Help me spend my money !!!!

mdsmith · #1

Hey guys, I'm in a bit of a delimma. I've recently become interested in Spyderco collecting, but have always wanted a Sebenza as well. Well, I finally got some cash together, and now I'm torn..... Do I go with the small lefty Sebenza that I hear so much about but have never seen in person, OR, do I spend it on a few Spidies? I'd probably go with the CF Caly 3 (I had a G10 and loved it, but for some dumb reason traded it :mad :) , and maybe a Para Military 2, or lefty Military. I'm really looking for a new EDC, and both the Sebenza and Caly would fit the bill perfectly. So.... what do ya think?

araneae · #2

How many spydies can you buy for one Seb? You could probably get all the spydies you mentioned or just the Sebenza.

IrishSpyder22 · #3

I would get the spydies , 2 or 3 great knives for what it would cost for 1 sebenza.

Creepo · #4

You want one extremely well built and finished knife?
Or do you want 2-3 very cool and very well built knives that you can actually bear to use because they didn't cost a fortune each?
Life's all about decisions. :)

mdsmith · #5

Creepo wrote:Life's all about decisions. :)

Yes it is. I was hoping that someone here has handled both the Sebenza and the Spydercos I mentioned. I'm wondering how much of a difference there is in the overall build quality. Thanks for the comments guys.

SmoothOne25 · #6

the para2 is about as close to perfection and since they are back at dealers i say get just that now and wait to replenish your money and get the sebenza later...

jackknifeh · #7

The most I've paid for one knife is $175. It wasn't a Spyderco. I got it for tough jobs and use. I like it but don't use it NEARLY as often as the several Spydercos I have. I have 4 Spydercos I can easily EDC and normally I carry two. I truely love the $175 knife but if I had to get rid of some it would be one of the first because of less usage. I saw on a knifemaker's web site once where he had broken down a knife's cost to usage. A $100 knife cost you $100 to cut a piece of string if that's all you ever cut with it. Use it to cut 10 pieces of string then it's $10 per use, 100 strings=$1 per use, etc. I thought that was very enlightening as far as the price of a knife goes. So, the first knife to buy is the one that will get used the most. Also, the least expensive knife that will perform unless you just enjoy spending more than necessary.

Jack

mdsmith · #8

araneae wrote:How many spydies can you buy for one Seb? You could probably get all the spydies you mentioned or just the Sebenza.

Actually you're right, I could just about get the Caly, Para and Mili for the cost of the Sebenza. Or any other various combination of Spydercos. Still need a FFG delica and Stretch too....... :D

freeman7 · #9

My .02 is that it is best to see how a particular knife feels in YOUR hand before buying, if at all possible. Sometimes, with relatively inexpensive knives ( <$100) I will take a chance. For something that costs what a Sebenza runs, I would want to touch before buying.
That said, I do like my Sebbie and do not think it is too nice too use.

mdsmith · #10

jackknifeh wrote:unless you just enjoy spending more than necessary.

Lol. Good point, but I would have to argue that the majority of the folks on this forum " enjoy spending more than necessary". If I followed that logic, I would only own my Victorinox soldier, which wouldn't be a bad thing. That knife has done everything that I've ever needed and only cost me about 20 bucks. I do completely agree with your point though. I would be much better off if I could concern myself only with my needs instead of my wants.

My .02 is that it is best to see how a particular knife feels in YOUR hand before buying, if at all possible. Sometimes, with relatively inexpensive knives ( <$100) I will take a chance. For something that costs what a Sebenza runs, I would want to touch before buying.

Agreed. That is probably my biggest hesitation about pulling the trigger on the Sebenza. To be honest, I can't imagine there is a knife make that can beat the Caly 3 as far a ergonomics..... for my hands at least. The biggest draw to the Sebenza is that it is a lefty frame lock. I've always had to steer clear of frame locks for that reason. I would love the Sage 3, but it just won't work for me.

jackknifeh · #11

mdsmith wrote:Lol. Good point, but I would have to argue that the majority of the folks on this forum " enjoy spending more than necessary". If I followed that logic, I would only own my Victorinox soldier, which wouldn't be a bad thing. That knife has done everything that I've ever needed and only cost me about 20 bucks. I do completely agree with your point though. I would be much better off if I could concern myself only with my needs instead of my wants.
.

We think alike. I LOVE spending more than necessary and if it was my decision on what I wanted, that point no matter how intellegent would not be as influential. It would just boil down to what I wanted more (and could afford). I tend to give advice to others that I may not follow myself. :D

Jack

Sequimite · #12

I don't know about the Sebenza, but the lefty Military will become rare and expensive again, so that would be my first purchase.

SpaceInvader · #13

I've owned Sebenzas and other CRK knives, but I think owning Spydies is more fun, in large part because of variety in design.

-Rick

mdsmith · #14

SpaceInvader wrote:I've owned Sebenzas and other CRK knives, but I think owning Spydies is more fun, in large part because of variety in design.

-Rick

That definitely makes sense. There aren't many CRK folders, and most of them look pretty similar. As for quality, if you didn't know what a CRK or Spyderco was, and didn't know the price of the knives, and someone handed you a Sebenza and a Spyderco model, would the difference in quality be easy to see?

BTW, I am in no way bashing Spyderco or the quality of their knives, if I was, I wouldn't own them. It's just that the thing I always seem to hear about Sebenzas is that their f&f is just amazing, and I'm curious if it is actually that much better, or it's just hype due to the name.

SpaceInvader · #15

You probably need to buy a Sebenza to satisfy that question to your own satisfaction. Personally, if given a choice, I'd take a Ti ATR over a Sebenza just on design. Of course, this type of debate exists across the whole spectrum of knives, e.g., some compare CRKs to customs in terms of quality, precision, tolerances, etc.

How about this -- a single, higher-end Spyderco, or mulitple CRKTs? I'd venture there's no question on this forum on the quality difference between the two (I hope I don't get ridiculed for such a suggestion). If your main interest is design, however, CRKT has some very nice designs that measure up well to Spydercos in that regard.

-Rick

dgulbra · #16

As Some who owns or has owned almost all of the knives you mentioned. I personally would get the spydies. While the Sebenza is a great knife for me it wasn't a user and I ended up selling it. Buy the spydies and put them to use

SteelDragon · #17

I own a few Sebenzas as well as more then my fair share of Spyderco's but you really have to hold the knives in your own hand and make the decision if it fits for you or not, All good solid choices though. I see a lot of folks buying and selling used Sebenzas, or barely used, (cut a piece of paper)

But I personally don't see as many used Spyderco Para's or Caly's when looking at your choices. That probably says something. Good luck to you!

dbcad · #18

Bang for the buck-----> Spyderco

Reeper22 · #19

Do you want the Bentley or 3 BMW's? Tough question. Through my experience I've found that once you get it in your mind that you want a Sebenza, you will eventually get one. My advice is get the Sebenza, then you can pick up the others one by one as you save the cash. I have all the knives you've mentioned except the Caly 3. All are fantastic A++ knives. Also, imo if you get the Sebbie, get the full size. Also understand that if you get the Sebenza, the heavens are not going to open. It is just a knife, one of the finest there is, but a knife.

mdsmith · #20

SteelDragon wrote:But I personally don't see as many used Spyderco Para's or Caly's when looking at your choices. That probably says something. Good luck to you!

That's a very good observation. I never really noticed it before, but now that you mention it, it's very true.

Through my experience I've found that once you get it in your mind that you want a Sebenza, you will eventually get one.

I think you are right on the money here. It's like prolonging the inevitable. I've wanted one for a while now, but was always leery of spending that much money. Last time I almost had enough cash saved I bought a Ritter mini grip and a pair of Wilkins grips instead.