D'Allara 3 bump -> The D'Allara revisited - 11 years later

[Nate]

Great thread, thanks for taking the time to put it together! This is a model I was only vaguely aware of, looks like another gem.

[swigert]

Hi Hudsonhawk,

Very nice presentation. thanx much for the effort and the kind words. It's appreciated.

John D'Allara was a New York City LEO that was also a fan. He was lost in the towers on 9/11. His fellow officers asked that we somehow use his name when they shipped us the steel from Tower One.

As mentioned, I am trying to re-create the D'Allara in a new version that will hopefully eliminate the areas where customers were not happy with the design. We'll make the first run in G-10 to check for glitches and then create new molds.

Hey Hawk, email you address to me and I'll see that you get one of the WTC reliefs. (sglesser@spyderco.com).

sal

Sal,

Any timeframe on the new one?

[hudsonhawk]

Sal,

Any timeframe on the new one?

One of my hopes with this spotlight was to show some new Spyderco fans the awesomeness of these knives and rekindle some interest in them. My hope is that the interest becomes good enough to get one of these babies pushed up on the production schedle. I know Spyderco keeps saying it's on the list, but they have so many models/variants in so many factories I know the production schedules are crazy.

I am very intersted in seeing what a new version of this knife would look like so many years later, and I know others are too :)

[sal]

We're waiting on a sample. Difficult engineering so we're being patient.

sal

[Holland]

That's great news! I'm looking forward for future updates :D

[osprey]

Very excited to hear about a new D'Allara. It has always been one of my favorite Spydies from an aesthetic standpoint (especially the rescue model). I missed out on the original and haven't had a lot of experience buying on the secondary market so I tend to avoid it altogether. Good to know there is a successor in the works, regardless of time frame.

[DougC-3]

Thanks for the very interesting and informative write up and photos! They are a great addition to some recent threads and discussions of these knives. And congratulations on getting the relief material! Wow!!

I received my D'Allara Rescue model last Christmas Eve, and I've been crazy about it ever since. I have to credit tvenuto with originally interesting me in them after I asked for a knife with a hand-filling grip. (I also credit him with interesting me in the Nishijin R, another of my faorites -- thanks, T)

I carry my D'Allara Rescue anytime I'm working outdoors. I never beat on my knives, but just this afternoon I was on my roof and noticed a roofing nail which had worked it's way almost a half inch out of the roof, about a yard from the edge. The nail was sticking up just enough for me to trip over it and fall off the roof. I was tired and dehydrated from yard work and rather than going down for a hammer, I used the butt of my D'Allara to drive the nail back in, knowing I'd forget about it before I came back up to blow out the gutters again. After all, these are working knives, intended to be used.

My knife is the original pocket shredding one without the smooth oval under the clip, and, as I said, I'm crazy about it. I'm ever on the lookout for all the other varieties to add to my collection. I'm sure forumites are sick of looking at my photos of it, but I guess, since it's a different version than the ones pictured, I'll be forced to post them again anyway :D

[tvenuto]

I received my D'Allara Rescue model last Christmas Eve, and I've been crazy about it ever since. I have to credit tvenuto with originally interesting me in them after I asked for a knife with a hand-filling grip. (I also credit him with interesting me in the Nishijin R, another of my faorites -- thanks, T)

You're quite welcome! Happy to pass on the spydie-love for some of the (IMO) under-appreciated models. One of these days I'm going to organize an R pass-around to garner more support for that model. Although your D'allara might be a little less refined without the smooth escutcheon, it's cool to have a snapshot in time of the evolution of the model.

[hudsonhawk]

Great pics Doug! The original handle version is on my short list of must-haves. One sold recently at auction for less than $90 which is great for those of us that want to grab the old ones.

[hudsonhawk]

I don't think the spacer on the back of the WTC can be only FRN. The lock strength relies on the rigidity behind the ball. The cutout on the blade presses against the ball, the ball presses against the spine... if it was flexible, it would just break when you apply pressure on the lock.

If you look at it, when closed, from the end, towards the pivot, does it look like it solid FRN?

Donut,

The backspacer looks to be completely FRN, one single piece that runs from the back of the blade to the butt of the handle. It is sandwiched between the steel liners and the handle scales. The BBL rests inside the FRN of the handles and the liners. There is a support piece that rests just underneath the BB that looks like it helps support and guide the BB, but I can't tell if it is metal or plastic. I can't tell if the backspacer even plays a role in strengthening the BBL from an outside examination.

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[Anubisman]

Awesome pics one of my grails for sure.

Anubisman

[Halfneck]

I own one of the drop point versions that I scored as a partial trade at a gun show. Great knife with incredible ergonomics. It fits so well to the contours of my hand it's like shaking hands with it. My only complaint (non-issue really) is that it is a beefy knife and takes up a lot of pocket real estate.

Good thread.

[SpyderNut]

Hi Hudsonhawk,

Very nice presentation. thanx much for the effort and the kind words. It's appreciated.

John D'Allara was a New York City LEO that was also a fan. He was lost in the towers on 9/11. His fellow officers asked that we somehow use his name when they shipped us the steel from Tower One.

As mentioned, I am trying to re-create the D'Allara in a new version that will hopefully eliminate the areas where customers were not happy with the design. We'll make the first run in G-10 to check for glitches and then create new molds.

Hey Hawk, email you address to me and I'll see that you get one of the WTC reliefs. (sglesser@spyderco.com).

sal

Sal,

Any timeframe on the new one?

Very good news indeed! :)

[DougC-3]

My version has a solid steel back spacer from stem to stern, with solid steel liners, together, one-half cm of steel, 5.8 oz on my scales. This is great for my purposes but I'm sure most people will appreciate the trimmer upcoming model, and I will too. It will be nice to have a lighter, more pocketable one as well.

[Hopsbreath]

What's with the sharpening choil debate? I've seen that before, where someone hates them, but haven't understood why. I'm a fan and wish they were on more knives.

[hudsonhawk]

What's with the sharpening choil debate? I've seen that before, where someone hates them, but haven't understood why. I'm a fan and wish they were on more knives.

I honestly dont know. There was a thread back during the
time the drop point model was for sale where guys were slamming it. That (I think) is the thread where Sal responded himself and explained all the changes he had tried to make based on customer input.

I know it must be frustrating as a designer, there will always be a group that does not like a design, no matter what. For some reason that choil was a huge love/hate thing.

[hudsonhawk]

Yes! We've all read the 2017 Product Guide and the D'Allara 3 (C82GP3) has finally become a reality.

I'm bumping this so that newcomers to the D'Allara model can read about the origins of this long-treasured and beloved model line.

New stats for #3 include a ceramic ball bearing lock now, textured G10 scales, a wire clip, and a slightly modified blade shape from the original Drop Point model as well as being FFG now.

Thanks Sal and Co for finally making my favorite model a renewed reality.

Matt

[sal]

Great bump Matt. Great presentation and pics as well.

sal

[hudsonhawk]

Great bump Matt. Great presentation and pics as well.

sal

Thank you Sir. I can't wait to get the new one in my hands. The slimmer G10 and wire clip are going to make this an amazing EDC knife once folks find it.

I think Officer D'Allara would be as proud of the 3 as I'm sure he is of his original namesakes.

[animportant]

I was not aware of the contouring, looks sweet. Will the new one have similar contouring, or flat g10?

Great post by the way, sorry to sidetrack with something slightly off topic.