Spyderco Forums

So, I was under the impression that the Chinese factories were limited to budget steels like 8cr and bd1. With the reveal of the s35vn Tenacious lightweight, however, it appears that Spyderco may have found a factory that can reliably work with at least one premium steel.

So, does everyone think this is a one-off, or is this a door opening to a range of upgraded China-made models? And why s35vn over s30v?

I personally would really love to have the new Astute with blue g10 and s35vn steel. Also a Polestar and a Bow River. What Chinese models would you like to see in s35vn?

My first thought is that this will open the door to all kinds of new options from the China partner, which is exciting. My assumption is that the existing partner will be making it simply because Spyderco seems to do everything possible to maintain existing relationships

As a side note, I'd be particularly interested in the China Spyderco models if they had 14c28n. This is a steel that doesn't look advantageous in terms of published wear resistance, however the fine microstructure provides an edge stability that causes it to consistently perform between S30V and M390 in testing done on new clean cardboard.

Hopefully we see it one day.

*edit long rambling post on the subject

JuPaul wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 09, 2020 4:02 pm

...l. Also a Polestar and a Bow River. What Chinese models would you like to see in s35vn?

Julia, you mentioned the two already that come to my mind immidiately: Tenacious LW and Polestar.

As one who prefers the linerlock over the comp. lock, likes edge all the way to the handle and an actual cutting edge of over 3", the Tenacious LW in a "better" steel is great news!! (Wish it would come in full SE though and not "just" in PE and CE)
The Polestar is such a pretty and great looking knife and offers the features I mentioned above either
Add the Resilience as a big knife option, and I´d be more than happy! :)

This is great news for steel afficionados. I wonder if these will sell well though. I would definitely consider getting one. I haven't owned a Tenacious for a long time. 2 of my non-knife friends bought a Tenacious as their first (and only) modern folder.

It truly changes the performance of any of those Chinese-made value line, production folders; and, of course doubles the price of each model. I'm not making a value judgement. We have all been asking for up-grade options. Put a S35VN blade in one of those titanium Byrd Cara Cara 2's and I'll buy two!

I'm in for one honestly. I love my Tenacious and it has served me well. You can definitely tell I've used it a lot, broke the tip and fixed it, and it is still solid and ready to go. Having that classic in S35VN is just icing on the cake.

If they put out a Resilience in S35 I'd probably have to get one of those too. As for other models, I only have the Resilience, Tenacious, and Persistence in the Chinese line. Been wanting to get a Polestar but haven't pulled the trigger yet.

I'm definitely getting one of these. I love the whole Tenacious line and love FRN and have been hoping for some US steels in these so keep em coming. A Resilience LW in Cruwear would be a dream knife for me. But I'd get one in S35VN if Cruwear is not an option.

But now it cost as much as a native?

Im not against it, but at that price I would rather put my money towards something else.

Also, is the fit and finish going to be twice as good?
I like a lot of the chinese designs, but the fit and finish and overall quality of my Chinese produced spydies are far behind what I see from the other factories.

Wow, I didn't realize that the Tenacious LW would have S35. This kinda blows my mind...
(Wallet, are you there? We've got work to do!)

steelcity16 wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 09, 2020 4:33 pm

I'm definitely getting one of these. I love the whole Tenacious line and love FRN and have been hoping for some US steels in these so keep em coming. A Resilience LW in Cruwear would be a dream knife for me. But I'd get one in S35VN if Cruwear is not an option.

I think I'll probably get one, too. I definitely wouldn't mind having a Tenacious again (and a lw at that), but I'd also really like to support this experiment.

VooDooChild wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 09, 2020 4:38 pm

But now it cost as much as a native?

Im not against it, but at that price I would rather put my money towards something else.

Also, is the fit and finish going to be twice as good?
I like a lot of the chinese designs, but the fit and finish and overall quality of my Chinese produced spydies are far behind what I see from the other factories.

Well the pricing makes sense...a lw Tenacious in s35vn and a lw native in s30v should be roughly comparable, imo. Plenty of people prefer the Tenacious design, but want it in a better steel. Now's their chance!

This knife will answer a lot of questions Spyderco has been wondering about... Will a premium-steel non black frn Tenacious sell? Will people pay more and prefer premium Chinese made spydies over the cheaper non premium Chinese made spydies? If this is popular why did the Alcyone and Polestar not sell more? (even though they are fine knives)

I like this experiment a lot.

JuPaul wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 09, 2020 4:02 pm

Also a Polestar and a Bow River. What Chinese models would you like to see in s35vn?

a bow river would be SWEET

JuPaul wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 09, 2020 4:48 pm

VooDooChild wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 09, 2020 4:38 pm

But now it cost as much as a native?

Im not against it, but at that price I would rather put my money towards something else.

Also, is the fit and finish going to be twice as good?
I like a lot of the chinese designs, but the fit and finish and overall quality of my Chinese produced spydies are far behind what I see from the other factories.

Well the pricing makes sense...a lw Tenacious in s35vn and a lw native in s30v should be roughly comparable, imo. Plenty of people prefer the Tenacious design, but want it in a better steel. Now's their chance!

I'm not sure that it makes sense when we factor in US vs. Chinese labor costs. Maybe Chinese import tariffs on the raw steel plus US tariffs on the finished product? Plus, liner lock vs. the perfected back lock on the N5? I hope it sells well though, because it seems like many folks here have wanted a Tenacious and its siblings in a premium steel. I'm with VooDooChild: I'd get another Native 5 LW, wait, no I'll probably get the new LC200N Pac Salt 2 for the price as soon once that drops. I'm glad the team at Spyderco give us so many options.

Spydergirl88 wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 09, 2020 4:49 pm

This knife will answer a lot of questions Spyderco has been wondering about... Will a premium-steel non black frn Tenacious sell? Will people pay more and prefer premium Chinese made spydies over the cheaper non premium Chinese made spydies? If this is popular why did the Alcyone and Polestar not sell more? (even though they are fine knives)

I like this experiment a lot.

I passed on the Polestar and Alcyone mainly because I thought the scales were ugly. I'd buy LW FRN versions in this combo though.

i'll take a resilience in s35vn and blue g10. it's such a great knife and deserves a better steel. i like it much better than the tenacious. i might even like it better than a manix.

Blade hq has the pre-orders up, tenacious is $98. Overall not bad, and I will definitely be picking one up but I'm not pre-ordering. I did that with my para 3 lw and it took a long time after it was released to get it. The $5 was non-refundable, so I wasn't going to lose it haha! I'll just wait until there is stock at Knifeworks and snag one then! They're always quick... Case in point I ordered a cold steel sr1 lite today and it's in the mail and should be here Friday.

Hopefully the cbn bench stone and tenacious will be in stock at the same time... Here's to hoping!

Is the polestar different enough from the more popular tenacious?

GarageBoy wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 09, 2020 7:47 pm

Is the polestar different enough from the more popular tenacious?

It has a choil. That's a big difference for a lot of people.

GarageBoy wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 09, 2020 7:47 pm

Is the polestar different enough from the more popular tenacious?

They are really similar, I agree. I think the polestar is less tall overall. I've only owned the Tenacious and the smaller Alcyone, but the ergos on the Alcyone work a bit better for my hand.