Spyderco Forums

ZrowsN1s wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 12:27 am

But my favorite knife 'colors' are things like the knives below. The more exotic looking Carbon Fiber scales, like the fluted cf, marbled cf, and shredded copper cf. Python Micarta, Pakka wood, anodized Titanium.... there are many ways to escape plain black scales, even colorful lanyards.

I've come to appreciate these things too. I love the look of wood, cf and micarta scales. These materials are much more visually appealing to me than flat colored FRN. Zome FRN is pretty cool too, mixes it up from a solid color, there just haven't been any zome runs of models I'm really into these days.

That said I guess I'm lucky that I enjoy black so much and have no issues carrying say, a black sprint run szabo where I live. I keep a jug of black dye ready for any time I want to change some scales to a darker color like I did with my green LC salts.

Its nice having that flexibility. Spyderco could release an LC200N Chief with neon pink scales and I can just dye it black and be golden :)

The first knife I bought with non black scales was a blue scaled Delica 4. I bought it to use at work and the blue scales helped identify it from a distance as mine. Plus they were light enough to make the knife stand out a bit of I dropped it and needed to find it.

I have since added a lot of other knives with colors, almost all of them shades of brown or green because I like those colors. I think I’m probably also bored with black scales and satin blades as well.

vivi wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 5:30 am

ZrowsN1s wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 12:27 am

But my favorite knife 'colors' are things like the knives below. The more exotic looking Carbon Fiber scales, like the fluted cf, marbled cf, and shredded copper cf. Python Micarta, Pakka wood, anodized Titanium.... there are many ways to escape plain black scales, even colorful lanyards.

I've come to appreciate these things too. I love the look of wood, cf and micarta scales. These materials are much more visually appealing to me than flat colored FRN. Zome FRN is pretty cool too, mixes it up from a solid color, there just haven't been any zome runs of models I'm really into these days.

Reading both of your posts, I think this has a lot to do with my current drought of buying Spyderco knives. Not only do I have a nice collection as it is to choose from in models and steels...but I'm also pretty bored of all the same models being released over and over again, just with a different color G10 or frn scale and a steel that's already available in multiple other models. Just doesn't do it for me anymore. Different materials have become more important and desirable these days, which is why my signature list has been growing below the Spyderco line.

I'm pretty sure some people only buy sprints/exclusives because of the colors

I'm all about it. Anything to make knives less "serious." The caribbean scales are such a fun touch.

DLT has gotten their color schemes down. I love the purple/black combo and I hope more come out

Signs of the times. Back in the early 90s, "tacticool" was coming into its own. No self-respecting mall ninja would be caught dead with a colorful knife, they were *serious*.

Times have changed, urbanization has progressed. Fewer people have any real need for a knife in their daily routine. Now they are as mich fidget toys as working tools, hence all the flippers, ball bearing pivots, drop-shut action, etc. Colors are fun. Colors are less scary when you get out your knife just to play with it. When that's the real reason you carry it, it's even more important.

For me it's all about variety. If I owned only 1 knife it would probably be black. Since I own dozens of knives how boring would it be if they were all black. I have knives in all different colors and all different handle materials and I love when Spyderco introduces something different. My latest favorite is the maple chap.

My aversion to black comes from my aversion to all things tacticool. It reminds me of the 90’s when so many knives were black tactical folders.

I don’t really care what others think of my knife so it is just me and my preferences.

Green is my favorite color and I like earth tones in general. I have a few bright colored knives but they aren’t my first choice. The exception being my safety orange Delica that I bring backpacking/hiking.

I prefer different colors for different kinds of carry. I carry a lot of large folders and often with a smaller knife. I am usually working or hiking with larger knives and I definitely prefer earth tones for that role. Brighter colors work for me with smaller knives that I may be using in public. There is something particularly non-threatening about bright colors on a smaller knife.

bearfacedkiller wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 7:09 am

My aversion to black comes from my aversion to all things tacticool. It reminds me of the 90’s when so many knives were black tactical folders.

I don’t really care what others think of my knife so it is just me and my preferences.

Green is my favorite color and I like earth tones in general. I have a few bright colored knives but they aren’t my first choice. The exception being my safety orange Delica that I bring backpacking/hiking.

i feel similarly about toxic green. i hate all the zombie apocalypse nonsense and i hate even more when someone makes something cool and markets it only to that group. i don't want a zombie hunter knife. i just want a cool knife. i'm not prepping for zombies, but i'd like to be prepared for something real. a lot of these zombie hunter types are also into the tacticool stuff too.

i actually like tacticool stuff though. i grew up watching rambo and like tactical gear. it's possible to use it without the attitude, which is really the problem, i think.

vivi wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 5:30 am

ZrowsN1s wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 12:27 am

But my favorite knife 'colors' are things like the knives below. The more exotic looking Carbon Fiber scales, like the fluted cf, marbled cf, and shredded copper cf. Python Micarta, Pakka wood, anodized Titanium.... there are many ways to escape plain black scales, even colorful lanyards.

I've come to appreciate these things too. I love the look of wood, cf and micarta scales. These materials are much more visually appealing to me than flat colored FRN. Zome FRN is pretty cool too, mixes it up from a solid color, there just haven't been any zome runs of models I'm really into these days.

I find that increasingly this is where I am for 'in town' EDC as well. If a dressy knife functions just as well as a plain black knife, I get additional enjoyment out of the dressy knife. That's especially true as I dive deeper into making--there's so much art in the handle of a knife.

If I knew I was going to be shipwrecked with just this one knife, I'd go 100% function for sure. But since I have a safe full of cool knives and I'm trading them out frequently, I enjoy carrying things that I enjoy. Just how it is, I guess.

BTW, the bird-eye Chap is a total home run from this perspective. Functional, classy, perfect for 'light carry' occasions--I love it. :)

ladybug93 wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 8:12 am

i feel similarly about toxic green. i hate all the zombie apocalypse nonsense and i hate even more when someone makes something cool and markets it only to that group. i don't want a zombie hunter knife. i just want a cool knife. i'm not prepping for zombies, but i'd like to be prepared for something real. a lot of these zombie hunter types are also into the tacticool stuff too.

I think I missed the zombie hunter craze, so I like toxic green for high visibility outdoors knives. I just don't pair it with black DLC blades.

TomAiello wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 8:17 am

ladybug93 wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 8:12 am

i feel similarly about toxic green. i hate all the zombie apocalypse nonsense and i hate even more when someone makes something cool and markets it only to that group. i don't want a zombie hunter knife. i just want a cool knife. i'm not prepping for zombies, but i'd like to be prepared for something real. a lot of these zombie hunter types are also into the tacticool stuff too.

I think I missed the zombie hunter craze, so I like toxic green for high visibility outdoors knives. I just don't pair it with black DLC blades.

https://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/stor ... at=ka&k=zk&

I like earth tones on EDC knives. Foliage Green, OD Green, Forest Green, Coyote Brown, Desert Tan, FDE, etc. I definitely would love to see OD Green Micarta used extensively with steels like CPM-3V, AEB-L, and maybe even some CPM-MagnaCut.

For knives like the Spyderhawk Salt, which I would primarily use in the yard, the neon orange from the H1 Sprint was perfect.

In G10 I really like the semi-translucent colors like the Jade (Natural G10) and Blurple (S110V). I'd like to see more semi-translucent in shades like Charcoal, Kelly or Forest Green, and Day Glow Fluorescent Yellow (G10 Salts anyone??). I wish the Blurple was used outside of the S110V family as that is one of my favorite G10 colors.

I don't really mind black either. I just like variety, so I don't want all my knives to be black. Black Micarta is very nice. I like blacked out knives as well like my H1 SE Pac Salt.

Heck, I even like GITD and White FRN. The Ivory FRN on the Strech is also really nice.


Honestly though, when it comes down to whether or not I will purchase the latest sprint/exclusive, scale color is probably the least important deciding factor for me if I like the model, steel, scale material and texture, grind, price, etc. The only hard NO for me when it come to color is Zome. I really dislike them and I won't buy a Zome knife. Not really a huge fan of Camo either, but I would buy a Camo knife before a Zome.


Here are the colors I would like to see or see more of.

FRN - Pure White (paired with DLC would be super cool), GITD (maybe shades like blue GITD), Charcoal/Slate, Earth Tone Greens and Browns

Micarta - OD Green Canvas, Black Canvas, Green Denim

G10 - Semi-Translucent colors, especially Day Glow Fluorescent Yellow and Charcoal

kobold wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 5:14 am

aicolainen wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 4:01 am

Not sure where I heard it, but I very recently heard someone mention that blue is one of (if not the) least naturally occurring colors in nature, and that's why Benchmade chose it for the OG Bugout.

I heard that too and I know they mean living things by it, still, it is funny, how the whole huge sky and all the seas and oceans are ignored.

I don't think it was ignored. In the context of it's intended use, blue probably makes a lot of sense. The Bugout, though confusingly named, is obviously intended for hiking and backpacking. I.e. not an activity where you're likely to experience a lot of blue ground cover or surfaces. The sky and the oceans are huge entities for sure, but for land based activities like hiking they aren't relevant "surfaces" where you're likely to misplace your knife.
Yellow and green are obviously better in and on the oceans, but that's a different use case (and justification) for a different knife.

kobold wrote: ↑

Tue Apr 06, 2021 5:14 am

BTW, research showed, green is the most visible color, that is why most digital displays are green. AFAIK green LED lights have the longest throw and the lowest energy consumption.

Our eyes are most sensitive in the green spectrum that's true, but that doesn't necessarily aid in visibility. Like if we for instance need to separate our green handle scales from the green background of a forest floor.

Even though there's probably a case to be made for blue in certain situations, I still prefer bright yellow for visibility. It's plenty visible enough, and more versatile for my use. I think.

All my thoughts can be found here!

viewtopic.php?t=87239

Have a strong preference for natural materials like wood and bone over plastics for knife scales. Perhaps that's why I prefer colors over black and colors in the "brown" family, all the way from ivory to dark chocolate more than other colors on plastic handles. That said, am far more likely to pass on a given knife due to it having something other than a midlock or because the blade steel isn't stainless than because it has black plastic scales.

Other than yellow and orange, I generally avoid the loud primary colors. As far as all the subtle shades and hues I pretty much like all of them except for pastels, unless I am gifting it to someone who does like them. I enjoy a broad palette of colors. The blues coming out recently have been great, as have the earlier greens like the ZDP line had. I'd like to see more greens and browns in the line up.

More important than color is materiel (micarta, Richlite, wood, Raffir, etc.) and texture. Even humble FRN can be improved by the right texture or pattern.

Great topic Sal, and great responses, everyone.

I'm mostly echoing what's already been said here, but I'd still like to reinforce a few things.

I think y'all hit a home run with the Endura/Delica 4 colors when you launched the FFG line about 10 years ago. Suddenly, Spydercos weren't "tacticool" anymore, but bright and friendly (not to mention all the benefits of the FFG). For urban EDC knives, 3" or under, I think bright and friendly is the way to go. I appreciate the burnt orange on my Rex 45 knives for this reason.

I LOVE the Ranger Green G-10 on my BBS exclusives. Olive Green is my personal favorite color. I enjoy earth tones on larger knives. I appreciate that they don't call excess attention to the knife, and there's a feeling that if I can get it in Olive Green, it was made just for me. :cool: I do have to say that the natural canvas micarta on the z-wear shaman is really growing on me. Brown is another great earth tone, goes with everything, nice and subdued. The "avocado" REC exclusives in OD Green with PVD blades are an excellent color combo.

Let's talk about black. I like black, it's a great color (or absence of color). But like others mentioned above, black is at best a baseline, and at worst a "tacticool" posturing. I don't particularly want to spend $100 on a "basic" knife, and I certainly don't want to spend $100 on a knife that makes me look like a mall ninja. The exception to this is probably a knife like the Matriarch 2 Wave, which I really don't want folks to know I'm carrying, and probably won't draw unless I have to use it. In this specific case, I'd probably opt for all black everything.

But generally, I want to spend $100 (or more) on a knife I'll love, that feels like it was made for me. Handle color options are one easy way to help me feel like the knife was made for me.

sal wrote: ↑

Mon Apr 05, 2021 7:17 pm

I felt that colors changed the "sinister" attached to knives and said, "I'm carrying a cutting tool" and doesn't look like you are trying to hide something.

This is the most important factor. The brighter and more toy/tool-like, the better. Of course this has maximum effect on a Spyderco, because the round hole (and general design ethos) gives the knives such charming personality.

Especially in FRN/FRCP, I feel that colors are true to the nature of the material. There's a boldness and honesty there, as if to say yes, this is synthetic "plastic", but look at the range of colors it will take!

I really like most of the color choices on the FRN handled Endura and Delica. While some of the colors aren’t for me, I enjoy the choices. I have an orange handled endura and really dig the color, both in general and because it is harder to misplace.

My girls each chose a different colors for their Delicas, both because they liked different colors and it makes it easy to tell them apart. To be honest, the color choices was one of the things that drew them to the Delica. I think in addition to making the knife seem less threatening, color choices are likely to broaden the appeal of Spyderco to female customers.