Paramilitary 2 name change?

[Ttop191]

Hey guys,
Looking over the para 3 online I was surprised they named it "para" as opposed to "paramilitary" seeing how they are clearly related to each other. However I get that they might want to leave the name "paramilitary 3" open for CQI and such.
Conversely after playing around with my PM2 and not really needing a smaller version of it I realized I would like a bigger version...say the much requested full size military with a compreason lock?
Ok, so to finally get to the point...why not keep the Para 3 name and change the PM2 to the Para 3.5, thus leaving room in the family tree for say a Para 4? Such as what they've done for the Caly series.

What do you guys say?

[dreadpirate]

I've seen both Para 3 and Paramilitary 3 used Not sure why.

[Ttop191]

Many people say paramilitary 3 because that was used prior to the release as well as the name minuteman. The official name of it though is in fact Para 3.

[Johnnie1801]

Here's the explanation from the December Spyderbyte

Although clearly based on the Para Military 2, the Para 3 was not named the “Para Military 3” because its smaller size qualifies it as a different knife design. Similarly, the “3” in its name actually reflects its three-inch blade length rather than identifying it as a third-generation of the Para Military design. While its pedigree is unmistakable, the Para 3 (and its model and SKU number) has its own distinct “identity” as a Spyderco product.

[Ttop191]

Here's the explanation from the December Spyderbyte

Although clearly based on the Para Military 2, the Para 3 was not named the “Para Military 3” because its smaller size qualifies it as a different knife design. Similarly, the “3” in its name actually reflects its three-inch blade length rather than identifying it as a third-generation of the Para Military design. While its pedigree is unmistakable, the Para 3 (and its model and SKU number) has its own distinct “identity” as a Spyderco product.

This is partially what prompted my idea for the name change the reference of blade size in the name. Clearly it's a part of the same family as the PM2 but the blade size is the naming factor. The paramilitary was initially designed to be a smaller military, but due to different lock design it's in its own category. I think with the naming of the "para 3" it opens the door to separation of the paramilitary name from the military line so there could be a range of blade sizes in the para line which would suit the needs or desires of multiple individuals and we could justify a compression lock military "Para 4" without the need to drastically change the actual military. This is something with many people on either site of the argument and this would be a way to appease both sides.

[Evil D]

By "Caly logic" Para 2 is really more like the Para 1.5 since it added about a half inch of blade and changed the handle. Still, it got the 2 designation because it was so different. So, by that logic, and since the Para 3 is basically a snub nose Para 2, I think it should have been called the Para -0.5.

But, really it's called the Para 3 because the 3 refers to the blade length, not the generation. At least that's according to Knife Center's description:

Although clearly based on the Paramilitary 2, the Para 3 was not named the "Paramilitary 3" because its smaller size qualifies it as a different knife design. Similarly, the "3" in its name actually reflects its three-inch blade length rather than identifying it as a third-generation of the Paramilitary design. While its pedigree is unmistakable, the Para 3 (and its model and SKU number) has its own distinct "identity" as a Spyderco product.

[Ttop191]

I would like to add as well the just a straight name change would be odd. But if done with some CQI such as slightly rounding the edges of the handle scales to the levels of the Para 3 as well as adding the internal stop pin like the Sage 5...not sure if Para 3 has this.

[Ttop191]

By "Caly logic" Para 2 is really more like the Para 1.5 since it added about a half inch of blade and changed the handle. Still, it got the 2 designation because it was so different. So, by that logic, and since the Para 3 is basically a snub nose Para 2, I think it should have been called the Para -0.5.

My mistake in using the Caly series as an example. I'm not up on the whole lineage of those knives I was simply thinking in the sense of Caly 3 and Caly 3.5 in terms of their blade length.

[Evil D]

By "Caly logic" Para 2 is really more like the Para 1.5 since it added about a half inch of blade and changed the handle. Still, it got the 2 designation because it was so different. So, by that logic, and since the Para 3 is basically a snub nose Para 2, I think it should have been called the Para -0.5.

My mistake in using the Caly series as an example. I'm not up on the whole lineage of those knives I was simply thinking in the sense of Caly 3 and Caly 3.5 in terms of their blade length.

I was really just making a joke. I actually wasn't aware that Spyderco use the 3 to refer directly to blade length and not as the 3rd generation of this knife. From a business perspective it would be crazy to not cash in on the already extremely well known Para/Paramilitary name, but the 3 part is kind of confusing.

[Jazz]

It is what it is. No need to complicate it, I think.