Royale with cheese: The Amsterdam Report

[tvenuto]

So the Ion won't have titanium liners like the current Southard?

I don't think so, and the liners were nested. I was just judging from the thickness of them, I don't know if the material was actually stated.

[Liquid Cobra]

Oh ok, I dig nested liners.

I don't know what the official name will be of the knife you call Grailandahalf, but I vote it keeps the moniker you've given it. Hilarious.

[elena86]

Great job man ! Do you know the blade size of Southard Ion ? I hope it's not 2.5 inch as someone said....

[IG-88]

I also liked the Deep carry wire clip on the Southard Ion

[Liquid Cobra]

What kind of grind did the GB2 have?

[MacLaren]

Wow. Just excellent work from our man in Amsterdam.

[Molle Ninja]

Spyderchef and Ion ... can't wait for the pictures!

[tvenuto]

What kind of grind did the GB2 have?

Pretty sure it was hollow just like the GB1.

[Evil D]

You know what they put on french fries in Amsterdam? Mayonnaise.

Pretty interested in this Spyderchef. I really like the blade shape. It reminds me of a Ti handled Rock Lobster (which for the record would be SWEET).

[tvenuto]

You know what they put on french fries in Amsterdam? Mayonaise.

Pretty interested in this Spyderchef. I really like the blade shape. It reminds me of a Ti handled Rock Lobster (which for the record would be SWEET).

You know what I put on french fries in Amsterdam? Mayonnaise. When it Rome and all that. Also, they have awesome fries, and fries seem to come with everything.

I also like the blade shape, I just wish it followed the same angle as the handle instead of jogging back up. I feel like you'd be constantly having to angle your wrist down in EDC-type use.

[Able Dog]

With the Peter Carey "Grailandahalf", excellent nickname BTW, did it resemble the Tremor S? From what I have read so far, that was supposed to be the basis for the next collab.



Picture is from Mr Carey's website. Obviously the production prototype wouldn't be as dressed up as this one.

[Liquid Cobra]

Ha and that's just the collabs! Hopefully I'll get to the Spyderco designs today as well which is the other sizable list.

Any chance this still might happen tonight? You're certainly making the week feel shorter while we wait on pictures. Much appreciated.

I'm surprised there isn't more traffic in this thread.

[tvenuto]

Unfortunately I won't tonight. Still on Amsterdam time so I'm headed to bed (it's like 3am there now). It's been busy being back, the first list was all I had time for today.

[SpyderNut]

Ha and that's just the collabs! Hopefully I'll get to the Spyderco designs today as well which is the other sizable list.

Any chance this still might happen tonight? You're certainly making the week feel shorter while we wait on pictures. Much appreciated.

I'm surprised there isn't more traffic in this thread.

You know, I'm a little surprised too. I thought this thread would already have something like 15 pages and 295 replies. Maybe folks are just pacing themselves for next Tuesday. :D

[Liquid Cobra]

No worries Tvenuto, rest up. I guess I'll spend some quality time with the wife instead haha.

SpyderNut, I think this thread may have been lost in the shuffle. I dunno.

[OldSarSwmr]

Thank you for the in depth descriptions of the knives. Very well thought out and nice to hear an honest appraisal of your likes and dislikes. I am pretty excited about what we will be seeing in the next few years!

Thanks again,

Dan

[RadioactiveSpyder]

It's not that folks aren't following this thread closely, some of us are still trying to catch their breath from just Chapter 1 of tvenuto's Amsterdam report. I'm glad he's off to bed for now, he's given me plenty to digest for 24 hours or so.

Plus, several hundred retinal cells exploded when I saw that Peter Carey custom, thanks Able Dog! . Cheers, Radioactive :)

[Jazz]

Did the GB 2 have a guard, or is it the same as the 1?

[tvenuto]

Did the GB 2 have a guard, or is it the same as the 1?

Similar to the 1 I'd say, but I'm not an expert on that model as I've only handled it briefly and the 2 even more briefly so I'm not the best one to ask. I'll bet we get pics of that one though.

[tvenuto]

Spyderco Folders Amsterdam 2015

My interest factor (keep in mind this is wholly my subjective opinion and what interests me, not a comment on the quality)
1- Not interested
2- Pretty interested
3- Very very interested

H1 Assist (1, I have no need for this one)
This one was yellow FRN with a wire clip and a barrel screw. Still had the whistle and glass breaker. Didn't scrutinize this one much, as I'm pretty sure it's externally very similar if not identical to the current assist.

ATR (2, depending on final config)
Pretty sure this is set to be a sprint, the version presented had the old style clip and no holes in black peel ply G10. Sal indicated that they were open to feedback regarding holes and clip style. The one presented had a very smooth action, and did have the cobra hood. A nice knife overall, I might pick this one up mostly for cool factor, I'm not actually a huge fan of the old ATR.

3 styles of Chaparral (1-3, depending on config)
3 different scale materials were presented: one metal, one natural, and one natural/composite. This is one of the rare instances where I feel the need to censor myself a bit, as none of these may actually make it into production due to consistency or durability or availability issues.

D'allara (2?) (1, die-hard D'allara fans weep)
OK, this one is tough for me. I L-O-V-E the old D'allara Drop Point. I sought out one for over a year, and I love using the thing. I do not carry it much, though. It's very thick and very "tall" and takes up your whole pocket. However I feel that the original D'allara was truly what people (should) mean by "folding fixed blade" in that, once open, its ergos are that of a fixed blade. The D'allara 2 is really very little like the original, truth be told, it's a different knife entirely. It has the BBL, a FFG drop point blade, is narrower (shorter), and lacks any 3D contour to the peel ply G10 scales. Now, I just can't help but be a bit disappointed that I don't see the D'allara spirit in this knife. HOWEVER, if you're not a D'allara purist like me, you might find that this knife works very well for you. It is definitely more carry-friendly, it's a new option in the BB lock, and many people may find the FFG to slice better. And maybe in time I'll be able to let "the son step out of the shadow of the father" and appreciate the unique merits of the D'a2, we shall see. Eric indicated that if sales on this one went well, they would then open the discussion on an FRN version.

"Flippin" Manix (2, how could you not be somewhat interested?)
As the name indicates, this is a Manix flipper. I know some feel that the Domino was already something of a Manix flipper, but this one really is externally identical to the Manix. The one presented was in full Ti RIL, with no lock bar insert or lockbar cutout. Now, I think that being a prototype those last two facts will change, as Eric seems to like lock bar inserts and access cutouts. This one is much more than just a RIL slapped onto a Manix blade, changes to the stop pin were made (moved it outside the blade), and the pivot was enlarged. In short, a lot of work was done behind the scenes to make the overall impression similar to a Manix. Those who like RIL flippers should be pretty ecstatic about this one. I personally would like to see some sort of milled or texture feature on the Ti scales. Again, being a prototype there was no indication that some milled feature would or wouldn't be included, that's just my 2c.

Lil Temp 2 (2, because I like the comp lock)
For quite a while, many people have been requesting a smaller comp lock knife, and whether or not this one satisfies you will depend on your viewpoint. One, I do believe the blade is just under 3" long, so those looking for that range, but with a full grip, will be happy. However, this wasn't what I would call a "little knife" so if you were looking for a small overall package I think you might be a bit disappointed. This one had a leaf blade, and I noted that the knife looked somewhat like the Persistence when open, which looks to me to be a bit squished lengthwise. The ergos have been updated to offer several different grip options, and I believe this one had a single ball milled "indexing" divot in the handle. Definitely an interesting design, and I feel that this will be one that gets better the more you handle it, and you appreciate those little refinements. Again something that's tough to grasp when you get to hold it for about 30sec and flip it open a few times.

Mantra and Mantra 2 flippers (2, again how could you not be?)
These are two EG designed flippers. The only difference between the two is the blade shape, one has the classic spyderco hump with functional opening hole for opening options. The other will have a non-functional hole and more streamlined blade shape and closed profile. I wrote that the blades seemed to be just under 3", but again I didn't measure, and the handles were full Ti RIL. The flipping action was nice and fast with both, and Eric indicated that he planned on using M4 (confetti and champagne fly). Now I'm not a fan of non-stainless blade steels, but these were two very interesting designs that have me intrigued. Another unique fact about both is that these designs, much like the Sage series benefits Alzheimer research, will benefit Parkinson's research, which is pretty admirable.

Q ball (1, just not my thing)
This one might satisfy those out there requesting the Dodo return from extinction, but then, it is a different knife. This one had a smallish wharncliffe blade in a hand filling design that did remind one of the Dodo, and I can see people getting excited about that. It included a white ceramic ball bearing lock and peel ply black G10. I found the lock a bit hard to disengage, but the final knife might get more finishing features than this one had, such as chamferring around the ball cutout.

Byrd Raven (1, never found a Spyderco to lack value)
This one was described to us as the "Byrd Military" and I can see that. The Byrd designs tend to have more "garish" features than similar spyderco knives, which is a negative way to say it but I think many will know what I mean. I actually didn't write down the lock type but it may have been a liner lock? Most Byrds are backlocks, though, so that may have been it. However the unique feature of this one was that Sal indicated that they planned on sending a US steel over to China for this one. He mentioned that they have been working with the maker to upgrade their heat treating, which is required for the more advanced steels.

Samaritan (1, occupies the same space as the PM2 for me)
This was a design that was formerly intended to be an Auto, and is not planned with the comp lock. It looked to be a PM2 with a few more "ergo features" and a leaf blade with more belly than the PM2. This version had no jimping but I'm sure that would be added to the final design. An interesting one for sure, and I'm sure that people will relish another comp lock option, but this one just kind of occupied the same space as a PM2 for me. However, I'm at the knife buying stage where I can still pretend that each knife I buy occupies a particular "niche." Those who have graduated from this stage will likely find this one more appealing than I did.

"Large Native" or "Shamman?" (2, depending on final config)
This one has been shown before I'm sure, and was really an up-sized native. This one had a comp lock and contoured but smooth G10. I found it to be a bit larger than I would like, but I'm definitely interested in a different option to the standard peel-ply. Ergos were great, as you'd expect from native, and if this was downsized just a shade it'd be a must-buy for me.

Spyderco Mulit 3-tool (1, don't generally carry a multitool)
Fans of multi-tools will be stoked about these, although the ones we saw were really Spyderco's "first whack" at a multi-tool. The 3-tooled version had functional opening holes for all blades and tools. Unfortunately, I'm not super interested in a multi-tool, and didn't take the time to write down what tools/blades were included or really many facts about this at all. All I mentioned was that they were a bit heavy.

Spyderco Mulit 6-tool (1, don't generally carry a multitool)
See above, but this was the 6-tool version. It was a bit less refined than the 3-tool, but as I said they are really just the first iterations in what are surely to be tools with genre-redefining features, in true Spyderco fashion.

Ti Byrd (1, never found a Spyderco to lack value)
This was a bird with a full Ti scale. Still in 8cr13mov, they are shooting for an MSRP of under $100, which is really impressive considering the quality of the knife. It had milled features on the scale and a back lock.