With as popular as the Para 3 Lightweight is...I'm sure Spyderco will have many coming in weeks and months ahead!
I would bet that the Para 3 LW is going to be the best selling model of 2019, and I don't think any other knife will be particularly close. The Para 3 is already a popular knife. Add to that the price, the wire clip (seems to be more popular than the standard one), the curvature of the scales, and the improved placement of the lanyard hole. Aside from super steels, are there any other updates that could be done to the platform?
EDIT - I have no idea what kind of sales numbers Spyderco has on any of their models. This is just a wild-*** guess on my part.
With as popular as the Para 3 Lightweight is...I'm sure Spyderco will have many coming in weeks and months ahead!
I would bet that the Para 3 LW is going to be the best selling model of 2019, and I don't think any other knife will be particularly close. The Para 3 is already a popular knife. Add to that the price, the wire clip (seems to be more popular than the standard one), the curvature of the scales, and the improved placement of the lanyard hole. Aside from super steels, are there any other updates that could be done to the platform?
EDIT - I have no idea what kind of sales numbers Spyderco has on any of their models. This is just a wild-*** guess on my part.
This is hitting many sweet spots including price point. So yes you are spot on.
It will be interesting to see what comes. I view these changes to lightweight to be an Eric thing, which is not to say unwise but a transition to something different that well let’s just say I am wary of.
There has been a trend lately I do not favor. Odd lock bar stuff on the Spydiechef still unanswered and unresolved. Ikuchi finger a blade that cuts the user while stowed, and the Tropen Blade exposed next to lock very dangerous.
These things are adding up now and do not inspire confidence. CQI is great but when it becomes an excuse for fixing what never should have been and people’s money being spent on incorrect, well not cool.
It will be interesting to see what comes. I view these changes to lightweight to be an Eric thing, which is not to say unwise but a transition to something different that well let’s just say I am wary of.
The Manix 2 LW was done under Sal. There have been numerous plastic handle knives under Sal, including the Delica and Endura, previous gen Natives, the Byrd back locks, etc. Further, they aren't changing to lightweight: They're offering lightweight in addition to the standard models. The Manix 2 LW has proven to be reliable in the decade it's been out. Other companies are even making service caliber pistols with plastic frames, and those have been documented to handle firing hundreds of thousands of rounds. The sky is not falling.
There has been a trend lately I do not favor. Odd lock bar stuff on the Spydiechef still unanswered and unresolved. Ikuchi finger a blade that cuts the user while stowed, and the Tropen Blade exposed next to lock very dangerous.
These things are adding up now and do not inspire confidence. CQI is great but when it becomes an excuse for fixing what never should have been and people’s money being spent on incorrect, well not cool.
All of those are custom collabs, and the issues are completely unrelated to the Para 3 LW - which is yet to have any issues that aware of. I'm not thrilled with the Tropen. I've seen a few knives from other manufacturers that have the same (overblown) issue as the Ikuchi. I'm sure that Spyderco will address the 'Chef lockbar after they get through rolling out all these new models, plus getting ready for and going to Blade.
Thanks for the video, Eric always comes across as such a genuinely nice guy. :) This is a wonderful explanation of this particular lightweight and proves not only is it well thought out but it is well built and going to be sturdy.
People actually order from Spyderco at MSRP? Weird.....lol
I believe a lot of the ones purchased through the Spyderco store are to the following group since they get a 50% off discount:
Active Duty Military
Military Veteran / Retiree
Law Enforcement Officer
Paramedic / Fire Rescue
EMT
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What are the two extra holes around the pivot on the blade for? Maybe it has something to do with that extra metal piece that goes around the pivot and stop pin. I guess that means we can't swap blades between the g10 and frn models...
I always assumed that any extra holes in blades are for tooling/mounting. I'd be shocked if the blades were any different than the G10 version, it just doesn't make sense economically for the maker.
According to the Instagram conversation the blades aren't interchangeable.
"While this test doesn't simulate any logical use of a knife as a tool, since it was a concern of some of our customers, we began incorporating it into our testing protocols." - Michael Janich