Aqua Salt / Fish Hunter in Magnacut or LC200N

[pantagana23]

Having an overwhelming folding knives collection (for my taste at least - got everything I wanted), I'm thinking of getting a fixed blade in the near future.

As the last 10 knives I got lately were all Spydercos, and would like to continue the streak, I am looking at Aqua Salt or Fish Hunter for allaround travel or diving knife.

Having experience with PE H1 taught me that it's a really low edge retention steel, and would like to see an upscale for those, either in LC200N, or the latest popular, Magnacut.

What are the chances this would emerge?

How many of you would want this?

[Coastal]

I doubt MagnaCut would get me to buy either of those knives, because I already have the Waterway in LC200N. I haven't used either of those knives but I believe Vivi has, and there's a thread somewhere around comparing all three. I chose the Waterway mainly because it looked a little more useful all around, and it was just as rust-resistant as the others. If I remember the other thread correctly, it was complimentary of all three, but not enough to get me interested in one of the others.

I would probably buy a MagnaCut Waterway even though I have the LC, and I would definitely by a Waterway SE in any of the Salt steels. Immediately! It's a wonderful knife, maybe my favorite Spydie.

[vivi]

I'd love to see a FFG Aqua Salt. Very versatile knife.

That said I wouldn't let H1 hold you back. It's extremely tough, great for a fixed blade, and with a very coarse edge it'll cut for a long time.

My Aqua Salt has come on a lot of hikes and camping trips and never needed sharpened before returning home.

[JRinFL]

Vivi’s coarse edge method does work and it does bring H1 plain edge alive. Give it try on your H1 and see if you agree.

[Doc Dan]

I thought about LC200N for the Aqua Salt in the past, but then the toughness issue made me hesitate. H1 is very tough. It might still be the best steel for that knife.

[tonijedi]

I have an Aqua Salt, here are some random thoughts:

The longer the blade, the "easier to sharpen" factor is more important - H1 fits well here.

The ergonomics are really good, and the knife is very light;

On my opinion, it deserves a better sheath. The current one is bulky. A dangler or loop or something you can easily attach to your belt from the begging would be an improvement.

The knife is gorgeous, that swedge is sexy and it's a very useful blade shape.

Like others said, I wouldn't let the H1 hold you back.

[Surfingringo]

I think the Aquasalt would work fine in Magnacut or LC200n (or even in a non stainless steel if someone were interested in the design for “non salt” uses) but the fish hunter is a bit of a different animal IMHO. The Fish Hunter has a VERY fine tip that is intended for stabbing and even some movement/levering after the stab. Corrosion resistance aside, I don’t think there is a better suited steel in the Spyderco lineup for the application of that design. A spear fishing knife intended for braining doesn’t depend much on it’s edge retention for functionality but depends greatly upon its toughness and corrosion resistance. Given that H1 is the most corrosion resistant and likely the toughest steel in Spyderco’s lineup, I feel like switching to anything else on a knife as specialized as the Fish Hunter would be a downgrade. Just my 2 cents.