2025 Factory Seconds Sale

[TkoK83Spy]

I see you mentioning action of the knives a lot, though I get you're still in that phase! I thought seconds knives weren't based on action, as that's more of a preference thing. Some people like to flick to crazy, others just pocket until needed for use. Action seems to be something that can be adjusted with a few little tweaks, not really making the knife "blemished"

Which then leads me to this...at the sale, is it a non stop flick fest? All you hear is flicking? If so, I know I'll never be able to attend. That would absolutely send me with sensory overload haha.

Back to the seconds knives. I thought they became a second if say, the blade were warped, not centered, had some kind of odd grind or blemishes on the blade or the scales? Just trying to get a better understanding of why/how a knife becomes a second.

[WilliamMunny]

I see you mentioning action of the knives a lot, though I get you're still in that phase! I thought seconds knives weren't based on action, as that's more of a preference thing. Some people like to flick to crazy, others just pocket until needed for use. Action seems to be something that can be adjusted with a few little tweaks, not really making the knife "blemished"

Which then leads me to this...at the sale, is it a non stop flick fest? All you hear is flicking? If so, I know I'll never be able to attend. That would absolutely send me with sensory overload haha.

Back to the seconds knives. I thought they became a second if say, the blade were warped, not centered, had some kind of odd grind or blemishes on the blade or the scales? Just trying to get a better understanding of why/how a knife becomes a second.

I think you are right, seconds, if I remember correctly are 100% functional but blemish. So if there was a true issue with action/lockup it probably wouldn’t make it to a table.

I end up adjusting the action in about about half my new Spydercos to my like so I assume it would be the same for seconds.

I would also probably be a flicker myself too.

[yablanowitz]

Yes, it is pretty much crickets on meth sound of knives being flicked open and shut combined with the the surf of hundreds of voices talking at once. That's a big part of what wears me out so quickly.

Lots of things can cause a knife to be a second. One of the Spydercrew from manufacturing told me "Q.C. is insane. If the very tip gets hot enough to change color during sharpening, even if it cleans off as it's finished, the knife is a second." Over the years I've seen a few fit and finish issues, like the first run of Cats and Chicagos in CF/S30V that looked like the parts were made in individual factories and assembled by blind workers. I saw one PITS with an action so rough that it took both hands to open or close it, and I'm pretty sure it survived at least three Sales. But I've seen and handled hundreds if not thousands that I couldn't find a fault with. The Nightstick I picked up at this one had an arrow sticker pointing to a blemish in the finish of the handle scale by the lanyard hole that I probably wouldn't have noticed or cared about if I had. The SPOTs I bought one year were seconds only because they had no sheaths. The Ultra fine bench stone I bought was a second because it was undersized enough to rattle in the plastic box - maybe a sixteenth of an inch too short. And I swear the Maxamet Manix lightweight I found at the Sale the day they were released was a first that was notched and put out as a treat for whoever found it.

[Red Leader]

I don’t know what may cause a particular knife to be a second - but someone must have to be trained well to make the decision. I saw knives that were perfectly centered, and others very much off-centered or warped. Some had actions so tight you could not open them with one hand, and others were like butter, some with no lock stick, most with a tiny bit, and some with so much that it hurt to disengage.

I saw one Manix 2 with a stonewashed blade on one side, and a satin grind on another. I saw one that had a circled mark on the blade indicating the reason it was picked, and a few with missing parts.

All over the map.

But I wouldn’t describe it has a flick fest - too much noise and action around you to notice any of that (YMMV).


Best part is that there is something for everyone. Want great action? Great fit and finish? A fixed blade? Some rare or discontinued models? They have it all.

[TkoK83Spy]

Thats cool they even point out the blemishes on some of them. I figured it was on the customers to figure out the blemish and if it mattered to them enough to buy it or not.

I can't imagine the amount of time and work that goes into setting up an event like this! I'd love to know how much Spyderco "makes back" after the sale. Bet that's a good chunk of change!

[8th_Note]

I see you mentioning action of the knives a lot, though I get you're still in that phase! I thought seconds knives weren't based on action, as that's more of a preference thing. Some people like to flick to crazy, others just pocket until needed for use. Action seems to be something that can be adjusted with a few little tweaks, not really making the knife "blemished"

Which then leads me to this...at the sale, is it a non stop flick fest? All you hear is flicking? If so, I know I'll never be able to attend. That would absolutely send me with sensory overload haha.

Back to the seconds knives. I thought they became a second if say, the blade were warped, not centered, had some kind of odd grind or blemishes on the blade or the scales? Just trying to get a better understanding of why/how a knife becomes a second.

I've never been to a seconds sale, but I do own a few seconds. Here's what I've found on mine:

PM2 S30V - slightly boogered grind at the tip

Native 5 S35VN G10 - in one small area on the blade (maybe 1/8" square) you can barely see the belt marks through the stone wash finish

Lil Temperance 3 K390 - very slight scratches on the spine, near the tip. Possibly caused when sharpening the edge near the tip.

Every one of these knives functions flawlessly and looks great. You really have to look very very close to notice the blemishes.

[Red Leader]

The Chaparrals seem to catch circular scratch marks in the blade flat above the choil area - it is a tight fit into the handle. That is the way the Rafir Noble one was last year, and I saw that same thing on the SE LW I got this year. No biggie, hardly noticeable. Knife feels amazing.

I handled quite a few Python Shamans (which I am so grateful for!). Most had a little bit of detent lash, which may or may not qualify? Then I found one without any, but the tip was a bit closer to the top of the handle while closed. Then near the end of the day ended up with one that had none of those issues, though I would have been fine with any of them, if there was just one of those knives there, I would not have been choosy.

The Kaparas had very light detents, but we know that this is common from Taichung on a lot of models, including 'non Seconds'. IMO that is probably the biggest room for improvement on their knives, improving the blade retainment via positive detent strength. I know everyone has great things to say about the Gayle Bradley model, and it is beautiful, but the detent strength on the ones I've held has been a non-starter, unfortunately.

Italy, ironically, has had the other problem. A bit inconsistent on their detents, but some are massively strong. I've handled a few Slyms and most are good, but have also held two different ones at one time that were wildly different in detent strength. However I've handled more good that bad, for sure.

[Jimandchris2]

The Chaparrals seem to catch circular scratch marks in the blade flat above the choil area - it is a tight fit into the handle. That is the way the Rafir Noble one was last year, and I saw that same thing on the SE LW I got this year. No biggie, hardly noticeable. Knife feels amazing.

I handled quite a few Python Shamans (which I am so grateful for!). Most had a little bit of detent lash, which may or may not qualify? Then I found one without any, but the tip was a bit closer to the top of the handle while closed. Then near the end of the day ended up with one that had none of those issues, though I would have been fine with any of them, if there was just one of those knives there, I would not have been choosy.

The Kaparas had very light detents, but we know that this is common from Taichung on a lot of models, including 'non Seconds'. IMO that is probably the biggest room for improvement on their knives, improving the blade retainment via positive detent strength. I know everyone has great things to say about the Gayle Bradley model, and it is beautiful, but the detent strength on the ones I've held has been a non-starter, unfortunately.

Italy, ironically, has had the other problem. A bit inconsistent on their detents, but some are massively strong. I've handled a few Slyms and most are good, but have also held two different ones at one time that were wildly different in detent strength. However I've handled more good that bad, for sure.

Your attention to detail is second to none . Thankful to meet you and the crew from Spyderco tried to find a Spynano.

[Jimandchris2]

I would guess that the pics are of the displays. We have limits on how many one can purchase. Mostly to hamper resellers.

sal

Sir, Eric said it was okay to party! yeehaw!!

[Red Leader]

The Chaparrals seem to catch circular scratch marks in the blade flat above the choil area - it is a tight fit into the handle. That is the way the Rafir Noble one was last year, and I saw that same thing on the SE LW I got this year. No biggie, hardly noticeable. Knife feels amazing.

I handled quite a few Python Shamans (which I am so grateful for!). Most had a little bit of detent lash, which may or may not qualify? Then I found one without any, but the tip was a bit closer to the top of the handle while closed. Then near the end of the day ended up with one that had none of those issues, though I would have been fine with any of them, if there was just one of those knives there, I would not have been choosy.

The Kaparas had very light detents, but we know that this is common from Taichung on a lot of models, including 'non Seconds'. IMO that is probably the biggest room for improvement on their knives, improving the blade retainment via positive detent strength. I know everyone has great things to say about the Gayle Bradley model, and it is beautiful, but the detent strength on the ones I've held has been a non-starter, unfortunately.

Italy, ironically, has had the other problem. A bit inconsistent on their detents, but some are massively strong. I've handled a few Slyms and most are good, but have also held two different ones at one time that were wildly different in detent strength. However I've handled more good that bad, for sure.

Your attention to detail is second to none . Thankful to meet you and the crew from Spyderco tried to find a Spynano.

Awesome to have met you as well!

I think my son had half the building looking for a Spynano! While we mostly shyed away from the idea of any horse-trading, he did find a Slym in the afternoon and had a TON of people asking him about it, and he said that he'd totally trade it for anyone's Spynano lol.

In the end, there was a guy that I think Craig found that had a Techno 3 and since my son was wearing his shirt w/ the T3 on it, he sorta linked them up, and the guy was SUPER happy my son wanted to trade his Slym for the Techno...and my son was ecstatic - it was a win-win, and it generated one of my favorite pictures of the whole event, when a couple of Spyderco employees, upon seeing the trade, gave a 'knife win!' fist in the air, haha it was amazing...

What is funny is that the Smock that I had found early on, was in my 'keep' pile during our first sort, and my son then said 'Okay I'm going back out to the floor' so I say 'Okay see ya' and was finishing up my sorting when I realized the Smock was gone. At first, I thought someone might have swiped it (since it was THE hot item of the day), but I figured I probably better find my son and talk to him first. Major kudos to @Candyman who very generously offered up one of his own Smock finds in case someone had taken it (a VERY kind gesture, thank you) and it turns out someone did take it...my son!!! Haha, he grabbed it from my pile and sort of requisitioned it. All the better I suppose, as even I was lured in by the siren call of fidgetiness, but alas tis not the model for me. It became a great replacement for the Spynano, and he left an incredibly happy young man, with his year's worth of savings put to wise use.

I think I'm going to be looking for the boring stuff next year...I thought it was super cool to have found a lefty Military, and will be looking again for one. Both years now, I've had my eye on a crucarta PM2, but since it is a 'vanilla' production model, stuff has always been prioritized above it. But they had some really lovely examples, and it still draws me in. I cannot think of a better example of a 'this is a great Spyderco' than either a crucarta PM2 or Manix 2. Both just drop dead gorgeous and wonderful knives.

We should see the 15V Native Chief drop next year, and if this year was any indication, those (at least a few) should make their way to the 2026 Seconds Sale. I just hope they still have some Military 2 15Vs left. That was one slight regret, but alas, something at least to look forward to, like the Ayoob.

I have a ton more pictures to show as well, I just need to find a free hosting site that won't boot me for all the uploads.

[toxophilus]

The main reason I was on the hunt for the K390 Stretch XL; the project I had envisioned since I picked up my saltwater Stretch XL at last year's Seconds Sale has been completed. I will have a hard time misplacing the K390 Stretch XL now