Your Ideal Folder for Hiking & Backpacking is....

[Gtscotty]

I'm thinking the upcoming Chief Salt in MC might be a standout for backpacking.

[ladybug93]

I'm thinking the upcoming Chief Salt in MC might be a standout for backpacking.

i've been thinking the same thing. it really wasn't on my radar at all because of my experience with the native (it's a great knife, but found it to be a little thicker geometry than i prefer for edc). i realized though, part of the reason it wasn't preferred for me outside is because of the blade length, but the chief fixes that issue and makes it a great option for this purpose. it would also be a great knife to leave in my day bag as a backup user without a significant weight cost.

[toomanyquestions]

The Spring (B) broke? Not the Lock Bar (A) or the Spring Holder (C)?

I would have expected a break at point C. Let's see what he says.

[Araignee]

In 1987 I saw my first Spyderco models in Sharp Stuff a very unique shop that doesn’t even exist anymore. The CoPilot was chosen to accompany me on countless aerial survey missions. Always liked small, capable blades. Then I bumped into the Dragonfly in the incomparable K390. The sizes are similar when closed. The Dragonfly is far lightweight at 1.2 oz. The ergonomics are night and day, just incredible to the point of changing the laws of physics.

This year, 2023 we have hiked approximately 1500 miles in our wilderness of mountains and canyons over steep, rocky terrain and prefer traveling light and fast. That’s how many miles the Dragonfly has on it now. That is my hiking blade. Comfortable handle for a small folder and trims branches easily and is an excellent food processor when need be. I’ve cut the backbone out of a chicken at home just to test capabilities and it zipped through as good or better than some other very good blades. Zero edge damage, micro chips or rolls. It’ll do anything.

I have some excellent photos but they say the files are too large to attach here.

Nice story, I'd like to see your pics. You could upload them on Imgur.com

[R100]

...I did have the back spring break on a fully linered G10 Native 5. ...

The Spring (B) broke? Not the Lock Bar (A) or the Spring Holder (C)?

Hey Bolster. Yes it was the spring (B). It actually happened about 10 years ago during a time when Australia had a ban on importing one hand opening knives so I couldn't send it back to Spyderco for warranty. I sent them photos and they were kind enough to mail me a spring - they sent 2 actually - even though it was against their usual policy. I was very impressed and grateful. That was the first time I had taken a lock back apart. The original Native 5 G10 is an extremely solid well made knife and I was actually a bit disappointed to see it all depended on a hidden spring which is quite small and flimsy compared to the rest of it.

Dan

[Bolster]

Although to be fair, a heavier spring would make unlocking more difficult, would create more drag during blade rotation, and would put more pressure against the FRN/FRCP/G-10 (or whatever) spring holder thus setting up a different point of potential failure. My guess is that Spyderco tried to calibrate the size of the spring to be optimal, somewhere between too small and too large. I'm going to guess a broken spring may be a hardness/treatment/inclusion failure, rather than an undersized part.

[R100]

Although to be fair, a heavier spring would make unlocking more difficult, would create more drag during blade rotation, and would put more pressure against the FRN/FRCP/G-10 (or whatever) spring holder thus setting up a different point of potential failure. My guess is that Spyderco tried to calibrate the size of the spring to be optimal, somewhere between too small and too large. I'm going to guess a broken spring may be a hardness/treatment/inclusion failure, rather than an undersized part.

Exactly, it was obviously a fault in the steel of the spring itself. I don't think the spring is actually undersized, I just meant that when you look at a superbly well made knife like this N5 you are admiring the heavily built externals without seeing the spring which makes it all work. However, if that spring was any bigger, you couldn't depress the lock bar. I guess I just hadn't really thought about it and had imagined a spring on the scale of a traditional slipjoint.

Dan

[brough]

Voted other for the Stretch XL LW.

[RevMike]

Always Salts. My rotation is Pacific 2, Salt 2, Caribbean, Dragonfly, Native Salts. Almost always serrated. Activity determines size. Runs and hikes in shorts usually get the Dfly or Salt 2. Hikes get the bigger ones.

[Hopsbreath]

I could definitely see a serrated Salt being ideal for through hiking the PCT, AT, whatnot… keep a small ceramic stone on hand to keep the edge crisp and I’d never need another knife. Now for actual bushcrafting in areas with limited trail improvements and no campsites you can’t replace a nice solid fixed blade.

[toomanyquestions]

WAR ? What is?

It is a made-up baseball statistic - Wins Against Replacement. It is premised on the fallacious notion that one can compare a player's performance to a fictional league-average replacement. Of course in sports a high-level player can have effects that do not readily show up in normal statistics. In baseball this might be: a pitcher pitches to certain players in a batting lineup differently because a stellar hitter is absent that day.

In the world of knives, a WAR statistic might include virtually every possible statistic (multiple measurements, weight, blade steel, ease of use, versatility, toughness, ergos, etc) - all rolled into a single carry statistic. Of course it is a fool's errand, just like the baseball statistic.

[toomanyquestions]

Has anyone had trouble with a CBBL getting filled with dirt and grime - so full it won't lock up properly w/o a cleaning?

[navin johnson]

Yes

Frame lock is by far best for outdoor debris use

Ball lock fills up and is hard to open/close

Compression/liner lock when open fill up and blade can’t close

Back locks can be fouled when closed but most crap cleans out for adequate lock up with a couple taps. Can be closed no matter how much debris is around the lock. By far the next best in dirt/sand in my area. IME.

[skeeg11]

Yes

Frame lock is by far best for outdoor debris use

Ball lock fills up and is hard to open/close

Compression/liner lock when open fill up and blade can’t close

Back locks can be fouled when closed but most crap cleans out for adequate lock up with a couple taps. Can be closed no matter how much debris is around the lock. By far the next best in dirt/sand in my area. IME.

Good points. Much to be said for open back titanium frame locks like the SpydieChef and Mantra 2 for outdoor use....especially if salty like the SpydieChef for food prep outdoors.

[Bolster]

So far, 9 people have voted Manix (in 3rd place) and 29 for a Salt series knife (first place). 16 have voted "other" (second place).

So it's possible a Manix Salt could get 38 votes...?

Which, oddly enough, happens to be my new backpacking knife.

[vivi]

So far, 9 people have voted Manix (in 3rd place) and 29 for a Salt series knife (first place). 16 have voted "other" (second place).

So it's possible a Manix Salt could get 38 votes...?

Which, oddly enough, happens to be my new backpacking knife.

No. 37 tops. I voted salt series but the mini manix is a bit too mini for my tastes. In fact I'm wondering if the upcoming Catcherman will become a go to. I can see it doing very well for a folding food prep knife, and it's even lighter than the manix salt, pacific salt or stretch salt to boot.

[Wartstein]

Has anyone had trouble with a CBBL getting filled with dirt and grime - so full it won't lock up properly w/o a cleaning?

No, despite I actually almost expected this to happen when I got my first Manix LW and used it "in dirt and grime" a lot.

Still the CBBL functioned no problem all the time, and this is true also for the other two Manix LWs I got later (and use(d)) in the outdoors in not ideal conditions a lot).

/ Just cause it is not totally off topic:
I do love backlocks, but actually had some not locking in the open position due to snow packed in the notch were the end of the lockbar goes in.
Not a real problem, cause it is not too overlook if it happens and an easy fix, still worth mentioning.

[Bolster]

So far, 9 people have voted Manix (in 3rd place) and 29 for a Salt series knife (first place). 16 have voted "other" (second place).

So it's possible a Manix Salt could get 38 votes...?

Which, oddly enough, happens to be my new backpacking knife.

No. 37 tops. I voted salt series but the mini manix is a bit too mini for my tastes. In fact I'm wondering if the upcoming Catcherman will become a go to. I can see it doing very well for a folding food prep knife, and it's even lighter than the manix salt, pacific salt or stretch salt to boot.

Let me know if my weights are in error:

Stretch XL LW = 3.0 oz
Manix LW Salt = 2.8 oz
Pac Salt H1 = 2.8 oz
Catcherman = 2.8 oz (but over 4-1/2" of blade! wow)
Pac Salt LC200N = 2.6 oz

I wonder if the upcoming Native Chief Salt will be to your liking? @ 3.1 oz.

[vivi]

guess I remembered incorrectly, I thought the manix salt was 3oz. good catch.