Spyderco Forums

I have some old lockbacks from other companies that I have had for more than 30 years. They are old fashioned knives (e.g. Gerber Sportsman II) and got heavy use for cleaning fish.
The lockup is as tight as new - perfect.

Is there any difference in how long knives with nested liners, like the Stretch or Endura) will maintain tight lockup compared with other knives? I am just wondering if there are any advantages to knives like the Caly 3, Native, or even the Caly 3.5 in terms of the security and life of the lock. I also wonder about this in comparison with knives with stainless bolsters, like the older Persian, Kope, etc. I assume normal use.

I only ask about this, because I have read of some people reporting their lockbacks getting some slight play over time.

I have an Endura G-2 serrated that I got in 1992. It's been my heavy use knife for cardboard, gardening etc. even since. There is no blade play and it locks as tight as it did when I bought it. It doesn't even have liners, so I imagine my Endura 4 will go even longer.

For all intents and purposes a nested liner is just as strong as a full-length liner knife (of the same model). The main advantage is giving anchor points for things like G10 scales and some aesthetic cleanliness.

I think overall blade-play is over-played ( :p ). The tactile feedback is disconcerting but rarely endangering. It's very subjective and any modern Spyderco should last someone a very long time as long as not abused.

FrankH wrote:I have an Endura G-2 serrated that I got in 1992. It's been my heavy use knife for cardboard, gardening etc. even since. There is no blade play and it locks as tight as it did when I bought it. It doesn't even have liners, so I imagine my Endura 4 will go even longer.

I have the same early model Endura in a plain edge; it too locks up tight like the day I bought it. I probably bought mine the same year you did, Frank.

The Endura and Delica are flagship models for a very good reason.