Spyderco pocket knives - model recommendations

[MiltonSchuster]

Are all spyderco knives considered to be BIFL? Or are only certain models? Looking to spent $60-$70 on a knife. Any recommended spyderco model or maybe different brands that would be a better fit in that price range?

[TazKristi]

Hi, MiltonSchuster:
Welcome to our forum. We hope you enjoy your time with us.

Kristi

[PaloArt]

Are all spyderco knives considered to be BIFL? Or are only certain models? Looking to spent $60-$70 on a knife. Any recommended spyderco model or maybe different brands that would be a better fit in that price range?

Welcome to the forums, if I were you and would consider one pocket knife only for rest of my life, it would be full flat ground model with reasonable blade length and blade steel that is easy to maintain. What comes to mind would be VG10 Endela or Endura, Tenacious (have one for almost a decade and still works great), smaller knife recommendation would be Native Lightweight for example… all those mentioned might not be though in the price range you are looking for so there is as well brilliant line called Byrd by Spyderco - more in your budget and all really lovely knives.

In the end, BIFL for me would be native 5 in s30v, Endura in VG10 or K390 steels (later being expensive) or one heck of a knife for life would be Paramilitary 2 (definitely not within mentioned budget). Check for sales though, sometimes you can get good deal online, avoid eBay and Amazon though as there are too many fakes and fraudsters around. Happy hunting

[WilliamMunny]

Are all spyderco knives considered to be BIFL? Or are only certain models? Looking to spent $60-$70 on a knife. Any recommended spyderco model or maybe different brands that would be a better fit in that price range?

Some more information would greatly help recommendations.

-$60-$70 is not a lot of money for a Knife, where did you get that budget from? Is it just a limitation of available funds or just all you willing to spend on a knife? You can get a good knife in that range that will last you for decades with care but at the $100-$200 range you can get an extremely good knife that would last for life.

-Do you favor a plain edge, serrated edge or combo edge?

-What size of knife do you want? Small less that 3" blade, Large 4" blade or a medium blade?

-Do you have a preference on the blade lock? Liner lock, compression lock, back lock, etc?

-Will this be used around salt water, food prep, humid areas?

-How do you plan to sharpen it?

The above questions might all just be overwhelming but here are my simple recommendations:

-If you have a strict $60-$70 budget, then the Spyderco Tenacious Folding Knife G-10 (3.375" Satin) C122GP. Good all-round midsized knife. Steel is only okay and Chiness made but easy to sharpen. $65
https://www.bladehq.com/item--Spyderco-Tenacious--2754

-If you can spend a bit more money and find a sale, $75-$100 gets you into the Spyderco Endela Thin Blue Line Knife Black FRN (3.4" Serr Satin) C243FPSBKBL. It's on sale at BladeHQ, has a decnet VG-10 steel and is american made.
https://www.bladehq.com/item--Spyderco- ... ne--125858

-If you could streatch your budget a bit more I would highly recommend a Manix 2 LW. The Spyderco Manix 2 Knife Black 86mm (3.37" Satin CTS-BD1N) C101PBK2 is $137 with a good entry level steel, all USA made and a great lock.
https://www.bladehq.com/item--Spyderco- ... ent--14688


Note: Wait for a MAP sale if you are looking to maximize you buying power. Next one should be around Black Friday. Do not buy from Amazon, too many fakes. Stick with known stores like REC, Blade HQ, Knife Joy and many others. Any of the above recommended knives can be bought with better steel for more money. As an example, the Manix 2 LW comes in MagnaCut, amazingly well-balanced steel for only about $20 more than BD1N but it is getting way out of your budget. Finally, budget for a decent sharpener, the Spyderco Sharpmaker is highly recommended. You could spend $1000 on a knife but if you can't sharpen it then its junk.

Good luck, there is a ton of help here.

[derangedhermit]

Are all spyderco knives considered to be BIFL? Or are only certain models? Looking to spent $60-$70 on a knife. Any recommended spyderco model or maybe different brands that would be a better fit in that price range?

Depends on environment and usage.

Usage - knife edges dull with use, and resharpening takes a tiny bit of their useful life away. Given regular heavy use, or abuse, very few if any knives are BIFL, unless they have replaceable blades. OTOH, given light use and reasonable care, almost all knives are BIFL: you are much more likely to lose it than wear it out or break it.

Environment - stainless or semi-stainless materials require less care and maintenance to achieve BIFL. I think most Spyderco knives under $100 have stainless or semi-stainless blades.

[SSD_777]

BIFL? What happened to using plain English that everybody can understand?

[Danke]

[kennethsime]

No. Knives are consumable, just like cars: you will eventually use up the blade.

You can buy a Tenacious for that price, it’s a good knife. Will work hard for you as long as you keep it clean, sharp, screws tight, and pivot lubed.

[JARHEAD]

No. Knives are consumable, just like cars: you will eventually use up the blade.

You can buy a Tenacious for that price, it’s a good knife. Will work hard for you as long as you keep it clean, sharp, screws tight, and pivot lubed.

Ding, ding, ding!

[vivi]

Spyderco knives are absolutely buy it for life tier quality.

Whether one will actually last your for the rest of your life does depend on a few factors.

Are you over sharpening it?

Are you using it enough to eventually wear out the lock?

Are you going to break it prying with it?

Are you going to maintain it or let corrosive environments rust the parts?

I have Spydercos I've carried for 20 years that are still going strong, that I'd expect to be able to carry for another 20 easily. Police 3 is one of them, Pacific Salt another. Fixed blades like the Street Beat will be even harder to wear out.

In your price range you won't have many options if buying new, based on 2025 prices.

You'll mostly be looking at the Tenacious, Resilience or the smaller versions, and the Byrd line.

If you're open to waiting for sales or buying second hand, you could get a Delica, Endura, Pacific Salt, Street Beat or similar.

If I were buying a single Spyderco folder in hopes it'd last me for the rest of my life, the Pacific Salt is hard to beat. It's simple, tough, rust proof and can handle any folding knife task you can throw at it.

[Evil D]

Boy it's not everyday I have to Google an acronym.

As Ken mentioned, no knife is buy it for life unless a company offers some kind of wild warranty that will replace wore out blades if you sharpen them down to a nub. Warranty usually doesn't cover outright consumption of parts. Even if you have a no questions asked warranty that covers abuse and breakage, if you sharpen a knife enough that there's hardly any blade left then that's not a warranty problem, you just reached the end of that blade's lifespan.


In this price range (excluding deals that may be found for discontinued models) you're basically looking at an Ambitious, Tenacious, Resilience, Uptern, Astute, Insistent, Efficient, Ladybugs and Manbugs, Roadies, some of which will put you over $70 after tax and shipping.

A couple better options are the Rock Jumper and Leaf Jumper that can be found on Amazon for $60-70, but Amazon is sometimes sketchy with fakes so definitely make sure it's either a reputable dealer or has free returns.

[kobold]

if you are considering a knife to accompany you through a lifetime, maybe it is worth paying more than that..

[Midnightrider]

Military in whatever steel is appropriate for your cutting lifestyle, and done.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Wouldn't a Pacific Salt be a close BIFL ? But that will be over 100 dollars but will outlast most cheaper knives.

[Fastidiotus]

https://www.knifejoy.com/products/spyde ... rn-handles

Or probably a machete with a full tang, and then on your death bed you can will a fillet knife to whomever you wish to bequeath.

It's a lot easier to buy way too many knives though. That way most can sit in their boxes even though you told yourself you were going to rotate them into your edc. You knew it was a sprint when you bought it and then you decided it was too rare or the action was really nicest example you ever felt on that model or it was the sharpest factory edge you'd ever felt so now it's just a play thing. That way you end up with 50 Bifler's moms and 2 users that you'll thrash out in the time that it takes someone who makes poorer decisions than you to get off probation for their 2nd DUI.

[gk4ever2]

Welcome Milton! Here are my recommendations:

$91.12 Endura
https://www.nationalknives.com/spyderco ... ery=endura

$87.78 Endela
https://www.nationalknives.com/spyderco ... ery=endela

$84.11 Delica
https://www.nationalknives.com/spyderco ... ery=delica

Other colors are available if you don't like the black handles. All 3 have VG-10 steel, which is a good stainless steel. These 3 models are made in Japan, have great quality, and need very little maintenance.

[jdw]

I cannot think of one single utilitarian object that you can spend $70 on that will last a normal lifespan.

[vivi]

I cannot think of one single utilitarian object that you can spend $70 on that will last a normal lifespan.

I can think of many.

I've been using the same fiskars hatchet for 25 years. Old school wind up alarm clocks are pretty much bomb proof. A well made fixed blade that isn't abused or over sharpened can do it. I've been using the mouse pad that came with Mario Paint for the SNES since that came out in the early 90's. My original gameboy from the late 80's is still rockin. Well made furniture can last multiple generations if cared for.



I've been cutting my hair with these wahl clippers since 1996. I've never paid for a haircut since. Still going strong, though I did replace the blades this summer since I goofed up the originals trying to sharpen them myself.

[Red Leader]

Gonna be hard to get a Spyderco for $60-$70 unless you make friends w/ someone going to the Seconds Sale, where you can grab something either at that price or a little cheaper for a basic Golden model. Or wait until the Black Friday 20% off (MAP sale) that rolls around, as another poster mentioned, and grab a Magnacut or Spy27 UK Penknife, which is a lovely little non-locking knife that will still be extremely capable. I've handled several of them, and they all seem great.

Or, you could hop onto Dack Outdoors and pick up a serrated edge Chapparal for $77, wait a month for it to arrive, but then have a 'forum favorite' knife.

[Aladinsane]

I have found that "life" is a relative term. Companies define it differently than the average person might. For example, I have some Eagle Creek luggage that has a "Lifetime Warranty". After about 10 years, the zipper was messed up so I contacted the company to get it repaired under the "Lifetime Warranty". They asked me if the coating was worn off of a particular part of the luggage. When I told them that it was, they informed me that the article had reached the "end of its lifetime" and was therefore no longer eligible for warranty coverage. Even though I have continued to use the luggage for at least 10 more years, the company thinks it is "dead". So, my point is that BIFL, could mean 10, 20, 50, or whatever years.

That being said, I would recommend a Persistance, Tenacious, Alcyone, or Astute for a very good quality budget knife that will last for years if not a "lifetime".