red_hackle
Enlightened
I just received the Spyderco Junior (C150GP) and thought I share my first impressions of this rather unusual design. This is also my first Spyderco.
I do like the minimalist packaging...
The fit and finish of the Junior is excellent: The blade is well centered and razor-sharp out of the box, operation is very smooth, there is no noticable blade play and lock-up of the compression lock feels rock solid. The texture on the G10 scales is very nice and should ensure a secure grip when using the blade with wet or slippery hands.
Changing the clip to the other side was very straightforward (I am left-handed). I will probably break the edges inside the Spyderco hole with fine grit sandpaper at some point, but these may have been left sharp to ensure secure grip.
Apparently, the blade was designed by Romanian knife designer Dialex as a first knife for his young son. However, this is by no means a small knife. While being quite compact when closed, the cutting edge is only marginally shorter than the one on my Strider SMF and I was pleasantly surprised to find that I can just about fit all my fingers on the handle. I have rather large hands and on a small Sebenza my pinky only grips the lanyard.
While the ergonomics of the handle are great making the knife very comfortable to hold and giving the user a high degree of control over the blade, the choil in the handle doesn't allow you to choke up close to the edge (the whole point of the design). I am not sure how this grip some distance behind the blade is suited for tasks that require applying a lot of force (i.e. carving harder wood) as most pressure would have to come from the thumb resting on the back of the blade. However, I would imagine the Junior excels at food prep and any other light to medium cutting tasks. I will give it a spin in the kitchen when preparing dinner tonight and report back.
A few more pictures of the Junior paired up with one of my favourite lights... the two will probably accompany me on my upcoming holiday – the Torchlab lego in my jacket pocket, the Junior and a titanium spork in my luggage/the hotel room safe to serve up the odd snack.
I do like the minimalist packaging...
The fit and finish of the Junior is excellent: The blade is well centered and razor-sharp out of the box, operation is very smooth, there is no noticable blade play and lock-up of the compression lock feels rock solid. The texture on the G10 scales is very nice and should ensure a secure grip when using the blade with wet or slippery hands.
Changing the clip to the other side was very straightforward (I am left-handed). I will probably break the edges inside the Spyderco hole with fine grit sandpaper at some point, but these may have been left sharp to ensure secure grip.
Apparently, the blade was designed by Romanian knife designer Dialex as a first knife for his young son. However, this is by no means a small knife. While being quite compact when closed, the cutting edge is only marginally shorter than the one on my Strider SMF and I was pleasantly surprised to find that I can just about fit all my fingers on the handle. I have rather large hands and on a small Sebenza my pinky only grips the lanyard.
While the ergonomics of the handle are great making the knife very comfortable to hold and giving the user a high degree of control over the blade, the choil in the handle doesn't allow you to choke up close to the edge (the whole point of the design). I am not sure how this grip some distance behind the blade is suited for tasks that require applying a lot of force (i.e. carving harder wood) as most pressure would have to come from the thumb resting on the back of the blade. However, I would imagine the Junior excels at food prep and any other light to medium cutting tasks. I will give it a spin in the kitchen when preparing dinner tonight and report back.
A few more pictures of the Junior paired up with one of my favourite lights... the two will probably accompany me on my upcoming holiday – the Torchlab lego in my jacket pocket, the Junior and a titanium spork in my luggage/the hotel room safe to serve up the odd snack.
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