Mariner Q

[Darkfin]

Were all Mariners SS? I have come across some black FRN knives on ebay at various times that were listed as Mariners. Those are actually early Rescues, aren't they? On a related note, can someone tell me what the slot in the handle of several models is for? Thanks!

[Peter1960]

You are right with your thoughts and the slot in the handle is for better drying the blade. Dont't trust ebay-sellers, often they are not aware of what they sell

[Darkfin]

Drying the blade, huh? Wonder why there aren't slots on both sides. I did come across a Harpy listed as a Mariner once--guess the seller just thought the blade had a minor bend in it....

Thanks.

[The Deacon]

Mariners were all stainless. The original version of the C14 Rescue, while intended as a less expensive version of the C02 Mariner, (or more accurately, as an inexpensive reincarnation of the Paramedic version of the Mariner) was never sold as a Mariner by Spyderco, but rather as the Rescue. However, am sure some dealers referred to them as Mariners, since the heritage was obvious, and they are certainly suitable for marine use.

The slots in the handle are drying vents. The earlist version of the Mariner had no slots and squared off edges on the perimeter of the handles. Later ones all had slots on both sides and the perimeter of the handle was beveled.

People discovered that the slots could be uses as a shackle key, but Spyderco never claimed or endorsed that use and, in fact, noted that such use could damage the knife. Of course in an life-or-death emergency, risk of damage to the knife becomes a minor issue.

When it was introduced in 1990, the first generation of the C14 Rescue included a single drying slot located on the left side of the handle. The integral plastic clip made it impractical to have a slot on the right side. The drying slot was dropped when the second generation handle was introduced around 1999. I suspect the slot was eliminated because people tried to use it as a shackle key and FRN was far less tolerant of such abuse than stainless. The second generation handle is still in use on the C14 and is now used on the C89 Atlantic Salt as well.

Just to further confuse the issue, when the second generation of the C14 Rescue was introduced in 1999, there was also an all stainless version offered. Like it's FRN sibling, it lacked drying slots. This version never caught on in the US and was quickly dropped from the lineup here, but was more successful in the Japanese market and may even still be available there.