2015 Forum Knife Blade Length - Updated Poll, Simplified

[ManixFan]

An updated Poll. The prior poll had an issue at the 3.5" mark that is confusing and would skew results. No knife models are mentioned beside the voting in this poll - just the blade lengths as described below.

Basically you vote for:

a Sub 3" size - i.e., approx Dragonfly sized & smaller
around 3" (approx) i.e., Native, Chaparral, Calypso Jr., UKPK, Caly 3 or Domino, etc
approx 3.25" to 3.5" (inclusive), i.e., Manix 2, PM2, Caly 3.5, etc
Greater than 3.5", i.e., Police 3, Calypso, Ulize, Military, etc

The Spyderco site catalogue has blade lengths to look up your favourite model. I was actually surprised to find out that the Caly 3.5 was actually 3.4" (86mm) in the ZDP-189 CF version and 3.5" (89mm) in the G10 version.

January 10th Edit: Voting for a specific Model in the Selected Blade Length Category (3 1/4" to 3 1/2") can be done at the following polling thread - if continuing voting changes the winner of the blade length category then the model polling thread may be updated to reflect those wishes.

http://www.spyderco.com/forumII/viewtop ... =2&t=66496" target="_blank

The poll for locking vs non-locking was so far biased toward locking that I haven't bothered to link that poll.

To view the original thread discussion that started it all "2015 Forum knife request, by popular demand!" you can link to that thread below
http://www.spyderco.com/forumII/viewtop ... =2&t=66265" target="_blank

[ManixFan]

No discussion on this thread yet .......but an interesting subset of the original poll is present in the results. Basically a small blade size less than 3" (Dragonfly or Walker size range) or the larger end of the medium blade size range (Manix 2, PM2, Caly 3.5).

[INFRNL]

guess I will go; around 3" cause my choice is 2.5-3" but not against up to 3.5"

[ManixFan]

guess I will go; around 3" cause my choice is 2.5-3" but not against up to 3.5"

Sounds good....I'm sure that specific models will be mentioned once a fully muddy picture has been formed between the results of the two polls

[INFRNL]

guess I will go; around 3" cause my choice is 2.5-3" but not against up to 3.5"

Sounds good....I'm sure that specific models will be mentioned once a fully muddy picture has been formed between the results of the two polls

If I had to take an early guess, it looks like we will be going; locking and 3-3.5 range.

My current votes are still for a c22 Michael Walker or worker, even though I just bought a sprint worker.

I will have to go back and look to see what others I would choose or would be good choices in my opinion but I can post those thoughts back into the proper thread

[xceptnl]

3.25" to 3.5" inclusive!

[ManixFan]

At this time with 36 votes on this poll and 60 votes on the other earlier poll, the common theme between them both is that if same 18 people who voted for between 3.25" and 3.5" range of this poll are also represented in the 3" to 3.5" range of the other poll and then you factor in all the people who voted for a Caly 3.5 in the other poll as really being part of the 3.25 to 3.5 range........ then the early results (with 36 voters on this poll and 60 on the earlier poll at the time of this posting) would be that a majority of Forumites are looking at the larger side of the midsized blade range for the next Forum knife, (i.e., approx 3.25" to 3.5") and with a locking blade as overwhelmingly indicated on Timlara's "Locking/Non-locking Poll".

It will be interesting and also illuminating to see how things line up if everyone who has voted in the earlier poll then also casts a vote in this one. Between the two polls, I believe that some conclusions might be arrived at that narrows things down some more.

There may also be some other factors as well .......especially with "collaboration models" if this might become an additional factor as to whether Spyderco is willing to run a collaboration Forum knife.

I think when this "feeling out" of options and opinions gets a little more refined, it might be helpful if Spyderco were to develop an official poll with specific models firstly. Then when that has been decided, a second poll selecting available steels for the model that they are willing to consider for a Forum knife of the model selected ......as some models are limited to local steels, i.e., Japanese steels for Japanese blades - unless an exception is made for a Forum knife.

There are perhaps some Sprints/Exclusives already available that Spyderco might just be unwilling to entertain as a Forum knife if a dealer already has a deal with Spyderco for an extremely similar exclusive.

Or, the Spydercrew might just take a look at the way the wind is blowing with the voting and discussions and just make an "executive decision" as to what model can fit into their production schedule that provides the least disruption to their distribution system.

[PayneTrain]

My favorite EDC range is certainly 3"-3.5", but I'll go with the higher end almost solely in the interest of keeping that dark blue Caly 3.5 in the race. There are a lot of other good knives in that range too, though there are a lot of good ~3" blades too. Decisions...

I actually assumed that the brackets from the first poll were going to be inclusive of the boundaries, but I see how it could get confusing.

[bearfacedkiller]

It would be nice to know what color the Hap40 frn run is gonna be.

It seems as though the Caly 3.5 forum knife is gaining some traction and maybe a Hap40 Caly 3.5 could be an option for the forum knife. If the frn knives are gonna be burnt orange then maybe we could get a burnt orange g10 Caly 3.5 in Hap40. Maybe that would just be an idea for a sprint though.

Just throwing ideas around. Not even sure if that color of g10 is readily available.

I believe Sal himself is a fan of the Caly 3.5 so that should work in it's favor. :)

[ManixFan]

It would be nice to know what color the Hap40 frn run is gonna be.

It seems as though the Caly 3.5 forum knife is gaining some traction and maybe a Hap40 Caly 3.5 could be an option for the forum knife. If the frn knives are gonna be burnt orange then maybe we could get a burnt orange g10 Caly 3.5 in Hap40. Maybe that would just be an idea for a sprint though.

Just throwing ideas around. Not even sure if that color of g10 is readily available.

I believe Sal himself is a fan of the Caly 3.5 so that should work in it's favor. :)

I'm not a fan of burnt orange/safety orange myself. But an earlier exchange with DougC-3 in a Sprint E4 thread revealed an expression in Latin that states, "In matters of taste, there can be no arguments". If you like it .......you like it and really don't care whether your tastes reside in the minority or majority. Although in a polling situation a majority does count towards determining a final choice.

But if colour ends up being a contentious issue......as I'm sure it could then perhaps a diamond-cut white G10 scale. That way anybody can pick up some Rit dye and dial in the exact colour that they want since white G10 should be a literal blank canvas......and also since dark G10 cannot be dyed lighter and will always be tainted by the underlying colours which would throw off the final result.

Anyways......just a thought for making the Forum knife more easily customizable for forumites and removing one more debatable issue.......although there are those that absolutely don't want to play with Rit dye since they have never tried it before ........like myself. But even though I have never used it before, I would sure be willing to try it on some white G10 for the first time, if that also ensures that yellow, toxic green, brown or orange are not chosen.

Later Edit: I was thinking of the idea of dye-able white G-10 further and then the idea of diamond-cut moonglow G10 popped into my head :) :) :) .

If this were to be an option then some people on this forum would be absolutely ecstatic beyond belief (myself included since moonglow scales are rare Spyderco's) and then those who want their own specific colours would also still be able to Rit dye the moonglow g10 to whatever colour they wanted.

[timlara]

Thanks for the updated poll, ManixFan. I voted 3.5 again and am very much leaning toward the diamond-cut Caly3.5 candidate as well. I like the Moonglow idea as well, but would probably prefer a nice dark blue, similar to "dark wash" blue jeans as my first choice. The only thing I have against lighter G10 colors is that they tend to get dirty looking if you carry them a lot. The problem I have with my gray G10 Cruwear Millie is that the G10 actually picks up the dye from my jeans pocket if I get sweaty while carrying it. Not that hard to clean it off with a little magic eraser or something like that, but it's somewhat annoying to add that little bit of maintenance.

That said, Moonglow is cool enough that I would probably still be willing to put up with the annoyance of cleaning it just for the uniqueness factor.

[Bill1170]

I could go for a forum Caly 3.5. Moonglow would indeed be cool, and home-dyed moonglow sounds intriguing. Dark blue would also be nice. All my blue Spydercos are smurf or lighter.

[ManixFan]

This blade length poll has now caught up with and surpassed the initial one with respect to the total number of voters - most of which are probably the same people as the results would indicate.

As you can see, between this poll and the blade locking poll there has been a strong preference indicated by Forumites for the next Forum knife to be a locking folder with a blade length in the range of 3.25" - 3.5" (inclusive).

I have also posted these results on the "2015 Forum knife request, by popular demand" thread as well as some further suggestions on how to proceed. As expected, not everyone is happy with the wishes on the direction for the next forum knife as expressed through these two polling issues (blade length & lockability).

However, unless Sal indicates that the model choices available within those parameters are not suitable for a Forum knife for any reason........ then I would suggest that we proceed with further discussion in the other thread to firm up the model choices for a follow up poll and then also look for some feedback on whether these choices would be acceptable to Spyderco as the next Forum knife.

Regards all........Steve

[bearfacedkiller]

Hmmm.... Just because I prefer a blade around 3.5 inches doesn't mean that I love all knives that are 3.5 inches.

For example, I have tried but never quite warmed up to the Manix like the other 3.5s and I know a few people on here who feel the same way about the stretch and the Para2.

Narrowing this down certainly isn't an easy task.

Stretch2?

[Bradley]

diamondcut moon glow would be sick

[ManixFan]

Thanks for the updated poll, ManixFan. I voted 3.5 again and am very much leaning toward the diamond-cut Caly3.5 candidate as well. I like the Moonglow idea as well, but would probably prefer a nice dark blue, similar to "dark wash" blue jeans as my first choice. The only thing I have against lighter G10 colors is that they tend to get dirty looking if you carry them a lot. The problem I have with my gray G10 Cruwear Millie is that the G10 actually picks up the dye from my jeans pocket if I get sweaty while carrying it. Not that hard to clean it off with a little magic eraser or something like that, but it's somewhat annoying to add that little bit of maintenance.

That said, Moonglow is cool enough that I would probably still be willing to put up with the annoyance of cleaning it just for the uniqueness factor.

No problem TImlara. Thank you for taking the initiative! I also recall that you were up late trying to come up with polling categories and when there was talk of getting a poll started I was online at the forum too and had the thought of starting one too......but was just too tired and went to bed instead.

I also love the idea of a dark blue diamond cut G10 scale that would match some dark jeans ......just as the S110v Manix 2 LtWt seems to fade into the background of my jeans and match so well. But the absolute coolness of moonglow is very attractive to me as well........especially as I haven't any moonglow scaled knives at this time. I was looking at the EDC Forums Manix 2 Moonglow and was blown away by the coolness factor of that one. Very bright directly after a full charge (see google images and Youtube video) and one of my favourite pics that didn't make the 2015 Calendar was also of a moonglow Native.

I don't believe it would be possible to lose with either of those choices :)

[DougC-3]

Hmmm.... Just because I prefer a blade around 3.5 inches doesn't mean that I love all knives that are 3.5 inches.

For example, I have tried but never quite warmed up to the Manix like the other 3.5s and I know a few people on here who feel the same way about the stretch and the Para2.

Narrowing this down certainly isn't an easy task.

Stretch2?

I was just thinking the same thing and wondering if anybody else had considered it. I haven't been much of a Stretch fan because it doesn't seem to match up with my hand very well, but I don't think that'll be a problem with the Stretch 2. I think it's a great idea, but I'm already set on buying the brown G-10 prototype. So, if the Stretch is chosen, I might decide to just get one of the two.

I would favor the new Stretch, Caly 3.5, or a lesser known model over the PM2 or Manix (don't really need any more of those). But if it has to be a PM2, how about a Spyderedge for variety. I would like it better to revive the PM1. Hey, a PM1 moonglow Spyderedge would be cool!

I'm fine with moonglow G-10. Not a fan of the diamond pattern but it wouldn't be very noticeable in a light color. Also, if we must have them, it might be interesting to shift the diamonds 45 degrees to a checkerboard pattern for variety, or just use one set of diagonal lines.

I think foliage green would take most dye colors pretty well, hint, hint ... but all these issues can be hashed over after the knife model is chosen.

Thanks, ManixFan, for working on this for us, and thanks everybody else for contributing ideas and trying to keep the project alive.

[Surfingringo]

I voted 3-3.5 but just to keep things confusing I mighht vote for the stretch 2. :)

[ManixFan]

I voted 3-3.5 but just to keep things confusing I mighht vote for the stretch 2. :)

Actually the Stretch 2 (not the new Stretch) fits into the 3.25" to 3.5" (inclusive) category :)

......also, with a Forum model poll with changeable voting along the way to an ultimate voting deadline things could get very interesting as I mentioned in another thread "Manix HD?" quoted below........

Super Leaf Sprint? Yes please!

Manixfan, add that to the forum knife poll lisr. Fits the criteria.

Yup, I as soon as I posted here I realized the same thing and added it already.....along with the Persian as that also fits the criteria :)

Just because I have my favored horse in this race, I also believe that every other potential option should be considered so that it is fair to all who voted for that blade length category who want to see their favourites considered.

But I think that it will get VERRRYY interesting with a Forum model poll that has changeable voting...... as I think this method will result in the ultimate strategic voting that I hope will result in the fairest compromise result at the end of it all.

With a final date & time to end such a poll - it might even be a surprise result if the votes are neck in neck at the end between two models :eek: :D

Later Edit: Actually after reading Doug's post and then yours I realize that your reference to the Stretch 2 is alluding to the new as yet unreleased Stretch.......with the original Stretch existing prior to the ZDP CF Stretch (which I am really enjoying as my current EDC after picking it up recently).....it gets confusing :confused: I was actually thinking of the deeper choil Stretch recently redesigned but as yet unreleased Stretch as the Stretch 2 myself until I saw someone else refer to it as the Stretch 3 and thought about it some more :o

[tvenuto]

Blade length is very low on the totem pole for me with regard to a Forum Knife. Just thought I'd chime in, no space for this on the poll.

I generally gravitate towards Delica or larger for EDC, but again I'll carry the Forum Knife regardless.