Warranties, Forum Etiquette, and a Thank You

[Wartstein]

Welcome Blaine, glad you enjoy your Para 3 and thanks for offering meaningful food for thought with your first post!

I've said my share on the "flicking" thing extensively already in the corresponding thread (see this post ,viewtopic.php?f=2&t=95274&start=20#p1733771 including vids, and my following posts).

Imo you are right:

For one it is fine imo if people enjoy their folders (also) by just flicking them for fun and without much purpose, though I personally am not much like this and I think it can get annoying.
But it is not any worse or better than enjoying for example getting 5 variants of the same model and not actually using those much.

More importantly though: Belitteling flicking open a folder as "only for unexperienced newbs" and not seeing its facet as an actually very efficient and fast way of opening a folder is a bit "missing the broader picture" in my view.

Especially on large folders without much thumb ramp a short, efficient flick with the thumb can work faster, more efficient , comfortable and safer than a slow roll and to me is certainly something an experienced knife user MAY (not HAS TO !) choose over slow rolling.

Anyway, generally for me this is about not falling in another trap like "SE is hard to sharpen" "backlocks can't be easily operated one handed" and so on.
All things people repeated over and over without gathering real own experience before judging.

Same goes for flicking as one good way of opening a folder.

[aicolainen]

Hi Blaine,
congrats with your bday. A P3 LW for your 49th. I can’t wait to see what you get for your 50th, that will be wild :D

I think you’re on the money with regards to the business case of attracting a diverse range of knife customers. AND, as I’ve pointed out in other threads touching on this topic - we all have to start somewhere. I myself had no interest in folding knives until I was well into my 30s, when I was getting back into competition shooting. Trying to get up to speed with the current gun scene I stumbled upon some reviewers that were also talking about knives. One thing led to another, and before long I was probably reading/watching more knife reviews than gun reviews.
What happened to me, and I think probably describes the journey of many knife afi’s is that the knives that pulled me in, isn’t the knives that made me stay. The stuff that grabbed my attention was the knife “tech” I hadn’t seen before; compression locks, axis locks, BBL’s, titanium frame locks, assisted opening (yes, even that), drop shutty blades and well… probably flickable knives as well.
As I’ve gained experience and used a bunch of knives I’ve found my direction and developed my own preferences (much to the credit of this forum), and many of the features that grabbed my attention early on and lured me too close to the rabbit hole are not the features I look for today.
It’s not important how or why people get into knives and have their interest sparked. As long as there are gateways to recruit enough new enthusiasts good knife companies like Spyderco can thrive and educational resources like this forum will stay relevant and help people along on their journey.
I’ve found my general direction, but I still have much to learn and I make an effort to stay open minded.

Welcome onboard!

[Naperville]

Hello from Castle Rock! Loving all this rain but the near daily hail is getting old.

Let me begin with the thank you. A few weeks ago, my nephew gave me a P3 LW SPY27 for my 49th birthday. My first Spyderco. I've wanted one as long as I could remember but just couldn't swing a Golden, and being here in the 'Do, I really wanted a local Spydie as my first. Anyway, I love the knife more than any other inanimate object I own. It brings me so much joy to look at and to use. I just gotta say thank you to Sal and Eric and everyone at Spyderco who made this knife possible.

Upon learning Spyderco's warranty policy I was surprised. I sort of figured if anyone would encourage owners to take apart, clean, and maintain their product, it would be a company like Spyderco. But after watching weeks of youtube videos with owners taking apart their knives with the wrong tools, the wrong size torx bits, bending, prying and doing who knows what, I am understanding the policies and where they came from. I swapped mine into AWT scales without any issues, but man, some people out there are really making it tough on themselves. Then at the end of the vid they are talking about returning the knife. And these are just the ones making videos. So yeah, I get how this could be a big problem.

I used to be on a lot of forums back in the day. The first was the Colorado Sportbike Club almost 20 years ago. We argued over trivial things, shouted newbs down at times, and had a lot of fun. So I get that, but this stuff is different. I saw a member get shouted down while asking if his knife was fake, mostly because the other guy didn't think the knife was popular enough to fake. I see one guy getting beat up by another because he likes "flipping" his knife open. The other guy, who speaks for the whole forum apparently, basically said to grow up! No place for that kind of talk here! On the knife forum...

Now I am not a fidgeter, but the night I got my Para I learned to thumb flick it, reverse flick it, and Spydie drop it. After that I learned them all lefty. Then I saw a vid where a guy opened it with his index finger from the front side, so I learned that one. Hurts my finger, but that's not the point. Whether it's Tiger bouncing a golf ball on his wedge, someone spinning a basketball on their finger, or a motorcyclist doing a wheelie, there are skills that when one is deeply involved in a hobby they might want to learn to execute. It shows a certain mastery of their craft. Or a lot of time on one's hands. But it definitely shows a love for something when you want to push past the ordinary and enjoy the thing in a different way. They may be completely unnecessary for each hobby, but they are fun, and that is enough. Not everyone desires to learn these tricks. But I'd like to know how many who hate the flicking can actually do it themselves. If you can, and still dislike it, that's one thing. But if you can't do it, then you are just a hater. Those who can do, those who cannot hate.

I look at my Para at least a dozen times a day. I've found the reverse flick to be a beautiful way to open the blade when you just want to look down and admire the beauty. I hold down the compression lock and snap it open when I am pulling it out to cut. Not something I thought about beforehand, it is just an easy, organic way to open the knife. I close it the same way.

One of the things that makes this company great is their willingness to try things other companies won't. But you still gotta have buyers. I don't think you old ******** out here buy enough to keep the company afloat. So you NEED new blood. That guy who flicks his blade open on youtube is helping to sell a lot of product. This allows the company to continue innovating and creating awesome shiz out of awesome steel. So be kind to the newbs. If someone new wants to buy every Spyderco they see that is a GOOD thing. Don't you think?

That is all. I apologize in advance if I ruffled any feathers. I didn't want to call anyone out specifically and I am sure you are all good dudes. I've been the old guy on the forum too, and I know how it feels when the place is changing. But change is good. This needs to be an awesome place for people to share in their love of Spyderco, ask questions without fear, and to boost up our entire community of Spyderbros. Thank you.

P.S. I wish there was a smiley where the eyes are Spyders. That would be cool...

COME BACK!!!! AND KEEP POSTING!!!!



Do not let a few people control the forum. Didn't ruffle my feathers at all. Be the positive voice in the forum. We always want to see and hear what new users are doing with their knives.

I have quite a few knives that were flippers and I enjoyed that activity from time to time. Another activity I like is just taking out all of my knives and looking at them. I am not a machinist or bladesmith so looking at the quality and attributes of the tools makes me feel proud to have made the purchasing decision. Sure some of that has worn off over the years but I get it 100%.

You've got some nice knives now. Collecting knives is an excellent hobby, one that I have enjoyed tremendously. Keep going! You will get to the point of selling some too, and then replace them. It's the knowledge gained in what you like to collect or own that is part of the journey.

I'm 63 and I think there are guys here that are older than myself here. Spyderco makes a high quality knife with the best steels in the world. Stick around!

[SaltyCaribbeanDfly]

Hi Blaine,
Welcome to the forum and Happy 49th…hope you enjoy your time here as much as that Para 3 LW Spy 27

[huyfishin]

great first post and welcome!!

[Bemo]

Welcome to the forum Blaine and congrats on the excellent birthday gift. I think there's room for all types of enthusiasts here and welcome the chance to learn. My fascination has been the elements of design and the steel! Oh my the steels.... no one does steel like Spyderco. Stay positive and enjoy!

[sal]

Hi Blaine,

Welcome to our forum.

sal

[Halfneck]

Welcome from a forum old timer (guess I qualify). It's good to have new blood around here to add different viewpoints & keep the lights on. Just remember to be respectful of the members here if you want that respect back. There's a wealth of Spyderco knowledge amongst this forum.

Re: your Spy27 Para3 LW - great knife & one I'm looking at myself. I've not owned a ParaMilitary since the original. I bought my oldest son a Para3 LW a few years back & found myself actually fidgeting with it. Usually if I want to carry a fidget knife I'll carry my Benchmade 531 due to the flickable nature of the Axis Lock. I found the compression lock on the Para3 LW to have the same flickability. I've also looked at the AWT scales due to change in the pommel. I find the Para3 LW comfortable in hand, but think the AWT scales might be more so.

Again, welcome to the forum.

[Blaine in the Rock]

Thank you for all the warm welcomes. I honestly didn't know what to expect.

This is a great forum! I haven't posted but I've been living in the archives. Reading old threads and learning. There truly is a wealth of info out here. Currently I am laughing myself to actual tears over in the Knife memes thread!

[Ramonade]

I'd be interested to know how you like that SPY27 !

I have a Native 5 LW and a Manix 2 LW in this steel and I really like how "simple" it feels. It performs great and does not need much to come back to the same sharpness

[ChrisinHove]

Hello & welcome to the forum!

Some debates can certainly get passionate here. I take it as proof that people are engaged and care, which is a good thing, even if I sometimes disagree with what is posted.

Even then, I would rather read a good argument for something I don’t agree with, than a bad argument for something that I do agree with.

[Blaine in the Rock]

I certainly don't mind arguing, myself. I was on the freakin' debate team a lifetime ago for some reason I can no longer recall. I'm married. 23 years of experience. So there ya go. Also cool with a flame war in my thread. No worries! Flame on!

In regards to the SPY27, I gotta be honest, I just don't know enough about different steels or this one in particular to be able to make any real pronouncements about it. Most everything I could say would just be parroted from things other people have said. I can say I am really pleased so far. Holding its factory edge well and I am hoping I can get by with keeping it stropped up for a long, long time. Then I will see if my nephew will lend me his Sharpmaker...

[Michael Janich]

Dear Blaine in the Rock (and everyone else):

If you want to learn more about SPY27, here's a great article from Larrin Thomas of knifenerds.com on it: https://knifesteelnerds.com/2020/03/02/ ... -and-more/.

Stay safe,

Mike

[w3tnz]

Welcome to the forum.. I leave a quote for thought.

"You always own the option of having no opinion. There is never any need to get worked up or to trouble your soul about things you can't control. These things are not asking to be judged by you. Leave them alone." - Marcus Aurelius

[Bemo]

Marcus Aurelius was the dude! Well and the other Stoics who taught him well.

[HolySteel]

Also a new guy here of only a few months, but a VERY old member of several other forums. In such a role I have to frequently remind myself of something I was told as a young parent (my kids are 36 now): be careful never to kill their spirit. Kids look up to you as a parent and if you beat down their spirit, you can pretty much squash it out of existence. I tried to remind myself of that fact every time I wanted to treat a child like an adult.

The same principal applies to discussion forums - let new guys get excited and repeat all the things that you already have heard a million times. Sure, they can do research, but that doesn't allow them to express their excitement over something new. As an old member of other forums, I'd rather see the grumpy old members leave, then chase off the new guys who might grow into NON-GRUMPY old members. I get excited all the time when I'm new to a forum - thanks to all of you who listen, probably some of you shaking their heads, and let us grow into this new hobby.

[Albertaboyscott]

Well said HolySteel

[Albertaboyscott]

Welcome Blaine!

[nerdlock]

Also a new guy here of only a few months, but a VERY old member of several other forums. In such a role I have to frequently remind myself of something I was told as a young parent (my kids are 36 now): be careful never to kill their spirit. Kids look up to you as a parent and if you beat down their spirit, you can pretty much squash it out of existence. I tried to remind myself of that fact every time I wanted to treat a child like an adult.

The same principal applies to discussion forums - let new guys get excited and repeat all the things that you already have heard a million times. Sure, they can do research, but that doesn't allow them to express their excitement over something new. As an old member of other forums, I'd rather see the grumpy old members leave, then chase off the new guys who might grow into NON-GRUMPY old members. I get excited all the time when I'm new to a forum - thanks to all of you who listen, probably some of you shaking their heads, and let us grow into this new hobby.

Well said. A good reminder that, at some point in our lives, we were newbies once. Also, tenure in any organization/forum does not necessarily translate into maturity.

Welcome, Blaine!

[vivi]

Also a new guy here of only a few months, but a VERY old member of several other forums. In such a role I have to frequently remind myself of something I was told as a young parent (my kids are 36 now): be careful never to kill their spirit. Kids look up to you as a parent and if you beat down their spirit, you can pretty much squash it out of existence. I tried to remind myself of that fact every time I wanted to treat a child like an adult.

The same principal applies to discussion forums - let new guys get excited and repeat all the things that you already have heard a million times. Sure, they can do research, but that doesn't allow them to express their excitement over something new. As an old member of other forums, I'd rather see the grumpy old members leave, then chase off the new guys who might grow into NON-GRUMPY old members. I get excited all the time when I'm new to a forum - thanks to all of you who listen, probably some of you shaking their heads, and let us grow into this new hobby.

With the low volume of new posts here, it blows my mind anyone is complaining about repetitive topics. Everyone here should be very thankful for every new member that participates here.