Spyderco Forums

Hello everyone I'm looking for some help...
I just received a paramilitary 2 from amazon and there are four small notches on the spine, they start about 1 cm from the tip and are evenly spaced about 5mm apart from each other.

I'm curious if this could possibly be a factory second mark because there are other finish issues.

Thanks for any help.

Someone with more knowledge can help you in a second, but from my understanding the factory seconds are marked by a grind mark on the thumb hole. Do you have a pic?

I don't have a proper camera to capture it, but I checked some seconds marks posted online and these definitely look smaller than those.
I wonder if a knife would leave the factory like that considering that production must be a little rushed.

Considering that they are at the tip, I don't think they are second marks. I believe second marks are usually just one notch carved near the spyder hole. Pictures would help though. And I really doubt it came from the factory like that, because I can't imagine why you'd have marks on a knife like that. Unless they're deep scratches?

It almost sounds like someone tried to add jimping

Well to be clear the notches are on the left corner of the spine much like the seconds marks only small in comparison. They're just enough to catch my fingernail. It looks to me like someone could have hit it hard with another knife, or tapped it in with a hammer.
I've had mixed results ordering from amazon and I'm a little suspicious that I got a returned knife. It's hard to decide whether I keep it or send it back and start waiting.....

Factory seconds are marked with a single notch. That notch is normally placed on the right side of the blade's spine, either on the thumb ramp or above the Spyderhole. So the notches you describe are not "seconds" notches and I think that your suspicion that you were not the first person to whom Amazon shipped that particular ParaMilitary 2 and that the original recipient was less than careful with it, is probably correct.

Didn't old time gunfighters notch their gun for every man they killed? :D

chuck_roxas45 wrote:Didn't old time gunfighters notch their gun for every man they killed? :D

I lol'd at this!

Soooo, after I contacted amazon they offered me twenty percent off my PM2, so I'm in less than $90 and I plan on keeping it, even though it has some vertical play and finish issues.

However I'm always nervous of buying a counterfeit so I'd like to know, does Sal's signature look roughly etched on a PM2 compared to a Stretch or Caly? (hopefully)

And does anyone have advice on vertical movement on this knife? As mentioned someone may have abused this knife before I bought it so that may be the end of the story. I'm interested in how most people end up adjusting the compression lock screws if at all, and how commonly vertical movement is found.

doesn't sound normal if you are having multiple issues at once
why not try to get a refund?

I guess I still might. I still have 3 weeks left of the return window so I'm gonna feel it out, potentially get some clear photographs to post on here and wring the collective knowledge.
But assuming it's genuine I could use it all I wanted and resell it for a small profit, though that's not without its share of hassles.

I notice if I push the lock to engage deeper there's no more play, I wonder if the lock would eventually wear down and tighten up?? Or if the repair/ warranty service could potentially do work like that?

If it were my choice, I would send it back... if you send it back for warranty repair, it will cost you almost what you are saving in postage. It sounds like you got a used/returned knife.

I used to collect Star Wars figures and in stores you would regularly see older versions of figures in the newer packages. People would buy the newest version, take it home and carefully open the package, then remove and replace the figure with the older, not as nice version, and return it to the store for their money back. Once I bought a couple figures I was really excited about but didn't look closely enough and got ripped off because of that. Part of me is wondering if it would be possible for someone to get a fake knife from a reputable dealer if a dishonest person bought a real Para2 then swapped in a fake one and returned it. An Amazon seller might not know the difference enough to identify it.

Why would you want to keep a knife with so many problems? Using a Para 2 should be a joy. Just exchange or return it.

Buendia518 wrote:Hello everyone I'm looking for some help...
I just received a paramilitary 2 from amazon and there are four small notches on the spine, they start about 1 cm from the tip and are evenly spaced about 5mm apart from each other.

I'm curious if this could possibly be a factory second mark because there are other finish issues.

Thanks for any help.

When you say the knife was purchased from "Amazon" did it come from a particular store/vendor, or was it sold directly by Amazon? Thx

Sounds like someone tried to add their own ruler to the spine :eek:

We need pictures

I bought a Balance from Amazon, the company directly.
Upon opening it took about 5 minutes to get over the shock and repackage the knife for return. It was like all the returns had been built into one knife from the defective parts. Refund was no problem.

Send er back, and reorder from one of the knife dealers frequently mentioned here.

pictures may prove asset

I agree with Holland, this is an extremely futile effort without pics!!