The Lil' Temperance 3 Lightweight: A comprehensive review

[Vamais]

What about OG green and AEB-L with the new BBB heat treatment? I'd be interested to see how a fine-grained high edge stability steel would perform with the LT3's design/ergonomics.

These two videos from Cliff Stamp (12C27 is pretty close to AEB-L) have gotten me curious.

[p_atrick]

I can’t help but wonder if Cliff was getting those results since the blade stock was so thin. The LTLW has got some thick blade stock. Not saying a low-carbide steel is a bad idea, but I’m not sure we’d see Cliff’s results in a LTLW.

[twinboysdad]

No traction on a Rhino blade variant?

[Vamais]

Another flavor idea, to see if anyone would be interested:

OG green with laminated Hap40 run as hard as Rex45 (its Crucible equivalent). High edge stability, a steel that has already been used in Japan, and corrosion resistant on the bulk of the blade. A quick search shows that there has been enough variation in handle colors for this steel that using the OG green wouldn't break anything.

Could also be solid Hap40 if people don't like the softness of the cladding.

Either option could be coated or not.

[p_atrick]

Another flavor idea, to see if anyone would be interested:

OG green with laminated Hap40 run as hard as Rex45 (its Crucible equivalent). High edge stability, a steel that has already been used in Japan, and corrosion resistant on the bulk of the blade. A quick search shows that there has been enough variation in handle colors for this steel that using the OG green wouldn't break anything.

Could also be solid Hap40 if people don't like the softness of the cladding.

Either option could be coated or not.

Question for the steel experts out there. I heard that laminated steels do not get as hard as a steel without lamination. Is that true? I'm not sure if Hap40, when laminated, can get as hard as Rex45. Not that I think Hap40 is bad or anything. I have no idea what the hardness difference is (assuming there is one). Honestly, I'd probably never notice the difference anyways. Just curious if what I heard was true or not.

PS - I like lamination lines. I think the contrast looks nice.

[vivi]

I'd buy a Lil Temp 1 re-issue in a heartbeat.

I loved the original handle. The new handle might work better for different grips, but that versatility comes at the expense of regular saber grip ergonomics being so amazing.

I still remember the first time I held the original, I told my friend the handle felt like I squeezed a ball of silly putty then attached a knife blade to it. Incredibly comfortable.

[SpeedHoles]

Another flavor idea, to see if anyone would be interested:

OG green with laminated Hap40 run as hard as Rex45 (its Crucible equivalent). High edge stability, a steel that has already been used in Japan, and corrosion resistant on the bulk of the blade. A quick search shows that there has been enough variation in handle colors for this steel that using the OG green wouldn't break anything.

Could also be solid Hap40 if people don't like the softness of the cladding.

Either option could be coated or not.

Yesssss.

[twinboysdad]

I'd buy a Lil Temp 1 re-issue in a heartbeat.

I loved the original handle. The new handle might work better for different grips, but that versatility comes at the expense of regular saber grip ergonomics being so amazing.

I still remember the first time I held the original, I told my friend the handle felt like I squeezed a ball of silly putty then attached a knife blade to it. Incredibly comfortable.

I’m with you, the OG is the one I want

[Drubieg]

I just got an OG temp1 from AZCK, and it had a fully stripped pivot barrel. Also, the detent is crud… when taking it apart I saw it doesn’t have a tradition detent. Instead it has a “ledge” that contacts the front edge of the comp lock bar that must be overcome. Cool concept, not sure it works the best tho. I think I’m gunna send it back. The pivot just spins and won’t tighten the blade down.Any objections?

[vivi]

I just got an OG temp1 from AZCK, and it had a fully stripped pivot barrel. Also, the detent is crud… when taking it apart I saw it doesn’t have a tradition detent. Instead it has a “ledge” that contacts the front edge of the comp lock bar that must be overcome. Cool concept, not sure it works the best tho. I think I’m gunna send it back. The pivot just spins and won’t tighten the blade down.Any objections?

Old compression lock knives like the Yojimbo 1, Paramilitary, ATR and Lil Temp 1 had a different method of keeping the blade closed as you found out.

Shame about the pivot barrel. I'd make you an offer if that was something I thought I could fix. An OG Lil Temp is something I wouldn't mind adding back into my collection.

[Drubieg]

I just got an OG temp1 from AZCK, and it had a fully stripped pivot barrel. Also, the detent is crud… when taking it apart I saw it doesn’t have a tradition detent. Instead it has a “ledge” that contacts the front edge of the comp lock bar that must be overcome. Cool concept, not sure it works the best tho. I think I’m gunna send it back. The pivot just spins and won’t tighten the blade down.Any objections?

Old compression lock knives like the Yojimbo 1, Paramilitary, ATR and Lil Temp 1 had a different method of keeping the blade closed as you found out.

Shame about the pivot barrel. I'd make you an offer if that was something I thought I could fix. An OG Lil Temp is something I wouldn't mind adding back into my collection.

That style detent is a neat idea.

I thought about how I could fix it too. Thought about replacing the pivot with one I could find. Thought about sending it to Spyderco but idk if they could help, I doubt they have a spare lil temp 1 laying around, it’s a rather unique pivot. I am def disappointed cus I really like the knife. I even think I could add a detent ball if I wanted

[Aladinsane]

Got my Lil' Temp LW on Tuesday from National Knives and have been liking it! I adjusted the pocket clip right away as it was bone crushingly tight!! The action was pretty sluggish at first, so I loosened the pivot screw. This helped, but I found that by loosening the blade stop screw the action was greatly improved. I took this screw out of both sides and put Blue Loc-Tite on them. If I coordinate it right, I can open and close it with just a flick of the wrist, but I usually just use my thumb to open it! It opens easier than my Leafjumpers, and a bit easier than my son's Persistence liner-lock. Overall I am more than happy with this knife. Blade is centered and no blade play, locks up solid. Also, even with denim jeans on, the knife is not bulgy in my pocket, and it looks to be no taller than the Leafjumper when closed. Great knife!

[Vamais]

Yeah, tightening the stop pin screws will put more squeeze on the pivot. Both the stop pin screws and pivot screw need to be tuned with this model.

[Aladinsane]

Here’s something I discovered while sharpening my LT3LW SE. I started on the Sharpmaker with the 15 degree rods, but they were clearly only hitting the shoulder of the bevel. I then switched to the 20 degree rods, and that seemed to be ok, until I found that my Leafjumper SE was much sharper.
I then colored the edge with a Sharpie, tried the 20 degree rods again, and saw that no color had been removed from the edge. Practicing further through trial and error, I discovered that in order to hit the edge I had to mimic the angle of the opposing rod, and hold that angle while sharpening the Spyderedge. After a few passes, the serrations were nice and sharp.
I was surprised at the extreme angle that I had to hold the blade in order to get the edge to contact the rods. What does everyone else set the angle on if you have a LTLW SE and a Sharpmaker?
Is the angle so steep due to the thickness of the bladestock, or am I doing something wrong?

[zuludelta]

Here’s something I discovered while sharpening my LT3LW SE. I started on the Sharpmaker with the 15 degree rods, but they were clearly only hitting the shoulder of the bevel. I then switched to the 20 degree rods, and that seemed to be ok, until I found that my Leafjumper SE was much sharper.
I then colored the edge with a Sharpie, tried the 20 degree rods again, and saw that no color had been removed from the edge. Practicing further through trial and error, I discovered that in order to hit the edge I had to mimic the angle of the opposing rod, and hold that angle while sharpening the Spyderedge. After a few passes, the serrations were nice and sharp.
I was surprised at the extreme angle that I had to hold the blade in order to get the edge to contact the rods. What does everyone else set the angle on if you have a LTLW SE and a Sharpmaker?
Is the angle so steep due to the thickness of the bladestock, or am I doing something wrong?

Your Sharpmaker experience with the LT3LW SE somewhat mirrors my early sharpening attempts with the model, although yours seems to be much more extreme in terms of the angle adjustment you have to make.

I noticed out of the box that my LT3LW SE had a fairly narrow bevel. The edge itself was ground consistently (no burrs or wire edge) & was plenty sharp but just by looking at it, I could tell that it was probably at around 28° on the beveled side (from your description, I would guess yours was probably somewhere closer to 33° to 35°).

Now here's the thing: 28° (and especially 35°) initially sounds like quite an obtuse edge angle for a pocket knife, but keep in mind that the LT3LW SE is asymmetrically chisel-ground (as are all SE knives), so its overall edge angle is still several degrees lower than a conventional v-grind blade at 20° per side (which works out to 40° in total). This more acute geometry is part of the reason why SE Spydercos seemingly hold a working edge longer when cutting certain materials compared to their PE counterparts (though of course this comes with its own downsides & trade-offs).

I have since "back-beveled" my LT3LW SE to 20° (using the corners of the CBN rods to more quickly take off material) to match the angles on my other SE Spydies. At that angle, it is an absolute laser, but to be perfectly honest, I was okay with the 28° factory edge angle in terms of work cutting performance, and it could be argued that it was more practical in the sense that it would stand up to twisting motions and lateral pressure better.

[Aladinsane]

Here’s something I discovered while sharpening my LT3LW SE. I started on the Sharpmaker with the 15 degree rods, but they were clearly only hitting the shoulder of the bevel. I then switched to the 20 degree rods, and that seemed to be ok, until I found that my Leafjumper SE was much sharper.
I then colored the edge with a Sharpie, tried the 20 degree rods again, and saw that no color had been removed from the edge. Practicing further through trial and error, I discovered that in order to hit the edge I had to mimic the angle of the opposing rod, and hold that angle while sharpening the Spyderedge. After a few passes, the serrations were nice and sharp.
I was surprised at the extreme angle that I had to hold the blade in order to get the edge to contact the rods. What does everyone else set the angle on if you have a LTLW SE and a Sharpmaker?
Is the angle so steep due to the thickness of the bladestock, or am I doing something wrong?

Your Sharpmaker experience with the LT3LW SE somewhat mirrors my early sharpening attempts with the model, although yours seems to be much more extreme in terms of the angle adjustment you have to make.

I noticed out of the box that my LT3LW SE had a fairly narrow bevel. The edge itself was ground consistently (no burrs or wire edge) & was plenty sharp but just by looking at it, I could tell that it was probably at around 28° on the beveled side (from your description, I would guess yours was probably somewhere closer to 33° to 35°).

Now here's the thing: 28° (and especially 35°) initially sounds like quite an obtuse edge angle for a pocket knife, but keep in mind that the LT3LW SE is asymmetrically chisel-ground (as are all SE knives), so its overall edge angle is still several degrees lower than a conventional v-grind blade at 20° per side (which works out to 40° in total). This more acute geometry is part of the reason why SE Spydercos seemingly hold a working edge longer when cutting certain materials compared to their PE counterparts (though of course this comes with its own downsides & trade-offs).

I have since "back-beveled" my LT3LW SE to 20° (using the corners of the CBN rods to more quickly take off material) to match the angles on my other SE Spydies. At that angle, it is an absolute laser, but to be perfectly honest, I was okay with the 28° factory edge angle in terms of work cutting performance, and it could be argued that it was more practical in the sense that it would stand up to twisting motions and lateral pressure better.

Thank you! I have achieved a pretty good edge on it as is, so I might keep it as such while I learn more about sharpening.

I’m glad my knife is not an outlier. Well, maybe just a little! Anyway, I might work the angle down a little bit, but not too much. I’m afraid of ruining my blade and you know the saying,”Better is the enemy of good!” I’d say that right now I have a “good” edge, workable and durable.

Here’s a not great photo of the marker rubbing off. The marker on the scallop to the right has been worn off from using it before I took the photo:

[Aladinsane]

Here’s something I discovered while sharpening my LT3LW SE. I started on the Sharpmaker with the 15 degree rods, but they were clearly only hitting the shoulder of the bevel. I then switched to the 20 degree rods, and that seemed to be ok, until I found that my Leafjumper SE was much sharper.
I then colored the edge with a Sharpie, tried the 20 degree rods again, and saw that no color had been removed from the edge. Practicing further through trial and error, I discovered that in order to hit the edge I had to mimic the angle of the opposing rod, and hold that angle while sharpening the Spyderedge. After a few passes, the serrations were nice and sharp.
I was surprised at the extreme angle that I had to hold the blade in order to get the edge to contact the rods. What does everyone else set the angle on if you have a LTLW SE and a Sharpmaker?
Is the angle so steep due to the thickness of the bladestock, or am I doing something wrong?

Your Sharpmaker experience with the LT3LW SE somewhat mirrors my early sharpening attempts with the model, although yours seems to be much more extreme in terms of the angle adjustment you have to make.

I noticed out of the box that my LT3LW SE had a fairly narrow bevel. The edge itself was ground consistently (no burrs or wire edge) & was plenty sharp but just by looking at it, I could tell that it was probably at around 28° on the beveled side (from your description, I would guess yours was probably somewhere closer to 33° to 35°).

Now here's the thing: 28° (and especially 35°) initially sounds like quite an obtuse edge angle for a pocket knife, but keep in mind that the LT3LW SE is asymmetrically chisel-ground (as are all SE knives), so its overall edge angle is still several degrees lower than a conventional v-grind blade at 20° per side (which works out to 40° in total). This more acute geometry is part of the reason why SE Spydercos seemingly hold a working edge longer when cutting certain materials compared to their PE counterparts (though of course this comes with its own downsides & trade-offs).

I have since "back-beveled" my LT3LW SE to 20° (using the corners of the CBN rods to more quickly take off material) to match the angles on my other SE Spydies. At that angle, it is an absolute laser, but to be perfectly honest, I was okay with the 28° factory edge angle in terms of work cutting performance, and it could be argued that it was more practical in the sense that it would stand up to twisting motions and lateral pressure better.

I had some free time this weekend and worked on the angle of my LT3LW SE. After some experimenting, I was able to set the edge to approx. 26 degrees by using an eraser to change the angle of the Sharpmaker. This has worked out quite well as I can now hold a consistent angle, which I suppose is the key to sharpening. I also discovered that my Leafjumper is the same thickness as the eraser, so I can use that if someone takes the eraser.

I have been able to get my LT3LW very sharp now and will probably continue with this method. I suppose it is a bit unorthodox, but it works!!

[Meadowlark]

[zuludelta]

I have been able to get my LT3LW very sharp now and will probably continue with this method. I suppose it is a bit unorthodox, but it works!!

Great workaround!

[zuludelta]

You definitely were a big influence in getting me to buy a knife that is different in philosophy from most Spydercos with regard to weight and blade thickness. I'm surprised at how mich I love this knife, as I've said too many times now. I think the build quality and stoutness (****-for-stout was used in the official description) are top notch.

It is quite an efficient (for lack of a better term) design. I like the humps and the finger choils that are associated with the most popular Spyderco folders just fine (in fact, I count the PM2 as among my top 5 favourite folders of all time), but a couple of things that really drew me to the LT3 (and the LT3LW) is the relatively subtle thumb ramp and an edge that goes almost all the way to the handle. In these two aspects, it mirrors the Yojimbo 2, which is not just my longest-serving work Spyderco, but my longest-serving work folder, full stop (prior to getting heavily into Spydercos over a decade ago, I primarily used a multitool as my "work knife"). That means alternating between the Yojimbo 2 and the LT3/LT3W through the workweek is largely seamless as far as ergonomics go, while at the same time, the latter offers an arguably more versatile blade shape than what I normally have at hand with the former.