Spyderco Forums

Hi everyone!

How I ended up here is pretty comical. After weeks of watching Mountain Men and Alone I was convinced we all needed a good pocket knife!

So the next thing I knew I bought 3 Spyderco knives! Gosh I hope I did ok with my picks.

For hubby I bought the Spyderco Para2 Blue/purple G-10. For each of my girls I got Dragonfly Foliage Green G-10 and Ladybug 3 Salt Knife Yellow. I picked them because they look so pretty and less intimidating. Once I see them in person I’ll be able to see which one I want to get for myself.

If you have any recommendations of a better choice for a very very petite lady with small hands please let me know.

Thank you!

Welcome blackpearl, heck of a start!

The PM2 is an icon in the knife world. Good choice. If it seems a tad large, the Para 3 might just be perfect. I have several of both but the 3 wins way more pocket time.

I am a big fan of the Dragonfly, but the G-10 version is my least favorite. I prefer the FRN versions as they disappear in your pocket until needed. The Dragonfly is a great all around knife and an excellent choice. My runner up in that size range would be the lightweight Chaparral.

I feel the ladybug Salt is best in serrated edge and I prefer the hawkbill. It also is a lot of knife in a small package. Serrations can be intimidating to a new knife user though and a plain edge Ladybug Salt will be a suitable knife for most users.

Consider a sharpmaker for when its time to sharpen your new Spydies.

Welcome to the forum Blackpearl! Those are some great knives you picked out!
That is awesome that you got knives for your family, by the way. :)

As far as suggestions, there is the Lil' Native which is about the same size as the Dragonfly although a bit beefier and with a heavier build. It's also available with a different locking mechanism (Compression Lock) from the Dragonfly. The Chapparal is very popular too because it's relatively small but packs a lot of useful blade, plus it's available in a lot of attractive handle options.

Let us know what you think about the Dragonfly and Ladybug when you get them!

Welcome! I would recommend a Lil Native or Para 3

Hi, welcome to the forum!

What made you choose Spyderco specifically?

Those are all great choices.

The Paramilitary 2 is one of Spyderco’s most popular knives, and for good reason. That particular one might be hard to sharpen if your husband isn't used to sharpening exotic blade steels, but otherwise it's not bad.

The other two are great options as well, but I think a Dragonfly might suite you well. My wife is about 5'2" and has fairly small hands, but the Dragonfly still looks like a small knife in her hand. She has the Dragonfly Salt, because I talked her into getting a knife, and she wanted it to be small. Also, since she couldn't care less about knives, I figured a Salt knife would make up for any lack of maintenance on her part. She likes the color and the fact that she can get a full, 4 finger grip on the knife, unlike the smaller models.

I enjoy larger knives myself. The para 2 is a great size, not too big, not too small, and light as well. I own 2, so you know I like them! However since getting a Shaman it has taken over. It is heavier and thicker, but also built for more abusive tasks. Sure I probably won't ever need that extra oomph, but better to have it and not need it, right?

Not saying the pm2 won't stand up to work, it will. But if I have to do some light chopping the heavier knife will do a better job, not to mention the stouter blade and a little thicker behind the edge!

Also love the manix 2 xl! It is really large though, but the regular manix 2 is a great knife as well, and available in a lightweight version!

Welcome! Spyderco makes many knives! Something for everyone!

Welcome aboard and excellent choices!

Welcome to the forum! All excellent choices, but your best choice was picking Spyderco knives in the first place. :D We all have our favorite models, but the PM2 is a "modern classic", and the Dragonfly and Ladybug are great choices for very small knives. The Ladybug is so small that I carry one on my keychain. I also prefer the serrated hawkbill versions of those two models - you won't believe how handy they are!

Welcome! PM2 is a very solid choice, and those Dragonfly and Ladybug are just perfect for non-tactical everyday carry, disappears in the pocket too.

Next choice suggestion? Para 3 and maybe Manix 2 (but it's maybe too burly) so I suggest Delica. :)

Delica for sure, and an Endura.

Hi Blackpearl,

Welcome to our forum and thanx for the interest and support. Like Albatross, I would be interested in the "why Spyderco?"

My wife, Gail, confiscated my Chaparral Sun & Moon. A new top quality piece. She also carries a Native and/or a Delica. There are a lot of experienced and knowledgeable folks that visit here. I'm sure they can give you good advice.

I should warn you that the world of knives is a vast and deep study. Sucks you in an "edge" at a time. There is so much to learn and it's hard to believe that there really is so much depth to something so seemingly simple as a knife, not just another pretty face.

Enjoy your time here.

sal

Good choices! I own all three of those knives and I know that you’ve made three people very happy for years to come. My wife and my mother are both small women, and both carry Dragonflies that I’ve given them. It’s the best “little big knife” on the market. It’s big enough for serious work and yet small enough to carry easily (and not intimidate anybody when you have to open in public).

Welcome to the Forum, Blackpearl! :)

I don't think you could go wrong with any Spyderco knife but I'd strongly recommend you try a little serrated edge, hawkbill, Ladybug Salt. It's an exceptional little knife and as handy as knives get.

Hi!

Wow thank you all for the warm welcome!

I just googled pocket knives and Spyderco kept coming up and once I saw the photos it was love at first sight!

Thank you for the suggestions, I will look into them and see which ones fit me best before ordering more. I also bought the Manix 2 LW REX 45 Sprint I saw in another thread. I love that color combo and I don’t have that particular knife yet so I just bought it! I also want the REC PM2 CTS-204P FDE I saw in another thread. I LOVE that green earthy color soo much!! Hope I can get that for Hubby.

As for sharpening I have not thought that far! Lol. I’ll research that in a little bit.

Thanks again!

Welcome! :)

You did good. :spyder: :cool:

Everyone needs a good pocketknife, some folk just don’t know it yet. :D

You can’t go wrong with any of the models which have been suggested.

The Dragonfly series are superb models.

The Sharpmaker will help you keep your knives in razor sharp condition - this is actually safer than letting them get dull.

Hi Sal,

From my quick research it came down to Spyderco and Benchmade. I’m sure both brands make great quality knives but to my eyes the Benchmade just look like any other pocket knives. Spyderco on the other hand made my heart skips a beat. The curves, the color combos, the handles...just sexy as heck. Now I sound like a psycho! Lol

Blackpearl wrote: ↑

Thu Aug 27, 2020 8:31 pm

Hi!

Wow thank you all for the warm welcome!

I just googled pocket knives and Spyderco kept coming up and once I saw the photos it was love at first sight!

Thank you for the suggestions, I will look into them and see which ones fit me best before ordering more. I also bought the Manix 2 LW REX 45 Sprint I saw in another thread. I love that color combo and I don’t have that particular knife yet so I just bought it! I also want the REC PM2 CTS-204P FDE I saw in another thread. I LOVE that green earthy color soo much!! Hope I can get that for Hubby.

As for sharpening I have not thought that far! Lol. I’ll research that in a little bit.

Thanks again!

Good for you that you got the Rex 45 Manix 2 LW, that is a "Sprint Run" knife, very hard to get since retailers only get a few batches at a time, and after all has been distributed, they won't be making more of these. That steel is very, very good too, not stainless though so you might need a bit of TLC from time to time...a little bit of mineral oil on the blade after each use, would be sufficient i think. :)

As for the REC PM2 CTS-204P FDE... good luck getting it nowadays, that one sold out pretty quick! But according to REC, there will still be another production run in the future - as to when is that, nobody knows.

Good luck with your knife hunt, it's a deep rabbit hole we all have fallen into! :D :D :D

s110v PM2 for an introduction into the knife world.... wow. Some diamond stones are a good investment now.

Welcome to the forum! :)

The PM2 is an iconic Spyderco and great choice for a first, more or less "full size" Spyderco - though, as others have said, with the S110V version you picked a variant that will be harder to sharpen than lets say the "basic" S30V PM2.
I highly recommend a sharpmaker with additional CBN or diamond rods.

As a small knife I always recommend the Chaparral: The FRN version, if you want to save some money (and a tad weight), the new "sun and moon" version if you want an imho really almost piece of art (that is still highly functional of course)! This knife offers a really small, thin and light package, but still a lot of cutting edge and . differently to the Lil Native - a thin, slicey blade, perfect for the vast majority of (small) knife tasks.
BUT: The backlock of this specific model can be a but harder to operate, especially for (quote) "a very very petite lady with small hands".... There is a mod to solve that, but you´d have to be able to partly disassamble a folder to perform it.

If you want to go a step larger, but still fairly small: Delica. Thin blade, light weight, very safe lock, proven design.
And since you seemingly also care for the looks of folders: Comes in many colors...

Manix 2 LW was a great choice too, I personally prefer this model over the PM 2.

Anyway, hard to go wrong with any Spyderco! :)

Welcome to the forum!

I think you selected some very practical models that will serve their intended roles very well.

I'd recommend buying some sharpening supplies to maintain your new knives. If you have any questions about sharpening we would be more than happy to help you out!