Spyderco Para 3. Can it live up to the hype?

If you know me, you know I absolutely adore the Paramilitary 2 with its great ergonomics, style and grace and at first I really hated the Para 3. I hated the looks for sure as it kept a high blade with less length or something of that nature. I went to S & R Knives to test it out and had no intention of buying it until I held it in hand.

Needless to say I am writing a review about using that very knife. It was love as first grasp. Suddenly it looked more normal in comparison to the photos I've seen, the ergonomics are there again but in a slightly smaller package. Full four finger grasp choked up on the choil or just the handle.

I bought the digi camo and satin as that's all they had available and I didn't care for the aesthetics so much as function (even though within the first 24 hours I had dyed the handle a black midnight digi camo, followed by a second dye to all black). Fun fact: My first PM2 had the same aesthetic setup.

So they added some curve to the butt of the knife which is nice but very well could have kept it like the PM2 for my main gripe of the clip placement. Too much sticks out, period. I have a low ride titanium clip on order and I hope that'll help out.

The action right out of box was smooth as butter, as most would expect from most knives nowadays. I added a drop of 3 in 1 oil and it's a slippery beast now! Keep in mind it didn't NEED it but I always add a touch to my pivots.

Now with the lanyard hole. Ok it's fine and it'd work better than most knives because it's at the utmost point of the butt. Of course that makes it pop out the pocket a ton and should have been kept in the PM2 configuration as I mentioned prior. With this being said, screw lanyards on most knives so I filled it with JB Weld and it did the job for now.

I've been hearing a bit of a gripe about the blade to handle ratio, where I tend to not mind that on this knife as I really have found a great niche in small knives so I benefit from small blade but lots of hand purchase.

This is a good offering from Spyderco as I really like my slightly smaller blades lately and the trademark fit and finish are on point! Try it for yourself, you won't be disappointed.

Kershaw Dividend. Payout for all?

Being a hardcore Kershaw Link enthusiast I was eyeing the Dividend as soon as I saw M390 cross it's steel, which was recently as well the Link which I'll probably order very soon.

I've read that the Dividend is a smaller Link or beefed up Leek? I've always hated the Leek style but am insanely in love with the Link, a real man's EDC knife! True that this knife closer resembles the Leek but not enough that I dislike it. It has wonderful flowing curves in a small and light package.

The blade shape has a great belly and an extra fine tip for piercing tasks, superior steel obviously as it's M390 and a great regrind from the original Dividend. Like I'm really happy with this shape but for me personally I REALLY love the Link as it's a bit taller. Both amazing slicers but something keeps me coming back to the Link.

Another reason I think I prefer the Link to the Dividend is the handle. The handle on the Dividend is great, don't get me wrong but it's even more smooth than the aluminum on the Link which has a bit more grip so to speak. The Dividend also is amazingly thin and disappears in the corner of the pocket but I don't mind the Link having more girth. In all honesty I feel the Dividend would pass as a gentleman's knife in a second where the Link could do the same but really has that beefy man EDC air to it. Also the length of the handle on the Dividend gives me like 3 and a half pinky grip it seems so I prefer the Link again for full 4 finger grasp without thought. Another thing I'm finding with good use of the Dividend is that with certain pull cuts I'm getting a fair amount of bother on my index finger near the start of the palm as I push down.

I keep wanting to dislike this knife because at times I find I miss the Link and want this to be a mini Link maybe. But then I hold this a certain way and go "Damn I like this knife a lot!" but then am almost forcing myself to try and hate the knife again for some reason. Love hate knife right here folks.

UPDATE: after using this puppy for three weeks the torsion bar already broke, ordered a few more from KAI and we'll see how it goes. Still really love/hate this knife.

Spyderco UK Pen Knife (UKPK). It's good innit?

The ultimate slip joint, the UKPK. Made specifically for the United Kingdom and it's bullcrap knife laws the UKPK (and cousins the Urban and Squeak) is under 3" and non locking but has a stiff enough detent to make it safe for all use, especially with the finger choil it'll never take a digit without notice! Your hand becomes the lock! The lightweight version is even nicer than the titanium handle one as the rocker bar is more clicky and stiffer!

The style is very nice with a leaf shaped blade and lots of belly for the using! The knife is super practical as it does allow for that one hand opening, not so much a flick open as I tightened the pivot some but even stock the knife doesn't tend to flick with the index. There is a blade in the style of the Spyderco stretch as well but I dislike that shape.

The handle on the titanium version fills your hand very nicely and that wire clip really eliminates hotspots. I chose after stone washing the entire knife to round the edges slightly at the end  as it was a bit pointy but in normal use wouldn't affect a thing. The lightweight version handle is really nice too, really the lightweight version just disappears in the pocket, but I feel the titanium one does too.

The fit and finish of both versions is outstanding. Top notch American made Spyderco. The flush back lines and scales, how everything pieces together without a misplaced line. Beautiful.

If you're curious about slip joints like I was this or its cousins would be a great start. I actually bought the Squeak titanium Elmax first and loved it so I migrated quick to a little bigger blade. Eventually I think I'll grab the K390 Urban. Do yourself a solid and pick up one of the versions of this knife, even the standard CTS BD1 version.

Best locking mechanism for folding knives.

Here it is folks, the best locking mechanism for your folding knife!

Now a lot has been said in the industry when it comes to locks. Many companies claim they have the best new and strongest lock but when it boils down to it... do you need it?

Usually the answer is no. Under what circumstances do you need a lock that will never break? How extreme of a condition do you put yourself in on a daily basis that you need a lock strength that would surpass 2,000 pounds of force per square inch?

A little while ago I watched a pair of YouTube videos from Blade HQ testing a bunch of lock styles, the ball bearing and lock back really shined but really a liner lock would do you for your everyday use, even a slip joint I'm sure for 90% of you. I was surprised at the frame lock fairing just better than the liner lock but one thing the liner lock did over the frame lock was stay open when broken meaning the frame lock had a tendancy to break and slip and let the knife close, the liner lock bent and kept the knife open for good.

I rotate a Spyderco UKPK (which is a slip joint for those who are not versed in the model) in my everyday carry as well as liner locks, Axis lock, ball bearing, mid back lock, triad and compression. I have a bunch of different knives with different mechanisms but use them all the same and find no real advantage to one over the other in use. As for playing with them the axis, ball bearing and compression are a lot of fun.

So the best lock?

The one you're using. If you're really that set on a lock that will never fail... Get a fixed blade.

Knaf Steal. I rant.

We all know anyone who is deeply interested in knives wants to learn more about what materials are used for them be it handle or blade or sheath. I started a handful of years ago with a basic Gerber china special. I started looking up EDC tags on Instagram and checked out some knives I thought looked nice which opened my world of knives to Spyderco.

From grade 1 (Gerber) to High School in a few minutes of research. Of course the first offering I got was the Tenacious as most people do. I loved it, the build quality, the feel in hand, everything so I decided they were worth the money and went and got my first Paramilitary 2, satin/digicamo - then satin/black - then S35VN - then M390, the King and the only one I still have left. Now these happened over a span of about 4 years as I really enjoy the carry, usability and style of the PM2.

It was my learning and then real world testing of these different steels that got me deeper in that rabbit hole. True there are a lot of guys who don't give a crap about steel etc. and just carry a china folder for the odds and ends and that's just fine for them, more power to them. I want it all in one, edge retention, toughness and rust resistance - the big three. I couldn't fathom taking my knife out and have a rusty blade like an old fisherman's tackle box utility knife.

I've been dabbling with budget folders recently so I've been sacrificing the big three to an extent. Usually I find the budget folders with 8Cr13MoV lose a razors edge within the first few cuts so you may have a slightly dulled knife before you know it. Now on the high end of the scale, M390 is a super steel and lives up to that rank with amazing edge retention. Other high edge retention steels include CPM M4, CPM 3V, CPM20CV, CTS-20CP.

Toughness comes mid range to the budget steels I find, always depending but for D2 I find in certain situations it can cause small chipping which can also happen to extremely high Rockwell rated knives like ZDP-189. CPM S30V has a good toughness and would roll over chip if stressed. CPM S110V is very tough but also tends to roll under use.

Budget steel also is not known for rust resistance and can often form even within your pocket with moisture and heat from your body. Now on the high end there of course is M390 which resists rust superbly. On the other hand there are steels like M4, 3V and other high carbon steels which are not rust resistant can cause problems if not maintained after use. If you can maintain that non stainless knife it'll treat you very well.

A lot of what I write is from first hand experiences and knowing full well they can change from user to user. These few paragraphs are just my opinions and findings, take it all lightly as I'm not trying to tread on anyone else.