the ti cage is definitely an improvement in my opinion, even though it's unnecessary.
My Ti cage is somehow "stickier" than the original polymer cage
(as in the cage and ball don't slide against each other as freely as the polymer versions, this is felt on the unlock only)
I've been wondering if the brass version is better in that respect.
...some other ball/cage ponderings: I'd personally trust Spyderco to choose a bearing that maximizes the toughness of the lock system (when CS did a "Proof" vid on the Manix 2, the locking block screws sheared off before anything else was damaged) and the bearings in all of mine seem to be stainless, as are the springs, since none show any corrosion at all despite getting wet on occasion.
I wonder what the (hopefully) soon to land Salt will use for materials? LC200N is originally a bearing steel, so that would make sense, but the spring may be harder to do in steel... the right Ti alloy might work though?
Last edited by awa54 on Wed Dec 28, 2022 10:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Well, here I am holding my 15V Manix. I am sort of awed by the whole thing. I think it is nothing short of astounding that Spyderco does things like this.
I am particularly glad to see this in the Manix platform. Like I have said 100 times on this forum, when I first looked at the Manix I thought, "why would anyone do that?". When I got it in hand I thought, "how did they know this would work so well and fit so perfectly in my hand?". Also doing it as a Manix may have caused some of the PM2 "collect them all" gang to pass on it.
My project now is reading through all of this thread as well as the original 15V thread that got this all rolling. All of that started back in 2018 if I am reading it all correctly, and here it is in hand 4 years later. Simply amazing.
I have cut way back on knife buying over the last couple of years, but this one was too special to pass on.
I'm with you on this one. Such a cool project. I'll admit I'm a card carrying steel nerd, but getting to experience 15V in a knife I can carry daily in my pocket is pretty darn cool. And, while I sometimes have my complaints about the Manix, it's really an excellent knife design all things considered. Read through the old 15V thread a few weeks ago, lots of cool information there. Link for those interested: viewtopic.php?t=82056
Because desolate places allow us to breathe. And most people don't even know they're out of breath.
I wonder what the (hopefully) soon to land Salt will use for materials? LC200N is originally a bearing steel, so that would make sense, but the spring may be harder to do in steel... the right Ti alloy might work though?
don't forget this won't be the first salt ball bearing lock. the tusk used a ceramic ball and a spring and was considered a salt model. either way though, with screw construction, springs will be easy and cheap to replace if necessary.
Great video! Nobody is arguing the toughness of the ceramic bearing.
But I still don't see the point of upgrading to one. The steel bearing Spyderco uses in the context of being used as a locking mechanism, will never fail. The weight factor is fractional and can't be felt by human senses. There is no aesthetic factor as it's all but completely hidden by the cage. The smoothness factor is equally negligible.
So I'll ask again: What's the point in spending all that time, money and effort for so LITTLE (if any) payout? The juice just isn't worth the squeeze on ceramic bearings.
Great video! Nobody is arguing the toughness of the ceramic bearing (except for the ones from china, of course.. nothing good ever comes out of that dump of a country)
you know there are people there right? people that have nothing to do with the politics of the place they were born? people that are just trying to survive and provide a life for their families like everyone else in the world?
But I still don't see the point of upgrading to one. The steel bearing Spyderco uses in the context of being used as a locking mechanism, will never fail. The weight factor is fractional and can't be felt by human senses. There is no aesthetic factor as it's all but completely hidden by the cage. The smoothness factor is equally negligible.
So I'll ask again: What's the point in spending all that time, money and effort for so LITTLE (if any) payout? The juice just isn't worth the squeeze on ceramic bearings.
it cost me $8 to get a ceramic bearing. i was already replacing the cage (which actually does make a noticeable difference) and the scales, so "all that time, money and effort" for me was about $8 and 3 seconds. hardly a substantial burden to try something out. i don't think it was a necessary upgrade at all and probably won't do it again, but it was very easy and cheap experiment to conduct.
Spyderco makes some fantastic models that come from China. The Polestar is one of my top favorite models. A smaller Military per Sal sans choil. Same or more grip than the Military behind the choil.
I wonder if a ceramic ball bearing adds to corrosion resistance allowing for less metal to touch lessening the chance for galvanic corrosion. I thought that is why the Chef was upgraded to a ceramic ball bearing to discourage corrosion. I may be wrong. If so, I wonder if the new Manix 2 LW with Magnacut will come with a ceramic ball from the factory?
Back on topic. Glad for all of you that have received this model. What a cool story and piece of Spyderco history. For those of you that put it straight to work, good on you!
- Jeff May your feet be warm and dry and your throat warm with whiskey. A knife in hand or in the sock band.
MNOSD Member #0005
Spyderco makes some fantastic models that come from China. The Polestar is one of my top favorite models. A smaller Military per Sal sans choil. Same or more grip than the Military behind the choil.
I wonder if a ceramic ball bearing adds to corrosion resistance allowing for less metal to touch lessening the chance for galvanic corrosion. I thought that is why the Chef was upgraded to a ceramic ball bearing to discourage corrosion. I may be wrong. If so, I wonder if the new Manix 2 LW with Magnacut will come with a ceramic ball from the factory?
Back on topic. Glad for all of you that have received this model. What a cool story and piece of Spyderco history. For those of you that put it straight to work, good on you!
the resilience and astute are two i have from china and they are both great as well.
i was wondering the same thing about the m2lw salt a couple days ago, given all this discussion. it would be kind of cool to have lc200n bearings since that's what it was originally used for, but a magnacut blade and lc200n bearing might cause problems, so ceramic would be a good, stock option.
Spyderco makes some fantastic models that come from China. The Polestar is one of my top favorite models. A smaller Military per Sal sans choil. Same or more grip than the Military behind the choil.
I wonder if a ceramic ball bearing adds to corrosion resistance allowing for less metal to touch lessening the chance for galvanic corrosion. I thought that is why the Chef was upgraded to a ceramic ball bearing to discourage corrosion. I may be wrong. If so, I wonder if the new Manix 2 LW with Magnacut will come with a ceramic ball from the factory?
Back on topic. Glad for all of you that have received this model. What a cool story and piece of Spyderco history. For those of you that put it straight to work, good on you!
Yes the more knife /steel testing the better ! I hope in future to see a model of interest in a DLC finish , then I will probably pick one up . Dan
MNOSD 0002 / Do more than is required of you . Patton
Nothing makes earth so spacious as to have friends at a distance; they make the latitudes and longitudes.
Henry David Thoreau
you know there are people there right? people that have nothing to do with the politics of the place they were born? people that are just trying to survive and provide a life for their families like everyone else in the world?
When did I mention people? Is china selling people now too? You know I was talking about PRODUCTS, right? It has nothing to do with politics. 99% of the products that come out of china are ABSOLUTE GARBAGE. It's the truth whether you like it or not.
it cost me $8 to get a ceramic bearing. i was already replacing the cage (which actually does make a noticeable difference) and the scales, so "all that time, money and effort" for me was about $8 and 3 seconds. hardly a substantial burden to try something out. i don't think it was a necessary upgrade at all and probably won't do it again, but it was very easy and cheap experiment to conduct.
There are some people out there buying JUST bearings to replace. If you're replacing the cage as well, then it's definitely not a time/effort issue. As for $8, we can safely round that to $10 after tax and shipping. So, are you ready to take a cigarette lighter to a $10 bill? It's only $10, right? Why not? Go on, post a video of you dropping a ten in your shredder.
Money is money, and if I'm going to spend it (be a dime or a grand) I'm **** sure going to get something for it. Installing a bearing that has NO REAL OR PERCEIVED BENEFIT over the factory bearing is, to me, dropping a $10 bill into a paper shredder. That's how I feel. If you feel differently, good for you.
Why don't you guys start your own thread about China and all these prissy trinkets for your Manix's in another thread. This thread is about the beast that is 15V steel!
15 's in 10 different steels
1 - Bradford Guardian 3 / Vanadis 4E Wharnie
1 - Monterey Bay Knives Slayback Flipper / ZDP 189
1 - CRK Small Sebenza 31/Macassar Ebony Inlays
1 - CRK Large Inkosi Insingo/ Black Micarta Inlays
1 - CRK Small Sebenza 31 Insingo/Magnacut
you know there are people there right? people that have nothing to do with the politics of the place they were born? people that are just trying to survive and provide a life for their families like everyone else in the world?
When did I mention people? Is china selling people now too? You know I was talking about PRODUCTS, right? It has nothing to do with politics. 99% of the products that come out of china are ABSOLUTE GARBAGE. It's the truth whether you like it or not.
it cost me $8 to get a ceramic bearing. i was already replacing the cage (which actually does make a noticeable difference) and the scales, so "all that time, money and effort" for me was about $8 and 3 seconds. hardly a substantial burden to try something out. i don't think it was a necessary upgrade at all and probably won't do it again, but it was very easy and cheap experiment to conduct.
There are some people out there buying JUST bearings to replace. If you're replacing the cage as well, then it's definitely not a time/effort issue. As for $8, we can safely round that to $10 after tax and shipping. So, are you ready to take a cigarette lighter to a $10 bill? It's only $10, right? Why not? Go on, post a video of you dropping a ten in your shredder.
Money is money, and if I'm going to spend it (be a dime or a grand) I'm **** sure going to get something for it. Installing a bearing that has NO REAL OR PERCEIVED BENEFIT over the factory bearing is, to me, dropping a $10 bill into a paper shredder. That's how I feel. If you feel differently, good for you.
you said, "nothing good ever comes out of that dump of a country." countries are made up of people. so, even if you only meant to disparage products, 1. you didn't, and 2. you're wrong. lots of great quality products come from china. whatever we think about that politically is going to be irrelevant soon, if not already, because they are winning. they are winning because they are able to produce high quality "ABSOLUTE GARBAGE" for a better value than companies we would rather support, like spyderco. if it was really just garbage, people wouldn't be buying it. it's probably best to pull our heads out of the sand and do something productive if we think there needs to be a change instead of just writing it off as a dump of a country that produces garbage and hoping that lie sticks.
as far as the experiment of switching out a ball bearing, i'm not really sure why you care so much what other people do with their money and time. to you, that might be like burning or shredding a $10 bill, but for me and many others, it was an attempt to see if it might improve the action (even though it didn't need improving). it wasn't necessary (as i've already stated more than once) and it didn't improve anything in my experience (i've also said this), but i could hardly know that without trying first. it cost me less than a drive-thru meal to find out for myself and now i can share my experience with the community. and without that information, someone else might be wondering the same as i was and thinking about spending $10 of their own. so, sometimes, it's not about the unnecessary $10 ceramic bearing... it's about the experience and the sharing of knowledge.
and even if someone actually wants to spend $10 on a ceramic bearing because they think it's cool and it makes the knife their own, or whatever other reason they conjure up, who cares? if that's not a waste to them, it's not really your place to insist it is.
Why don't you guys start your own thread about China and all these prissy trinkets for your Manix's in another thread. This thread is about the beast that is 15V steel!
sorry. i already typed it all out. i'll be happy to post about prissy trinkets in the proper thread from now on.
you said, "nothing good ever comes out of that dump of a country." countries are made up of people. so, even if you only meant to disparage products, 1. you didn't, and 2. you're wrong. lots of great quality products come from china. whatever we think about that politically is going to be irrelevant soon, if not already, because they are winning. they are winning because they are able to produce high quality "ABSOLUTE GARBAGE" for a better value than companies we would rather support, like spyderco. if it was really just garbage, people wouldn't be buying it. it's probably best to pull our heads out of the sand and do something productive if we think there needs to be a change instead of just writing it off as a dump of a country that produces garbage and hoping that lie sticks.
You keep mentioning politics and people, neither of which I have brought up or are relevant. The country is a dump, so is everything that comes out of it. That's how I feel, you're not going to change my mind. There, case closed. You will continue to buy things made in china, I will not. End of story.
i'm not really sure why you care so much what other people do with their money and time. to you, that might be like burning or shredding a $10 bill, but for me and many others, it was an attempt to see if it might improve the action (even though it didn't need improving). it wasn't necessary (as i've already stated more than once) and it didn't improve anything in my experience (i've also said this), but i could hardly know that without trying first. it cost me less than a drive-thru meal to find out for myself and now i can share my experience with the community. and without that information, someone else might be wondering the same as i was and thinking about spending $10 of their own. so, sometimes, it's not about the unnecessary $10 ceramic bearing... it's about the experience and the sharing of knowledge.
and even if someone actually wants to spend $10 on a ceramic bearing because they think it's cool and it makes the knife their own, or whatever other reason they conjure up, who cares? if that's not a waste to them, it's not really your place to insist it is.
I don't post that for people like you (that would ignore it in any case), I post it for the curious newbies that are just getting into it and are looking for info and don't know any better. You post the pros, I post the cons. So I can just as easily return your statement back to you; Why do you care so much what other people do with their money or time? And furthermore, why do you care what I post? Just because I disagree with you doesn't mean others shouldn't see it. I answer to nobody, and I'll post whatever I want to post.
I'm glad they went stonewash on this model. I have stared at the the standard Shaman and think that it is one of the finest standard models from Golden with all of its great details. Did they stonewash the clip as well? Similar to the Shaman or just the blade?
- Jeff May your feet be warm and dry and your throat warm with whiskey. A knife in hand or in the sock band.
MNOSD Member #0005
I'm glad they went stonewash on this model. I have stared at the the standard Shaman and think that it is one of the finest standard models from Golden with all of its great details. Did they stonewash the clip as well? Similar to the Shaman or just the blade?
It really is a nice finish, I love how much it hides all the grime while cutting.
Unfortunately, it's a polished clip. Wish they would have used something similar to the GB2 clip on this one, just a shade lighter. I always loved that clip finish on that knife.
15 's in 10 different steels
1 - Bradford Guardian 3 / Vanadis 4E Wharnie
1 - Monterey Bay Knives Slayback Flipper / ZDP 189
1 - CRK Small Sebenza 31/Macassar Ebony Inlays
1 - CRK Large Inkosi Insingo/ Black Micarta Inlays
1 - CRK Small Sebenza 31 Insingo/Magnacut
's in 10 different steels
