Spyderco Forums

Have both. Much prefer the Southard. More blade in a generally considered higher end steel. Takes up less space in the pocket. Rides lower as well if that matters. Personal preference regarding shape as well.

Regarding smoothness, I find the Southard smoother. In an attempt to see which has less friction, both knives lubed similarly, both pivots were tightened so I can't feel any side to side play, then marked the same distance from the pivot a point on the spine, and starting at 90 degrees open, see which blade will push the other closed. That's as scientific as I cared to take it and the Southard closed every time first (for both of MY knives).

In regards to side to side play, I feel less flexing with the Southard. If they made a black scaled version of this with the regular blade, I'd buy a second.

If I could get my Southard to cut, it would be a much closer contest.

Absolutely love my Domino! Flips fast! The knife is rock solid with no blade play up or down, left or right! I love the carbon fiber scales compared to brown G10 on the Southard! I'm a fan of Spyderco's leaf-shaped blades over all others except the Stretch! I prefer a more hand filling grip on my knives! So, even though I do not have a Southard yet(maybe blackG10?), I voted for the Domino and don't see it changing! :D

I didn't vote, because I haven't handled the Domino. I had a Southard briefly, but the handle shape didn't click. I like the Sage 1 handle, which the Domino is similar to, so I am definitely interested in trying the Domino.

I have both and like the Domino more. The Southard has a "nicer" feel to it, and is smoother, but everything else goes the Domino's way. The Southard really does show a disadvantage in cutting food and boxes and other slice type cuts. I changed the clip on both so that doesn't matter. The Domino is more ergonomic and flips better. I carried my Southard today and don't care to carry it tomorrow. The Domino usually has to be forced out, to enjoy my other great knives. I would actually like a meld of the two. Longer leaf shaped blade, smoothness of the Southard, finishing refinement of the Southard, flipping action of the Domino, ergos of the Domino, and neither one of the clips or scales. Give me a wire clip.

That is how I feel. It takes precedence over all the other great attributes and makes it less enjoyable. It really doesn't need to be that thick.

gbelleh wrote:If I could get my Southard to cut, it would be a much closer contest.

I prefer the Domino because I feel it embodies Spyderco's take on current knife fashion, ie Titanium framelock, flipper with ball bearing pivot system, whilst at the same time retaining all the unique features that make Spydercos different from other knives on the market.

I voted Southard, although I have no experience with the Domino. I like the Southard because of its unique design and custom feel, as mentioned by others earlier. IMO the Domino could have been called the Manix Deluxe, which def isn't a knock on the Domino, but if you're looking for something different then the Southard is much more unique. Also it has a phenomenal amount of edge for its size in the pocket; it hides more blade in its handle than seems physically possible. I snapped some shots of this way back when: http://www.spyderco.com/forums/showthre ... thard+pics

As you can see it has almost MORE edge than the Manix XL, and follows pretty much the same line. I also can't get over how the Southard looks like a clone of the Osbourne axis lock when closed, but then seems to dwarf it when open. Really impressed with this design. No it's not the slicer that many of us have become accustomed to with all the FFG offerings, but I'm OK with that. That spine hump does look a little strange, but it's a good spot for your thumb when choking up on the blade if you need to whittle a spear or something, which is definitely one of my EDC tasks.

[Edit] I'd also like to add that my only criticism of the Southard is the non-committal "jimping" it has, if those bumps can be called jimping. They're mostly a warning track to let you know that your thumb is in fact sliding forward. It could be coarser and deeper like the XM-18, or finer and more gear-like like the para, but I would have done it differently in some way. Doesn't ruin the design for me, but just a note depending on how much of a jimping snob you are.

This 50/50 poll isn't helping my choice any lol.

I love the Domino. The classic Spyderco leaf blade shape and handle with choil. I also like the scale material. It flips very well.
The Southard is like the anti-Spyderco. A lot of blade length and cutting edge for the handle size. A slimmer blade. Not FFG. No hump on the blade. The scale color isn't great and the rough texture reminds me of Cold Steel's G-10. It's only the Southard's impeccable build quality that keeps me interested in it.

But when you came here, did you expect any other answer than: get both?

I own the Southard and consider it one of my favorite knives overall. Its like having a custom from Brad himself.

I sold my Domino, I like it but I have too many leaf shape blades already from Spyderco. Build quality is right there with the Southard of course.

nccole wrote:That is how I feel. It takes precedence over all the other great attributes and makes it less enjoyable. It really doesn't need to be that thick.

What do you guys run into difficulty with the Southard? I was cutting some cardboard last night and put it head to head with my PM2 and honestly the Southard zipped through it better. PM2 with a pretty fresh edge and Southard is still factory. Granted it was just standard box cardboard and not some really thick stuff. Perhaps I need to break out some apples and see how it does with that. I guess I fall into the other camp where I really like the thickness of the blade spine and how it feels under thumb when you choke up to get more control. That to me is worth the trade-off. I am totally in the honey-moon phase right now though, so it can do no wrong. :)

tvenuto wrote:But when you came here, did you expect any other answer than: get both?

May have to do that when the black comes out! Just to be totally objective of course!!!

Yeah I actually did expect one to get more votes than the other. Kinda surprised it's so even.

I played with both and both are not my cup of tea (flipper and great openinghole does not correspond well in my eyes).
Due to the better possibility to close the knife after opening it, I voted for the Southard.
... Don't laugh, closing a knife, as easy as possible, is important too

I'm curious about the people having issues with the Southard's ability to cut, the Vallotton has the same blade stock thickness. Anyone have measurements of their grinds side by side?

I have both and voted for the Southard. It has a more robust feel in hand, and, personally, I love the blade shape. Like has been asserted earlier, , the Domino seems more suited to thin slicing whereas the Southard seems like it can stand up to more. As for the steel, I like both, but 204 has become my favorite steel after having it in the Southard. I will say, sharpening it on an EdgePro is a bit of a challenge, and I had trouble getting it to take a good edge at 1st, , but when I revisited the process with a lighter hand and more patience, it proved well worth the effort. I will say that the Southard's clip is the only thing I don't like. I bead blasted it and soaked it in ferric chloride and that helped a bit with the aesthetics, but an overall redesign would be nice. As far as the all black version coming out, , ,I will be the 1st in line to get one.

I have not handled the Domino yet, but I do love my Southard. I like the Southards blade shape and grind more (I already have so many leafs and it's just like my many Manix 2s), but not the total width (outside of G-10 to outside of Ti). This is where the Domino would possibly have an advantage in my mind. Also as much as I love XHP, you must admit that 204P is a better steel when speaking of edge retention.

Peter1960 wrote: ... Don't laugh, closing a knife, as easy as possible, is important too

I agree completely. This is the main reason I prefer a liner or frame locks to other lock types.

PS! Southard in RFP as I type.