Spyderco Parata

[hambone56rx]

I loved it at BLADE. The ergos we're superb. The lock works great too. This will have a drop shut action for sure.

Liquid Cobra also said the Ergos are great, so there is more affirmation. Can you speak briefly about how the Stop Lock works?

[ZrowsN1s]

Cant wait to see the stop lock in action or see a diagram on its functionality...catalog didnt list it in the locks section.

https://www.google.com/patents/US6918184

[SpeedHoles]

I like this.
Can't wait to cut some pizza pie with one, lol.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

I like this.
Can't wait to cut some pizza pie with one, lol.

Excellent use for it! A folding hand held Pizza cutter! :)

[Whitetail addict]

Definitely an interesting design. I like it.

[Evil D]

I typically avoid blades with this much belly but I'm loving the Sliverax so much I feel like I need to at least hold a Parata before I pass judgement. Honestly I'd MUCH rather have a Sliverax sprint

[SpeedHoles]

Am I the only one who keeps confusing Pattada and Parata with my apparent dyslexia?

[Evil D]

Am I the only one who keeps confusing Pattada and Parata with my apparent dyslexia?

No. The knife world is running out of names.

[jabba359]

Am I the only one who keeps confusing Pattada and Parata with my apparent dyslexia?

No. The knife world is running out of names.

I'm waiting for the Spyderco Hakuna Matata.

[Daniel]

This is the only knife in the catalog that really catches my eye. I really like the looks of it. Hope that it has bronze washers and not nylon

[paulwa]

Howdy all,
Thanks for the interest and feedback, it’s been years since the Parata design was first submitted, so it has been especially rewarding to see this one come to fruition. I’m sure all the refinement and validation the Spyderco crew had to do on the locking mechanism accounts for most of that time (the version I submitted hadn’t seen any real loading or use - it was a plastic mock-up, after all; and while it was designed to be a heavier-use lock system, I’m sure there were plenty of tweaks needed for the production release). As already mentioned a couple times by others earlier in the thread, the Parata is definitely a bit of an odd-ball design, likely making it less urgent to slide into the busy production schedule.

While I don’t know the particulars surrounding a projected release date; I’m guessing there’s plenty of time to get into the weeds on this design, but I’ll cover a few quick points that seem to be of interest so far:

This version of the stop-lock and what it means for the future (i.e. the Military 2) - I designed this lock after studying the Spyderco’s patent on the concept, looking to make a knife that was more ambidextrous than my other designs. I sent two mock-ups in to Eric, Sal, Peter and crew and this is the one they liked the best (I’m reworking the the other for resubmission once the Parata is released and we get some actionable feedback). It’s basically a single piece toggle that pivots about the stop pin and engages across the full width of the blade tang (a bit like a back lock). The toggle rotates out the back of the spine, so when gripped tightly, and potentially used in demanding, unintentional, and/or awkward ways, the hand will help keep the lock engaged, unlike other degrees of freedom that could see unintentional disengagement in extreme circumstances. The toggle and stop reside in the handle area freed up by the massive finger choil... so I’m not sure how applicable this iteration of the stop-lock will be to designs like the Military ( , sorry folks), though I’m sure there are some learnings that may be transferable.

It’s... weird... - Indeed. My wife describes it as ‘bulbous’ :confused: , but not in a tone of voice that I would say is 100% positive. It’s definitely not a design that will appeal to everyone, but will likely elicit strong opinions, both for and against. The blade is all belly, super wide, and with a 3 mm thickness that should provide ample slicing capability in a format unlike other knives in your collection. The handle is an adaptation of the Caly/Calypso series (love the ergos of Sal’s Calys), and I think suits the unconventional blade shape (maybe it should be called a paddle blade?) quite well. I’m guessing this one will probably merit a pass-around so folks can try it out... we’ll see.

Hope that helps illuminate things a bit, cheers everyone, and many thanks to Spyderco for taking a chance on something like this,
- Paul

Oh, and this is NOT meant to be the ‘big Ouroboros’... that’s a whole other design .

[Evil D]

Howdy all,

So Paul tell me if I'm following you correctly...this lock is YOUR design or is essentially the same as Spyderco's version? Maybe it's not your place to say but should we expect this lock to be on future models (Military 2) or is this more your own design?

[paulwa]

So Paul tell me if I'm following you correctly...this lock is YOUR design or is essentially the same as Spyderco's version? Maybe it's not your place to say but should we expect this lock to be on future models (Military 2) or is this more your own design?

Howdy D,
The stop-lock in the Parata is my design, but I consider it just an embodiment of Spyderco’s patented concept. It is definitely a variant of what was disclosed in the patent, but adapted to suit my design aesthetic. Outside of the pictures in the patent documents, I haven’t seen what Spyderco has in the works internally, there may or may not be similarities... I’m sure their refinement of my first iteration includes some of their thoughts on how the lock should be implemented. So I wouldn’t be surprised if there is another stop-lock design that is quite a bit different in development.

As far as use on other designs... that’s completely up to Spyderco. I consider it to basically be their intellectual property, to use as they will. If they can adapt it to the next Millie, I’d be honored, but wouldn’t consider myself too much of a contributor.

That said, I selfishly DO hope they will use it on some future designs, as I’ve got more than a handful of design sketches that implement it. :D

Hope that clarifies a bit,
- Paul

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Paul, if I may ask, what and how were you inspired to put together such an excellent design? I am glad to meet you/chat with you and I sincerely thank you for making such a great design and working with Spyderco on it.

It looks very strong and also very sharp and I love the belly on it, it is reminiscent of various "ethnic" field knives such as the Inuit Ulu and the Italian Pizza cutter knife and others.

[Chinook3]

Great info on the stop lock and Parata Paul, can't wait to get one of these "bulbous" creatures of a knife. The Parata is a COOL looking knife that looks comfy.

[crazywednesday]

I have been dreaming of and wanting a knife just like this for years and years. It has at last been made. WOW! :)

Lots of love for this design. Is it purpose driven or just a collectable?

[cabfrank]

It's a very unique knife, to say the least. Paul alluded to strong opinions on this one, and mine are all positive. It looks fantastic to me.

[cabfrank]

As far as being a collectable, it may well be, but I say give it some use. It's a different blade design than any we probably have, a new lock we don't have, and a variant of a known and loved handle style. Sounds like fun to me, and good reasons to buy and try something different.

[Wanimator]

The lock lifts up and out real smoothly and easily and operates similarly to a compression or CBBL in action. Really a one thumb function. I'd say even easier than the Axis lock on the particular model that was exhibited at BLADE. I think it pivots towards the blade when going up.

[hambone56rx]

The lock lifts up and out real smoothly and easily and operates similarly to a compression or CBBL in action. Really a one thumb function. I'd say even easier than the Axis lock on the particular model that was exhibited at BLADE. I think it pivots towards the blade when going up.

YES!!!!! So exciting!

Paul,

Do you know if it will be on PB washers? And was VG-10 your request or was that up to Spyderco? I would think with the Stop lock being designed for hard use tasks, it would be paired with a steel with more edge retention.