My EDC just took a change for the more serious

Evil D · #1

Kind of a long story, but i'm so excited i can't hold back :p

Well, i finally got to check out this knife shop across the river in KY today. I've been told they have an insane selection so i couldn't wait to get inside. Well, they did have a lot of knives but only one shelf of Spydies in one case, and 99% of them were combo edge and really obscure models that i wasn't interested in. They did have a Centofonte 4 and i've been considering one for a while now, and this one had some scratches on the clip from being handled and i was almost sold on buying it for $45 which i thought was a great price considering the pocket clip is going to get scratched up anyways. He then says he probably got it in on trade...

So i ask is this all you have, and he says yes but i can get almost anything in 3 days and he pulls out the catalog and we start flipping through pages. He starts asking what i'm really interested in, and i tell him something really ergo with a FFG blade 3 inches or less. Right about that time i flip to the Caly 3 page and i make a comment that i really want one but they're discontinued, and he says yeah we sell them faster than we can get them in. So i ask if he has any and he says not a chance.

So we play with a bunch of knifes and i'm torn between the C4 and a Sage which i really liked but was a combo edge so he goes back to look for one with a PE. Well, he comes out with a box and says Hey i found a Caly 3. I'm pretty excited because i've actually never even held one and all i hear are good things so i pull it out of the box and i'm immediately in love....it's carbon fiber, ZDP189 and the instant i open it and it melts into my hand i'm sold and i know i'm about to cough up a ton of cash because i can't leave without it.

So i ask for a price and i'm holding my breath, and he comes back and says $120. I'm thinking to myself...can i spend that on this knife knowing i'm gonna EDC the **** out of it? Then i get this crazy idea and i ask what he'd give me for my D4 in trade, and he asks to see it. I pull it out (it's getto waved) and he's took off guard by that and i have to explain it all to him and he's really surprised about it even though he has waved D4's and E4's in the case. He goes and shows it to his boss and asks, and comes back and says since the D4 is practically brand new, he'll take it in trade plus $75 for the Caly 3.

So, now i'm the proud owner of a gorgeous ZDP Caly 3 with beautiful carbon scales and i couldn't be happier. I really never thought i'd shell out this kind of cash for a folder but the dang thing is just too nice, and the whole trade thing really sweetened the deal. I'll miss the D4 and probably even buy another one when my budget allows it but for now i'm totally thrilled.

:D

npueppke · #2

Wow that's an awesome story! Congratulations!

Grizzled Gizzard · #3

Great story, Congrats!!

ChapmanPreferred · #4

Nice deal.

Donut · #5

So, $55 for a Delica 4? That's a pretty nice discount.

Evil D · #6

Donut wrote:So, $55 for a Delica 4? That's a pretty nice discount.

Yeah that's what he was selling them new for and i paid $65 for it from a flea market so i figure it was a good deal.

The bad is that my Smith's sharpening kit will not work with this knife...it'll only go as low as 40 degrees and i'm not taking this edge to that, so it looks like i'll be saving up for a sharpmaker.

spyderholic · #7

great story, it felt like i was in the shop with you. :)

are you going to put a picture up for us to see??? :D

rycen · #8

Great story. I don't think the C4 or the sage were made with anything but plain edge.

Evil D · #9

It may not have been a Sage, i'm not entirely sure as i've only seen pics of them. It was THICK and the blade was really impressive but it was just way too big for EDC IMO.

I'll throw up pics for sure. Right now i'm trying to figure out what i'm going to do about sharpening. I'm a little ticked off as i noticed there's a few dull spots on the blade already...i wonder if this was bought and returned...it's flawless otherwise but i was cutting some paper and i noticed a hang up and sure enough there's almost a burr in a couple spots.

My sharpening options at the moment are only 40 and 50 degrees inclusive and from what i've read, that just doesn't do ZDP justice. Then i watch this vid on You Tube with Sal saying 40 degrees is the ultimate do-it-all angle and i'm wondering if that's what i want? I didn't buy this knife for slicing apples if you know what i mean so if 40 is good and will add to the already crazy edge retention, then that's probably what i'll do.

SUDS · #10

Great deal. I hope you put some pictures up

monsterdog · #11

Its a beautiful knife and a good trade.

The blade is ZDP-189 laminated between two pieces of lower grade stainless steel afair, any dull spots should polish out really nicely with any kind of silverware polishing compound, just stay clear of the :spyder: with this.

markg · #12

Is that the place in Newport? If so I went there years ago. A friend bought a first generation Civilian from them.

Franciscomv · #13

Good trade. Replacing that Delica 4 should be easy.

As to sharpening, instead of buying more sharpening gigs I think you should try to learn free hand sharpening. It's not that difficult. Practice on some cheap kitchen knives and forever be free of all those pricey sharpening systems!

jzmtl · #14

Evil D wrote: My sharpening options at the moment are only 40 and 50 degrees inclusive and from what i've read, that just doesn't do ZDP justice. Then i watch this vid on You Tube with Sal saying 40 degrees is the ultimate do-it-all angle and i'm wondering if that's what i want? I didn't buy this knife for slicing apples if you know what i mean so if 40 is good and will add to the already crazy edge retention, then that's probably what i'll do.

There is an significant difference between how sharp 30° and 40° is, all else being equal, and zdp can certainly take 30°.

HellHound · #15

Wow that's lucky,just goes to show if you truly like the knife nothing will hold you back. :)

SaturnNyne · #16

Evil D wrote:I'm thinking to myself...can i spend that on this knife knowing i'm gonna EDC the **** out of it?

Isn't knowing you'll get a lot of use out of it the very best justification for spending a substantial amount on it?

Billy · #17

Congrats and sounds like you got an awesome deal!

Evil D · #18

markg wrote:Is that the place in Newport? If so I went there years ago. A friend bought a first generation Civilian from them.

Yep that's the place. Cecil Clark Cutlery i believe is what it's called.

Franciscomv wrote:Good trade. Replacing that Delica 4 should be easy.

As to sharpening, instead of buying more sharpening gigs I think you should try to learn free hand sharpening. It's not that difficult. Practice on some cheap kitchen knives and forever be free of all those pricey sharpening systems!

I want to soooo bad but just haven't found the time to really practice and learn. I have the cheap Smith's sharpening kit and it has been a solid investment at a mere $20 and has put a serious edge on all the knives before this. We'll see how it goes. One thing i may have to look into is getting some super fine stones for it since it only has a triangle stone, diamond and fine.

HellHound wrote:Wow that's lucky,just goes to show if you truly like the knife nothing will hold you back. :)

I've learned that it's cheaper in the long run to just buy what you want the first time if you can manage to with your budget. Otherwise you're going to buy a few knives and work up and ultimately buy that knife you really wanted anyways lol. This holds true in pretty much every hobby. For me though i doubt i could've coughed up $130 all at once...it's a head game but spending it a half at a time softens the blow and i had a great time with the D4..honestly i already miss it if you can believe that.

SaturnNyne wrote:Isn't knowing you'll get a lot of use out of it the very best justification for spending a substantial amount on it?

That's really what it boils down to. I hate when something is brand spankin new and you feel reluctant to use it because it's only ever new once. That's a tough hurdle for me to overcome but once the blade gets some scratches i'll feel better :p

Evil D · #19

Here's a couple pics...don't mind my crappy camera lol.

I noticed the laser etching is more etched INTO the metal on this knife as opposed to being almost "printed" on like my other knives.

Scottie3000 · #20

Congratulations on your new buy. I love the Caly 3. It seems to be split between that and the Stretch 2 for a lot of forumites favs.