Spyderco Forums

I have five Spyderco folding knives in my collection so far.
A back lock, a liner lock, a compression lock, a bearing lock and a Dragonfly.
I'm now looking to add a large folder.
But looking at the police and the military they are so similar, apart from the lock type, I'm undecided which one to buy next.
I'm favouring the liner lock so far, as I think it's a better locking method.
Which is the better folder and why?
Is there a comparably sized frame lock that I haven't considered?

Backlock is stronger, ambidextrous, has a bias toward closed, and you don't put your finger in the blade path to close it.

So police I think if you don't mind non stainless steel, or you can buy a p3.

The Police is also thinner and has a longer blade. You can get the Mili in a lot of different steels the Police doesn’t come in.checkout the carbon fiber/titanium Mili...it’s a heck of a knife for the money.
I don’t think you will dislike whatever option you decided to go with...both serviceable choices.

Definitely k390 police 4 if you don't need stainless.

Both are iconic Spyderco designs and I suspect you will be stoked with either. I prefer the backlock on the Police to the linerlock of the Millie. That said, I think the liner lock on the Millie is one of the best in the business and I have complete confidence in it. As far as handle ergos, both are outstanding but I’d give the nod to the Millie. I prefer carrying tip up (even on larger folders) and only the Police gives you this option. The Millie has a lanyard hole and the Police does not but this is almost a non issue IMO since the inability to carry the Millie tip up makes the lanyard hole largely useless (at least for the way I use a lanyard or fob). As others have mentioned, the Millie gives you far more steel options but though the Police only gives you one option it’s a really cool one, and it’s an option not currently available in the Millie platform. As others have also mentioned, the Police has thinner blade stock and will slice with a bit less resistance than the military.

I’m not sure if this helps or just leaves you more confused about which to get but at least you’ve got a little more info now. You can’t really go wrong so enjoy whatever you choose! :)

p.s. You can always just get both. :cool:

Let me throw, figuratively, another knife into the mix.
I've been casting lustful glances at the Mannix 2XL.
I already have a Manix Cruwear and it seems to be much sturdier than either of my other two choices and the bearing lock seems to me to be the strongest lock.

Luddite wrote: ↑

Tue Oct 16, 2018 5:53 am

Let me throw, figuratively, another knife into the mix.
I've been casting lustful glances at the Mannix 2XL.
I already have a Manix Cruwear and it seems to be much sturdier than either of my other two choices and the bearing lock seems to me to be the strongest lock.

The manix xl takes up far too much pocket space for me to be willing to carry it regularly. It's very tall/ wide when closed and dominates the pocket.

Aside from the lock and steel options, these knives are similar enough where your hands will determine which has the better ergonomics.

For normal cutting tasks, like food prep on a cutting board, there is little difference. But for harder use, like wood whittling or prolonged cardboard cutting, for me the Military is more comfortable due to its thicker handle. I have a better grip especially when wet, less hot spots, and more comfortable when chocked up on the finger choil.

The Police is very slim, and with its 4-way clip orientation, it carries very well. That said, the Military gets carried a lot more.

If I could only keep one, Military all day long.

A few points not yet mentioned:

The Police FRN is coming relatively soon. Same features, grippier Bidirectional texture (see Endura and Delica) than G-10, and lower price.

The Police has a longer blade and .73 more inches of edge length.

The Military has a little more blade belly, though the difference is not nearly as pronounced as with older Police versions.

I suspect additional aftermarket hardware could be added to the Police to provide for a lanyard attachment point. (I have not had a chance to handle one yet with this in mind) Newer models have grown to accommodate tip up pocket clips. Keep in mind that (IIRC) Sal has occasionally repeated (paraphrasing here) that the Police is an attempt to cram as much blade as possible into as little handle as possible; very apparent with older versions that do not have 4 way clip.

anycal wrote: ↑

Tue Oct 16, 2018 6:14 am

Aside from the lock and steel options, these knives are similar enough where your hands will determine which has the better ergonomics.

For normal cutting tasks, like food prep on a cutting board, there is little difference. But for harder use, like wood whittling or prolonged cardboard cutting, for me the Military is more comfortable due to its thicker handle. I have a better grip especially when wet, less hot spots, and more comfortable when chocked up on the finger choil.

The Police is very slim, and with its 4-way clip orientation, it carries very well. That said, the Military gets carried a lot more.

If I could only keep one, Military all day long.

Your comment has decided me to discount the police, it now a two way decision between the military and Manix 2XL.

There's one detail between these two that's been nagging me ever since the P4 came out and they started getting compared so much...and that's the difference in the butt end of the handles. I really like how the Military is shaped there, it prevents the knife from slipping out of your hand, while the P4 doesn't have this. For the work I tend to do with my Military, I think this alone is a deciding factor for me and reason enough that the P4 will never replace my Military. The P4 has a lot going for it but for my uses of a knife this size it can't compete. I'd probably use it more for food prep or something other than "Military work".

The police4 has a little thinner blade stock and a little longer blade. The Military has better ergonomics in opinion.

I like them all. (P4, Military, MXL) :) The Police is the lightest if that matters, and half an inch longer blade than the Military does make a difference in use.

My favorites are the fluted Military and the s90v Manix XL. Gorgeous knives, if you can find the s90v MXL for an acceptable price, I would pick that one.

Roland.

The Manix XL has a shorter blade/edge and is much fatter in the pocket. The cbbl is also different in character, which may or may not suit you (it wasn’t for me).

If the shorter edge is acceptable then you should also consider the Endura (and/or Calypso if you can find one).

The Ti Military versions are framelocks. I only have the fluted cqi version and it’s very nice indeed.

My finger has been hovering over the “buy” button on the P4 for a few weeks now... but I’m also tempted by the v toku 2 Endura ... but I’ve already got the supergold version Endura on order ...

There Military is much better with gloves/mittens (it's cold here in winter), fits my hand better and I prefer the lock over that of the 2 others. Lots of this is subjective (I like the Police, but never got along with the cbbl Manixes) so if you can handle them it would help.

A HAP40 Endura would be a good option to consider.

A pic I made a while back:



(The brown one in the middle is the semi-recent brown Calypso sprint.)

I really enjoy carrying the Police 4, much more so than I was expecting. It’s a slimmer package than the Military and almost like a Caly 3.5 on some serious ‘roids! I’ve had no issues with blade steel corrosion and I live in the Pacific Northwest (not the driest spot on the globe ). I did have the edge reprofiled and it’s a scary good slicer.

Luddite wrote: ↑

Tue Oct 16, 2018 1:55 am

I have five Spyderco folding knives in my collection so far.
A back lock, a liner lock, a compression lock, a bearing lock and a Dragonfly.
I'm now looking to add a large folder.
But looking at the police and the military they are so similar, apart from the lock type, I'm undecided which one to buy next.
I'm favouring the liner lock so far, as I think it's a better locking method.
Which is the better folder and why?
Is there a comparably sized frame lock that I haven't considered?

I've owned the Military in various iterations, the Police 1, 3 and 4, and every version of the Manix XL / OG Manix.

If I could only have one, it'd be the Police 4. Here's why.

- The Police is lighter than the Manix XL, and the same weight as the G10 Military.

- The Police has the strongest closing bias of all three. This is especially important on bigger knives.

- The Police has an ambidextrous lock, the Millie does not.

- The Police has a four way clip, the Millie is only RHTD, while the Manix is tip up only.

- The Police does not have a bunch of needless jimping covering the entire handle like the Manix XL. With the extreme forward and rear guards on the Manix there's no need for all the jimping, your hand isn't going anywhere.

- The Police is slimmer in the pocket than either a Manix or Millie. The slim, tapered butt of the handle makes it easy to access your pocket while carrying the Police clipped RFP.

- The Police has a better blade shape than the other two knives. The slimmer, more narrow blade shape is easier to manipulate through a cut than the wider blades of the Millie and Manix, and the Police 4 has the perfect amount of belly for an EDC.

- The Police blade is thinner than the Millie and Manix XL blades. While the Manix is also 3mm stock, it retains more thickness up to the tip than the Police. Very little of the Police 4's blade is 3mm thick due to the full distal taper.

- The Police offers the most cutting edge of all three models.



Now, there are a few advantages the other two knives have over the Police....

- The Millie and Manix XL have DLC S30V options, which is in another league compared to uncoated K390 when it comes to corrosion resistance.

- The Millie has way more steel and handle options than the other two models.

- The Manix XL has incredible grip security, it really locks your hand into place. For generaly utility I prefer a more open handle design like the Police, but for some cutting tasks the meat of the Manix XL's forward and rear guards is preferable.

- While the Police is a very comfortable model with zero hot spots during use, I'd give the Military a slight edge in terms of ergonomics.


I've never had an issue with my hand sliding off the Police handle during heavy draw cuts, whether it was the Police 1, 3 or 4. It's a non-issue for my grip due to the handle shape and textured G10.

I've used all three models for years, and have been content EDCing any of them, save for the one time I had a Millie pop open while carrying it IWB.

For the record, I have multiple Police 3's, just bought a Police 4, sold all but one Manix XL (DLC version) and sold off all of my Millies.

For my preferences, the advantages of the back lock alone put the Police over the Millie for me, especially now that the weights are identical.

I only own a Millie, and its ergos are awesome! I want a P4, but the biggest issue I am concerned with is the thinner handle. That being said, I have held a Manix XL and I thought that was the was most form fitting knives and most outstanding ergos I have ever felt. But, I can see how it would take up your entire pocket. The thing is a beast, but it was great to hold.

Manix XL gets my vote. Extremely comfortable handle and strong closed bias while still being easy to thumb flick open. It is a pocket hog, but I always keep a pocket dedicated to carrying my knife. I don’t use pocket clips, so reaching past the knife isn’t something I’ve had to deal with.