Thee Most Practical Spyder Of All Time? Your Choice?

[Hobnob]

For me it's the Delica. I have many choices but the one that I clip in my pocket everyday is a D4. Now which color and steel will I choose tomorrow?

[Chieforman]

Native, Delica and Endura...but the Native by a mile. Perfect knife.

[standy99]

Pacific Salt
Living across the road from the beach and in a tropical climate.

Otherwise the Delica, think over the years I have put 20-30 people onto them who are looking for a good pocket knife under $100

[Wartstein]

For me personally "practical" means: The knife in my pocket should be able to do most tasks reasonably well (but does not have to be the most perfect choice for one or two certain tasks)

For that I want:
- Long blade/edge (Long bladed knives imho really can do almost all tasks just or close as well as short bladed knives, while short bladed knives can be akward at some tasks (think of cutting up a large bread loaf or the like)
- Backlock (for me the safest and most versatile lock)
- Reasonably thin, ffg blade stock (lays one of several foundations for a good cutting geometry)
- Usefully pointy, but still not too fragile tip (so it can be used for finer tasks, but does not snap to easily when one has to work fast and might hit metal or twist the tip in material)
- Light weight (most times NOT a real issue for me, but "most practical" means I want to be able to carry the folder in very light-garment shorts pockets without having the shorts pulled down or reduce the carry weight when seriously mountaineering)
- SE option (though David has a point: In an "apocalyptic" scenario I´d want PE for it is a lot easier to sharpen on makeshift-devices like rocks)

Well, where do I land here? No surprise, the new Pac Salt ffg SE :)
And generally: The Endura 4 platform

[aicolainen]

First of all, this thread turned me on to the Rookie, and that's unfortunate.
The blade shape does border on too murdery for my taste, but there's something about the whole package that just works for me.

As has been mentioned, this is not the most practical question ever. There's so many ways to interpret the questions, so I think it's rather impossible to aggregate the responses in any meaningful way. But hey, it's all for funz anyways

If practical is interpreted as versatile, Native 5 salt comes to mind. It is a knife I find somewhat hard to develop strong feelings for, but it finds it way in my pocket a lot. That says something. It's light and compact enough that I don't mind carrying it, yet it's solid and capable. Cutting edge is short for it's size, but the blade shape is, yes, versatile.

If practical means universally attractive, as something most people would not mind carrying every day, oooh.. that's a tough one. I find Spyderco's attractive, because functional attracts me, but for most people, most Spyders aren't immediately attractive. If most people are anything like me, and experience tell me they're not, it's a tossup between Native 5 fluted CF/S90V and KC Dragonfly 2 pakkawood/HAP40.

If practical means one knife for everything for the rest of your life. Assuming I get to replace it when worn out or damaged, I would take my chances on the "not yet able to get my hands on" Pac Salt LC200N FFG SE.
For something more durable, it would have to be a fixed blade. The Waterway is my only Spyder fixie, but it should suffice.

Another way to look at this would be where a Spyder separate itself from the herd of alternatives, and stand out as the most practical solution in the business, although unfamiliar with the use case, I'll say probably the Whale rescue knife.

[acer]

STRETCH 2, FRN .

[JD Spydo]

The FRN VG-10 Calypso Jr. would get my vote. Small enough to be easy to carry and not frighten too many people. Large enough for most things most folks would do with a pocket knife. Thin and featherweight, so you don't even notice you're carrying it. Pointy enough to pick splinters and, 20+ years after it was first produced, still one of the best slicers Spyderco has ever offered. And, if all that weren't enough it's hand neutral.

Well I knew that the Mayor of Spyderville would surely chime in on this one :D And I must say that I agree with him 1000% on his choice of the C-52 Caly Jr. as a great pick for a "Practical Spyder".

For the life of me I never understood why they quit making the Caly Jr. Since that model has been discontinued I have had more people ask me if I have one of those for trade probably more than any other model.

I would love to see either a Sprint Run of the Stainless handled version or the Micarta version of this classic.

[elena86]

For me “practical” means: easy to open/close, easy to carry, easy to sharpen, easy to manipulate, easy to maintain and solid construction. Closest to “the most practical” spydie would be the Sage1 in LC200N :eek:

[Bolster]

Well I knew that the Mayor of Spyderville would surely chime in on this one :D And I must say that I agree with him 1000% on his choice of the C-52 Caly Jr. as a great pick for a "Practical Spyder". For the life of me I never understood why they quit making the Caly Jr. Since that model has been discontinued I have had more people ask me if I have one of those for trade probably more than any other model. I would love to see either a Sprint Run of the Stainless handled version or the Micarta version of this classic.

:) Hear the man! :)

- Long blade/edge (Long bladed knives imho really can do almost all tasks just or close as well as short bladed knives, while short bladed knives can be akward at some tasks (think of cutting up a large bread loaf or the like)

An interesting statement -- not my experience -- we should discuss. If you post a new thread on this topic I'll jump in with my 2 cents.

[James Y]

My choice of the Delica earlier in this thread not only had to do with the quality of the model, but also because of the idea presented in the first post; a knife you could potentially gift to a family member or otherwise non-knife person, who may end up liking and carrying it.

IMO, most non-knife people will not carry a larger knife if you gave it to them. I know that nobody in my immediate and extended family are knife people, and none would ever carry an Endura-sized knife. The same with most of the friends I know. Believe it or not, THE most popular and commonly-carried pocketknife on the planet is the tiny Victorinox Classic SAK, carried by knife people and non-knife people alike. For the latter, it can be the only knife they’ll ever carry. That has a tiny cutting blade of only 1.5”. So by that standard, I have doubts that a blade over 3” would be embraced very much by many non-knife people. In such a case, the Dragonfly or Ladybug might have been a better choice than the Delica, because even the Delica can be a stretch for many people who are just not into carrying knives.

Any knife, regardless of how nice, well-designed, solid and useful we knife aficionados may find it, will not be practical if the person you gave it to sticks it in a drawer and forgets about it.

Jim

[Wartstein]

- Long blade/edge (Long bladed knives imho really can do almost all tasks just or close as well as short bladed knives, while short bladed knives can be akward at some tasks (think of cutting up a large bread loaf or the like)

An interesting statement -- not my experience -- we should discuss. If you post a new thread on this topic I'll jump in with my 2 cents.

There are some threads on this topic out there as far as I can recall - don´t have time right now for a search or to open a new one :)
I just remember that quite some members (and also Sal himself) pointed out advantages of longer blades.

I am not against short blades generally! Just when asked for "the most practical knife" for me it has to have a longer blade.
Some quick thoughts:

For me (but of course ymmv!) it is pretty obvious why longer blades are more versatile than shorter ones:

- Main reason: I can easily essentially shorten a long blade by just pinch gripping it more forward, or, what I do, actually grab it on the very edge (like if there was a choil) - if done right, this is a safe and very useful technique.
So with a long bladed knife I somehow also have a short bladed one, should need be.
- But there is no way to make a short blade longer!
- Obviously, as said above, when cutting stuff with larger diameter (think bread loaf, melon, thick foam and so on) a longer blade/edge works a lot better than a shorter one (cutting up a melon with a DFly is a pretty hard task...)
- With a long blade, often times you can cut stuff in one continous motion, while a short blade requires more back and forth ("sawing motion")
- Generally, even when just cutting stuff like thin cardboard sheets or whittling wood, a long blade can do that better in a single, sweeping, arch like motion, while with a shorter blade you are more likely to run out of blade before you run out of material that gets cut.
- A long blade will stay sharp longer. Just cause there is more edge to dull. Plus, after doing a lot of cutting there will more likely be a sharp section left on a long blade than on a short blade
- A long blade keeps the pivot and your hand further away from stuff that gets cut (so the pivot does not get gunked up as easily)
- Generally, a long blade gives you more reach - important not only, but also in SD scenarios (which admittedly is not a concern of mine though)

[bearfacedkiller]

For me practical means versatile. The knife that I carry the most is the Military because it is the most well equipped to handle whatever I might need a knife for.

[Ez556]

The Pochi

[Maximumsmoochy]

So many good comments here.
I read this thread as: If you strip away all the bells and whistles of modern knife design, what folder do you carry to actually cut stuff when you need it and otherwise no screw around.
It's striking that the answer is, for the majority part, the Delica.

The FRN VG-10 Calypso Jr. would get my vote. Small enough to be easy to carry and not frighten too many people. Large enough for most things most folks would do with a pocket knife. Thin and featherweight, so you don't even notice you're carrying it. Pointy enough to pick splinters and, 20+ years after it was first produced, still one of the best slicers Spyderco has ever offered. And, if all that weren't enough it's hand neutral.

Well I knew that the Mayor of Spyderville would surely chime in on this one :D And I must say that I agree with him 1000% on his choice of the C-52 Caly Jr. as a great pick for a "Practical Spyder".

For the life of me I never understood why they quit making the Caly Jr. Since that model has been discontinued I have had more people ask me if I have one of those for trade probably more than any other model.

I would love to see either a Sprint Run of the Stainless handled version or the Micarta version of this classic.

This - while I've never owned a Delica, I did have the sprint version of the Caly Jr Superblue and it was awesome. So light, so comfortable, so clean (ie: no tang/butt crack when closed) and so stylish with the swedge and the thumb ramp. It's so good and still so modern feeling it is a wonder that it didn't overgrow the Delica's success.

I really
really
really
really
hope the Caly Jr gets a K390 sprint treatment someday (soon), oh yes oh please.

For me practical means versatile. The knife that I carry the most is the Military because it is the most well equipped to handle whatever I might need a knife for.

And until the Caly Jr get re-issued, I have to abide by versatility. I love my Militaries, but they aren't exactly greeted with joy in urban or office settings, so I fall back on the Para 3 as "most practical" do anything, anytime, anywhere.

[bearfacedkiller]

For me practical means versatile. The knife that I carry the most is the Military because it is the most well equipped to handle whatever I might need a knife for.

And until the Caly Jr get re-issued, I have to abide by versatility. I love my Militaries, but they aren't exactly greeted with joy in urban or office settings, so I fall back on the Para 3 as "most practical" do anything, anytime, anywhere.

That is why there will be so many answers to this one. I don’t live anywhere near an urban area and I don’t work in an office. My state has almost no knife laws and I can carry whatever I want except for autos over three inches. I have however lived in a couple of cities in the past and I realize that we all have different situations.

[JRinFL]

The question should be answered from a non-AFI, non-enthusiast point of view. You know, the people who are not us and only buy one or two pocket knives in their lifetime. If you do that, you'll see why the Delica or smaller gets the nod.
The commonality of the knife should also play a part in the choice. The Delica or Dragonfly are very common and can be found at non-knife shops. More rare or hard to find models, while excellent choices, are less practical due to rarity. IMO, the Delica is the Buck 112 of the modern era.

[shunsui]

Delicas are "nice" knives for women and children of all ages.

I'm not sure that makes them "the most practical".

I'm not even sure what the most practical would mean, but for the sake of discussion, I'd vote the Siren.

[Wartstein]

Delicas are "nice" knives for women and children of all ages.

I'm not sure that makes them "the most practical".

I'm not even sure what the most practical would mean, but for the sake of discussion, I'd vote the Siren.

I voted Endura / Pac Salt, for in my use a longer blade is just more practical.

Still, I think among the small Spydies the Delica is among the top two (the other being the Chaparral), and really not just a "nice knife for women and children".. (furthermore I am convinced that women, exactly like men, don´t want just "nice" knives)

For me more functional than most other small Spydies due to the Delicas reasonably thin blade and full size grip without having to use a choil.
Add the linered construction but still very light weight and the strong and versatile backlock, and you have a real workhorse.

Just my 2c, very subjective of course.

[DSH007]

Probably going to be a bit of a "hot take," but.. the Brouwer. Such a fantastic utilitarian design with, imo, just about the most useful blade-shape there is.. fantastic ergos.. great size (for the masses).. accessible lock (again, for the masses).. extremely pocket-friendly.. Just about the perfect "all-around" knife. The caveat being that a deep carry pocket clip is a must..

Personally, I'd love to see a Brouwer XL, but as it is.. it's about all I'd ever need. Just about the most "practical" knife there is.. in my opinion.

[JD Spydo]

To me the concept of "practical" actually covers a large list of cutting chores. Because I use my main EDC which is an M390 Military model for a wide range of cutting chores covering everything from food processing to cutting rope and cordage along with many other daily jobs a person might encounter in a typical day.

Which more or less leaves it wide open because everyone's cutting needs are probably quite different. A guy living in the Amazon jungle is going to have a completely different set of cutting jobs than a game warden in Northern Minnesota USA would have for instance.

Even with all of that said I could still probably get by with a ROOKIE or CALY JR on at least 90% of the cutting chores I would normally encounter. But currently having my hallowed M390 Military I have the ability to cover a much wider array of jobs with the longer blade>> especially dealing with food. So it doesn't surprise me that we've had such a vast amount of responses so far. But you guys have really put up some very interesting considerations for sure :)