Estimated lifespan of the S30V Military/SE

[spydutch]

Greetings you all :)

Since there's not very much that I MUST have in the current Spyder line up, I have been buying back ups of my favourites lately.

So far I have:

3 Dodo's/SE
4 Delica's 3/SE

But since I have been carrying big knives for EDC lately(together with a copy of our knife laws ), I'm planning to buy some Big Back ups as well.

Now comes the ultimate Spyder for my in mind: the G10 S30V fully serrated Military. The knife fits my hand like a glove without using the choil. If I didn't know any better you could say that Sal used my very hand to make the handle :eek: :D . And you just have to loooove that big, flat ground fully serrated blade.

Now my question is how durable the Milie actually is in terms of lock, serrations and the such. If I know that I can figure out how many I have to buy to be set for a few years :confused:

Why now you ask? Well I still have a job('till August for sure) and maybe next year my life will change dramatically and I will not have as much free money anymore as I have at the moment.

I hope you can help me out on this.

Sorry for this too long a thread :o

[JBE]

I have a PE 440V Millie that is about 6 years old and still going. I EDC'd this knife for 5 years and now it's in rotation with an Endura 4. Still locks up just like it did when it was new with no noticeable blade-play whatsoever and this knife has seen plenty of use. This knife was definitely built to last.

[markg]

IMHO, if a liner lock in constant EDC usage makes it 7-10 years, I would consider that great. I have heard lots of stories of the Military making it 5+ years so that would seem to be in line.

Also consider that the Military has been out now for over 10 years, you have a considerable amount of field experience with it. You don't hear of any falling apart on a regular basis. You do get a few reports of lock failures, but that does not surprise me with a liner lock. You get no more or less I think than you get with Emerson Knives, which sell a boat load of liner locks. In reality, I would say the Military has held up well for over a decade.

Also, if you like the Military, get the Para Military, I think it would fit you as well also.

[GarageBoy]

AT LEAST a decade

[The Mastiff]

I don't think there is a lifespan as such for these knives. There are too many examples of people ( like me) having the same knife for 15 or more years and the knife still being in great shape for there to be some kind of "lifetime" of X years or Y sharpenings. Unless you're overstressing the locking mechanism it will go on and on.

As a side note I used to have a Chinese made 9mm Tokarev conversion I bought new. In the paperwork I found after I bought the gun I saw something that stated it's expected lifetime was 2,000 rounds of ammo.

Not a whole lot for a firearm. I used to have several different pistols I would get that much shooting out of in a two months time.

As far as I know I've never heard of anything like that for any knife, not just a Spyderco. Joe

[Harry White]

i gifted an older 440V SE Military to a friend this past Christmas, and he loved it and used it every day until he broke about 1/4" inch of the tip off last week. not sure what he was doing, but he wants another one (or at lease wants to fix the tip if possible).

i think the tip is the "weakest" part of the blade -- but if you use it like a knife it should last a lifetime, i would think.

[Peter1960]

Arend, besides the Serrations (don't have) I only can say good up to very good words about my Military G-10/S30V. Very important for me was that that big blade/knife is light in pocket and even small. It's a classic!

But don't use it as prybar!!! the tip is optimized for cutting tasks

[Padawan]

As a side note I used to have a Chinese made 9mm Tokarev conversion I bought new. In the paperwork I found after I bought the gun I saw something that stated it's expected lifetime was 2,000 rounds of ammo.

Not to get off-topic, but how did it hold up? It didn't take me long to put that many rounds through my 226, and I don't recall ever reading of other such limited life expectancies.

[Hannibal Lecter]

My Friends,

Not to get off-topic, but how did it hold up? It didn't take me long to put that many rounds through my 226, and I don't recall ever reading of other such limited life expectancies.

The Beretta Tomcat .32ACP was rated to go about 3000 rounds; after that things start falling off of it. No kidding. I have seen it; I worked at a gun store for ten years and saw a LOT of them come back after very short usage. As a pistol instructor I will not recommend them. Love the big Berettas, but the little Tomcat .32 just doesn't hold up.

--------
Hannibal

[clovisc]

BTT :D

i would agree that there really is no "lifespan" to a mili unless you're chopping, prying, or throwing it around...

i'd estimate you're far more likely to lose your mili before you see it get worn out... that's what happened to my 3 year old, 440v mili which was HEAVILY abused, but still in excellent shape...

[Padawan]

[quote="Hannibal Lecter"]The Beretta Tomcat .32ACP was rated to go about 3000 rounds]

Wow. I can understand that the straight blowback design could potentially be a little tougher on the weapon, but that's rather sub-par no matter how you slice it.

[The Deacon]

Five years plus in normal to heavy use would seem reasonable for the Military. Should last Arend at least three months.

As for guns, back around '70 the S&W Chief's Special Airweight was rated at two hundred rounds before its aluminum frame stretched to the point where it would crack.

[Sterno]

Ha, serrated Military! That does look wicked, but to me Military is plain and Police is serrated. But that's just me. :D



Sterno

[The Mastiff]

Not to get off-topic, but how did it hold up?

I never put all that many rounds through it. It's still in a box taking up space as I don't trust it for EDC for self defence, and it's not a great target shooter. It's role has always been as a back up -extra- pistol for emergencies, or to arm family members in an emergency.

It does ok with ball ammo. Not my first choice for self defense. Joe

[vampyrewolf]

Consider that I used my millie hard for 3yrs and then it went to zambia with clovisc (and was put to good use there too). Despite years of abuse I hadn't hurt it in 3yrs, and by the sounds of it Jason put it through it's paces there as well.

I've been using a lil temp for just over 2yrs so far and it's going strong.

Edit: ****, I've got 5.5yrs on my ss 'fly and it's been abused everyday of that. Only have 4yrs on my ats-55 frn/se endura, and that's all hard use too.

[clovisc]

Consider that I used my millie hard for 3yrs and then it went to zambia with clovisc (and was put to good use there too). Despite years of abuse I hadn't hurt it in 3yrs, and by the sounds of it Jason put it through it's paces there as well.

yep -- did chopping with it, used it to chip at morter and bricks (african village-made... but still...), cut up pretty much every variety of antelope out there, threw it at trees when i got bored (hey! tree-stabbing vinny!), used it when i ate roasted rats, used it as a gardening tool... the ease of cleaning made it one of my most used knives. i get SO mad thinking about how it was stolen from me the day before i left the country (by the housekeeper at HQ most likely -- stealing was a huge problem, and i heard later they caught this woman stealing other things there...). it would still be with me and going strong if it hadn't been ganked.

bought a CF mili very soon after returning home, and i'm glad i did...

if patrick and i failed in 4 years to destroy a mili with our notions of "normal" useage in canada, the US, and africa, i'm sure yours will be around for a very, very, very long time.