Spyderco’s Polestar & Alcyone should not be in the “VALUE LINEUP”

[Bill1170]

My Polestar is in transit and I am very eager to get my hands on it. I will be arriving in the US next Wednesday and it should be there waiting on me. I ordered a polestar and a lil subhilt but honestly, I am more excited about the Polestar as I think it is far more likely to be a knife that I will love to carry and use. The quote below is what sold me on trying the model.

The Polestar is a mini Military model with all of the some features (less the finger choil, giving better edge/handle interface)

*I will probably grind the spine flat on day 1 to make mine even more Millie-like.

As far as the Steel choice, I am perfectly happy with bd1 or 8cr13mov. I would readily choose either one of them over s90v or s110v for an edc folder that I planned to carry and use. My everyday folders don’t see tons of hard use and I like carrying knives at peak sharpness so I will touch up the edge of any steel every couple of days on the Sharpmaker. Given my use and sharpening protocol, steels like s110v offer far more disadvantages than advantages. I know I sound like a weirdo admitting those opinions around here but that’s alright. I like what I like. :)

I’ve been carrying mine around constantly. Took it to work yesterday. Certainly not too big or intimidating (of course I live in southern Colorado where seeing someone in the local market with a 7” sheath knife on their belt raises no eyebrows). I haven’t cut anything tougher than my French country loaf, but it sliced off pieces better than my Spydie edge bread knife. And, it just fits my hand like it was designed for it. I put a comparison photo up highlighting some differences from the Tenacious to better understand what I feel tactically.

I have no experience with the more complex steels like S110v and the like but I am quite happy with the 8cr13mov, VG10 and this BD1 on the Polestar. I can get them pretty sharp, they cut like lasers and they are not a pain to sharpen.

Let us know what you think about your Polestar.

Did you intend to write tactile-y instead of tactically? That fits better with the sense I gather from the previous sentence.

The Polestar sounds like a winner from your mini review above. I’m eager to read what Lance has to say about his once he gets ahold of it.

[Canazes9]

Hi Canazes,

I appears that you do not like our company, our products, our policies or me. Why are you here? We try to enjoy our time on the forums. You just like stirring sh*t or what?

sal

Actually Sal, I like the company and the products a lot. I think the Gayle Bradley 2 is the best pocket knife I've ever owned. I don't agree with the way Spyderco administers it's warranty policies or the way the spyderco customer service personnel seem to stake out the hard ground when folks aren't happy with Spyderco policies or warranties.

I don't agree with not selling parts to customers. The reasons given for not selling parts boil down to "people are doing things they shouldn't and gaming the warranty system, we don't want to encourage that". I think you will not change the people that seek to game the system, your substandard treatment of your customers that want parts just exacerbate the problem, they do nothing to fix it. I can buy parts for far more complex mechanical equipment than Spyderco knives, anywhere, anytime, around the world. You're punishing the wrong people for your warranty issues associated with people taking their knives apart.

The bearing system used in Spyderco flippers initially was substandard. Spyderco refused to acknowledge the problems initially, but eventually redesigned the knives to eliminate the problem. By not recalling the substandard knives they are leaving a lot of very unhappy customers and dealers. The problem isn't going away, it's getting worse.

Regards,

David

[Doc Dan]

I like the materials in the Polestar and Alcyone and the overall design. I have not bought either one simply because the liner lock is my least favorite lock type. The BD1 is a lot better than 8Cr for my uses. I like BD1 pretty well. It seems well balanced, is easy to sharpen, and holds an edge a decent amount of time.

These knives are the kind of think I buy when I am rounding out an order, so I still may end up with one or the other.

[Doc Dan]

[Diamondback]

My Polestar is in transit and I am very eager to get my hands on it. I will be arriving in the US next Wednesday and it should be there waiting on me. I ordered a polestar and a lil subhilt but honestly, I am more excited about the Polestar as I think it is far more likely to be a knife that I will love to carry and use. The quote below is what sold me on trying the model.

The Polestar is a mini Military model with all of the some features (less the finger choil, giving better edge/handle interface)

*I will probably grind the spine flat on day 1 to make mine even more Millie-like.

As far as the Steel choice, I am perfectly happy with bd1 or 8cr13mov. I would readily choose either one of them over s90v or s110v for an edc folder that I planned to carry and use. My everyday folders don’t see tons of hard use and I like carrying knives at peak sharpness so I will touch up the edge of any steel every couple of days on the Sharpmaker. Given my use and sharpening protocol, steels like s110v offer far more disadvantages than advantages. I know I sound like a weirdo admitting those opinions around here but that’s alright. I like what I like. :)

....color me weird as well; I will choose BD1 or 8cr13mov ( I'll add VG-10,as well ) EVERY time over S90V or S110V for an edc folder that I plan to carry and use.

Back in the mid 1980's I bought my first Spyderco...an Endura Clipit in G-2 ( aka G-1, aka Gingami-1 or Gin-1, the Japanese equivilent of BD1 ). I used it daily, hard, at work; I touched the edge up once a week on my day off, and the edge performed wonderfully. I still have that knife...and continues to cut like it was new.

Let us know your impression of the Polestar, Lance. I have one and carry it or my Tenacious daily.

[Bloke]

*I will probably grind the spine flat on day 1 to make mine even more Millie-like.

Lance, if you only ground down the spine a little but didn't fiddle with the pivot and you didn't disassemble the knife and haven't lost any bits and pieces, could you still return it if you still have the box and kept the receipt? :confused:

[MichaelScott]

"Did you intend to write tactile-y instead of tactically? That fits better with the sense I gather from the previous sentence."

I did. My auto correct daemon didn’t agree. :)

[BrianMcCord]

*I will probably grind the spine flat on day 1 to make mine even more Millie-like.

Lance, if you only ground down the spine a little but didn't fiddle with the pivot and you didn't disassemble the knife and haven't lost any bits and pieces, could you still return it if you still have the box and kept the receipt? :confused:

Only if you start a thread saying "Spyderco Sucks". It must be in the fine print somewhere, as that's what a lot of people have been doing lately.

[sal]

Hi Canazes,

I guess I'll take your word for it. Although I must say your "style" of communication is sending another signal.

Regarding parts; We make hundreds of models. We make thousands of knives in 5 different countries. They don't use the same screws, clips and washers and we are constantly improving them, so many parts change frequently and to try to inventory parts for all would be millions of parts requiring a staff just to maintain.

When a customer has a problem, they contact customer service and we generally take care of them. Occasionally an overseas customer has a problem and the "fix" is more complicated. Customer service has its standard operating procedure. We try first to steer them to their local source. If that is not possible, we look into in more closely. Often they will email me, explain their situation and we will usually sort their problem. Send parts, replace the knife or whatever. We do work for the end line user. If they choose to get on my forum, grab a microphone and try to force me into complying with their demand by trying to make my company look bad, I will generally resist. Hope that helps.

sal

[SpyderEdgeForever]

sal and Lance, if someone were to ask you both (and anyone else here), if they should get a Polestar or Alcyone, or, should they wait and get the Caribbean? Their main uses: Outdoor picnic and hiking-related cutting chores, everyday cutting tasks, and also cleaning fresh-caught salt and fresh water fish.

The Polestar and Alcyone are excellent designs but for myself I am going to hold out for the Caribbean. But what would your suggestions and advice be for the person who asked the above question for a knife choice ?

[Canazes9]

Hi Canazes,

I guess I'll take your word for it. Although I must say your "style" of communication is sending another signal.

Regarding parts; We make hundreds of models. We make thousands of knives in 5 different countries. They don't use the same screws, clips and washers and we are constantly improving them, so many parts change frequently and to try to inventory parts for all would be millions of parts requiring a staff just to maintain.

When a customer has a problem, they contact customer service and we generally take care of them. Occasionally an overseas customer has a problem and the "fix" is more complicated. Customer service has its standard operating procedure. We try first to steer them to their local source. If that is not possible, we look into in more closely. Often they will email me, explain their situation and we will usually sort their problem. Send parts, replace the knife or whatever. We do work for the end line user. If they choose to get on my forum, grab a microphone and try to force me into complying with their demand by trying to make my company look bad, I will generally resist. Hope that helps.

sal

Sal,

Perhaps if you care to look through some of my previous posts, I'm one of the view that was staunchly in support of Spydeco's MAP changes. Increasing dealers profitability with regards to Spyderco's knives is critical to the company's future success and I publicly, repeatedly said so. Not everything I post is negative, by a large margin.

Spyderco's current approach to selling parts isn't something I will ever agree with. Yes, I do see that routinely you help those that come to this forum disatisfied with the response they get from Spyderco customer service. I shouldn't have to depend on your benevolence to purchase parts for my knives. I also think this is a bit disingenous - customer service isn't directing unsatisfied customers to contact you, the folks that find you either via the forum or other means are doing it on their own and in the minority.

David

[zhyla]

Hi Canazes,

I guess I'll take your word for it. Although I must say your "style" of communication is sending another signal.

Regarding parts; We make hundreds of models. We make thousands of knives in 5 different countries. They don't use the same screws, clips and washers and we are constantly improving them, so many parts change frequently and to try to inventory parts for all would be millions of parts requiring a staff just to maintain.

When a customer has a problem, they contact customer service and we generally take care of them. Occasionally an overseas customer has a problem and the "fix" is more complicated. Customer service has its standard operating procedure. We try first to steer them to their local source. If that is not possible, we look into in more closely. Often they will email me, explain their situation and we will usually sort their problem. Send parts, replace the knife or whatever. We do work for the end line user. If they choose to get on my forum, grab a microphone and try to force me into complying with their demand by trying to make my company look bad, I will generally resist. Hope that helps.

sal

This is a great explanation... maybe it should be a sticky somewhere.

I’m a little confused why there is so much negativity in the forum all of a sudden. I haven’t noticed this kind of vibe towards Spyderco at Bladeforums. While Spyderco isn’t a perfect company they take care of their customers and have a very solid track record for putting out solid knives at competitive prices.

On the replacement parts issue... is there any other manufacturer that will sell you pivot hardware for every model they make?

[SpyderNut]

...I’m a little confused why there is so much negativity in the forum all of a sudden. I haven’t noticed this kind of vibe towards Spyderco at Bladeforums. While Spyderco isn’t a perfect company they take care of their customers and have a very solid track record for putting out solid knives at competitive prices.

I hear you and I agree. Frankly, it’s getting to be a real bummer having to wade through all the negativity in many of the recent threads/posts in search of something positive—or at least something neutral. I realize it must be many times even more unpleasant for Kristi and Sal to deal with too...

[sal]

I must admit it is discouraging.

sal

[Tdog]

"Perhaps if you care to look through some of my previous posts, I'm one of the view that was staunchly in support of Spydeco's MAP changes. Increasing dealers profitability with regards to Spyderco's knives is critical to the company's future success and I publicly, repeatedly said so. Not everything I post is negative, by a large margin.

Spyderco's current approach to selling parts isn't something I will ever agree with. Yes, I do see that routinely you help those that come to this forum disatisfied with the response they get from Spyderco customer service. I shouldn't have to depend on your benevolence to purchase parts for my knives. I also think this is a bit disingenous - customer service isn't directing unsatisfied customers to contact you, the folks that find you either via the forum or other means are doing it on their own and in the minority. "

David[/quote]


While some that agree it would be nice to get parts from Spyderco it has already been stated that is not standard protocol. I find it much simpler to deal directly with customer service. Posting on a forum doesn't resolve the problem. In the few instances I've dealt with them they've always taken good care of me. Can we please keep this thread on track? Don't have the Polestar but may pick one up. Like my Tenacious as a "value" folder.
Horses lying motionless on the ground.

[sal]

Hi Tdog,

The problem is rare and usually CS will keep in informed. The goal has always been to please the customer.

sal

[ThePeacent]

Can we please keep this thread on track? Don't have the Polestar but may pick one up. Like my Tenacious as a "value" folder.
Horses lying motionless on the ground.

I love my Resilience and the value line in general
:D



nobody else gives me that blade length and smooth action for the $

[zhyla]

I must admit it is discouraging.

sal

A brand this popular will always have haters. Don’t worry about it.

What’s odd is they have all shown up at once. Though I wonder if they are all distinct persons.

[MichaelScott]

It could be a combination of confirmation bias and Dunning-Kruger syndrome. I may be part of the problem. Sometimes I don’t know when to stop.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

I must admit it is discouraging.

sal

Well I hope this sincere statement of mine encourages you, sal. I am just one person but here are some honest, straight from the heart and soul things I have to say about you and Spyderco:

1 I love your company and by the grace of God I plan to and hope to be a customer for life.
2 You are a great guy and so is Eric and all of your employees there. Your customer service and sincerity are proven many times over.
3 I have not one complaint about any of your products, prices, or policies. I understand your reasons for making them as they are.
4 This is the best internet forum I have ever been on and chatted on with people. Thank you!
5 The fact that myself and others can communicate directly with you is an honor and priveledge beyond which I cannot express in words how much I appreciate this.
6 Your patience, kindness, and understanding behavior towards myself and others on here is appreciated greatly!
7 Your foresight of technology, steel types, handle materials, and everything else related to knives and knife mechanisms is to say the least absolutely amazing to me and I greatly respect and admire you for that.

Thank you many times over!

To those who complain: I understand that there are reasonable grievances and issues that may come up at times with any product, but, to make blanket statements like "poor customer service" in my opinion is ridiculous nonsense. I am not attacking you personally but come on. Lighten up and realize and learn to appreciate what a great company Spyderco is and what excellent knives they make.