SpyOpera, Brouwer, ...

[kodai78]

I haven’t seen Swayback among the recommendations. I love the Chapparal in Raffir Noble, if scratching is a concern a leather pocket slip would compliment it nicely. Is a Roadie too small?

[Wartstein]

Watu...though for my uses it falls into the gentlemen's knife category since the blade is so thin and the tip looks fragile. After the initial hype, I only rarely carry it, and only for formal or business ocassions.

Brouwer might be a good bet also for daily EDC uses.

You should give the Chap a chance and try it in the knife-tasks for which you figure the blade is too "thin" or fragile... I used mine really pretty hard, no problems at all. Many oldtimer knives have even thinner stock, and the Chap blade is pretty robust cause it is rather tall for the length. Same goes for the tip: Can really take a lot! It is certainly thin if you look at it from above (at the spine), but the profile from the side of the blade is wide and not too pointy (differently to like for example a Millie tip would look in profile), which makes it pretty strong.

As a matter of fact, I love to carry the Chap outdoors as companion for a fixed blade, and do all the smaller bushcraft- and wood-tasks with the Chap, cause it works so well for that. And that includes twisting in harder wood and the like - no damage whatsoever!

And the general built of the Chap is really robust anyway .

Maybe someday and if I can get one at a discount...I already have enough "small" knives as it is nowadays, and the Slysz series are filling my need for XHP steel goodness. :)

But I think you said you HAVE a Chap already?!

[rivy]

SpyOpera all day over the brower...

[tbdoc4kids]

I have to recommend looking at the Des Horn. While long discontinued and getting a bit pricey on the secondary market, it is a discreet and elegant carry. Wharncliffe blade so no belly, but worth at least a look.

I wish Spyderco would bring back as a Sprint with Micarta and nice steel.

[Matus]

SpyOpera all day over the brower...

Do you have both? What would make you pick the SpyOpera?

I had a look at the Des Horn - no, that is not my style. Plus it is crazy pointy. Cool knife, just not what I am looking for in a urban EDC blade.


EDIT: I just came across Michael Walker Carbon Sprint run. Intriguing little knife I am going to check out :)

[Matus]

Just a quick update - the Brouwer and SpyOpera remained the top two contenders. I am going to wait until the lightly updated Brouwer (clip position was moved to allow deeper carry) hits the DE shops and order both and see which one I like better. The only way to really pick one is side-by-side.

[Thunderpants]

SpyOpera! Far prettier than Brouwer I reckon.

[Wartstein]

Just a quick update - the Brouwer and SpyOpera remained the top two contenders. I am going to wait until the lightly updated Brouwer (clip position was moved to allow deeper carry) hits the DE shops and order both and see which one I like better. The only way to really pick one is side-by-side.

Tough choice... Both cool knives. Really depends a lot on which lock you prefer and if you want/need the extra 9mm of cutting edge of the SpyOpera or the choil of the Brouwer (I would prefer more edge and also the backlock of the SpyOpera over the Brouwers integral lock, though the latter is really nice too).

[anycal]

Really appreciate your feedback and advises, thank you so much.

Spyderco does not make a blade thin enough that I would be afraid to use it as an urban EDC. Just the Chaparral design does not really resonate with me. I used to have Caly 3.5, Calypso Jr. (the burgundy one) and I sold these knives as I just did not bond with them.

Ikuchi is super cool and I would not be worried about opening (if I buy a new knife here in DE I can simply return it for a full refund including shipping - need no reason for the return), but it is super pointy and I am only considering knives which can be opened with two hands (to reduce any possibly adverse reaction in public). It is on my 'fidget wish list' :)

I am not too concerned about the clip on the Brouwer - I would get the same Ti clip like Nick Shabazz has in his video. Yes it adds to the price, but it looks like it belongs there.

Rhino looks a bit too pointy with a bit too much belly, but I am going to give it a closer look (== watch all YT videos available)

You can pretend. Put your left hand fingers on top of the spine as you open it with your right index finger, and open the rest of the way two handed

I really need to get the Brouwer one of these days.

[Matus]

Yep, pretending is the name of the game. Plus unobtrusive, non-aggressive look of the knife plus no flipper. And I think both Brouwer and SpyOpera both fit in that role I think.

[Matus]

This story culminated and maybe a "short" summary might be helpful to some ... plus I would like to honour all the helpful comments and suggestions I got. So here it comes ...

I finally decided to order both knives - a move that was triggered by a Brouwer popping up on Amazon at 40€ under street price. Obviously - it is a pre-2021 model and I don't know whether it has bushings or not I don't really care. Once the Brouwer was ordered I immediately ordered SpyOpera. There was simply no other way around.

Both knives arrived on the same day. I unpacked both and my first impression was - how on earth am I going to decided? Both look great, feel great in hand. But if you just handle them for a few minutes - the differences start to become obvious. The Brouwer is super solid, fantastic F&F. No bells or whistles, just a super solid build, fantastic ergonomics, very friendly look. The G10 has great structure and the colour is very nice (sal, please, give us less black G10). The titanium has smooth-but-grippy finish (that will take snail trails as CRKs do). And the universally hated, super high carry clip creates ZERO hotspots. I think I actually understand the questionable placement - the depression where it contacts the frame is aligned with the finger choil (lock-bar access position) and it does not get in the way in ANY of the grips you an come up with. Yes, I already ordered a custom clip for usability, but I actually LIKE the look of the original clip. I just wish Spyderco could come up with a deep-ish carry version of their traditional spoon clips. These clips are amazing, but not compatible with deep carry - what may be fine on large knives (it is fine on Gayle Bradley 1 or 2), but fails the smaller ones.

The SpyOpera like to show off. Beautiful blade finish (THAT is what you call a satin finish, not your 240 grit belt finish that will catch your nails and you can count the scratches - that somehow makers started to call 'satin' - I mean, look at Maxamet Sage, that is a joke on such a superb knife). super nice feeling opening and closing (watch YT videos or cut yourself upon closing it for the first time - I did both). The size of the blade would be just about perfect, the edge thickness is ... Ok. Not super thin, but not thick by any means. Crowned spine (could have finer finish though) feels real nice, the knife is smooth (bearings!), the micarta is contoured and really attractive.

One think I need to give to SpyOpera because I did not read it anywhere - the grind is mildly concave. Yes, you read that right. Concave. You can feel it when you run the blade between your fingers. It is really gentle and I used a straight edge to check that and it is there and it is on both sides. I am not sure whether this is intentional or just a result of the grinding process, but I really like it. I think Spyderco should start to bring concave grind more often as it simply is the better solution for the user.

Earlier in this thread someone suggested that one could mound an optical lens in the Spydiehole of the SpyOpera to render the knife two-hand-opening and I actually bought one (would need very little grinding to fit) and let me just tell you - it would look totally epic.

... So why did I decide to keep the Brouwer?

... I can live with the shorter blade of the Brouwer (yes I would prefer 5 - 10 mm more blade, but on general EDC blade I don't really need it). I LOVE the look AND the feel of the Brouwer. This knife is super underrated. I wish all Spyderco fans would at least get a chance to handle it. Once the life gets a little closer to normal - go and try it in a shop if you can. Otherwise it will disappear from Spyderco lineup sooner than later and that would be a shame.

... The SpyOpera has a weird construction and it will be always a PITA to clean it up once that will be needed (can be done, just, well, a PITA). The blade had side-to-side play out of the box. And I was not going to strip the scales and try to adjust the pivot to see whether I can make it go away and then return the knife and pretend that it is still BNIB. I just don't do that stuff.

... The Brouwer is even less 'aggressive' than the SpyOpera and I can pretend that it is a two-hand-opening knife.

... The feel of robustness of the Brouwer wins me over the flashy design of the SpyOpera, plus I just love how the Brouwer sits in hand.

... Because me and Spyderco Brouwer are now buddies and I finally have someone to chat with over a glass of Kilkerran 16 :)


(few photos coming in a few moments)

[Matus]

I attach a few photos to show the direct comparison, difference in carry, blade finish and all the different grip options the Brouwer offers.

[Matus]

I of course forgot the most important thing - I would like to thank to sal / Spyderco for bringing such a beautifully weird knives like Brouwer or SpyOpera that are not just cool but also very useful and usable everyday tools. There are so many tacticool knives out that make the impression that actual act of cutting was pretty low on the list during the design. not the case with very most of Spyderco products, yet there is a large range of designs and materials to choose from. And I appreciate that.

[Wartstein]

This story culminated and maybe a "short" summary might be helpful to some ... plus I would like to honour all the helpful comments and suggestions I got. .....

It is always nice and interesting when one reports back after a discussion which knife he or she should get! Thanks! :)

/ Glad you found "your" knife!

The Brouwer is really cool, and if I was more into small folders I´d have one too. I actually am not too fond of short cutting edges relatively to the overall length, but if it´s just a payoff to an otherwise great design I really can live with it. Plus: The Brouwer looks to be really "bad" in that concern, but actually it is pretty much like on a Native 5. The weight is also not really much more than on the Native 5 lightweight, and the carry perhaps even a tad slimmer.
I also like frame locks and NON deep carry spoon clips, so all fine for me!

Still, without having handled both, the SpyOpera would have been my choice for backlock, more edge and rounded Micarta handle - but you gave a very convincing reasoning why you went with the Brouwer and I am glad that you obviously enjoy it!

/ On "the grind on the SpyOpera is mildly concave" - you mean it is actually kind of a hollow grind?

[ChrisinHove]

Great choice!

I love the Brouwer, largely because of the longer handle, which is great for my XL hands (I have tried and failed with the likes of the Techno & Lil Native).

Mine now sports a linerless Flytanium CF scale and a Lynch clip so it’s appreciably lighter (and fancier).

[Matus]

It is always nice and interesting when one reports back after a discussion which knife he or she should get! Thanks! :)

/ Glad you found "your" knife!

...

/ On "the grind on the SpyOpera is mildly concave" - you mean it is actually kind of a hollow grind?

I have myself enjoyed reading such a ‘summaries’ when people found ‘their’ knife and describe a bit what for them was the deciding factor.

For me the decision would have been much harder if also the SpyOpera (or shall I rather say a knife with a similar design idea) was made in Taichung as I would love to get a back-lock that is this cool but made in a way the Brouwer is.

I totally understand that the design of the Brouwer is not for everyone. It is actually super interesting to compare it directly to a knife where the edge to handle ratio was on the opposite side of the spectrum (my knife in that category is the Waypoint at the moment)

Yes - I indeed meant that the grind of the SpyOpera is gently hollow (or in other words made with a large radius wheel).

[soulspy]

I have the original Brouwer. It's deep carry and shaped kind of like a canoe paddle. On the original hole pattern Brouwer, it sits just right in the pocket and it lines up well with your hand so it gives no hot spots.

[Matus]

I have the original Brouwer. It's deep carry and shaped kind of like a canoe paddle. On the original hole pattern Brouwer, it sits just right in the pocket and it lines up well with your hand so it gives no hot spots.

Could you please post a photo? I was not aware that there was an earlier version of the Brouwer.

[SG89]

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[GarageBoy]

Is the way really that fragile?
Looks about as thick as a french traditional