Southard Positron (Ion) Status Check

[i am travvy]

Im passing on this one as well. I love the blade shape but the handle kills it for me. To my eyes it just looks unfinished. I don't care for the sharp edges. To me this knife is needing a handle like that of the rubicon. Nice rounded and contoured. My .02.

[EDC Honeybee]

I handled one today at the spyderco factory outlet, alongside all of the other flippers. Even if price were not a factor, the positron was my favorite of the flippers for me. Something about the domino and dice didnt do it for me. The more slender blade on the positron really seems to lend itsself to the flipper. Additionally, the positron was a very manageable size. Was comfortable in hand, and looked like it would fit in well in an office with the nice looking scales and deep-ish carry wire clip.

I dont own one obviously, so I cant speak for how well it hold up, but I found it pretty dang attractive and comfortable.

[Liquid Cobra]

I'm just waiting for my local shop to get them in and then I'll be picking one up. Now I just need to figure out how to pay for it.

[SpyderNut]

^ Always have to be very careful with containing carbon dust when grinding or sanding! Dangerous stuff.

Agreed. Wear a respirator and make sure to do your sanding in a well-ventilated area.

In all honesty, carbon fiber is one of my favorite handle materials to work with (compared to G-10 and even Micarta). CF grinds/sands easily and takes a fine polish if so desired. The issue of the "pointy" tail would be an easy fix on the Positron. All you would need is some 400 grit sandpaper. After you smoothe off the edges, you can dress (polish) the areas by transitioning up to 600, 800, then maybe 1500 or 2000 grit. She'll look just like new. :)

[hoimin]

^ Always have to be very careful with containing carbon dust when grinding or sanding! Dangerous stuff.

Agreed. Wear a respirator and make sure to do your sanding in a well-ventilated area.

In all honesty, carbon fiber is one of my favorite handle materials to work with (compared to G-10 and even Micarta). CF grinds/sands easily and takes a fine polish if so desired. The issue of the "pointy" tail would be an easy fix on the Positron. All you would need is some 400 grit sandpaper. After you smoothe off the edges, you can dress (polish) the areas by transitioning up to 600, 800, then maybe 1500 or 2000 grit. She'll look just like new. :)

Thanks, SpeedHoles and SpyderNut!
It's nice to have the Positron in an easy to manipulate handle material (sorry, warranty) if it turns out to have minor ergonomic difficulties out of the box.

[Liquid Cobra]

It would appear that these are selling like hot cakes! I can't find one in stock at my usual dealers.

[JudasD]

I'm bummed to hear about the sharp pointy handle as well. It's one of the things that i dislike about the Rubicon. Thank you for the thread guys. Very helpful.

JD

[SpyderNut]

I'm bummed to hear about the sharp pointy handle as well. It's one of the things that i dislike about the Rubicon. Thank you for the thread guys. Very helpful.

JD

I hear you about the "pointy" aspects of the Rubicon and Positron. I don't have a Positron yet, but I do occasionally carry my Rubicon. The pointy orange G-10 spacer piece isn't much of an issue for me because I carry the knife loosely in my pocket vs. clipped to the side. I've been tempted to soften the pointy end, but I think I'll just leave it alone for the time being. :)

[RamZar]

12 in stock at GP Knives: http://www.gpknives.com/spyderco-positr ... 95cfp.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[gbelleh]

It seems to be in stock at cutleryshoppe now too.

[Liquid Cobra]

It seems to be in stock at cutleryshoppe now too.

I broke down and ordered one from CS. I wanted to wait for my local shop to get them in but it's taking a while. I just called them and they said it would be a few more weeks, I couldn't hold out any longer. I'm weak lol.

[flash900]

Has anyone tried to trim a bit more out of the cutout to make it easier to open one-handed with your thumb on the blade?

I can do this some of the time (possibly because my thumb is so strong after breaking in an Emerson Sheepdog with one of the stickiest, pain-in-the-*** locks I have ever handled!)

While the flipper on the Positron works great, I enjoy opening the Positron manually. It reminds me of the old-style Chris Reeve Mnandi, which you can open one-handed with its nail nic. (CRK changed the nail nic design in 2012 so new Mnandis are two-hand opening only.)

Has anyone tried taking a bit out of the cutout? (And thanks for the hint about working with CF.)

[Liquid Cobra]

Check out the great video I just found on YouTube. The guy dies a pretty decent little test with the Positron cutting some rope. He reports of no hotspots and that it's a mean little slicer.

http://youtu.be/_eA-3wlYq0k

I'm really loving mine by the way. Brad strikes again!

[hoimin]

Sweet find, Liquid Cobra! His username and the location of his test station makes me laugh.
Some nice pictures of the Positron internals up on BF's thread: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showt ... tron/page7" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[RamZar]

In stock at BladeHQ.

[ninewalker]

Got my Positron from Knifeworks today. Mixed feelings but it might grow on me. A bit hard to flip out of the box. The handle is quite thick so there's that. The pointy end doesn't bother me when I grip it, though aesthetically it could be less pointy. But that cutting edge! It goes on forever for a knife this small. I love that part of it. But enough of that. Pictures!

[hoimin]

EverydayCommentary's video overview. Full review coming some time next week.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUWr_V0uic0

[Tdog]

Got mine today.

Nice compact package. Nested liners give it a sturdy feeling despite the size and relatively light weight. Feels well made.

Flipping action is fine. Doesn't have a strong enough detent for an explosive action, but it is smooth and works more or less effortlessly.

The blade finish is really nicely done, very good looking stone wash, and the edge is ground even and very sharp. Much sharper than my CS XHP Para 2 out of the box.

Lock bar is a little difficult to access, but not too bad. Lock up seems solid, no detectable play.

The thing I don't like and was afraid of is the pointy corners on the end of the handle. To me, it's a big ergonomic oversight. Especially on this particular model. Let me explain:

-When I close the knife with one hand, I set the rear of the handle into the lower part of my palm to unlock the liner. My index finger supports the handle and keeps pressure on the knife as I release the lock. The pointy corners dig into my hand. Does it hurt? Am I in tears? Am I a giant baby? No, no and maybe. It just seems unnecessarily uncomfortable.

-Clipped into my right pocket, anytime my arm drops to me side and my hand happens to brush by my pocket, I get poked by the pointy corner sticking out. I was doing dishes this evening, just moving around the kitchen and must've felt that dang corner like a dozen times. Again, just seems unnecessarily uncomfortable.

-Perhaps most frustrating....if you look closely at the tip of the handle and follow that line on the handle towards the spine/back spacer to the corner nearest the clip....that corner is chamfered! No sharp points at those corners, but for some reason the back of the handle gets turned into a what, if left unaddressed, will become a constant annoyance to me. You can see the chamfer line get thinner and then disappear at the tip of the handle to a nice unbroken, sharp point. Pic below, apologies for cell phone macro quality. Blue circle is unbroken pointy bit, red line follows partial chamfer. Both sides are the same.

I want to like the knife, and this may seem like a minor quibble, but I kind of don't right this second. Might take something to the points and try to round them over a bit.
FWIW, anyway.

I like the flipping action of the knife but the liner lock is a pain to access. In the picture you posted, the back spacer is like mine. It actually protrudes a bit from the back of the scales leaving a sharp edge. Not happy at all with this. Certainly not for a knife of this cost. Unsure what I'll do with the knife at this point. Definitely the first Taichung made knife I've had any fit and finish issues with.

[hoimin]

I like the flipping action of the knife but the liner lock is a pain to access. In the picture you posted, the back spacer is like mine. It actually protrudes a bit from the back of the scales leaving a sharp edge. Not happy at all with this. Certainly not for a knife of this cost. Unsure what I'll do with the knife at this point. Definitely the first Taichung made knife I've had any fit and finish issues with.

I was under the impression that the back spacer protrusion was by design.

[Liquid Cobra]

I like the flipping action of the knife but the liner lock is a pain to access. In the picture you posted, the back spacer is like mine. It actually protrudes a bit from the back of the scales leaving a sharp edge. Not happy at all with this. Certainly not for a knife of this cost. Unsure what I'll do with the knife at this point. Definitely the first Taichung made knife I've had any fit and finish issues with.

I was under the impression that the back spacer protrusion was by design.

Yeah mine does this too. Seems intentional to me. Looks nice that it's not flush. Another neat little detail.

As far as the pointy handle goes, when I jam the end of the knife into my palm it isn't sharp. Not even close to the sharpness of my Rubicon.

In terms of fit and finish I'd say The Taichung makers nailed it (on mine anyway).