Good or bad, biggest surprise of 2014?

[twinboysdad]

for me best surprise has been my Leaf Enuff, first spydie fixed and it really is enough. Stretch handle with a Native blade, IMO. Mediocre surprise was the Dyad Sprint as it was too much sticking out of my pocket and not real comfortable to use for me. Worst surprise was the disco if the Caly 3.5, I still just don't get that one. I did not but a Slyz Bowie but handled one at the b&m and it probably gets my vote for new KOTY, and could very well win production KOTY among all makers.

[gbelleh]

The biggest surprise for me was the release of the CPM154/S90V Para 2, which I really wanted in order to keep my Para 2 sprint/exclusive collection complete. Luckily, I was just quick enough to snag one.

[The Deacon]

Best surprise, a tie between getting to play with the "new and improved" G-10 Stretch, and getting to own the new K05 Small Utility.
Worst surprise, another year has ended and the non Coast Guard version of the Autonomy is still MIA.

[bh49]

The best surprise is Memory. My preferences were always: tip up carry, finger choil, no metal scales. The knife doesn't offer any of these. I also hate glass fiber. It is too shiny for me. Still my buddy Ken was talking highly about the knife and I pulled trigger. I love it. Tonight I will carry it the first time. May be I will have to change my preferences :)
The worst surprise: one of my all time favorite EDCs: G10/VG10 Caly3.5 got axed
Also I would love to mention that I love my CF Native5, but this wasn't a surprise :)

[timlara]

The two biggest/best surprises for me were the BBS Exclusive Blue Domino and the Dark Blue S110V Manix2 LW which have turned out to be my two favorite EDCs.

[All-R-Crazy]

My biggest surprise for Spyderco was the caly 3.5 being disc. And that spyderco is planning on sprints using the cpm154/s90v steel clad mix if I rember right

[Liquid Cobra]

Looking back I was thinking it was the S90V/154 PM2, and that I managed to snag one. Then the disappointment that I messed up the blade and sold it. But the best surprise for me was actually the Blue Domino. I never cared for the model, took a chance on it and it surpassed my expectations and then some. I beleive I was the first or second one on the forum to get one. It took a while but I see others are coming around now that the price has relaxed a bit. Then there was the Orange PM2 I scored from Landon, that was pretty exciting. I never thought in a million years I would get my hands on one of those. It's been a good year now that I think about it :)

[PayneTrain]

Dark green 204P PM2.
The first surprise was coming home from work and finding out they were for sale, and had been for a couple hours. I scrambled to get my name in at the last minute, and it was a success.

The second surprise was how fast I got it. I remember the wait was expected to be longer than it was...or something. I don't remember, I just remember being surprised by a shipping notification. It was like Christmas coming early!

The third surprise was the knife. It was my first PM2 and I finally understood what everyone was talking about. What a great design. It took a while to warm up to the compression lock, but now I'm a fan. Great handle, great blade, heck I even grew to like the color.

The fourth surprise was the steel. 204P is easily my favorite so far, in both this knife and the Southard. It seems to defy logic how easily it gets super sharp and how long it stays that way. This was my first knife in a version of this steel (M390, 20CV), and it has earned my respect.

[GoldenSpydie]

My biggest (good) surprise was being gifted a Titanium Totem by "the man" at the Seconds Sale. :)
My biggest (bad) surprise was...I honestly can't come up with one! :eek:
Another good surprise for me was the "perfectness" of the Lil' Lionspy and finding some of the rare models for really cheap ($30 Poliwog, etc.).

[twinboysdad]

Oh, and I finally got a Sharpmaker...they are all they are cracked up to be!

[JD Spydo]

Oh, and I finally got a Sharpmaker...they are all they are cracked up to be!

Don't forget to also get the 204 Diamond rods and the 204 Ultra-Fine stones that you can buy extra for the Sharpmaker. The kit is just incomplete without them. You won't regret it.

The 204 Sharpmaker is a great tool for touching up and refining the edge. I'm anxious to see what the new Spyderco GAUNTLET sharpening kit is going to be like. And we need the 701 Profiles back in 4 grits as well.

[DeltaDag]

Best, and a most pleasing surprise, was how improved the 2014-made Terzuola Starmate was in contrast to its 2013-made brother. All the earlier shortcomings were addressed including the dreaded and most commented upon rough finish. It's nice to see Seki turning out nice pieces again.

[RamZar]

K2 was a pleasant surprise once you held it. Big but carried small and slim. Smooth and that 10V cutting machine!

[apollo]

My greatest surprise was the Rubicon ( Bowie is second best surprise ). And i definatly think that the Rubicon should be made KOTY. (The bowie is a better cutter in everyway i will say that) But the way spyderco made the Rubicon is really kicking the standard for all knifecompany's not 1 but 2 steps up the ladder!

The lesser surprise is the production speed of the golden models at the moment. (Nothing Sal and crew can do about that because we all just buy to many these days XD but that problem is gladly going to be much better or even gone when the new building gets online) Looking forward to that :)

[Evil D]

Hard for me to think back on an entire year. I don't remember every knife I handle. I can throw up the most recent experiences I remember.

Good:

1) Manix 2 LW s110v: easily my all time favorite EDC I've ever owned. This is a huge surprise for me, as I really didn't care much for the LW originally, though I do very much wish it had made it out in clear FRN.

2) Yojimbo 2 s90v sprint: A grail for me. The model and overall combo of materials is just excellent.

3) Southard: A knife I had originally loathed the looks of, mostly due to just over exposure and insane hype. Slowly the design wore on me, and after realizing how similar it was to the general shape of my modded Rock Lobster, I had to give it a closer look and I'm happy I did.

4) Rock Lobster: speaking of which, I got it as a trade and instantly took to modding it. With a couple tweaks it becomes a really amazing knife.

5) Kiwi 4: a knife I don't even own yet but am thoroughly impressed with. I do miss the old blade shape, and very much wish it was screw construction but overall a big win for me. I really hope to see a stainless version and a ZDP or SB sprint this year.

Now for some not so greats:

1) Junior: I wanted so much to like this knife. In pictures I absolutely love the design. If this knife had a Manix 2 shaped blade and s110v, I may never carry another knife again IF it was also made just a little bit bigger...which was ultimately the let down. I know it's made for youngsters, but it just didn't fit my hands well at all.

2) Lionspy: Not really a knife I expected to like, but it is an extremely nice knife. Not much of a surprise here but I did want to like it.

3) Native 5: This one kind of broke my heart. I have a soft spot for the Native because it brought me into the brand and got me serious into the hobby. For whatever reason I was just very let down with this knife. I feel like it completely lost its identity. I can't really say a single bad thing about it though, it just didn't do it for me.

[Elsilrac1]

Mine is moving to Denver...now to make the Mecca to Golden.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

I would say the re-introduction of the Aqua Salt, that will be coming in 2015, was the biggest good surprise for me, from the new catalog.

[willc]

The Manix2 S110V was my biggest surprise.
Now over 7 months as my edc, sure I carried other knives for many years in a row but this is the longest I have carried a blade since finding the forum here.

After carrying the Manix so long I now find the axis lock to be very wimpy feeling.
For being frn and pinned it is a super tough knife.

[Invective]

Biggest surprise for me was finding a stash of Spyderco Kitchen knives tucked away in a gun shop and getting them for $20-$25 a piece. Got two of the Santoku, the Bread Knife, and Large Carving Knife. Definitely did not expect to find these knives hidden away a decade after being disco'd, and to get them for what they were sold for when they were released is even better! That same gun shop had a lot of older Spydies as well that I picked up. Definitely did not ex

[SpyderNut]

For me, the biggest surprise of 2014 was getting the highly-coveted Kris from my beautiful wife on my birthday. I had wanted one for several years, but never seemed to find one at a decent price.

The biggest unfortunate surprise (to me) was the discontinuation of the LionSpy. Just seemed sad to me, for some reason.