Seconds Sale 2020

[yablanowitz]

First, I confess I'm one of those lunatics that has been camping on the lawn in November for the last few years. I realize I'm early in asking this, but I've seen enough of these sales to wonder if the crew has come up with any ideas on how to dial down the insanity to a level that would comply with the safety mandates in place for the pandemic. Is a sale still on the table this year?

[Mushroom]

I've been wondering this as well. I really hope it can still happen.

[JonLeBlanc]

One would not get one's hopes up for this at all. And that's not at all meant as a reflection on the company.

[Freediver]

Maybe they will do an online seconds sale this year. :D

[SG89]

Maybe they will do an online seconds sale this year. :D

That would be awesome

[steelcity16]

I vote for an online seconds sale with priority gong to forum members by number of posts. :D I have three young kids so travel out to CO for a knife sale isn't really a top priority as much as I'm dying to go. An online COVID sale may be only only chance until my youngest is 18. :eek:

[Mushroom]

It's hard to fathom the number of knives available at the sale until you get to look through them for yourself.

If Spyderco had to go through every single one of those knives, listing each individual reason a knife is marked as a second for an online sale, that would require a full time job in itself.

Unless it were executed flawlessly, I suspect an online seconds sale would result in a lot of unhappy customers. Just my two cents.

[sal]

Hi Yab,

It's still on the table and we're trying to figure out how to make is work with the COVID rules.

sal

[nerdlock]

Maybe they will do an online seconds sale this year. :D

As an international customer, I couldn't give this idea enough love :spyder: :spyder: :spyder: :spyder:

[yablanowitz]

Hi Yab,

It's still on the table and we're trying to figure out how to make is work with the COVID rules.

sal

Glad to hear this, thanks. What got me thinking about it was listening to my girlfriend trying to come up with a workable way to put on her annual craft show. This is the first time in 50+ years that cancelling has been on the table, but she is pretty much grasping at straws trying to find a way to make it work.

[odomandr]

I think a ticket system could work within the rules locally. May not get the camping out from years past

[yablanowitz]

Maybe they will do an online seconds sale this year. :D

All the reasons for not doing it online are still valid. I'm pretty sure they'd be better off tossing them all into an active volcano than selling them online, judging by the way people pick and choose at the sale.

[Freediver]

Maybe they will do an online seconds sale this year. :D

All the reasons for not doing it online are still valid. I'm pretty sure they'd be better off tossing them all into an active volcano than selling them online, judging by the way people pick and choose at the sale.

Either idea is perfect. I live on an active volcano. Please toss them over here.


If they are sold online, it can be stated all sales are final and the knife is randomly picked by Spyderco. That way they don’t have to to photograph/describe each individual knife. Anyone buying a knife understands they are buying a second, and the nature of the flaw is random.

[MichaelScott]

Maybe they will do an online seconds sale this year. :D

All the reasons for not doing it online are still valid. I'm pretty sure they'd be better off tossing them all into an active volcano than selling them online, judging by the way people pick and choose at the sale.

Either idea is perfect. I live on an active volcano. Please toss them over here.


If they are sold online, it can be stated all sales are final and the knife is randomly picked by Spyderco. That way they don’t have to to photograph/describe each individual knife. Anyone buying a knife understands they are buying a second, and the nature of the flaw is random.

Good idea. I won’t be able to go even though I live in Colorado. My cancer has wrecked my immune system so I can’t take any chances with COVID exposure. There are other like this too.

[Thunderpants]

How severe are the flaws on these reject knives?
I wouldn't mind a random accidental scratch on a discounted knife but I'd be irked to think I'm getting a bargain, only to become the proud owner of a knife that won't open, or one with a lock like a wet tea bag.

[araneae]

It simply wouldn't be feasible to do it online. Knives are seconds, some look practically perfect, some have poor action, some have aesthetic issues or uneven grinds, etc. No way they could list flaws for each and it just wouldn't be fair to the buyer to not know what they were getting.

I'd be interested in seeing how they could pull off a sale, but not sure I'd make it this year as I have to fly in. Not sure I'm ready for that.

[vivi]

How severe are the flaws on these reject knives?
I wouldn't mind a random accidental scratch on a discounted knife but I'd be irked to think I'm getting a bargain, only to become the proud owner of a knife that won't open, or one with a lock like a wet tea bag.

I've only had a few seconds, but one was a D2 Military I carried for five years with no issues. I don't think Spyderco is in the habit of selling knives that can't function. Your blade might be slightly off center or something similar, but it will still cut and lock fine.

Living well over 1,000 miles from Spydie HQ, I'd love to see an online seconds sale.

[jabba359]

How severe are the flaws on these reject knives?
I wouldn't mind a random accidental scratch on a discounted knife but I'd be irked to think I'm getting a bargain, only to become the proud owner of a knife that won't open, or one with a lock like a wet tea bag.

They are generally cosmetic defects or minor issues like centering, uneven edges, sticky locks, rough action, etc. They won't sell one with dangerous lock issues (for liability reasons), though I have encountered a couple knives that are difficult to open. Since most are cosmetic flaws, which they're going to get from riding in my pocket anyway, I don't mind. Probably 75% of my EDC rotation are factory seconds. I've never had a functional issue with them and have been able to sharpen, clean/lube, or adjust most of the issues away. I probably wouldn't have 2/3rds of my collection if it weren't for the seconds sales, as they allowed me to get way more knives with the same budget.

[cabfrank]

It hasn't been the best year by any means. A novel online seconds sale would be a welcome bright spot. I have no idea how, or if, it would work though.

[nerdlock]

If they are sold online, it can be stated all sales are final and the knife is randomly picked by Spyderco. That way they don’t have to to photograph/describe each individual knife. Anyone buying a knife understands they are buying a second, and the nature of the flaw is random.

This. I believe most of us can live with off-centering, rough action, minor cosmetics, stuff like that. Most of the defects mentioned can be remedied post-sale. I do believe the most dangerous defects are those related to the locking mechanism and I don't think the company would sell those that they have found with faulty locks. If they're priced good, I don't mind. If I'm going to buy a second I shall do so with the understanding that it will not be displayed, but rather worked and carried.

I do hope Sal and the management will seriously consider doing an online sale for seconds in the light of COVID regulations. It would be a really good thing for international customers to finally get in on what locals have been having there for years.