New Tenacious Frame Lock in D2?

[chronovore]

So it looks like we are getting a special Tenacious Frame Lock in Chinese D2. I know a bunch of us have been lobbying Sal for upgrades from 8Cr13Mov across the board and while the S35VN Tenacious is certainly an upgrade, this is both interesting and unexpected.

Listening to Eric talk about this, it sounds like they might be using a new OEM for this one. Looking at it, I have to wonder if it is TwoSun. Aside from making lots of titanium frame locks in D2, which could easily be a coincidence, they are one of the few Chinese manufacturers I see doing this kind of finish on titanium frame locks.

Of course, there has been controversy over the edge retention of Chinese D2 versus D2 in American knives, and some of the manufacturers over there do much better with it than others. Curiously, some of the better Chinese D2 we've seen tested shows up in very inexpensive knives, such as those from Petrified Fish. Eric seems to have faith in whoever is manufacturing this one, so I'm not too worried about it.

That being said, most of the Chinese manufacturers have moved away from D2 in their titanium frame locks. Now we mostly see it being used in budget-oriented liner locks, such as the Sencut knives from WE. The only companies I see consistently using D2 in titanium frame locks now are TwoSun and CH. Along with their titanium frame locks in 14C28N and N690, they fill a niche between the seas of "budget" liner locks and "premium" frame locks in S35VN, 20CV, etc.. Especially with the fancy finish here, the real question will be the asking price...

https://youtu.be/dDFVwaxmVx8

[Spyderfreek]

I saw this and am excited. All of my experience with Chinese d2 is that it holds a much better working edge than even the best AUS 8 and 8cr13mov. AUS 8 and 8cr hold a special place in my heart because I owned and used so many great knives on them but the reality is in 2024 compared to everything else on the budget market the edge retention is horrendous, and there are lots of other options that didn't exist that do so much better, D2 being one of them.

[Toucan]

Nice video. The new Tenacious almost buries the lede. That Rex121 Sage looks awesome. As does the 15V Manix LW, but I am disappointed it is another limited run.

I wonder if there is any way to know more about what maker they're using for the D2 Tenacious. I've been wanting to try out TwoSun for years, but their knives have been a little too out there for me (kinda ZT-esque?). I'm pretty sure Spyderco doesn't switch makers for a particular model barring something drastic.

I think the dressy D2 Tenacious makes the least sense to me of all the variants. A M4/micarta one makes total sense, as does the LW S35vn version. This one seems like it'll have stiff competition from a decade+ of ultra affordable D2 knives. Also, work knife weight and proportions for a dress knife seem not ideal. That being said, I'm also just not the target audience; I don't own any dressy titanium handle knives, frame locks, or D2 knives. Hope it does well for them.

[spydergoat]

I like that Spyderco is gonna compete in this arena, even though the D2/titanium framelock is not my kind of thing. I'm still interested to see how far they can push the price/performance ratio. I think this finish will appeal to knife youtubers who like to see certain specs at low prices.

[jmj3esq]

That Tenacious looks sick! Im a sucker for that knife and Titanium. Never used D2 yet.

[Skidoosh]

The Tenacious D

[electro-static]

Do the blade swaps with the M4 ones!

[kennethsime]

Would likely sell better with M390, but man am I stoked for the frame lock tenacious.

[Wartstein]

I really like that the Tenacious-platform gets "pushed" lately!

Imo it is just "the" Spydie for those who happen to prefer liner/frame lock over comp.lock, who like a lot of cutting edge in a very compact package, who want edge really all the way to the handle..
...and to me the ergos of this knife don't get talked about enough: In real, especially harder use they are very good, at least for my hand.

Besides, the three pieces I have owned honestly had flawless fit and finish.

So to see choices and variants is a great thing imo!

[Fireman]

Do the blade swaps with the M4 ones!

Will they be compatible?

[Wartstein]

Do the blade swaps with the M4 ones!

Will they be compatible?

I wonder that too... frame vs linerlock might require a different lock Interface also on the blade?

[vanka]

I'm glad to see Spyderco developing the more budget lines. Ever since they brought s35vn in the ambitious/tenacious/resilience it was clear they have a plan to develop the budget line. Last year we had M4 tenacious and I believe we'll get to see M4 spreading to the entire line (I hope so. Resilience in M4 would be awesome).
I was expecting to see more of a high end steel with carbon fibre as the next level of development of the line, but this titanium framelock tenacious came out of nowhere. Totally surprised in a positive way. As far as the concern it is using D2, I believe this is only testing of the waters. If it is well accepted we'll see upgrades in the steel very quickly.

[TimButterfield]

The Tenacious D

Similar. Ever since I first heard of it, I keep thinking of it as "Ti nacious" instead of "Te nacious".

[Fireman]

This may be the most “Metal” knife ever!!!!

[Wartstein]

Spyderco and D2 is something that just sounds unfamiliar... but actually in the sense of "interesting"!

I don´t have a lot of experience with D2 - mostly in my Boeker Vox Rold Plus, a fixed blade in pretty much exactly ESEE 6 size, so not small and definitely used for chopping tasks and the like.
No problem for that D2 so far, despite some consider it as having not enough toughness and being too brittle.

Curious how Spyderco will do their D2!

[Skywalker]

Spyderco and D2 is something that just sounds unfamiliar... but actually in the sense of "interesting"!

...

Curious how Spyderco will do their D2!

There's been CPM-D2 versions of the original Military and Paramilitary, as well as the Bradley Bowie and Junction fixed blades using PSF27, a spray-formed version of D2.

Not sure if there's been a Spyderco using ingot D2 before now, though?

[Manifestgtr]

I really like my tenacious but I haven’t had the motivation to get a new one…even m4, one of my favorite steels on planet earth…it just wasn’t quiiiiite enough to bump it up the priority list. This is…

I think D2 gets a bad rap because it was sort of ran through by budget knife manufacturers a few years back. The older civivi models I’ve had in D2 have been great and I have every reason to believe that Spyderco will probably do an even better job. Couple that with a titanium frame lock and now you’ve REALLY got my attention. It’s just interesting and different…I love interesting and different.

[chronovore]

I wonder if there is any way to know more about what maker they're using for the D2 Tenacious. I've been wanting to try out TwoSun for years, but their knives have been a little too out there for me (kinda ZT-esque?). I'm pretty sure Spyderco doesn't switch makers for a particular model barring something drastic.

We won't know for sure unless they tell us. The legacy American companies tend to keep quiet about their outsourcing partners. We only know for sure that Spyderco uses Sanrenmu for some (not all) of the Chinese models because Sal told us. This one doesn't look like it was done by Sanrenmu and while I'm cautious about reading too far into Eric's comments, it sounds like they might be using someone new.

TwoSun is an educated guess here based on other work they do. Another possibility is Kubey. Aside from doing a lot with D2, they are the only other company I've seen doing this kind of finish on titanium.

The Tenacious D

Hilarious!

Not sure if there's been a Spyderco using ingot D2 before now, though?

I'm pretty sure that there had been American Spyderco models in D2 but not in a long time. I could be wrong.

[cjk]

I find lightning anodizing unattractive. I’m sure some folks like it. I find it to be an odd choice.

[kennethsime]

I find lightning anodizing unattractive. I’m sure some folks like it. I find it to be an odd choice.

I feel similarly. I also think Fat Carbon looks silly.

I think it's an attempt to appeal to the Civivi/CJRB/Kizer fans.