Spyderco and Additive Replicators: What's the company plan?

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Seriously.

With all due love and respect to sal and the crew at Spyderco, and by now after all these decades of being a loyal customer you know I am not some troll like certain persons falsely claim about me: what is the plan or does Spyderco have a serious and tangible plan as to how to integrate the company into the inevitable full scale Advanced Additive Manufacturing, Replication Exponential Manufacturing Paradigm?

This is not so called Techno Babble like Social Media naysayers love to joke about. I was personal friends with the late Marvin Minsky of MIT and know men like Marshall Burns of Ennex Corp and many others. This is not a Toy Technology. With all due respect to them, many in the Machinist/Bulk Factory
Manufacturing/Metallurgy world still, as of 2025 AD, mock this technology even though fully functional Turbine Blades and Rocket Engines are made with it.

That attitude reminds me of the Carbon Steel Snobs making fun of the fledgling Particle Metallurgy, Powder Steel Shift around 1990. I knew a custom maker who jokingly told me Atomized Powder Steel is pure pipedream. And so once we have 3D Printers that can produce knives with industrial control over the very carbon-iron-atomic structure, from nano to macro metric levels and matter becomes as manipulatable as software is now.....what will Spyderco do?


You can have code writers design knives that the machines will materialize. That is Option 1. You would have to use some form or method to prevent electronic bootleggers and pirates from downloading the file and having it replicated on home units. That is after Self Replication allows nearly anyone to own the 3d printer. Unless the govt bans civilian ownership. Some states now require licenses to own them. PS: the "AM Printing will never be cheaper than mass casting and assembly lines" is gone once Self Replication is taken into account. All comments warmly welcomed.

[jwesley235]

'Advanced Additive Manufacturing, Replication Exponential Manufacturing Paradigm?' It might help to define your terms and be little less abstract but what you're talking about is a huge transformation that is still inchoate.

It's a little like asking "what's Spyderco's plan for the upcoming Ice Age?" Sure, they are going to need a plan (every manufacturer will) but it's hard to make a map when the landscape is still being formed. Assuming they are formulating a serious and tangible plan for this nebulous future, it would not be competitively advantageous to disclose it now, I think.

Cheers.

[Mushroom]

Advanced Additive Manufacturing? Oh, you mean 3d printing...

3d printing is a gimmick and produces primarily garbage right now. It is for toys and trash.

Spyderco probably uses it for prototypes already. Spyderco does not have plans to overhaul their entire manufacturing processes and facilities to convert them into 3d printing farms. Personally, I hope Spyderco never uses 3d printing during their actual manufacturing process for products they intend to sell. At least not until it has reached the point where it can produce something that isn't junk.

[Evil D]

Even if it's someday possible to 3D print an entire knife, and even if that end result is comparable to what we get from manufacturing today, it will always still come down to cost.

There are lots of inventions that were supposed to completely transform the world but never really did. Most everyone has a microwave but people still cook on charcoal grills. There are mass produced pocket knives but people still spend big money on handmade knives. Just because an advanced technology comes along, doesn't mean it'll replace everything that's inferior to it.

I still drive a car with a carburetor

[cjk]

There was a company covered recently who was using MIM to "print" blades in S35VN. Is that similar?
I forget their name. I also realize that the use of the word "print" might be incorrect.

[Guts]

Advanced Additive Manufacturing? Oh, you mean 3d printing...

3d printing is a gimmick and produces primarily garbage right now. It is for toys and trash.

Spyderco probably uses it for prototypes already. Spyderco does not have plans to overhaul their entire manufacturing processes and facilities to convert them into 3d printing farms. Personally, I hope Spyderco never uses 3d printing during their actual manufacturing process for products they intend to sell. At least not until it has reached the point where it can produce something that isn't junk.

I gotta respectfully disagree with this. Perhaps on the general consumer side you could make that argument. People absolutely do print a lot of useless stuff with the consumer grade printers for sure. Those are just the things that some people choose to print though, not the only thing 3D printing is capable of. As someone who's watched the 3D printing industry over the last decade or so, it's more popular than ever and to generalize it as only for toys and trash I just can't agree with that. There's a lot more applications and particularly materials one can print than most probably realize. The industry has grown massively within the last few years.

The obvious industry that uses it most is engineering. Metal 3D printers do already exist. Still early days and expensive, not really any mainstream consumer options, but they do exist and companies are already using them. There's a company in Texas I believe it was, 3D printing literal houses with concrete using essentially massive FDM printers. You can print chocolate with it for the culinary industry. It's used in the medical field, aerospace, automotive, and of course at home.

It's just a different type of manufacturing and absolutely has its strengths and weaknesses, but you could say that for any other type of manufacturing as well. Reductive manufacturing can't produce some of the detailed geometry that additive manufacturing like 3D printing is capable of for example. On the other hand, with reductive manufacturing you're dealing with homogenous materials that are generally stronger than the bonded layers of FDM 3D printing. SLS and SLA printing are whole other beasts. It's honestly a great tool to have at home even if you're not a knife person. How it'll fit into the knife industry beyond prototypes remains to be seen, but you're only limited by your imagination with this technology I've learned.

Heck, as a knife guy I use my printer for making a lot of knife adjacent stuff. Particularly for sharpening. Made some angle guides when I was teaching myself to freehand, strop paddles, custom stone containers for all my benchstones, designed an adjustable sharpening stone holder, organizational trays, upgrades for guided sharpeners, etc.

[Guts]

There was a company covered recently who was using MIM to "print" blades in S35VN. Is that similar?
I forget their name. I also realize that the use of the word "print" might be incorrect.

It was Magpul. MIM stands for Metal Injection Molding so it's different from 3D printing. Think plastic injection molding but with metal instead. It does use a form of powdered metal however.

[Henry - get both]

Is this thread about "direct metal laser sintering" or something else?

[Evil D]

Koenigsegg uses 3D printing in their multimillion dollar hypercars, and lots of high end companies use it for rapid prototyping.

3D printing is also a lot more advanced than the hobbyist stuff that most people own at home.

[Mushroom]

Advanced Additive Manufacturing? Oh, you mean 3d printing...

3d printing is a gimmick and produces primarily garbage right now. It is for toys and trash.

Spyderco probably uses it for prototypes already. Spyderco does not have plans to overhaul their entire manufacturing processes and facilities to convert them into 3d printing farms. Personally, I hope Spyderco never uses 3d printing during their actual manufacturing process for products they intend to sell. At least not until it has reached the point where it can produce something that isn't junk.

I gotta respectfully disagree with this. Perhaps on the general consumer side you could make that argument. People absolutely do print a lot of useless stuff with the consumer grade printers for sure. Those are just the things that some people choose to print though, not the only thing 3D printing is capable of. As someone who's watched the 3D printing industry over the last decade or so, it's more popular than ever and to generalize it as only for toys and trash I just can't agree with that. There's a lot more applications and particularly materials one can print than most probably realize. The industry has grown massively within the last few years.

The obvious industry that uses it most is engineering. Metal 3D printers do already exist. Still early days and expensive, not really any mainstream consumer options, but they do exist and companies are already using them. There's a company in Texas I believe it was, 3D printing literal houses with concrete using essentially massive FDM printers. You can print chocolate with it for the culinary industry. It's used in the medical field, aerospace, automotive, and of course at home.

It's just a different type of manufacturing and absolutely has its strengths and weaknesses, but you could say that for any other type of manufacturing as well. Reductive manufacturing can't produce some of the detailed geometry that additive manufacturing like 3D printing is capable of for example. On the other hand, with reductive manufacturing you're dealing with homogenous materials that are generally stronger than the bonded layers of FDM 3D printing. SLS and SLA printing are whole other beasts. It's honestly a great tool to have at home even if you're not a knife person. How it'll fit into the knife industry beyond prototypes remains to be seen, but you're only limited by your imagination with this technology I've learned.

Heck, as a knife guy I use my printer for making a lot of knife adjacent stuff. Particularly for sharpening. Made some angle guides when I was teaching myself to freehand, strop paddles, custom stone containers for all my benchstones, designed an adjustable sharpening stone holder, organizational trays, upgrades for guided sharpeners, etc.

All very good points and believe it or not, I very much agree. Of course I am way oversimplifying my own point by just saying it "produces primarily garbage" but you've done a good job of understanding what I meant. I guess the question here wasn't about consumer grade 3d printing, which is what really peeves me the most.

As you said, it 's a different type of manufacturing and 3D printing definitely has a lot of benefits. I have a design background so I am somewhat familiar with the variety of 3D printing but I just I haven't embraced it the way many have.

[gooeytek]

3D printed Ti is magic. I want an entire body-on-frame truck made out of it.

[Scandi Grind]

I have seen 3d printed firearms suppressors from big brands, and I also know of uses in automotive and aerospace industries, but I have yet to see or hear of an example where it can deffinitely do what we want in knife manufacturing. I don't have a deep understanding of the technology, and I am not an innovator in the field, so for me, I can only think about how you would use it once I have seen somebody produce a particular product with it. I would be surprised if someone hadn't tried making knives with this technology, but I haven't stumbled across anybody who has, which makes me wonder if there is a reason it hasn't been more broadly speculated about, limitations, cost, something of that nature. But it is outside my wheelhouse and I don't really know what impact to expect this technology to have on the knife industry. I do however agree that the age old methods will not go away even if mass production takes a different spin in the future.

[Guts]

All very good points and believe it or not, I very much agree. Of course I am way oversimplifying my own point by just saying it "produces primarily garbage" but you've done a good job of understanding what I meant. I guess the question here wasn't about consumer grade 3d printing, which is what really peeves me the most.

As you said, it 's a different type of manufacturing and 3D printing definitely has a lot of benefits. I have a design background so I am somewhat familiar with the variety of 3D printing but I just I haven't embraced it the way many have.

Yeah if it's even possible to use 3D printing with the types of steels enthusiasts would want, I think we're still a very long ways off from that ever happening. If it happens it would likely be SLS type 3D printing if I had to guess but I'm nowhere near an expert on that subject.

I think it's more likely in the near future that MIM could make headway because it's cheaper than traditional machining long term, the steel would still be homogenous, and it's a very mature process at this point. We've certainly seen it replace traditional machining in other industries for small but complex parts. But again, remains to be seen if the quality will be anywhere near as good as a traditional PM metal. So that Magpul MIM knife has me intrigued if still somewhat skeptical. Very interested to see the real world tests when that gets released.

[wrdwrght]

Good post, SEF.

My AI tool replied:

“3D printer files are commonly referred to by their file formats, which include:

• STL (STereoLithography): The most widely used format, representing objects as triangular meshes. It lacks color and texture information but is universally supported by most 3D printers and software.
• OBJ (Object File Format): Supports complex models with textures and colors, making it ideal for artistic designs. It is widely supported but less common than STL for basic prints.
• 3MF (3D Manufacturing Format): A modern format that includes detailed information about colors, materials, and textures, making it suitable for advanced prints.
• AMF (Additive Manufacturing File Format): Similar to 3MF, it supports multiple materials and colors but is less widely supported.
• PLY (Polygon File Format): Often used with 3D scanners, it includes color and texture details but needs conversion for printing.
• G-code: Not a model file, but a set of instructions generated by slicing software for the printer to execute.”

My dentist now plays in this world. His assistants have digitally scanned my mouth over the past several years, they’ve sent resulting files across the Internet in one of the foregoing formats, and he has put remotely-manufactured returned crowns (perfect-fitting porcelain-coated metal of some type) into my mouth.

While hobbyists have been content with prototyping in a variety of plastics, some manufacturers are obviously putting out metals that meet certain standards.

Unclear to me is what kinds of metals are today compatible with 3D-printing and how post-processing (like heat-treat) would be handled. But all this is coming…

I’d be very surprised if Spyderco has not already become literate In 3D-printing as a prototyping-replacement of the wood Sal has mentioned in his Talkin’ Stories.

When metal-working of the sort knife-makers require reaches the hobbyist, I can see a day when Spyderco sells its digitally-saved designs to hobbyists in general public.

Absent QA and hacking-prevention (yeah, right!), nightmares will ensue. But those same files will bring down the unit-cost of mass production and hurry it along (to meet the similarly-empowered competition).

We who are inclined to realize our own designs (thus inclined to drop out of Spyderco’s market) are so few that we will not be missed.

I’m not a maker. Glesser magic is fine by me.

[xceptnl]

I would expect if Spyderco decides to venture into alternative manufacturing technologies (as inevitably technology and cost will drive) that we will see possible 3D printing of composite parts (backspacers, handle scales, etc.) and possibly MIM parts for liners or non heat treat parts. This seems like a logical and financially viable way to segway into these new alternative manufacturing processes.

I also can acknowledge that refining long standing techniques can be equally as beneficial. Example would be complaints about all micarta handles from Golden Era Spydies and Sal saying they did not intend to make those again. Fast forward 25+ years and we have one. Really, as David said, cost will drive these decisions first and foremost.