Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

Discuss Spyderco's products and history.
T.J.
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#201

Post by T.J. »

Mine arrived today. It's a really nice knife! My first all micarta handled pocket knife. It does have a lot of side to side play,but perfectly centered. Looking forward to trying this out.
Cowboyfromhell
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#202

Post by Cowboyfromhell »

T.J. wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 3:56 pm
Mine arrived today. It's a really nice knife! My first all micarta handled pocket knife. It does have a lot of side to side play,but perfectly centered. Looking forward to trying this out.
Im gonna be pissed if I get mine tomorrow and it has side to side play. This is a $260 knife marketed for hard use!...my crucarta pm2 has a lot of side to side play as well. Im trying to sell that one off because of that issue.
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Woodpuppy
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#203

Post by Woodpuppy »

Cowboyfromhell wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 6:50 pm
T.J. wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 3:56 pm
Mine arrived today. It's a really nice knife! My first all micarta handled pocket knife. It does have a lot of side to side play,but perfectly centered. Looking forward to trying this out.
Im gonna be pissed if I get mine tomorrow and it has side to side play. This is a $260 knife marketed for hard use!...my crucarta pm2 has a lot of side to side play as well. Im trying to sell that one off because of that issue.
Well mine has some play too. It is disappointing. I plan to load the pivot with grease and then cinch the pivot screws down. This treatment tightened up my Z-wear shaman.
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kennethsime
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#204

Post by kennethsime »

Image
Image

I’m pleased as punch.

The Shaman is one of my favorite models - just so darn comfortable. Green Canvas Micarta is my absolute favorite scale material. M4 was the first “super steel” I got really excited about, and I finally get to try it after all these years. My model is bang-on centered, zero play. I can’t wait to see how this knife ages after a year or two of use - couldn’t be happier. Sal, I’d like more like this, please.

Blade HQ’s free two-day shipping was almost as good as DLT’s - USPS delivers earlier in the day here.
I'm happiest with Micarta and Tool Steel.

Top four in rotation: K390 + GCM PM2, ZCarta Shaman, Crucarta PM2, K390 + GCM Straight Spine Stretch.
T.J.
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#205

Post by T.J. »

Cowboyfromhell wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 6:50 pm
T.J. wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 3:56 pm
Mine arrived today. It's a really nice knife! My first all micarta handled pocket knife. It does have a lot of side to side play,but perfectly centered. Looking forward to trying this out.
Im gonna be pissed if I get mine tomorrow and it has side to side play. This is a $260 knife marketed for hard use!...my crucarta pm2 has a lot of side to side play as well. Im trying to sell that one off because of that issue.
I can't say that I disagree with you. Blade play should be non existent at this price point, especially from a USA made knife.
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VooDooChild
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#206

Post by VooDooChild »

Cowboyfromhell wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 6:50 pm
T.J. wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 3:56 pm
Mine arrived today. It's a really nice knife! My first all micarta handled pocket knife. It does have a lot of side to side play,but perfectly centered. Looking forward to trying this out.
Im gonna be pissed if I get mine tomorrow and it has side to side play. This is a $260 knife marketed for hard use!...my crucarta pm2 has a lot of side to side play as well. Im trying to sell that one off because of that issue.
1. Dial the play out.

2. You can still use it for hard use with side to side play.

3. A lot of out of the box comp locks have side to side play. I think the factory just shoots for good action and calls it gooed enough.

4. Every comp lock has a pretty much perfect spot where the action is correct and theres no play. The problem is this spot is very difficult to get right adjusting the screw by hand. But it can be done.
Last edited by VooDooChild on Thu May 12, 2022 8:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Rome's greatest contribution to mathematics was the killing of Archimedes."
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VooDooChild
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#207

Post by VooDooChild »

T.J. wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 8:12 pm
Cowboyfromhell wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 6:50 pm
T.J. wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 3:56 pm
Mine arrived today. It's a really nice knife! My first all micarta handled pocket knife. It does have a lot of side to side play,but perfectly centered. Looking forward to trying this out.
Im gonna be pissed if I get mine tomorrow and it has side to side play. This is a $260 knife marketed for hard use!...my crucarta pm2 has a lot of side to side play as well. Im trying to sell that one off because of that issue.
I can't say that I disagree with you. Blade play should be non existent at this price point, especially from a USA made knife.
Its a tool. Sometimes things need adjustmements, even when new.

I dont know why but the Golden factory seems to leave shamans with more play than other designs. Its also something that can be adjusted with a torx driver.
"Rome's greatest contribution to mathematics was the killing of Archimedes."
Chuck James
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#208

Post by Chuck James »

This knife feels great in my hand!!!

Image
TheGiant80
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#209

Post by TheGiant80 »

Keep the photos coming! They’re helping me get through the week+ wait I’ve got before mine arrives..
Chuck James
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#210

Post by Chuck James »

TheGiant80 wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 8:28 pm
Keep the photos coming! They’re helping me get through the week+ wait I’ve got before mine arrives..
If you had to wait 6 months....It would be well worth it!!!!! ;)
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Woodpuppy
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#211

Post by Woodpuppy »

…waiting for @digdug to posted a shortened/modded M4 Shaman 😁
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Evil D
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#212

Post by Evil D »

VooDooChild wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 8:19 pm
T.J. wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 8:12 pm
Cowboyfromhell wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 6:50 pm
T.J. wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 3:56 pm
Mine arrived today. It's a really nice knife! My first all micarta handled pocket knife. It does have a lot of side to side play,but perfectly centered. Looking forward to trying this out.
Im gonna be pissed if I get mine tomorrow and it has side to side play. This is a $260 knife marketed for hard use!...my crucarta pm2 has a lot of side to side play as well. Im trying to sell that one off because of that issue.
I can't say that I disagree with you. Blade play should be non existent at this price point, especially from a USA made knife.
Its a tool. Sometimes things need adjustmements, even when new.

I dont know why but the Golden factory seems to leave shamans with more play than other designs. Its also something that can be adjusted with a torx driver.


I've got two Shamans, they're two of the only new knives I've had that didn't need one bit of fiddling to dial in blade play, both are as tight as can be expected. The two I have are a DLC version and the CruCarta version.
All SE all the time since 2017
~David
TheGiant80
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#213

Post by TheGiant80 »

Chuck James wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 8:44 pm
TheGiant80 wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 8:28 pm
Keep the photos coming! They’re helping me get through the week+ wait I’ve got before mine arrives..
If you had to wait 6 months....It would be well worth it!!!!! ;)
That’s a good sign, but hopefully things don’t come to that! :)
T.J.
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Posts: 331
Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2021 9:18 pm

Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#214

Post by T.J. »

VooDooChild wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 8:19 pm
T.J. wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 8:12 pm
Cowboyfromhell wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 6:50 pm
T.J. wrote:
Thu May 12, 2022 3:56 pm
Mine arrived today. It's a really nice knife! My first all micarta handled pocket knife. It does have a lot of side to side play,but perfectly centered. Looking forward to trying this out.
Im gonna be pissed if I get mine tomorrow and it has side to side play. This is a $260 knife marketed for hard use!...my crucarta pm2 has a lot of side to side play as well. Im trying to sell that one off because of that issue.
I can't say that I disagree with you. Blade play should be non existent at this price point, especially from a USA made knife.
Its a tool. Sometimes things need adjustmements, even when new.

I dont know why but the Golden factory seems to leave shamans with more play than other designs. Its also something that can be adjusted with a torx driver.
Yes, it's a tool. I could buy a cheap Chinese wrench and when it slips, I'd have no complaints. If I buy the same style wrench from Snap On ( which I do) you better believe that I expect more. Same thing here. This isn't some 60 dollar Chinese knife that I purchased. It's a 260.00 dollar USA made knife from a top manufacturer. I shouldn't have to tolerate blade play and gritty action at that price point, even if it's just a "tool."
Cowboyfromhell
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#215

Post by Cowboyfromhell »

Great news!...knife was delivered today- happy Friday the 13th! The knife appears to be in perfect working order. No blade play, centered blade, extremely sharp, beautiful micarta. My first shaman and looking at the full serrated dlc model next!
TheGiant80
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#216

Post by TheGiant80 »

Cowboyfromhell wrote:
Fri May 13, 2022 7:19 pm
My first shaman and looking at the full serrated dlc model next!
I have one of those I’m looking to offload. 9.5/10 condition. Send me a DM if interested!

Can anyone speak to the difference in feel between the canvas micarta of this new Shaman vs. something like the CruCarta PM2? They look very different in photos.
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kennethsime
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#217

Post by kennethsime »

TheGiant80 wrote:
Fri May 13, 2022 7:56 pm
Can anyone speak to the difference in feel between the canvas micarta of this new Shaman vs. something like the CruCarta PM2? They look very different in photos.
The Shaman seems to match the Crucarta + Zwear shamans which also match my RGT Micarta scales - pretty standard.

The Crucarta PM2 is a very coarse finish, with seemingly loose fibers all over the place. As a result it is softer to the touch. If I were to make one change on the Crucarta PM2, it would be to have the scales finished more like the shaman scales. Luckily, I think I can fix that with a bit of sandpaper.
I'm happiest with Micarta and Tool Steel.

Top four in rotation: K390 + GCM PM2, ZCarta Shaman, Crucarta PM2, K390 + GCM Straight Spine Stretch.
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Crox
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#218

Post by Crox »

kennethsime wrote:
Fri May 13, 2022 8:00 pm
TheGiant80 wrote:
Fri May 13, 2022 7:56 pm
Can anyone speak to the difference in feel between the canvas micarta of this new Shaman vs. something like the CruCarta PM2? They look very different in photos.
The Shaman seems to match the Crucarta + Zwear shamans which also match my RGT Micarta scales - pretty standard.

The Crucarta PM2 is a very coarse finish, with seemingly loose fibers all over the place. As a result it is softer to the touch. If I were to make one change on the Crucarta PM2, it would be to have the scales finished more like the shaman scales. Luckily, I think I can fix that with a bit of sandpaper.
I agree with the description. Loose fibers on the pm2 when new. It’s almost fuzzy. And the pm2 doesn’t really have visible twisted strands. So yes they are different for sure.

I actually have a slight preference for the pm2. Seems more grippy to me. It’s had carry time so could be more broken in. Both are great IMO.
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kennethsime
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#219

Post by kennethsime »

I took a video of mine to demonstrate the fantastic action and blade centering. Three opening methods: thumb flick, front flip, and middle finger flick.

Image

Also tried to demonstrate a few different grips with my XL hands.

I think Spyderco did a great job here.
Last edited by kennethsime on Fri May 13, 2022 9:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.
I'm happiest with Micarta and Tool Steel.

Top four in rotation: K390 + GCM PM2, ZCarta Shaman, Crucarta PM2, K390 + GCM Straight Spine Stretch.
cycleguy
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Re: Blade HQ M4/Micarta Shaman

#220

Post by cycleguy »

I love how much guys love knives ... so cool!!! :smiling-heart-eyes
So many knives - so little funds!!!
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