A guard tab

[JRinFL]

Pretty much all day I looked at the thumb ramp and thought of how I could tweak it but I don't think there's a lot of wiggle room while still keeping it factory looking. I could soften down that top shoulder a bit, but Spyderco's always have a pretty consistent thickness of steel in the circle around the top of the thumb hole and if you go too thin or in other words bring down the thumb ramp slope too much it'll get too thin between the ramp and the hole and probably look weird.

I agree. I've come to the same conclusion. I've seen modified thumb ramps, and while I'm sure they're comfortable, and suit their owners, they do change the look of the knife considerably, with a thin-looking bit of steel encircling the back of the spyder hole.

I've seen proposals for scooping out the area around the hole entirely, and substituting a large "thumb-shelf" in its place. Of course that radically changes the look and possibly the strength. I'm certain someone will do it, sooner or later.

While it would be nice (and more comfortable) to have a more gradual thumb ramp on the mule, that would mean past sheaths would likely no longer fit, so I don't see the design changing any. Plus, one of the rules of experimentation as pertains to the mule is, you keep everything but the steel, constant.

Hey guys.

I did a mod of my thumb ramp that makes it feel more like a Manix, and I think it works quite well without looking awkward. To make the mod look natural, I ground the spine down a little to make the steel around the Spydiehole look even. Here’s a quick photo for illustration:
736FF4AA-A9D9-48CB-919D-C70D3A42435C.jpeg

I remember this mod. It looks great and makes the thumb ramp less abrupt.

[Araignee]

Just finished beveling the edge.

Beautiful. I wish my Mule had been shipped that way.

[burlyspyder]

I removed the tab as well, at least for one of mine. Here's a not-quite-finished pic. I used a carbide end mill.

Wait...I missed this earlier...a carbide endmill can cut hardened steel?

Yes, no problem. I kept it lubed and did small passes, backing off on speed if I felt or heard any chatter. Never got hot, and no chipping at all. I think the SanMai helped stabilize it a bit. I was a little concerned about potential de-lamination, but was a non-issue. I did this by hand on a big old Bridgeport.

-burly