Work knife.

[Enduraguy96]

Looking for a work knife, I have been looking at the native frn in either s35vn or s30v. What's your opinion on which is better and your opinion on the native frn? Thanks.

[GoldenSpydie]

The Native 5 LW is much newer, but the edges are not as rounded as the old Native 1. For that reason, I like the Native 1 (S30V) much better.

If you can find one, the Native 1 FRN in CTS-XHP (Knifecenter exclusive) is the best of both worlds, IMO:

[3rdGenRigger]

The steels are so similar it's unlikely you'd be able to tell the difference between them in normal use. The older design is being discontinued (And has more rounded handle edges), but the newer Native 5 has a better pivot and lock setup (More refined), and the bi-directional texture on the side of the scales will provide a lot more grip than the older model does. Also, the 5 has a full flat grind instead of the hollow grind with swedge. Whichever sounds like the best range of features for your use is the one you should go with.

[jmh58]

Guess it depends on your "Work"... I am a house painter and I carry a Pingo clipped in rrp.. Works for me!! John :)

[Enduraguy96]

Thanks, I am going to go with the native frn

[spyderg]

Not sure what kind of work you need it for or if you wear gloves, etc. But have you considered a Mainx2? I have both a Native5 cf 110v and a Cru-wear Manix2 and as a work knife the Manix2 wins hands down unless there is an issue with the size...

[DutchBlades]

As a work knife, my go to Spydie will always be the Gayle Bradley.
But a Native could do 90% of the work anywhere, good choice
I'm gonna carry my Natives more often... Still a great knife!

[bh49]

Thanks, I am going to go with the native frn

Actually both Native and Native5 have FRN handle. I strongly prefer Native5 due to FFG blade. Also I am using Native5 for years and never had a problem with non-rounded scales on this knife.

[Surfingringo]

Native is a great choice. At the risk of looking like I'm trying to confuse you I have to say that I find the Salts to be some of the best work knives Spyderco makes.

[Enduraguy96]

How does the manix lightweight compare to the native 5 frn?

[JD Spydo]

First of all for hard work the Native SE is truly a pitbull of a worker knife but if I were you and I didn't mind really putting that blade through torture I would highly recommend the 440V version if you can still run down one. The one I'm using now I have literally tried to destroy it on 2 horrible jobs I had simply because I didn't even like the knife at first and I had little invested in it. Much to my pleasant surprise it showed me that it can take horrendous punishment>> and it's still quite functional and doesn't even look very beat up at all. But even if you have to settle for an S30V. SPyderedged version you'll do fine with it

I haven't tried many of the newer Native models yet but I hear there aren't many of them in Spyderedge but I'm sure any of the Natives take abuse well. Stainless Handled Rescue models are brutes too if you can still find them. And any Harpy takes abuse well too.

[bh49]

Native is a great choice. At the risk of looking like I'm trying to confuse you I have to say that I find the Salts to be some of the best work knives Spyderco makes.

Lance,
Without doubt Salts are great for you. I live about 15-20 miles away from the ocean. Fairly dry over here. Neither of VG10 or S30V or S35VN or S110V developed stains. I do not use SE either. H1 has no benefits for me, only increased cost to compare to VG10 and decreased edge retention. For somebody like you, who spend a lot of time near salt water H1 is the best thing, but no benefits for other people.
If you proof that I am wrong I will get Salt right away.
R

[JD Spydo]

Native is a great choice. At the risk of looking like I'm trying to confuse you I have to say that I find the Salts to be some of the best work knives Spyderco makes.

Lance,
Without doubt Salts are great for you. I live about 15-20 miles away from the ocean. Fairly dry over here. Neither of VG10 or S30V or S35VN or S110V developed stains. I do not use SE either. H1 has no benefits for me, only increased cost to compare to VG10 and decreased edge retention. For somebody like you, who spend a lot of time near salt water H1 is the best thing, but no benefits for other people.
If you proof that I am wrong I will get Salt right away.
R

Roman I concur with about 95% of what you just said to the Brother.. The one thing I will take issue with you on is that I do agree with you that VG-10 and couple of my other go-to blade steels beat out PE H-1>> but Spyderedged H-1 since I heard of Spyderco's report that they tested best in Spyderedge>> well I put 3 of mine to a mean test and I truly think they're right because I couldn't hardly hurt my SE H-1 Spyderhawk model at all. It even seemed to like the punishment I gave it almost like my 440VSE Native does>> those 2 really surprised me performance wise. But I do agree with you on everything else you said.

Spyderedges are truly a different animal and taking into account with a lot of what Cliff Stamp has posted in regards to different properties of blade steels it got me to doing some experimenting with many of my older SE Spyders>> and much to my surprise some of the ones not known for good plain edges did well in Spyderedge. I Know it baffles me too :o

[PayneTrain]

The Native 5 LW is much newer, but the edges are not as rounded as the old Native 1. For that reason, I like the Native 1 (S30V) much better.

If you can find one, the Native 1 FRN in CTS-XHP (Knifecenter exclusive) is the best of both worlds, IMO:

I agree on all counts. I just so happen to have mine on me today because it's so light.

[Surfingringo]

Native is a great choice. At the risk of looking like I'm trying to confuse you I have to say that I find the Salts to be some of the best work knives Spyderco makes.

Lance,
Without doubt Salts are great for you. I live about 15-20 miles away from the ocean. Fairly dry over here. Neither of VG10 or S30V or S35VN or S110V developed stains. I do not use SE either. H1 has no benefits for me, only increased cost to compare to VG10 and decreased edge retention. For somebody like you, who spend a lot of time near salt water H1 is the best thing, but no benefits for other people.
If you proof that I am wrong I will get Salt right away.
R

Yup, u have valid points about pe h1. Because of the difference in edge retention on h1 I exclusively use serrated salts. If you don't like serrated edges then I would agree that the salts might look less attractive.

That said, there are many reasons other than corrosion resistance that I think the salts make good work knives. They are a very simple design. The steel, though not great in edge retention is probably one of the toughest that Spyderco uses. It will bend without breaking and is much less prone to chipping or fracturing, even when not being pampered (like most of us tend to do with our supersteel spydies :D). The linerless design is lightweight but still extremely rugged and there are no liners to accumulate dirt, grime, blood or whatever kind of gunk you are working with thus they are extremely easy to keep clean. Interestingly enough I also find that all of my linerless salts have smoother action with less perceptible blade play than the other frn knives like delica/endura.

So yes, I would agree that my fervor for the salt knives might be a bit higher than some others because of my appreciation for their corrosion resistance but that is far from the only reason I use and recommend them. If pe edge retention is your number one goal though and that trumps everything else then yes, there are better options. :)

[JD Spydo]

The Native 5 LW is much newer, but the edges are not as rounded as the old Native 1. For that reason, I like the Native 1 (S30V) much better.

If you can find one, the Native 1 FRN in CTS-XHP (Knifecenter exclusive) is the best of both worlds, IMO:

GoldenSpydie do they have that XHP Native in Spyderedge>> I've been wanting to try a Spyderedged blade in XHP really bad but so far I haven't been able to find any Spyderedged model in XHP :confused: I'm aware that knifecenter had a few but I was told that they were all PE. I do hope they'll make a run of them in XHP because I've had great luck with my XHP Military model.

[3rdGenRigger]

How does the manix lightweight compare to the native 5 frn?

The handle will feel very similar, but is a little larger. Differet lock type also, but it does make a great work knife. What type of work are you going to be subjecting it to? If it's not a "Faux Pas" I'd recommend a larger knife at work and a Manix/ParaMilitary2/Military would be my first 3 personal recommendations. The Native is also a great knife, but especially at work, having more edge means more useable edge before the whole edge is dull. The Manix2 LW also carries exceptionally well for a knife of its size because it only weighs ~3 grams. I build cell towers and my favourite 2 knives at work are my CruWear Millie and my 204P ParaMilitary2.

[JD Spydo]

This is why I want to see certain items drift over to the H-1 Salt Series after they lose their luster so to speak in the main line up. The H-1 Dragonfly is a good example and it is a companion blade for a growing number of folks who use their knives at work.

I'm looking for the ENUFF fixed blades to become huge in work places>> which is why I want to see more of them also be offered in the H-1 Salt series and more of them to be offered in Spyderedge as well. Ever since I got my first "user" Streetbeat model I've seen the handi-ness and the importance of small fixed blades>>> The ENUFF Series I truly think has a lot going for it already and in the "WORK KNIFE" sector I truly believe it will be a bit favorite of all kinds of occupations.

But with that being said I can't stress enough how much more versatility that the ENUFF blades will have in full Spyderedge. The Sheepsfoot in H-1 is a great start and I hope that it goes over well enough to catch fire with the other ENUFF models as well. It's going to be interesting to see how it plays out anyway.