Most Durable Spyderco Folder in Production

[JNewell]

Rather than talking about models, lets talk about what "most durable" really means.

I see a lot of people saying Delica/Endura, but just because a knife has been produced for 20 years, doesn't mean they're more "durable" than another knife. That just means they're a good seller.

When I see questions like this, I try to formulate my answer around what knife I think would stand up to the most use up to and including outright abuse. That immediately makes me think of things like blade stock thickness, lock type (and then further on into things like lock bar thickness if it's a liner lock, etc), and pivot pin size. I also have to believe that a lot of answers are based off of personal favorites, and not these kinds of details.

...right, and I think we probably come back to the Tuff, the Techno and the Gayle Bradley. Must be other good candidates, like the Super Leaf?

[Bill1170]

It would have to be the Caspian Salt. Look at them. Both the Blunt and Pointed. They are almost solid pieces of H-1 Stainless Steel with FRN handle scales.

The Caspian Salt is not a folder under normal use.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

The Caspian Salt is not a folder under normal use.

True.

[Evil D]

...right, and I think we probably come back to the Tuff, the Techno and the Gayle Bradley. Must be other good candidates, like the Super Leaf?

I'm sure the Superleaf is a stout knife, probably up there with any of those. I still stick with the Vallotton as being way up on the list as well. I would put it at least on par with the GB, possibly just a bit ahead overall since the blade is so stout.

Of course, we can all speculate, but who knows what the actual numbers are. I'm sure Spyderco has breakage data on all these knives and we may all be so far off that they're laughing reading these kinds of threads.

[Strong-Dog]

No, batoning goes the other way. And anyone who really wanted to hack/whack the cr@p out of something with a folder would make sure it was unlocked before they started banging on the spine with a baton.

But spine-whacking is putting force into the spine side, and when batoning you are also putting force into the spine. This may make me sound like an idiot because I don't know the technical terms, but the force gradient being applied to the spine has to be greater then the edge side because the knife moves downward through the wood. Am I missing something?

[Leif]

If the blade thickness particularly near the tip is good I would vote the Gayle Bradley.

It's out of production now unfortunately , but I feel like the **Superleaf** would win this title. Compression lock, thick but not stupidly thick blade, steel liners. Veerrry beefy. Good sized pivot with a bushing. Like a Manix.2 with a compression lock, which imho is stronger.

[Leif]

...right, and I think we probably come back to the Tuff, the Techno and the Gayle Bradley. Must be other good candidates, like the Super Leaf?

Hmm this might be controversial but I wouldnt put the techno on that list because of the way the lockface is treated. It makes it so there is no stickyness but because it galls less when locked it is easier to be disengaged in some extreme scenario. Still love the techno though and I wouldn't change it. Its just a slightly more slippery lock vs a faster wearing and stickier lock.

[3rdGenRigger]

I've never held a Superleaf, but I held a Superhawk on Sunday at my local knife store...it felt beefy and I quite liked it, but they want too much for it.

[Leif]

I have held a Superhawk on Sunday at my local knife store...it felt beefy and I quite liked it, but they want too much for it.

If for the sake of this thread that price is not a factor, do you think anything could truly beat the Superleaf or Superhawk for no nonsene practical toughnes??

[Joshua J.]

The Pingo. There's no lock to break.

[JNewell]

But spine-whacking is putting force into the spine side, and when batoning you are also putting force into the spine. This may make me sound like an idiot because I don't know the technical terms, but the force gradient being applied to the spine has to be greater then the edge side because the knife moves downward through the wood. Am I missing something?

Yes, I think you are. :) The videos of people spine-whacking knives apply force from spine to edge against the lock. Batoning if done reasonably carefully takes the lock out of the equation: there is force from spine to edge but the lock would not be involved. Ideally, if you must baton a folder, you do it with the knife unlocked and completely take all stress off the lock and pivot.

[JNewell]

Hmm this might be controversial but I wouldnt put the techno on that list because of the way the lockface is treated. It makes it so there is no stickyness but because it galls less when locked it is easier to be disengaged in some extreme scenario. Still love the techno though and I wouldn't change it. Its just a slightly more slippery lock vs a faster wearing and stickier lock.

Interesting - I was not aware of that.

[Evil D]

If for the sake of this thread that price is not a factor, do you think anything could truly beat the Superleaf or Superhawk for no nonsene practical toughnes??

Once you stray away from specs and start debating price and value, you've gone off into a whole different topic.

The reality is, the Lionspy may well be the toughest Spyderco available, and the fact that it's one of the most expensive doesn't change that fact.

[phillipsted]

Delica/Endura for sure. My original from 20+ years ago is still going strong.

TedP

[Blerv]

Ed Schempp set out to make the toughest folding Spyderco knife to date. IIRC, that was his only goal and even decided not to use the compression lock so a thicker piece of titanium could be used for a RIL.

One can either think he succeeded or didn't. Maybe I'm naive but I have to think it's at the top of the chart (on average of course as all knives have a certain margin of error). I would own one if it wasn't a bit too long for my carry laws.

[Strong-Dog]

Yes, I think you are. :) The videos of people spine-whacking knives apply force from spine to edge against the lock. Batoning if done reasonably carefully takes the lock out of the equation: there is force from spine to edge but the lock would not be involved. Ideally, if you must baton a folder, you do it with the knife unlocked and completely take all stress off the lock and pivot.

So are you saying that if someone batoned with the knife in the locked position, there would be no force applied to the lock if done reasonably carefully? I thought that since your hand isn't applying the same downward force at the same time as the stick or whatever you are hitting the spine of the knife with, that difference in force gets transferred to the lock.

[bdblue]

Like someone else said, possible batoning. But it doesn't have to simulate anything. Just as guns are tested caked in mud or under water even though the probability of them seeing that actual use is slim, spine-whacking is just one way to see the overall toughness of a knife. I think people have peace of mind knowing their gear can take and outperform the abuses that they can give it, even if they'll never need it to do those things.

I don't understand splitting wood with a knife, I think people do it just because they see it done on the internet. If you want smaller pieces of wood, then pick up smaller pieces of wood.

I agree that there is some satisfaction in knowing that your gear will survive whatever you do with it. Would you buy a fork that was designed to resist the force that the average person pushes on it with? Maybe you push just a little bit more than average and it breaks. The manufacturer would say that you abused it by pushing on it more than the average person would. You would want a fork that would work for normal use by someone that was bearing down hard trying to cut through a tough steak or whatever.

I don't think any FRN knife could be considered a tough as a good knife with liners or a frame. If you carry a knife long enough some day you will need to pry with it, and the FRN handles would pop right off. You could say you shouldn't pry with a knife, but I read of someone that got locked in a mine and the only tool he had to use to get out was his folding knife. He could have stayed there overnight because "you shouldn't pry with a folding knife", or he could actually use it to get himself out and be able to go home. So some people do anticipate using their knife for rough things. I had a little thin knife in my garage that actually came with some window blinds, for cutting them to length. I tried cutting some boxes with it because it was thin steel, and actually broke it just cutting through some cardboard. Obviously cutting cardboard was abusing the knife that was made to cut a paper window shade, but I do cut a lot of cardboard and I need a knife that will hold up to that. I might need to carve some wood, cut wire ties, pry open a box, whatever. I can't carry a whole pocket full of tools with me all day, so the knife might be used for more than just opening an envelope.

The Tuff sure seems "tough" to me, and second in my mind would be the Bradley Folder or the Manix 2. The Endura/Delica/Stretch are way down the list.

[razorsharp]

Tuff would definitely be much stronger with a compression lock.

I didnt think of the lionspy- The lock on that would be stupid hard to fail witht he rotoblock on. BUT then you go into tips and the tuff probably wins again.

So there we go- I would say Lionspy and tuff. EvilD I would say the Valloton is up there, but its S30v isnt it? IIRC its not as tough as Elmax and definitely not as tough as 3v.

[Evil D]

Tuff would definitely be much stronger with a compression lock.

I didnt think of the lionspy- The lock on that would be stupid hard to fail witht he rotoblock on. BUT then you go into tips and the tuff probably wins again.

So there we go- I would say Lionspy and tuff. EvilD I would say the Valloton is up there, but its S30v isnt it? IIRC its not as tough as Elmax and definitely not as tough as 3v.

Yeah s30v. Are we talking tough as in edge tough or all out strength before breaking? The Lionspy's tip is pretty beefy too.

[gaj999]

But spine-whacking is putting force into the spine side, and when batoning you are also putting force into the spine. This may make me sound like an idiot because I don't know the technical terms, but the force gradient being applied to the spine has to be greater then the edge side because the knife moves downward through the wood. Am I missing something?

It's not that simple. Certainly when you whack the spine with a piece of wood, there's not going to be much force on the lock unless you do something wrong. But ... What do you do once the spine is flush with the end of the piece of wood? You twist the knife and try to push it deeper. You may push on the tip and handle at the same time, alternating twisting and pushing. You may bang the end of the wood on the ground to get more penetration. You're putting a lot of force on the pivot area, and a twisting force in particular is one that a folding knife isn't well suited for. I'd only baton with a folder in an emergency.

Gordon