Name a Spyderco knife you did not think you would like until you owned it.

[bearfacedkiller]

Stretch for me.

I had quite a few Para2s and then bought a Super Blue Stretch. It sat in the knife drawer for a couple months unused as I always grabbed one of the Para2s instead. Finally, thanks to the advice of this forum, I decided to carry it exclusively for a couple weeks just to see if I would "get it". I know have four variations of the Stretch in my rotation and only one Para2.

[Johnnie1801]

I got the Lil' Nilakka recently thinking it would be just a collection piece as the first Flash Batch but it has hardly left my pocket since. Absolutly awesome Little Big Knife :)

[kbuzbee]

I never liked Memory until I bought it under peer pressure from Ken.
Thanks Ken

My pleasure, Roman.

I had the same sort of experience with the CF Balance. No interest in that weird looking tiny knife. Then Paul explained what a great little design it actually is, and he was so right. It immediately became my favorite knife and was my every day carry for years until it was just recently bumped by the K390 Urban. Still love it though.

Ken

[abbazaba]

Hungarian. What a great knife all around, albeit a little different. If it had a deep carry wire clip I would pocket it all the time.

Manix2 Backlock. They totally nailed it with this unique revisit. GB1 sadly hasn't seen any weekend warrior duty since I bought this one used on a whim. Now if I could just get a sprint run in M4... (CF handles if I'm being really greedy) :D

[The Deacon]

Has to be the Centofante Memory. It would be difficult to find a Spyderco more "not me". It features a wrong handed lock, coupled with a Spyderhole only accessible from the wrong side and an "all edge" blade mated to a handle with nothing to prevent one's hand from sliding onto that edge. If all that were not enough, the silver woven glass scale is a bit flamboyant for my tastes.

Yet, despite all that, it quickly became my "desk knife" of choice, and even gets carried occasionally when I head into Greenville where there's a 3" blade limit.

[vivi]

Pacific Salt.

I purchased a Pacific Salt and Tasman Salt the year Spyderco introduced them. I intended for them to be beaters, knives I'd carry when I knew I'd be really sweaty mostly. I was all about my Military for an EDC at the time.

There were a lot of things I didn't like about the Pacific Salt. FRN instead of G10, blunt tip compared to my Millie, no full flat grind, I didn't care for backlocks as much back then, etc.

After a while it started seeing more and more use. It stopped being an outdoor sports beater and started working its way into my EDC rotation. At first just as a cheap work knife I didn't mind using with my hands coated in dirty substances, then I started carrying it outside of work because I already had it on me and it was so light and convenient.

Years later, it's my go to knife. I love how light it is, I love H1, the ergonomics are nice, the backlock has become my favorite locking mechanism, I've come to prefer FRN to G10 for a few reasons, and I love the clip design.

[Tdog]

I thought the Chokwe was a funny and uncomfortable looking knife until I bought one. They are actually very comfortable in the hand, lightweight, easy on the pockets, carry small, and are a great slicer. Liked it so much, I picked up a second one when they were on sale. Funny mine doesn't get much carry time when I really like the knife. :spyder:

[SC_PATRIOT]

Believe it or not the Tenacious was NEVER on my radar. EVER! But I got one to have folder for gathering and cutting veggies for room the garden. Needed serrated in a full flat grind. Hands down the best mid sized folder for cutting squash, watermelon, and eggplants from the vine. Was using a Manix XL for the longest but needed a good cutter. Ha I thought the 8Cr13Mov was always junk steel but what I specifically bought the Tenacious for it is perfect. Actually like the liner lock on it also. Surprised the **** out of me.

[vivi]

The Tenacious is a great value. Really enjoyed mine while I had it. It's still serving my buddy well years later.

Some day I want to try a Resilience.

[Evil D]

This is really most knives that I own. I think I've had some hesitation and doubt in just about every new model I've bought, and the ones that have stuck around have won me over. It really is a challenge to gain pocket time in my life because I have such specific taste and expectations, so I try to ignore hype and popularity because I've been let down before.

But, to name a few..

1. Military. Without a doubt this is probably my biggest 180 knife. If you can search back far enough I'm sure you'll find posts where I say the Military is overrated and all hype. That was before I finally bought one and used it. Using it sealed the deal. It's simply the best user-EDC money can buy IMO. I like other knives for different reasons but for general all around do anything EDC the Military is King.

2. Manix 2. I bought one way back when they were a new release and I liked it at first but the more I used it the more I hated it. I know there's a big thread I made about this one. It really boiled down to that low hollow grind. Once I got myself a sprint version that was FFG, this knife actually dethroned the Para 2 which was my go to knife back in the day (we could start an opposite thread to this where we talk about knives you fell out of love with, the Para 2 would be #1 for me).

3. Southard. This is another one that I practically loathed the sight of at first because it was so popular, I literally got sick of seeing pics of it posted on the forum. Then the Domino released and I had my local shop order one for me to check out, and he happened to have a Southard there too. I bought the Southard. If this knife were FFG and a bit wider in blade height it would be approaching EDC perfection. It's a fantastic design but doesn't get carried as much now because it isn't the best slicer. Hmm...maybe a regrind is in order.

4. Nilakka. I had an odd curiosity for this one from the first pics that were shown from Amsterdam that year. It goes against practically all of my EDC requirements, and it doesn't get carried much, but it's an absolutely wonderful knife. The construction of this knife is something to be seen, it's fairly complex under the scales for such a basic looking knife. The pivot and lock action is among the best I've ever handled.

5. Ulize. This is one that I would have never bought, but I'm thankful that I won one from the calendar contest. It's a funky design that isn't exactly inviting at first look but it feels amazing in hand and is really useful. I used this one quite a lot for box duty.

[hovan2yourknives]

Easily the Sage 5. I never liked the aesthetics of the blade profile but wanted a smaller compression lock knife (got it before the Para 3 was announced). After it sat around for a month or two, because I was undecided if I wanted to use (keep) it, I gave it a shot and was really impressed with how well it carried, the ergos and how versatile it was! After some minor mods it's become one of my favorites! If you're on the fence buying one...give it a try. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

[Eee]

There are two which stand out.

The Gayle Bradley 1, which displaced a Sebenza. On paper it's not something I would have liked, but the ergomics and the beautifully thin edge makes it a firm and long-standing favourite.

The Pacific Salt. I never thought I'd take to linerless FRN, I just wanted to try serrated H1. It's brilliant though.

Between the 2 of them, I nearly stopped buying locking knives for a while, they are that good. The Caribbean has caught my eye though, which might just be a bit of a cross between the 2.

[Slumblor]

Maybe spyderco in general. For the longest time I couldn't get over the hump, the weird hole and the look. But I kept hearing good things and decided to try a tenacious. Game over. For a budget, Chinese made knife, that was the best knife I had handled at the time. I immediately got a persistence. Now I've got a couple dozen and counting.

More recently it was the UKPK, I'd overlooked it because of the no lock. But I decided to try it and it hasn't left my pocket since. Perfect size, so light and so comfortable in hand. A lock would be great, but most of the time it isn't needed really for general EDC tasks.

[ricechrispy]

Delica/Endura: Thought they looked cheap and unattractive. Went to Blade HQ (I live not that far from it) to check out a Delica and immediately realized what all the fuss was about. I won't go so far as to call it or the Endura attractive, but they are such great tools. I think every knife enthusiast should have a Delica and/or Endura.

Military (G10): I thought it was way too big to be practical for EDC but kept reading about what a great knife it is. I bought one of the XHP sprints and fell in love. I think it's tied with the Native 5 for most ergonomic folding knife I've ever used.

[npad69]

probably the santoku, not the knife itself but the steel it uses.
at first i thought mbs26 is inferior compared to the usual vg10 spyderco have used in the past. after using and sharpening it a number of times.. man this steel performs really well compared to the other high-end vg10 japanese kitchen knives 3x more expensive. mbs26 is a lot more tougher and it resists chipping better than my other non-spyderco vg10s and it is much easier to sharpen and retains its shaving edge a lot longer based on my experience.
because i really liked it, now i have the mbs26 paring and utility knives in both pe and se

p.s.
haven't tried spyderco's vg10 kitchen knives yet

[ramasipsc]

K2. I liked it so mutch that bought K2 mini custom.

[Midnightrider]

The Native. I thought it was all hype. Now I have three.

I bought it because I was able to find it in Maxamet and was thinking a Millie would be too big to EDC. I didn't like the look of the Native and didn't like the idea of FRN, basically bought it just for the blade.

Wonderful, wonderful little knife that cuts like a knife twice the size, it weighs nothing, the whole way it's put together gives you incredible control. Fantastic giant knife in small knife clothing.

[vilePossum]

probably the santoku, not the knife itself but the steel it uses.
at first i thought mbs26 is inferior compared to the usual vg10 spyderco have used in the past. after using and sharpening it a number of times.. man this steel performs really well compared to the other high-end vg10 japanese kitchen knives 3x more expensive. mbs26 is a lot more tougher and it resists chipping better than my other non-spyderco vg10s and it is much easier to sharpen and retains its shaving edge a lot longer based on my experience.
because i really liked it, now i have the mbs26 paring and utility knives in both pe and se

p.s.
haven't tried spyderco's vg10 kitchen knives yet

Okay, that's it, that was the final straw, the next Spyderco I am going to get will not be some edc folder but some kitchen knives.

[vilePossum]

Sorry double post.

[clovisc]

Manbug. I thought it was too small... but actually is a huge amount of knife for the size and weight. I have carried one variant or another loose in my pocket daily since getting my first one.