Can the Opening Hole be improved?

[Manixguy@1994]

I have no issues with any of my Spyderco knives, work just fine for me . I have two ATR models and really like the Cobra Hood especially with thin gloves but see no need for every model to invest in the design . Just my thoughts mileage may differ with others . MG2

[wrdwrght]

The opening hole, as offered, IS the improvement.

[Sharp Guy]

Make it even more round that it is

[cjk]

I would like to try a knife with a cobra hood. It seems functionally much like opening hole + thumb disk + a large thumb ramp. I find it really interesting.

On a lot of models, I think that the opening hole could be smaller, though I acknowledge that larger holes are better to operate while wearing gloves.

The 11-ish mm holes on the Lil Native and Brouwer work just fine. Is scaling up the hole larger than that really necessary in a lot of cases?

Smaller holes could lead to some better efficiencies.
If the hole is smaller with no other changes, the blade can be a smidge stronger.
If the hole is smaller on a design with a hump, the hump could be smaller, therefore more blades could be cut out of a sheet of steel and the resulting product could take up a bit less width in the pocket.
If the hole is smaller, the blade can go into the handle further when closed, maybe resulting in the tip being farther in so it will have a longer functional life after more sharpening than would be otherwise.

I also treat the top of the hole like sort of thumb stud and push it open. I don't stick my whole thumb in the opening hole to open the knife.

[p_atrick]

Let's say you want to experiment with some new hole designs. How would you do it? If you start changing the Spydie hole on models that have a devout following, that might be asking for trouble.

[RazorSharp86]

While we’re at it, lets reinvent the wheel.
Maybe elongate it, or square it off. I’m sure cars will benefit from a redesign… no?!

All jokes and sarcasm aside, I’ve never used anything that worked as well as the hole in every possible situation. Especially when we’re talking about wearing gloves.

[Mat_ski]

No

[Danke]

Big hole



Small hole



Discuss

[Mk-211]

LOL, are you thirsty for more?!

[Evil D]

Big hole



Discuss

Despite being a flipper, this knife has one of the nicest thumb hole opening actions I've felt.

As for small holes, the Nilakka is surprisingly good too for having such a small one. It's crisp enough to get plenty traction on.

[riclaw]

I'd like to see a larger hole on the Kapara. More thumb ramp. Same FFG and general shape.

[Mushroom]

Big hole



Small hole



Discuss

big hole = functional
small hole = trademark only

[Coastal]

On some knives I'd rather have less of a ramp, and therefore a smaller hole, but that's the only thing I'd do differently.

[Tristan_david2001]

I can’t see how the tictac opening hole works better than the perfect circle opening hole. Definitely not as functional. but for fidgety pocket jewelry knives ig it doesn’t matter.

More area to catch your finger. You can't fail a reverse flick with that design.

Just because it’s a longer hole doesn’t really make it more functional… the Spydie hole is already placed in an optimum spot, and the circular hole itself is a much wider radius than the long skinny hole styles, a wider radius is what gives you good surface tension/purchase on the hole. I think it’s perhaps more the style of detent on ur frame lock folder making it a very easy to flick knife.

[Tristan_david2001]

Also spyderco is almost a 50 year old company with their trademark founded on the round hole as their opening method for folders. I’m very surprised anyone here would think that’s gonna change, I’m pretty sure they’ve figured out what works already

[Synov]

I can’t see how the tictac opening hole works better than the perfect circle opening hole. Definitely not as functional. but for fidgety pocket jewelry knives ig it doesn’t matter.

More area to catch your finger. You can't fail a reverse flick with that design.

It ain't all about flicking...

But that is a function that is being improved, in my opinion.

I can’t see how the tictac opening hole works better than the perfect circle opening hole. Definitely not as functional. but for fidgety pocket jewelry knives ig it doesn’t matter.

More area to catch your finger. You can't fail a reverse flick with that design.

Just because it’s a longer hole doesn’t really make it more functional… the Spydie hole is already placed in an optimum spot, and the circular hole itself is a much wider radius than the long skinny hole styles, a wider radius is what gives you good surface tension/purchase on the hole. I think it’s perhaps more the style of detent on ur frame lock folder making it a very easy to flick knife.

It's easier to catch the blade with your finger, even before you start moving the blade. The finger basically can't miss if you are flicking against a slot rather than a hole. This is just my personal experience.

[Synov]

Also spyderco is almost a 50 year old company with their trademark founded on the round hole as their opening method for folders. I’m very surprised anyone here would think that’s gonna change, I’m pretty sure they’ve figured out what works already

I'm not saying it will change or even should change. It's not simply something that can be done to any knife without changing the rest of the design, nor is it necessarily worth doing.

[bdblue]

Can the trademarked Spyderco Opening Hole be improved or have all known methods been tried and it is perfect ?

I mostly carry Manix 2 and PM2 models, and the opening holes for those are perfect for me. The size is important, if I had bigger thumbs the holes wouldn't work as well. In some of their smaller knives the holes are smaller and don't work as well for me. Another important aspect of the hole is the edge sharpness. The edge sharpness has to be enough to provide good traction but not sharp enough to hurt your skin. I've seen opening holes in some knives that had rounded edges and didn't provide enough traction to be useful.

[mark greenman]

Let's say you want to experiment with some new hole designs. How would you do it?

3D printed blades for an existing knife; wild guess but I feel like a Comp lock would be easiest to work with.

So, sketch out some ideas for various versions, print em, and pair it with a Para2 handle, and see how they feel.

[mark greenman]

Also, since we're having this discussion, do you guys engage the thumb hole with your thumb skin, or your thumb finger nail?

In 23 years of Spydercoing, I've always used my finger nail: