Spyderco Forums

If you want a combination of lower cost and quality with seatbelt cutting power, you can go with the Spyderco Byrd Rescue. It has a sheepsfoot blade and in the serrated version it is razor-sharp and eats through webbing like it was melted butter. One of the Rescue models or the Atlantic Salt with serrated edges. Always go for the serrated Spyder-edges.

Are we all in agreement that plain edge is not good for webbing-cutting and serrated is?

I wouldn't say it's not good. I would say that usually SE would be better. Depending on how you sharpen you're PE edge you can definitely get good performance. SE will probably cut longer though. I've cut many nylon straps and usually the SE performs better. But if you're just cutting 1 seat belt it doesn't matter much. I think blade shape would make a bigger difference if both edges were sharp. Hawkbill or sheepsfoot would do better than something with a lot of belly. Even a recurve would do better than say a shorter drop point, clip point, leaf shap, etc, etc.

The big advantage of SE for seatbelt cutting is that the points grab the fabric as it’s being cut so the blade cuts it in one pull. I know a very sharp PE will work as well, but it might slide off before the cut is completed. Again, as mentioned above, fine motor skills are reduced in such circumstances.