Spyderco Forums

Did everyone who wants one, get one?
BladeHQ has 4 at the moment.

Not yet. Hoping they stay in stock at the SFO until I get some vet bills for my dog taken care of.

Joey wrote: ↑

Mon Jun 17, 2019 10:36 pm

Wow, just checking this thread after not viewing it for a while. I didn’t realize, mine has a lot of similar issues happening. Mine also has 2 large burrs in the thumbhole, and a rough spine grind (might as well mention it all: nearly exposed tip when closed/horribly cut jimping/multiple bevel angles throughout). That’s too bad!

Got mine today and sadly I have all the above issues except the rough spine. Definitely disappointing as my factory 2nd Urban has better f&f than this sprint run. I expect better from Spyderco at any price point. I'll suck it up and use the knife because it's AEB-L and I'm looking forward to testing the steel out, but Spyderco and Maniago need to get this sorted. I'll be sanding the kick down tonight so that blade sits at a safer height.

Mine was not perfect, certainly no where near the fit and finish of my K390. However, it is nothing like the issues many of you are having. Spyderco should make Maniago straighten up.

To be honest, I have nicer $25 Byrds.

Interesting the things people focus on.

Mine had all those issues if I looked hard. I’m not sure that I would have noticed them if I hadn’t read these threads.

The tip on mine was higher than the K390 version, sure, but if I squashed the end of my finger into the blade channel I still couldn’t catch the point.

The K390 version is more ground down at the kick too. I think if the AEB-L version was adjusted to the same extent at the kick, the tip would be at the same level when closed.

The inside of the spydie hole was probably the roughest of all the Spydercos I’ve looked at. It wasn’t burred sharply enough to catch the skin though.

The spine might have been a bit less finished in appearance than the K390 version, but it wasn’t really noticeably worse than other Spydies.

The main thing I would have liked, which I don’t think was mentioned in the lists of common cosmetic complaints, was to have the blade ground thinner.

Mine averaged around 0.018” BTE, whereas the K390 was about 0.014” IIRC. (These averaged figures are higher than most of the edge thickness as most Spydies thicken up a bit at the tip area.)

Should Maniago have done better? Sure.

How long did it take to fix?

About 15 minutes.

(Not including thinning out the edge and resharpening.)

I polished the spine with some sandpaper on a leather substrate.

Used a round Idahone ceramic UF rod to knock off the high spots on the inner spydiehole burring, and polished it with some sandpaper wrapped around a pencil.

Ground the kick down a little bit on a Venev pocket stone for good measure.

Ended up dying the handle dark blue as well.

After resharpening, I’ve been carrying this knife every day, and it’s been a real pleasure to use.

The edge gets fearsomely sharp very easily. It’s easily on a par with my experience of sharpening Superblue, 52100, 8Cr13MoV and MBS-26 edges.

Part of me likes that there is a high standard expected of fit and finish, if it keeps the makers on their game.

But even on my knives with excellent fit and finish, I always expect to do a bit of sharpening and smoothing them out anyway.

Another part of me wonders what our pioneer forebears would have thought about our responses to a tool where the action is otherwise fine, ergos great, and the steel and heat treat seemingly excellent?

I guess what I’m saying is: Yeah I hear y’all on the fit and finish issues, and agree that the next Urban should be better. But don’t let those issues prevent you from enjoying what I think is a little gem of a knife, for want of a bit of elbow grease.

Maybe if I didn't already have two Urbans I would put up with those defects. But this is a $110 knife over here so I'm going to pass.

Fair enough. I don't have the N690Co, so I quite like the bookend pairing of AEB-L and K390.

Both very different steels, but both very enjoyable to use and sharpen.

If this was their first (or only) model, and they all came this way, I’d be more satisfied. But it isn’t, and their others are far nicer in comparison.
I sold mine since the issues stacked too high in my eyes. If it was one or two of these issues, I’d maybe have kept/used it. But the knife has issues at every angle! It’s just the way it is, and it has me wondering why they let it slide.

It's been three months now since I got my Urban LW in AEB-L and I have to say it has me seriously reevaluating my knife collection and knife buying habits. It's been my almost exclusive carry throughout the summer and it has absolutely shone in that role. Small, lightweight, color that blends in with khaki shorts, good steel, perfect fit in the hand, and a surprising fidget factor for a slipjoint. All that at a cost of around 60 bucks. Why then do I have so many larger more expensive folders that I never seem to carry? Sure, cold weather gear will make it easier to tote around the bigger knives but I find that I prefer a small folder and pair it with a fixed blade when needed. I did grab an Urban LW in K390 recently to try out as well.

mugwump867 wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 10, 2019 4:13 pm

It's been three months now since I got my Urban LW in AEB-L and I have to say it has me seriously reevaluating my knife collection and knife buying habits. It's been my almost exclusive carry throughout the summer and it has absolutely shone in that role. Small, lightweight, color that blends in with khaki shorts, good steel, perfect fit in the hand, and a surprising fidget factor for a slipjoint. All that at a cost of around 60 bucks. Why then do I have so many larger more expensive folders that I never seem to carry? Sure, cold weather gear will make it easier to tote around the bigger knives but I find that I prefer a small folder and pair it with a fixed blade when needed. I did grab an Urban LW in K390 recently to try out as well.

I've been having the same experience with mine. I've been playing with other knives a bit, of course, but I'd say the AEB-L Urban has been taking care of at least 80% of my pocketknife tasks.

The ultra sharp, thin, stable edge feels more satisfying in use to me than other high carbide steels. When it loses that high level sharpness, a few passes on the UF rods and a light strop on .025 um CBN and 0.1 um diamond bring it right back with trivial time and effort.

Sure, if I had a need for frequent knife use in my daily work as I have had in the past, I'd choose a more wear resistant steel like the K390 Urban. But for my basic pocketknife needs at the moment, it has caused a reassessment of what balance of attributes I like in an everyday user knife.

It basically gives me the same edge qualities I enjoy in low alloy carbon steels, like 52100, Superblue and O1, with the added benefit of low maintenance stainlessness.

I just got my Urban in AEB-L the other day and I am liking it a lot.
The action is a bit stiffer than my K390 one and that is not a big deal.
It will smooth out with use I am sure.

The grind is a bit off from side to side but that is normal and that is usually the first thing I fix on all new knives.

I am glad Spyderco has used this steel and would love to see it on some other models.

In my pocket with a face shaving edge.

Just touched mine up on the Doublestuff 2 last night. Quick few passes on the ceramic side, couple passed on the suede pouch that I’ve loaded with green compound. Back to shaving sharp. It’s a very easy steel to maintain.

Woodpuppy wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 13, 2019 10:12 am

Just touched mine up on the Doublestuff 2 last night. Quick few passes on the ceramic side, couple passed on the suede pouch that I’ve loaded with green compound. Back to shaving sharp. It’s a very easy steel to maintain.

My doublestuff seems perfectly matched to this steel... can't say that for most others I have.

jpm2 wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 14, 2019 7:24 am

Woodpuppy wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 13, 2019 10:12 am

Just touched mine up on the Doublestuff 2 last night. Quick few passes on the ceramic side, couple passed on the suede pouch that I’ve loaded with green compound. Back to shaving sharp. It’s a very easy steel to maintain.

My doublestuff seems perfectly matched to this steel... can't say that for most others I have.

I’d love to have a brown/white all ceramic ds2. Or a solid white ceramic of the same dimensions as the ds2. Guess that’s what the Goldenstone is for though.

Woodpuppy wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 14, 2019 8:06 pm

jpm2 wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 14, 2019 7:24 am

Woodpuppy wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 13, 2019 10:12 am

Just touched mine up on the Doublestuff 2 last night. Quick few passes on the ceramic side, couple passed on the suede pouch that I’ve loaded with green compound. Back to shaving sharp. It’s a very easy steel to maintain.

My doublestuff seems perfectly matched to this steel... can't say that for most others I have.

I’d love to have a brown/white all ceramic ds2. Or a solid white ceramic of the same dimensions as the ds2. Guess that’s what the Goldenstone is for though.

Yeah, I dropped one of my UF rods in the sink while cleaning it a while ago, and it snapped. The longer piece is a bit over 4" and makes a perfect pocket hone, held between thumb and forefinger.

In fact I probably use it more now than I use the full length UF rods in the Sharpmaker.

The AEB-L Urban loves the UF rods. :cool:

Hopefully we'll see a rerun of the 701 profiles soon, maybe with the addition of a UF stone to the set.

I like mine a lot, but after a day of use at work it always needs some loving for that hair popping sharpness I won't leave the house without :)

The grind angles on each side of the knife are quite different so I don't even use the Sharpmaker when touching up. I free hand with the rods, which works..but takes longer than I like.

This is supposedly a tough steel, but I'm thinking of reprofiling to 15dps using the CBN rods in the Sharpmaker. I did it with an M390 Para 3 a couple months ago and took me around 4 hours total. Do you think this knife would be more of the same, in that ball park?

TkoK83Spy wrote: ↑

Sun Sep 15, 2019 6:29 am

This is supposedly a tough steel, but I'm thinking of reprofiling to 15dps using the CBN rods in the Sharpmaker. I did it with an M390 Para 3 a couple months ago and took me around 4 hours total. Do you think this knife would be more of the same, in that ball park?

Very impressive, 4 hours of reprofiling. Compliments with your patience. :) That would be to much for me. Can’t remember spending that amount of time on reprofiling. Don’t have the CBN rods. I use the diamond ones. What i heard is that they are almost the same in performance. AEB-L will take less time to reprofile in my experience. Quite happy with this steel on the urban. Not opening cans with it though. :D

Danvp wrote: ↑

Sun Sep 15, 2019 7:04 am

TkoK83Spy wrote: ↑

Sun Sep 15, 2019 6:29 am

This is supposedly a tough steel, but I'm thinking of reprofiling to 15dps using the CBN rods in the Sharpmaker. I did it with an M390 Para 3 a couple months ago and took me around 4 hours total. Do you think this knife would be more of the same, in that ball park?

Very impressive, 4 hours of reprofiling. Compliments with your patience. :) That would be to much for me. Can’t remember spending that amount of time on reprofiling. Don’t have the CBN rods. I use the diamond ones. What i heard is that they are almost the same in performance. AEB-L will take less time to reprofile in my experience. Quite happy with this steel on the urban. Not opening cans with it though. :D

That was the entire progression, not just on the CBN rods and definitely not just one session!! Took 3 sessions. That's encouraging to hear. I did my S30V PM2 in 2 hours total a couple weeks ago. I don't mind, I oddly find it relaxing :p though would prefer less time if possible.