So I have had this knife for 2 weeks now, used it every day and thought I'd give off a review about it. I've whittled wood, cut a crapload of cardboard and plastic bottles and coke cans, used it in the kitchen and it hasn't shown any signs of dulling yet. I am really trying to get it to the point where I can sharpen it. 
Very good steel.
Cliff notes: Yes. Buy one! Also MADE IN USA, with USA steel. Made in Golden, Colorado.
Some specs:
First off, let me say I was never a Spyderco guy. I just didn't like that hole for some strange reason. I was in a store looking at knives and actually wanted to get a Buck Alpha Hunter. Once I had that Buck in my hand I noticed how very heavy it is. Definitively not an EDC knife. 260 g / almost 10 ounces. So it was actually out of the contest. Then I looked at an assisted opening Kershaw Rake. Not a bad knife but sort of bling bling with the tooth pattern lasered into the blade, and of course assisted opening will always give you (and others) that military/killer/street thug image. So I thought fawk it, lets look at the Spyderco line. Seeing them in person made me like them. Suddenly the hole wasn't that bad. Got my hands on the paramilitary 2 and thought, hey, this feels like it was made for your hand!
So, I bought it.
Perfect ergonomics for me, only the clip was a bit uncomfortable. I thought of removing it, but the salesman explained to me that the clip can be mounted in 4 different ways. Tip up / tip down and left/right handed. The thumb rests on the ramp towards the hole is fitted with a tooth pattern. They point toward you which means the thumb won't slip off. For finer work, there is another indent (choil) for your pointy finger, its teeth are also angled away from the blade.
Generally, the grip is on the thin side if used with gloves, but big enough to still work. The balance is perfect. The skeletonized liners on both sides fit into the scales perfectly and are sunk into them so you will never feel liner, only scale.
It is a beautifully crafted knife for a production knife. Razor sharp out of the box, blade perfectly centered in the scales. Adjusted so the blade won't gravity drop when the lock is opened, but flicking it open is no problem. (Notice my awesome thumb, perfect for flicking open knives and getting into g-spots.)
I really love the sunk holes for the screws. All Torx, flush with the scales. Nice design. The hole serves its purpose, its not just for the looks. And it works well! I have grown to love it. Clip is functional, on the tight side, but hey - its not a 30$ knife I like that it will stay securely in my pocket. I moved the clip to left hand / tip up carry. That way it doesn't bother me while working with the knife. Finely crafted down to the rounded entry into the sharpened blade.
The lock is functional. It is not a liner lock, it is a compression lock and I have to say it is awesome. It will never fail under normal use. The only way to make it fail would be the blade tang crushing the locking tab that clicks into the slot in the tang. I really don't see that happening.
Only modification I did was move the clip and while it was removed, it took some sandpaper to it to get rid of some of the shiny surface. Now it doesn't catch everyone's eye while in the pocket. I kinda dig how it turned out.
Summary: I really dig this knife so much I made a geeky review about it. I use my knives as tools, never found the need to pimp them. This one is really nice. I just bought it because it felt so great in my hand. Checking out the video reviews, it seems I am not alone in my raving about this one.
Here is a youtube vid of it in action: (From some dude not me)
Spyderco Paramilitary 2: Field Test - YouTube
Very good steel.
Cliff notes: Yes. Buy one! Also MADE IN USA, with USA steel. Made in Golden, Colorado.
Some specs:
- length open 8 9/32 in. (210 mm)
- length closed 4 13/16 in. (122 mm)
- weight 3.75 oz. (106 g)
- blade length 3 7/16 in. (87 mm)
- blade steel CPM-S30V
- blade thickness 9/64 in. (3.5 mm)
- cutting edge 3 5/64 in. (78 mm)
- hole diameter 9/16 in. (14 mm)
First off, let me say I was never a Spyderco guy. I just didn't like that hole for some strange reason. I was in a store looking at knives and actually wanted to get a Buck Alpha Hunter. Once I had that Buck in my hand I noticed how very heavy it is. Definitively not an EDC knife. 260 g / almost 10 ounces. So it was actually out of the contest. Then I looked at an assisted opening Kershaw Rake. Not a bad knife but sort of bling bling with the tooth pattern lasered into the blade, and of course assisted opening will always give you (and others) that military/killer/street thug image. So I thought fawk it, lets look at the Spyderco line. Seeing them in person made me like them. Suddenly the hole wasn't that bad. Got my hands on the paramilitary 2 and thought, hey, this feels like it was made for your hand!
So, I bought it.
Perfect ergonomics for me, only the clip was a bit uncomfortable. I thought of removing it, but the salesman explained to me that the clip can be mounted in 4 different ways. Tip up / tip down and left/right handed. The thumb rests on the ramp towards the hole is fitted with a tooth pattern. They point toward you which means the thumb won't slip off. For finer work, there is another indent (choil) for your pointy finger, its teeth are also angled away from the blade.
Generally, the grip is on the thin side if used with gloves, but big enough to still work. The balance is perfect. The skeletonized liners on both sides fit into the scales perfectly and are sunk into them so you will never feel liner, only scale.
It is a beautifully crafted knife for a production knife. Razor sharp out of the box, blade perfectly centered in the scales. Adjusted so the blade won't gravity drop when the lock is opened, but flicking it open is no problem. (Notice my awesome thumb, perfect for flicking open knives and getting into g-spots.)
I really love the sunk holes for the screws. All Torx, flush with the scales. Nice design. The hole serves its purpose, its not just for the looks. And it works well! I have grown to love it. Clip is functional, on the tight side, but hey - its not a 30$ knife I like that it will stay securely in my pocket. I moved the clip to left hand / tip up carry. That way it doesn't bother me while working with the knife. Finely crafted down to the rounded entry into the sharpened blade.
The lock is functional. It is not a liner lock, it is a compression lock and I have to say it is awesome. It will never fail under normal use. The only way to make it fail would be the blade tang crushing the locking tab that clicks into the slot in the tang. I really don't see that happening.
Only modification I did was move the clip and while it was removed, it took some sandpaper to it to get rid of some of the shiny surface. Now it doesn't catch everyone's eye while in the pocket. I kinda dig how it turned out.
Summary: I really dig this knife so much I made a geeky review about it. I use my knives as tools, never found the need to pimp them. This one is really nice. I just bought it because it felt so great in my hand. Checking out the video reviews, it seems I am not alone in my raving about this one.
Here is a youtube vid of it in action: (From some dude not me)
Spyderco Paramilitary 2: Field Test - YouTube
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