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Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 4:43 pm
by TazKristi
Hey, everyone:
As most of you know, the Mule Team will be returning in the future. We'd love to ask you some questions that could assist us with our plans. If you purchased a Mule Team previously, please take a few moments to answer the following questions. Please copy and paste the questions into your reply. I'll keep this pinned at the top of General Discussion for a while to give everyone an opportunity to complete it. We appreciate your help!

Thanks much!

1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?

2) Did you put a handle on it?

3) Did you make or buy a sheath?

4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?

5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?

6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 5:05 pm
by SG89
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Yes, the RWL34
2) Did you put a handle on it?
Yes, Dyamonwood from Halpern Titanium
3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
Made a leather sheath
4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
Yes, I used it as a kitchen knife for about a year
5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
No, only ever had 1 mule
6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
Yes, I shared my experiences using it as a kitchen knife

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 5:30 pm
by TomAiello
1). Yes. Many. K390 was my favorite.
2). Yes. I bought a couple off eBay and then also bought two from Halpern.
3). Both. Bought a kydex sheath off eBay, bought another Kydex from AZWelke, made a leather one.
4). Yes. A lot. I EDC'd them for a couple weeks each when I got them.
5). Yes.
6). I didn't post a review, although I did have some general discussion on the forum.

I will buy at least one, but more likely two, of any future mule teams. I own at least one of every Mule Team since #12 (when I became aware of them), and multiples of several.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 5:46 pm
by kodai78
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Yes
2) Did you put a handle on it?
Not yet
3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
No
4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
No

5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
No
6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum
No
Still interested in new Mules. Would love to have a Spyderco sheath option. Scales too but especially a sheath.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 5:56 pm
by Nate
1. Yes. Bought 3 total. Kept 2 in B70P, sold the other one.
2. Yes. One flat and one 3D from Halpern
3. No. Currently use a cheap nylon sheath I had on hand for one, the other fits in my kitchen knife block (but grabbed more often for general/utility use than kitchen use).
4. Yes. Not formal testing, but lots of regular use.
5. No.
6. Yes, but not as formal review.

*7. Would I buy another one? -Maybe, if the alloy had specific attributes I wanted. Not particularly interested in collecting mules or comparative testing. Would be likely to buy handles and a boltaron sheath as a bundle if I did purchase another mule, multiple color options on the scales would be nice.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 6:10 pm
by abiggs
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past? Yes, several

2) Did you put a handle on it? Yes and no

3) Did you make or buy a sheath? I’ve bought a few

4) Did you test the performance of your Mule? Yes and no

5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives? No

6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum? No

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 6:20 pm
by Sumdumguy
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Yes, PMA11 and PD1.

2) Did you put a handle on it?
In the process of.

3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
Not yet, will be SheathPro.

4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
Not yet, waiting on handles.

5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
Not yet, see above.

6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
See above.

7) What Steel would you like to try on a Mule?
Vanax SC and Vancron SC. I know they aren't cheap, but I'm willing to test the fortitude of my wallet!


I love the Mule Team project. I wish I had of snagged an LC200N one, but I dilly dallied too long. Looking forward to new ones in the future.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 6:41 pm
by Mm1313
1.) YES, several
2.) YES, from Halpern & made one
3.) NO
4.) YES
5.) YES
6.) NO

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 6:46 pm
by The Mastiff
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Yes. All of them except 2 IIRC.
2) Did you put a handle on it?
Yes including a couple I bought from those titanium guys that produced them for the mule team.
3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
Bought a couple but never one that suited my needs and likes. They were repurposed sheaths from different knives. I never bought one made for the mule team.
4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
My kind of testing but not as extensive as an Ankerson, Stamp or Larrin test.
5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
As above
6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
I tried to when I had something useful to add.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 6:50 pm
by michaelm466
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Yes


2) Did you put a handle on it?
Yes- all from Halpern Ti


3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
Made the first few from kydex and purchased several with the mules once they were offered

4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
Only informally

5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
Informally- mostly interested in high edge retention, K390, Maxamet, S110V, etc

6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
Through discussions, not as a data set

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 6:58 pm
by JRinFL
TazKristi wrote:
Tue Mar 24, 2020 4:43 pm
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?

2) Did you put a handle on it?

3) Did you make or buy a sheath?

4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?

5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?

6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
1) Yes, several models.
2) Yes, on 3. Waiting to make handles for the remainder.
3) Purchased sheaths.
4) Not yet.
5) Not yet.
6) No.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 7:06 pm
by The Meat man
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Yes, PD#1
2) Did you put a handle on it?
Working on it. Might just end up buying scales.
3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
Had one given to me.
4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
Not yet. I have done a bit of sharpening on it but no cutting as of yet.
5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
Nope I only have one.
6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
I definitely will when I get around to it.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 7:08 pm
by Xplorer
I'm so glad to see the Mule program returning. :)

1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Yes. Lots of them.

2) Did you put a handle on it?
Yes. Almost all of them. Making handles for Mules was a big part of my first years learning to make knives. My first handle and first sheaths ever were for Mules. I will forever be fond of the Mule program because of the opportunity it gave me to practice making handles and sheaths for real, high quality knives at a low cost.

3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
I made the sheaths.

4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
Yes for most of them, but not all.

5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
Absolutely! One of the best things about the Mule program is the ability it gives anyone to compare "apples to apples" when comparing steels.

6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
I usually shared pics in the Mule pic thread and also gave away a few of them to members here.

CK

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 7:19 pm
by attila
TazKristi wrote:
Tue Mar 24, 2020 4:43 pm
Hey, everyone:
As most of you know, the Mule Team will be returning in the future. We'd love to ask you some questions that could assist us with our plans. If you purchased a Mule Team previously, please take a few moments to answer the following questions. Please copy and paste the questions into your reply. I'll keep this pinned at the top of General Discussion for a while to give everyone an opportunity to complete it. We appreciate your help!

Thanks much!

1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Yes, I purchased a B70P and PMA11.

2) Did you put a handle on it?
Yes, the B70P got my homemade duck/denim micarta and the PMA11 got the standard black G10 scales from the SFO.

3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
I made my own for the B70P and used the standard sheath from the SFO for the PMA11.

4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
Not in any measurable way.

5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
No.

6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
Only that I have the B70P and it sharpens well.
My only Mule Team regret is not buying more mules.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 7:23 pm
by ABX2011
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
YES
2) Did you put a handle on it?
YES
3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
MAKE
4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
YES
5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
YES
6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
YES

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 8:53 pm
by sabb8pro2
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Yes
2) Did you put a handle on it?
some of them.
3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
Both
4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
No actual testing. Lots of general use.
5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
Nothing formal. I try to pair steels to the way I use them but nothing serious.
6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
I don’t think so.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 9:34 pm
by JacksonKnives
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Yes, three.

2) Did you put a handle on it?
Made one full knife with hardwood scales, and used various makeshift scales for testing the others.

3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
Made my own.

4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
Yes, mostly stability of edges at low angles

5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
Yes

6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
Not directly, though I have used them as references for reviews where I compared other knives. I also shared them with other testers who didn't have access to the mules I own.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 9:43 pm
by I_like_knives
1) Yes. I purchased a new one in pd1 a few years ago. I also bought 3 others at the latest seconds sale.

2) I made a g10 and box elder burl handle for that first one. The others will get handles too, when I find time.

3) I made a kydex sheath

4) I wouldn't say I've done any real "testing", just some general use.

5) So far I only have one with a handle. Plus, I'd struggle to find tasks tough enough to generate a decent comparison.

6) No.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Tue Mar 24, 2020 10:03 pm
by RustyIron
TazKristi wrote:
Tue Mar 24, 2020 4:43 pm
As most of you know, the Mule Team will be returning in the future. We'd love to ask you some questions that could assist us with our plans.
So... Kristi... a couple questions for you.

How to the Mule teams come out? Are they just hacked out of a sheet of material and require finishing all the way around? Are they finished dimensions? Is there any kind of edge put on the blade?

My guess is that it's a "finished" blade onto which you can attach parts and call it a knife. That's what I'm curious about.

Now to answer your questions: No.

I've never purchased a Mule Team. But it seems interesting. I'm not generally a fan of fixed blade knives. But I like to use wood from trees in my yard to make things. It allows the spirits of my trees to live on. Also, I'm intrigued by the idea of making micarta using whatever might inspire me that particular day.

And of course any desire to tinker with this will be predicated upon the coolness of the steel.

Re: Mule Team Survey

Posted: Wed Mar 25, 2020 1:44 am
by brj
1) Did you purchase a Mule Team knife in the past?
Several, yes
2) Did you put a handle on it?
On some
3) Did you make or buy a sheath?
Both make and buy
4) Did you test the performance of your Mule?
Yes
5) Did you test the performance against other Mule Team knives?
Yes
6) Did you share your experience/findings with the Spyderco forum?
At least some of them, yes.