Manufacturers Recommended Price :- £56.95 (www.heinnie.com)
Blade Length: 75mm 3.00"
Blade Material: CPM-S30V
Edge :- Plain Edge
Handle: G10
Overall Length: 175mm 6.8"
Lock: Non-Locking Slip Joint
Stainless Steel pocket clip

This knife is the result of a collaboration between top Spyderco design guy Sal and the members of the British Blades forum. I think the design spec was to come up with the ultimate UK legal (for everyday carry) slip jointed folding pocket knife.

The result is magnificent. A small knife made from the latest hi tech steels and materials with the familiar Spyderco style.

I have to admit that I was not really a big fan of the Spyderco designs. But this knife has changed my mind. It feels really good when held in the hand and is the perfect size for everyday carry.

Let go through the construction and materials used.

The handle is made from G10. What's G10? Well it is a composite thermoplastic compound consisting of filament glass cloth with an epoxy resin binder. This gives it several great properties for a knife handle. Here are a few of the important ones chemically resistant, high strength, heat resistant and dimensionally stable.

Most important the G10 handle is non slip and gives you good control over the blade. Important for cutting tasks that must be done in wet weather or hot humid conditions. It is also very lightweight and helps too keep the overall cost down as it is a lot less expensive than say Titanium would have been.

The G10 handle is attached to the stainless steel back or spine of the knife with 6 socket head T8 Torx screws. These need a special Torx driver. Standard allen keys don't fit properly and will damage the screws. I don't recommend that you dismantle the knife as it probably voids the warrantee. But it is useful to adjust the tension on the blade to make it easier or more difficult to open.

The knife is also fitted with a stainless steel wire pocket clip that looks like it can be installed on either side of the knife for left or right handed owners. Or be removed completely for those that feel they get in the way.

The clip does help keep the knife safe when carried in your pocket and I like the simple open wire design. The knife has no lanyard hole but this could be attached to the pocket clip and still be secure.

Moving on the the knife blade we can see a nice clean spear point design with an evenly beveled edge. The knife is frightening sharp out of the box and was easily able to shave the hair off my arm. Be careful! The blade has the trademark Spyderco large opening hole which helps with single handed opening using your thumb to sweep the blade open.

If you are new to single handed opening you may be wise to tape the blade for the first few attempts as you would not want to get bitten! The blade opens against the back spine with a positive click. To close it requires a reasonable amount of tension, I find it easy to push with my thumb on the milled section just behind the opening hole to break the initial lock then close the knife by wrapping my thumb round the top of the blade directly above the opening hole.

The blade is made from one of the current top line blade steels. CPM S30V. This is a martensitic stainless steel designed to offer the best combination of toughness, wear resistance and corrosion resistance. All the properties that we need for a good useable long lasting knife blade. Too hard and brittle would made it difficult to sharpen and fragile if the edge hit a hard object. Too soft and it would not hold an edge for very long. So this steel is a very good compromise between the conflicting aspects of steel properties. Remember the knife is designed for cutting tasks. Don't be tempted into using it as a pry bar or a screwdriver. At best you will damage the knife at worst you will damage yourself.

As the knife is brand new I have no need to sharpen it yet. I have an Edge Pro sharpening gadget but Spyderco do have their own Sharpmaker device. Both will be able to restore the edge to perfection with a little practice. Masters of the art would probably use a plain bench stone but my skills an patience do not last that long!

The blade is marked with the normal Spyderco Spider logo along with a stylised 'SAL' on the opposing side. The following engravings are also made 'SPYDERCO' 'CPMS30V' 'GOLDEN' 'COLORADO' 'U.S.A.' 'EARTH' I like the 'Earth' it made me laugh! I have visions of a similar factory on Mars!

This particular knife was engraved as a special limited edition available exclusively to members of the British Blades design team. The standard version is exactly the same but without the engraving. Looking at the current price I also think this is a very good value knife when you consider what you are getting. Many other knives with this steel cost a lot more. I think I will be carrying this for many years to come and hope to see this inspire a whole range of UK legal folders. A more up market Titanium scaled version would be a great idea.

At last a UK legal knife that performs like a many other high end locking varieties at reasonable cost and with great style.

Manufacturer:- http://www.spyderco.com/

UK Distributor :- www.edgar-brothers.co.uk

UK Sales :- www.heinnie.com

More info this and other knives here

www.britishblades.com