First Impressions of SPY27 Steel

[elena86]

I hope this one is not a sprint ... I couldn’t purchase one so far ... I am so frustrated

[Deadboxhero]

I hope this one is not a sprint ... I couldn’t purchase one so far ... I am so frustrated

https://www.knivesplus.com/spyderco-par ... 3pcbl.html

[Sharp Guy]

I just spent 45 min in the garage cutting cardboard from my recycling bin into tiny pieces. Had a nice pile on the floor when I stopped. The factory edge held up well and was still going strong. I tested on some phone book paper and it was snagging a little but not bad. Then I whittled on some hardwood. The edge bit into it nicely. Tried the phone book paper again and it was back to slicing it clean. Still shaving arm hair too. I'm not really a good judge of edge retention because I use my knives until they feel dull and then I touch them up on the Sharpmaker or reprofile on the Hapstone if needed. What I did was hardly a scientific test either. But if I can cut up as much cardboard as I just did and it's still going strong then I'm satisfied. I'll be curious to see how it sharpens. I have a feeling it'll be similar to S35VN but that's just a guess at this point. I'll be interested in knowing what others think too. Also curious to know how hard they ran it (Shawn?). Looking forward to using this steel in the Manix 2 LW. My S110V Manix 2 LW probably won't be in my knife collection long after that one comes out :)

Nice! Thanks!

[elena86]

I hope this one is not a sprint ... I couldn’t purchase one so far ... I am so frustrated

https://www.knivesplus.com/spyderco-par ... 3pcbl.html

Thanx but : it's out of stock and they don't dispatch abroad anyway. Thanks again :spyder:

[sal]

Hi BigHonu,

Welcome to our forum.

sal

[Deadboxhero]

I hope this one is not a sprint ... I couldn’t purchase one so far ... I am so frustrated

https://www.knivesplus.com/spyderco-par ... 3pcbl.html

Thanx but : it's out of stock and they don't dispatch abroad anyway. Thanks again :spyder:

https://www.smkw.com/spyderco-para-3-blue

[JuPaul]

I hope this one is not a sprint ... I couldn’t purchase one so far ... I am so frustrated

https://www.smkw.com/spyderco-para-3-blue

[p_atrick]

If I may make a request, could somebody post their thoughts about sharpening the steel. I am most interested in how it performs on water stones, but any information would be appreciated.

[BigHonu]

Thanks Sal! Only took 30 years to get my first Spyderco, but now it’s hard to stop! Should have tried them out earlier for sure.

[sal]

Hi BigHonu,

The paths of our lives do create interesting bends and shifts. Especially as you get older and look back. Most of those shifts are created by new knowledge or events.

sal

[The Meat man]

62 HRC is impressive!

[Baron Mind]

62 hrc is phenomenal! Best case scenario. Looks like Spyderco really stepped up and nailed this one out of the park.

I got mine today, was planning on taking it straight to the stones, but the factory edge is insane. So I'll put a little use on it before i go and grind that bad boy away.

[Baron Mind]

Also, let me just say, the Para 3 LW platform, the way it has been designed and executed, is a spectacular knife. Feels like a feather in hand, but doesn't feel cheap in the slightest. The action and lock up is so crisp and smooth. Beautiful work.

[pantagana23]

Is SPY27 going to replace S30V in Golden models?

From what I see, this could be a perspective replacement.

[p_atrick]

Is SPY27 going to replace S30V in Golden models?

From what I see, this could be a perspective replacement.

That's an interesting question. I'd like to know what the criteria would be in making this decision. I think price would be at the top of the list. Currently lots of S30V is being used by Spyderco and Benchmade (I'm sure other companies use it as well). I am sure that enough is being produced that Crucible can take advantage of economies of scale, which probably means a good deal for Spyderco. As SPY27 is a brand new steel, and I am sure there were lots of up-front R&D costs for Spyderco. So to really get your money's worth, you need to stick with it for the long haul. Using SPY27 for all of the Golden models would certainly make sense. However, this is a proprietary steel. Given the demand for S30V, I am sure Crucible can justify setting aside capacity for this one steel. SPY27 won't have the same demand, so Crucible probably can't give Spyderco the same deal (unless Spyderco makes a massive order, but that would be putting a lot of eggs in a single basket). Then again, maybe the grinding SPY27 (in terms of abrasives and time spent) will make up for any price increase from Crucible. To be clear, everything I mentioned above is complete conjecture. I have no idea how any of this stuff really works, but I find it interesting. I've often wondered what it would take to switch from S30V (which is a great all around steel). My money was on S45Vn since Sal referred to it as a CQI of S35Vn, but then SPY27 was announced. I am interested to see how all of this unfolds.

[JuPaul]

Is SPY27 going to replace S30V in Golden models?

From what I see, this could be a perspective replacement.

That's an interesting question. I'd like to know what the criteria would be in making this decision. I think price would be at the top of the list. Currently lots of S30V is being used by Spyderco and Benchmade (I'm sure other companies use it as well). I am sure that enough is being produced that Crucible can take advantage of economies of scale, which probably means a good deal for Spyderco. As SPY27 is a brand new steel, and I am sure there were lots of up-front R&D costs for Spyderco. So to really get your money's worth, you need to stick with it for the long haul. Using SPY27 for all of the Golden models would certainly make sense. However, this is a proprietary steel. Given the demand for S30V, I am sure Crucible can justify setting aside capacity for this one steel. SPY27 won't have the same demand, so Crucible probably can't give Spyderco the same deal (unless Spyderco makes a massive order, but that would be putting a lot of eggs in a single basket). Then again, maybe the grinding SPY27 (in terms of abrasives and time spent) will make up for any price increase from Crucible. To be clear, everything I mentioned above is complete conjecture. I have no idea how any of this stuff really works, but I find it interesting. I've often wondered what it would take to switch from S30V (which is a great all around steel). My money was on S45Vn since Sal referred to it as a CQI of S35Vn, but then SPY27 was announced. I am interested to see how all of this unfolds.

Certainly we're seeing some of the R&D costs in the current pricing with the spy27 para3 lw at $140, compared to say, the rex45 version at $122.50. I'm definitely curious to see where the prices go from here.

[dj moonbat]

Is SPY27 going to replace S30V in Golden models?

From what I see, this could be a perspective replacement.

That's an interesting question. I'd like to know what the criteria would be in making this decision. I think price would be at the top of the list. Currently lots of S30V is being used by Spyderco and Benchmade (I'm sure other companies use it as well). I am sure that enough is being produced that Crucible can take advantage of economies of scale, which probably means a good deal for Spyderco. As SPY27 is a brand new steel, and I am sure there were lots of up-front R&D costs for Spyderco. So to really get your money's worth, you need to stick with it for the long haul. Using SPY27 for all of the Golden models would certainly make sense. However, this is a proprietary steel. Given the demand for S30V, I am sure Crucible can justify setting aside capacity for this one steel. SPY27 won't have the same demand, so Crucible probably can't give Spyderco the same deal (unless Spyderco makes a massive order, but that would be putting a lot of eggs in a single basket). Then again, maybe the grinding SPY27 (in terms of abrasives and time spent) will make up for any price increase from Crucible. To be clear, everything I mentioned above is complete conjecture. I have no idea how any of this stuff really works, but I find it interesting. I've often wondered what it would take to switch from S30V (which is a great all around steel). My money was on S45Vn since Sal referred to it as a CQI of S35Vn, but then SPY27 was announced. I am interested to see how all of this unfolds.

Certainly we're seeing some of the R&D costs in the current pricing with the spy27 para3 lw at $140, compared to say, the rex45 version at $122.50. I'm definitely curious to see where the prices go from here.

Hmm. When I heard Spyderco had Crucible make them some steel, I assumed they intended to make it one of their standard steels. I’m definitely less interested at those kinds of prices.

[BornIn1500]

Certainly we're seeing some of the R&D costs in the current pricing with the spy27 para3 lw at $140, compared to say, the rex45 version at $122.50. I'm definitely curious to see where the prices go from here.

But what makes it confusing is that while the Para 3 is up $42 from using SPY27, the Mule in SPY27 is lower than many other previous Mules and that's using even more of this steel than a Para3. I'm not making sense of it.

[JuPaul]

Certainly we're seeing some of the R&D costs in the current pricing with the spy27 para3 lw at $140, compared to say, the rex45 version at $122.50. I'm definitely curious to see where the prices go from here.

Hmm. When I heard Spyderco had Crucible make them some steel, I assumed they intended to make it one of their standard steels. I’m definitely less interested at those kinds of prices.

Well presumably the more of it they use, the cheaper it'd get. And once the R&D expenses are offset, they could lower the price as well. I would guess that spyderco hopes to make these competitive with s30v models, at least.

[pantagana23]

Certainly we're seeing some of the R&D costs in the current pricing with the spy27 para3 lw at $140, compared to say, the rex45 version at $122.50. I'm definitely curious to see where the prices go from here.

Hmm. When I heard Spyderco had Crucible make them some steel, I assumed they intended to make it one of their standard steels. I’m definitely less interested at those kinds of prices.

Well presumably the more of it they use, the cheaper it'd get. And once the R&D expenses are offset, they could lower the price as well. I would guess that spyderco hopes to make these competitive with s30v models, at least.

This.
If Spyderco is to justify development cost of a steel exclusive to them, should be pushing it to more models so the price drops.
SPY27, however, needs to be proven and recognized as a well rounded steel first.