain-edged or
combi-edged knife, you might try an online distributor. An
online distributor might also offer different scale colors other
than black (what you'll find at a store 99% of the time). The
Spyderedge serrated blade offers some serious cutting power and
will make quick work of thick cardboard or rope. The cutting
power offered by the Spyderedge is the reason many first
responders carry Spyderco products. A properly sharpened
Spyderedge will cut through a seatbelt like a hot knife through
butter (had to use a knife cliche, forgive me). If you're a
hunter, you obviously would not want the Spyderedge for
skinning/cleaning jobs, so the plain edge would work out very
well. The plain edge can be whipped into a serious sharp fit but
it lacks the brute cutting power of the Spyderedge.
As far as tactical (military) use, I would recommend a different
product than a lightweight Clipit. The blades are high polished
stainless, a "mirror in the night" if you will. Spyderco offers
other, more tactically inclined products for GIs and SWAT
members, knives with anodization and other low-vis coatings.
Maintenance: I recommend that everyone in the world buy a
Spyderco Tri-edge Sharpmaker to keep ALL of their knifes sharp.
This sharpening kit is the trick to keeping serrated edges
hair-flinging sharp (scissors, too). Apart from sharpening, you
don't have to do much to keep the knife looking great. I wash
mine in the sink with the dishes. If the blade stains a little
bit (possible with high-carbon steel), I use the miracle product
Bar-keepers friend and a wet sponge. You don't really need to
oil the set-up since the metal blade rotates in the FRN base.
Value: If you can get the knife for less than 35 dollars, you
are getting a great value for the money. Resist the urge to buy
one for more than that price, because you can find them from
reputable online dealers.
Final Words: This is the knife line that started the high-tech
knife revolution, and they are still state-of-the-art. There are
now many, many more competitors on the market, and many very
fine knives, but you can't go wrong with the tried-and-true
Delica.
Aloha ALL!
No pun intended on the title!
Anyway, I just recently received from Vampyrewolf an SS PE
Jester. (Mahalo Pat!) I had mentioned to him that I was planning
on doing a MBC type review on this "Mini-
". So today I thought, "Why not?" I mean, I have done the same
to my Ladybug CE...
First, I HAD to put a temporary fob on it to assist in grip and
retention. (Paracord supplied by UK KEN! Thanks bro!) It is a
FAR cry from the kind of knots that CKE has been doing, but it
was functional.
Okay...first part of the mini-test. I had an old USPS box so I
decided to use it for thrust tests. I held the Jester as shown
in the images below throughout most of the test. I did a few
thrusts blade edge facing to my right, so it's in a horizontal
position. Upon exiting the box, I did a short quick downward
turn. I think these are called "Coma cuts". The Jester did these
quite well, and not once did my hand feel like it was gonna slip
onto the blade. The small blade of the Jester exited the box
very well. Cool! I then just did some repeated cutting on the
box edge, in the hopes of making this blade dull...
Next, I then did my "soda can" slash test. I filled the soda
cans with water, and proceeded to do various slashes at full
speed. The can fell at times, but for the most part, the Jester
provided nice accurate slash marks, as you can see in the images
below. I apologize to JSmith for once again using Pepsi cans,
but i can assure him, they were empty!
I did a few thrusts on the Vanilla Pepsi can, and the blade
shape of the Jester again proved more than adequate.
Next, I found some old moldy wire that I stripped a small
section of, and I then proceeded to whittle on a small piece of
Koa wood. Be advised that this wood is very hard, so i was
rather impressed with the performance of this lil' knife! Edge
geometry was fine for this task. Lastly, I cut a few strips of
denim. I gotta start wearing gloves during my testing as I
almost stabbed my hand on this one test w/ the denim. The Jester
tip had a bit of a hard time penetrating the denim at first, but
once it "got in"...whoa!!!
That's basically it. If you carry a Jester on your keychain, I
would think that your keychain could act as a fob should you
ever need to use your Jester for an SD matter. God forbid. After
all of this, the edge was still sharp "enough", so I of course
polished this little gem, and touched up the edge with my
Pro-File white stone only, stropped it on the Pro-File leather
sheath, and my little Jester went back to my "Gawk Box". As I
told Vampyrewolf, the only thing that is preventing me from
carrying this SS wonder knife on my Keychain is simply because I
wanna see just how much longer I can get away with using my CE
Ladybug!
Don't let the name of this
fool you...the Jester is no joke! Thanks again Pat!
God bless, mahalo for reading, and sorry for the terrible pics!
__________________
Proverbs 16:3...Commit YOUR works to the LORD, and YOUR plans
WILL succeed!
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Aloha ALL!
A few weeks back, I was on Oahu. Long story short, while in a shop there,
my choice between several
's boiled down to either a Scorpius or a Dodo. I ended up getting the
Dodo, even though the Scorpius fit my hand better...
Anyway, I just recently got a Scorpius in the mail the other day...(Thanks
FoM) and I had some time to play with it. When I first saw the Scorpius, I
liked it right away. The only "disturbing area" for *me* was the way the
SS Scales of this knife flowed right onto the edge. However, after playing
with it a bit, I found that I would NOT thrust with this knife unless I
REALLY had to...but as a slasher, it'd do well. In a utility role, I found
this knife works fine, as most
's do, but I was more curious about the description of the Scorpius
attributes being a "tactical utility knife"...
As the heat of the morning became apparent, so did the sweat on my palms.
I did a few "Tail Taps" on a 2x4 with the Scorpius opened and this worked
fine. Tempted to thrust with it, no way...at least not into a 2x4. Kinda
funny, as I used to thrust with my SS Police, but I was not as concerned
with it as I am with this here Scorpius.
Oh well...
Reverse grip felt great, as the tail provided an almost "anatomically made
for Daywalker's thumb" ramp. Manipulation was okay, and I am thankful to
jbake for turning me onto the grip tape I now have on ALL my EDC clips.
This knife is butt heavy...also, I don't really like the way the 14mm
Round Hole is slightly blocked by the SS scales. The Deacon had a nice
word for the obstruction, but I forgot what it was.
I can open this knife in the normal manner, but as with all my SS tip down
models, I like doing what is now known as the
Drop. Another thing is the ride height. I do not like knives that stick up
outta my pocket. I realize this eases in draw, and can be hidden by
co-ordinating your clothes right. *I* personally, just don't like "High
Riders". When gripping the knife as one would in a "Hit The Fan" moment,
the scales are kinda "sharp"...I mean, the outer edges are chamfered
nicely, but, gosh, how do I explain this...Oh forget it. Anyway, what's
kinda neat is the raised lockbar that follows the scale perfectly...I
believe this type of "sloped" Lock bar is a
first?
Overall, I like this knife. I told FoM that I would never use this knife
opened because I found a grip that I can hold it in and still punch more
or less comfortably...(See below). Also, I can do "Impact PPCT thing ala
Bram" when held in the manner shown! I didn't notice this when I was with
my brother in law on Oahu, and good for him that I didn't!
Slashing, I hold behind the 50/50 choil area...thrusts IF I HAD to would
be held in the same place...
I think this knife deems more 'exploring", but I would LOVE a G10, or even
an FRN version of this one...Utility-wise, the Scorpius is a COOL piece of
steel!!! (Also, the "Dolphin Head" is kinda cute
)
God bless
__________________
Proverbs 16:3...Commit YOUR works to the LORD, and YOUR plans WILL
succeed!
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