So, Sal, is the Caly3 model extinct ?!

[elena86]

Lock rock is a deal breaker for me. I hope they solve this in the upcoming LW Caly3.5. I never understood why don’t they implement the internal stop pin. It’s an easy fix…

[Tristan_david2001]

I really wish the Caly would stay a more premium knife and not make a plastic handle it’s primary configuration. Bolsters, Steel liners, and micarta etc. is at home on the Caly design.

[Sharp Guy]

I agree the carbon fiber is smooth, but a matte texture, not necessarily slick and slippery

No matte texture on mine. See JSumm's pictures above. As he indicated it's glass smooth

I own one also. It’s quite literally not glass smooth because it’s not made of glass nor does it have a glossy finish or coating. It’s pure carbon fibre. Which is very smooth but it’s very dull and soft. Not slippery and glossy like glass

Apparently your idea of glossy, matte, soft, and not slippery are vastly different than mine. I assumed people wouldn't take the glass smooth thing so literally considering the scales aren't actually made of glass. Maybe they're not "glass smooth" but I have smooth Titanium handles that have more texture. I don't find them soft at all

Again, it's one of my favorite knives and I've grown to like the smooth scales. So not complaining

[Tristan_david2001]

I agree the carbon fiber is smooth, but a matte texture, not necessarily slick and slippery

No matte texture on mine. See JSumm's pictures above. As he indicated it's glass smooth

I own one also. It’s quite literally not glass smooth because it’s not made of glass nor does it have a glossy finish or coating. It’s pure carbon fibre. Which is very smooth but it’s very dull and soft. Not slippery and glossy like glass

Apparently your idea of glossy, matte, soft, and not slippery are vastly different than mine. I assumed people wouldn't take the glass smooth thing so literally considering the scales aren't actually made of glass. Maybe they're not "glass smooth" but I have smooth Titanium handles that have more texture. I don't find them soft at all

Again, it's one of my favorite knives and I've grown to like the smooth scales. So not complaining

I just hoped people who are thinking of getting this knife don’t get the idea the handle is actually smooth as glass, and maybe a knife handle that smooth would stray them away from trying the cf version.
It’s not my idea, I’m speaking in objective terms. It also doesn’t have to be made of glass for it to feel like glass, hardened epoxy resin handles or something of that nature with a glossy surface, take the raffir noble chap for example, probably feels more like glass. Carbon fiber as a material is softer and duller texture than glass because of the fibrous composites within it, which does make a difference of how slippery on your skin it is.

[Sharp Guy]

Apparently we also have two different knives as well. I handled a Raffir Nobel Chap at the store last week. It felt "softer" and less slippery than the Caly 3.5 CF I have. Smooth G10 is less slippery too IMO

People who are interested in Caly 3.5 CF should absolutely be aware that the CF is smooth and therefore kind of slippery. When I bought mine a was a little disappointed at first. I hadn't looked that close to the pictures and I assumed it had some texturing like my Sage 1 or GB. I've seen many comments on here since regarding how smooth and slippery the handles are. I've defended that because it's not really an issue for me due to the shape of the handle. The smooth CF Delica is the same way. Once again, I like the smooth handled knives because I'm a little tired of shredded pockets but they're not for everyone

[Ferruginous]

I'm curious, how many of you have purchased the current Caly 3.5 CF that's still being produced?

What do you think?

Asking because I never bought one. Wanted to, and then the steel selections (in other knives) moved on from ZDP189.

I had both the Caly 3 and 3.5 CF/ZDP at different times and ended up selling both. Both were generally well-made (little bit of lock rock on the 3) and I liked that both had quite ergonomic handles while still being relatively slim. They were purchased and sold separately (3 first, then 3.5) with no overlap so I guess I liked it enough to try again after the first.

However, there were a couple of design elements/choices I didn't like.

• Proud pivots. They just don't work with the slick, flat nature of the rest of the knife.
• Clad blade. Softer cladding shows scratches very easily, not what I'm looking for on a fancier, more expensive knife like this. Fine on a Hap40 Delica with FRN scales but wasn't thrilled with it on the Calys, especially with how nicely polished they started out.
• Lack of washers. Follow-on from the previous, between no washers and soft cladding the circular wear marks on the blade near the pivot from opening/closing will quickly appear.
• Blade steel. I freely admit this one is subjective. ZDP-189 is not my thing. I tried to like it in these Calys and a Delica, Endura, and Ladybug. Once spent a long time taking the Delica to a 4k polish on the edge pro and it had a beautiful, scary sharp edge until the first time it encountered something rougher than receipt paper and then it was just not great holding a working edge at lower but still functional sharpness. Also, I got some salt and pepper rust spots on the ladybug - the most stainless "stainless steel" it is not. I am much happier with K390 regular production and lots of 20CV exclusives floating around for the Seki FRN lineup.

Basically if the VG-10 and G10 versions had still been available I probably would've gone with those and been happier with more utilitarian materials, but they weren't, so ZDP/CF was my only way to try the designs out.


No promises about purchases but I did like the design overall and an FRN version would be on my radar.

I agree on all points. Flatten the pivot, add washers, and make the blade VG-10 (or a better stainless) and I'll buy a few whether they are CF or G10 or FRN.

[JSumm]

I agree the carbon fiber is smooth, but a matte texture, not necessarily slick and slippery

No matte texture on mine. See JSumm's pictures above. As he indicated it's glass smooth

I own one also. It’s quite literally not glass smooth because it’s not made of glass nor does it have a glossy finish or coating. It’s pure carbon fibre. Which is very smooth but it’s very dull and soft. Not slippery and glossy like glass

May be a difference between batches. I have a Caly 3 gifted by a great friend here on the forum that has a matte soft finish. Very nice and I personally love it. From a 2007 batch.

Then I have a Caly 3.5 from a 2018 batch that has the smooth as glass feel. The scales honestly feel like cheap carbon fiber you may have encounter on some less expensive knives. I dropped it on asphalt once and it almost peels in layers.

I tried to capture it in photos, but it seems impossible.
Caly 3 on the left with a matte soft feeling CF. Caly 3.5 on the right with a glossy finish.

[Tristan_david2001]

I agree the carbon fiber is smooth, but a matte texture, not necessarily slick and slippery

No matte texture on mine. See JSumm's pictures above. As he indicated it's glass smooth

I own one also. It’s quite literally not glass smooth because it’s not made of glass nor does it have a glossy finish or coating. It’s pure carbon fibre. Which is very smooth but it’s very dull and soft. Not slippery and glossy like glass

May be a difference between batches. I have a Caly 3 gifted by a great friend here on the forum that has a matte soft finish. Very nice and I personally love it. From a 2007 batch.

Then I have a Caly 3.5 from a 2018 batch that has the smooth as glass feel. The scales honestly feel like cheap carbon fiber you may have encounter on some less expensive knives. I dropped it on asphalt once and it almost peels in layers.

I tried to capture it in photos, but it seems impossible.
Caly 3 on the left with a matte soft feeling CF. Caly 3.5 on the right with a glossy finish.

Those two certainly look different, very astute observation jeff. I got my Caly 3.5 cf off eBay and I believe it from was a very early batch, it looks just like your Caly 3 on the left. I noticed the weave pattern and the way the light picks it up looks very different too. That explains things. I wish they kept that nice premium soft-matte carbon fiber for the later batches.

[Bolster]

I'm curious, how many of you have purchased the current Caly 3.5 CF that's still being produced?

What do you think?

Asking because I never bought one. Wanted to, and then the steel selections (in other knives) moved on from ZDP189.

What??????????????????? I am shocked you don't have one.

I know, it's shameful. I am ashamed.

I have 3.5s in VG10 and 3s in ZDP, but when I checked my stock I found no 3.5 in ZDP! I thought I bought one long ago, but on review, no. Since that unpleasant discovery, I've wanted one. I was thinking to delay until Moki could produce them with (at least) very low levels of lock-rock, and my question is a roundabout way of asking if the recent-manufacture 3.5 ZDPs are mostly rock-free. If they are, then I'm back in the market.

I can deal with a small amount of rock, but not much. Have departed with 3 Calys recently due to my intolerance for more than a small amount of it.

[00max00]

Lock rock is a deal breaker for me. I hope they solve this in the upcoming LW Caly3.5. I never understood why don’t they implement the internal stop pin. It’s an easy fix…

Probably a legal issue as this creates a copy of a Tri-ad lock.

[Giygas]

Lock rock is a deal breaker for me. I hope they solve this in the upcoming LW Caly3.5. I never understood why don’t they implement the internal stop pin. It’s an easy fix…

Probably a legal issue as this creates a copy of a Tri-ad lock.

I assume he means like in the Chaparral:


Makunochimaster's pic, not mine

[Bolster]

Is the difference between the triad and the spyderco stop pin:

Triad puts fixed stop pin through liner/scales, not blade, and pin is adjacent to locking pawl where it stops over-rotation
Spyderco's SP puts stop pin in blade, where it rotates, and uses nested liners to stop over-rotation

?

[Giygas]

Yeah.

In the triad lock, there's a stop between between the front for the pawl and back of the tang so each makes contact with the pin:



A lot of people claim it completely eliminates lock rock, but my G10/S35VN CS Spartan has almost as much play as the average Seki-City backlock.

[aicolainen]

I only have one CS folder, a pretty recent production (S35VN) American Lawman. Lockup is rock solid, but like my Siren, it quickly develops some play if I grip it hard.

[wrdwrght]

I only have one CS folder, a pretty recent production (S35VN) American Lawman. Lockup is rock solid, but like my Siren, it quickly develops some play if I grip it hard.

A firm grip can depress a flat lock-bar just enough to permit vertical blade-play. Happens on my factory-replaced Siren, too.

Not sure but I think the Boye dent is meant to avoid putting inadvertent pressure on the lock-bar.

[JSumm]

I only have one CS folder, a pretty recent production (S35VN) American Lawman. Lockup is rock solid, but like my Siren, it quickly develops some play if I grip it hard.

A firm grip can depress a flat lock-bar just enough to permit vertical blade-play. Happens on my factory-replaced Siren, too.

Not sure but I think the Boye dent is meant to avoid putting inadvertent pressure on the lock-bar.

That's exactly right! Golden has some pretty tight tolerances on their lock backs, but if you squeeze them hard enough, you can shake the blade and hear some movement.

[plow_2]

I've had several of the g10 caly 3's, and they are my favorite knife ever. Sal has my eternal gratitude for its design.
-No need for washers or bushings, the opening is glass smooth and amazing.
-Never had lock rock.
-wire clip is best clip ever
-finger choil is fantastic, I don't care for the smaller choils on pm2 and others.

So looking forward to the new offerings. I've tried the 3.5 but prefer the smaller blade. I'd love to see the caly Jr with jimping and wire clip.

[Bolster]

I'd love to see the caly Jr with jimping and wire clip.

I can grant half your wish.

[sal]

My plan is to try to revive the Caly Family with a Caly 2.5", 3.0", 3.5", 4.0" and pendants. The maker is small and slower so it will be a while. Probably Carbon Fiber, though I'm open to suggestions.

sal

[Tristan_david2001]

I heavily suggest linen micarta on steel liners for a more premium version, additionally with frn for the people who prefer frn and lighter weight,
Very excited to see these new models sal. Thank you