Let's bring the Mule back

A place to share your experience with our Mule Team knives.
spyderwolf
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#21

Post by spyderwolf »

SF Native wrote:
Sat Jul 20, 2019 3:50 pm
I love my mules and my 4v is probably my most used knife. But I think spyderco is ahead of you. The bow river is similar and due any time now.
Other similar knives would be the enuff series or the Moran. All mostly affordable but the bow river is downright cheap. I will also throw the waterway out there as a pretty affordable blade with a nice steel that should last a long time.
Well,the Bow River which may finally come out or not (i believe not) would be a completely different flavour.The Enuff is way too pricey for such a small knife,for me at least.
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spyderwolf
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#22

Post by spyderwolf »

TomAiello wrote:
Sat Jul 20, 2019 11:17 am
I think if you wanted to make it inexpensive, you'd pretty much be running them in China out of 8cr13mov. Not sure how the sales and profit margin would line up on that, but it's definitely a different project from the original Mule Team idea.
Of course.And it won't have to be called Mule.Let's say Missouri would be a good name,and at a price around 50$ it will be the best selling fixed blade Spyderco ever.
Whenever there is any doubt, there is no doubt.
TomAiello
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#23

Post by TomAiello »

What if it was called the "Moderation"? Kind of like Temperance, but a little different?

If it was 8cr13mov, it would have to compete with the Bow River, so it needs to either be substantially different in ergonomics/design/purpose or be lower in price point (which would be difficult to achieve).
BornIn1500
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#24

Post by BornIn1500 »

TomAiello wrote:
Sun Jul 21, 2019 10:36 am
it would have to compete with the Bow River, so it needs to either be substantially different in ergonomics/design/purpose
The Mule design already is very different. I don't think they'd need to change a thing. I think it would be a bestseller.
spyderwolf
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#25

Post by spyderwolf »

TomAiello wrote:
Sun Jul 21, 2019 10:36 am
What if it was called the "Moderation"? Kind of like Temperance, but a little different?

If it was 8cr13mov, it would have to compete with the Bow River, so it needs to either be substantially different in ergonomics/design/purpose or be lower in price point (which would be difficult to achieve).
Moderation would be a great name.Of course i would love to see it in CTS BD1,like the Polestar,but it will crush the Bow River even with a plastic blade.
Whenever there is any doubt, there is no doubt.
David R
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#26

Post by David R »

You got a great one for your first Mule (imo). Of the 20 or so I've tried the K390 is one of the keepers for me. If you mean a similarly sized knife in the regular line up I don't think it would do well. The fact that Mules were made in fairly limited batches and are still some available tells a compelling story about the demand. Given how many knives Spyderco sells why would they want to make a model that would have low sales volume?

SF Native wrote:
Sat Jul 20, 2019 3:50 pm
I love my mules and my 4v is probably my most used knife.
I have several. 4V is at the top of the list for me. I didn't fully appreciate this steel until I got the Mule.

Dazen wrote:
Sat Jul 20, 2019 6:37 pm
So I see that there are still 3 Mules available:

#20 CTS B70P
#22 RWL34
#27 MICRO-MELT PD#1

Is one of these a good one for someone to get as their first Mule?
Any of them. The B70P is probably the most rare in terms of steel you're going to see in a knife. RWL 34 is very nice steel and I don't know where else you'll see it for this price. PD#1 is similar to Cru-wear which is also excellent. You can't go wrong. PD#1 isn't stainless. If I recall the other 2 are.
koenigsegg
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#27

Post by koenigsegg »

I agree the urban is the mule. I think Sal kind of mentioned he wanted to also use the FRN Police for this purpose. I think a good fixed blade mule platform would be the Waterway, like $45 more than a mule but comes with sheath and scales...
S30V, VG10, M4, XHP, BD1, Cruwear, Elmax, Maxamet, 204P, H1, K390, A11, Rex45, LC200N, M390, 20CV, BD1N, S45VN waiting to afford MagnaCut
Bmurray
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#28

Post by Bmurray »

I was able to pick up a mule in s110v and contoured micarta scales. Should be here this week. Very excited as I love my native 5 frn in this steel.
yablanowitz
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#29

Post by yablanowitz »

Something that people seem to forget is the Mule Team project was direct to us, no dealer or distributor markups. It was low profit as well as low volume. Making a Mule Team knife as part of the regular lineup would just about double the price. Depending on the steel selected, that could kill the sales all by itself.
TomAiello
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#30

Post by TomAiello »

spyderwolf wrote:
Sun Jul 21, 2019 12:05 pm
TomAiello wrote:
Sun Jul 21, 2019 10:36 am
What if it was called the "Moderation"? Kind of like Temperance, but a little different?

If it was 8cr13mov, it would have to compete with the Bow River, so it needs to either be substantially different in ergonomics/design/purpose or be lower in price point (which would be difficult to achieve).
Moderation would be a great name.Of course i would love to see it in CTS BD1,like the Polestar,but it will crush the Bow River even with a plastic blade.
A mule pattern in BD1n would probably be a sales home run if it came in under $100.

I bet you could sell a bunch of them (and have an even cheaper price point) if you ran them without any scales/sheath at all, but I'm not sure how adding those would change the bottom line.

I could definitely get behind a mule pattern blade in BD1n, with or without scales/sheath.
spyderwolf
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#31

Post by spyderwolf »

David R wrote:
Sun Jul 21, 2019 12:44 pm
You got a great one for your first Mule (imo). Of the 20 or so I've tried the K390 is one of the keepers for me. If you mean a similarly sized knife in the regular line up I don't think it would do well. The fact that Mules were made in fairly limited batches and are still some available tells a compelling story about the demand. Given how many knives Spyderco sells why would they want to make a model that would have low sales volume?

Because i'm talking about a completely different project.Mule Team was about fancy steels and custom scales.The Moderation would be about a low cost steel-one steel, and FRN handles-many colors.The shape of the Mule is as Spyderco as the round hole,and if anything it will kill :) the sales of other fixed blades.
Whenever there is any doubt, there is no doubt.
QUICKSILVER
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#32

Post by QUICKSILVER »

YES!!!! BRING BACK THE MULE

Maybe just 1 every year or two in cutting edge steel.
First, we must do our part & buy up the existing stock overhang.
BUY A MULE TODAY!!!!

Enjoy,
Bill Maier
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legOFwhat?
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#33

Post by legOFwhat? »

QUICKSILVER wrote:
Mon Jul 22, 2019 10:22 am
YES!!!! BRING BACK THE MULE

Maybe just 1 every year or two in cutting edge steel.
First, we must do our part & buy up the existing stock overhang.
BUY A MULE TODAY!!!!

Enjoy,
Bill Maier
I like this, maybe every "even" year ;) . I just received a RWL34 and the B70P and put them in a drawer for rainy day handle projects. I've purchased over a dozen so far in PD#1 and PMA11 and thought I'd better try the others before they're gone. Making handles for them and experimenting on different materials has given me great pleasure as a hobby. Pretty rewarding putting together semi-custom kit for gifting!
-Larry
Hebrews 13:6 So we may boldly say: “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?”
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sailhand
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#34

Post by sailhand »

Vanax sc mule would be a must have. I purchased 2 x lc200n mules and I would grab at least 4 vanax sc mules if they happen.
JohnIrish
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#35

Post by JohnIrish »

When I discovered the Mule Team Project, it really got me interested in knives and sharpening!

I picked up about 6 mules. Unfortunately, I did not learn about the mule until about no 11, M390... I would have liked to have mules in 52100... M4... and Damascus. But I missed out on those. I have used mine for hunting and it has been a great knife for that. I like to bone out my deer. My mule in S110V easily boned out a Cow Elk... and was still paper cutting sharp without any touch up.

I would like to see some runs of the Mule with the popular steels .... re-introduced. Those steel that sold out quickly.

I really appreciate what Spyderco has done with the mule and thank them for introducing me to Steels that I would never have tried. Please bring it back with a re-introduction of the popular steels!
silvrjeepr
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#36

Post by silvrjeepr »

From a business view, I can see the need to keep the doors open first and foremost, and I doubt the mule team did that at all. That being said, mule team 23 and 25 were my first Spyderco knives. I’m now hooked with a Manix 2 in s110v, 3 more mule teams on the way, and my eye on a pm3 sometime this month.
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The Mastiff
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#37

Post by The Mastiff »

The mules were never a real money making proposition for Spyderco. It wasn't done to provide inexpensive kit knives either but they sure worked well for that for a lot of people. It's not really any surprise that when people slowed down and even stopped buying them they stopped making them. It was really great while it lasted. In addition to the great steel choices for me it was a near ideal utility blade that performed as well as some of my highly regarded customs by well known makers.

My favorites were ( not in order) A11, Cruwear, PD#1, and 52100.

I still wish we would have seen SRS 15, YXR7, HAP5R, and a few more Japanese steels.
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steelcity16
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Re: Let's bring the Mule back

#38

Post by steelcity16 »

The Mastiff wrote:
Thu Aug 08, 2019 10:42 pm

I still wish we would have seen SRS 15, YXR7, HAP5R, and a few more Japanese steels.

Here's to hoping we see some sprint runs in Seki with these steels. But with all of the interesting imported steels now appearing over there I'm also hoping for some steels like V4E, AEB-L, Sleipner, and Elmax to hit those Seki models.
:bug-white-red CRU-CARTA THE SEKI MODELS! :bug-white-red AND BRING US THE DODO-FLY! :bug-white-red
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