Just got this guy today, and it's awesome. None of the pics I've seen online do it any justice at all.
Here's a couple of video reviews:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6famI6-cAcE
This one has it laid out next to a Tenacious and Para-2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-JQRGbwdIo[/QUOTE]
It is a whole lot of knife for the price - and it is a Sprint-run, so it won't be around forever. My only complaint would be that it might be a little too large for me (and only because it fits into "dress" or "classy" knives by my taste - and I usually prefer those to be a bit smaller). This is a big knife. It has a lot more blade-to-handle ratio than the majority of Spydies (a bit more blade length than the Para-2, but less handle).
Scales were beautiful indoors, but then I took them outside and looked at them in the sun... Holy crap there is some beautiful 3D detail underneath that glassy finish.
I'll say this though - it needs an uncoated matte clip badly (IMHO).
Here's pics. I'm still not capturing the overall look of the scales (part of that is because my greasy fingerprints are all over it).
Tried to get some different angles here (but the camera just doesn't pick up how cool these things look - the videos show it much better when it's moving and the light reveals all of that detail).
The locking finger on the lockbar is a little longer than any of my other lock-back Spydercos, but to be fair - it is the largest lock-back I own (I don't have a Police or Endura to compare it to). When this thing engages, it makes a big fat "SNAP" and you know it's locked. It also requires you to push the lock-bar a tad further down than some of my other lock-backs before it disengages (and the spring is more than stiff enough to let you know it's got good tension). When it's locked, it's a bank-vault (no play in any direction).
I don't know if this is typical of larger lock-backs, but it would make sense to have a lock that's built a bit more stout since it is a larger knife. It's definitely not a bad thing, but it's just a little surprising how "over-built" it is - especially for being a very slim fancied up Sprint-run knife. The liners are almost as thick as those on my Superleaf. The blade-stock is a tad thinner than that of the Para-2's (which I think is 3mm, so the R is probably at 2-2.5mm? - man I need some calipers) so overall, its absolutely perfect for a large slicer, but being that it's a gorgeous Sprint-run that I can't just go out and replace in a few years, I'm hesitant to use it like it should be used (and I'm trying to avoid any shelf-knives now days). I fear that I may not keep this one for that reason alone. It is absolutely perfect for me in almost every way other than it contradicts my norm for a dress-knife.
I sold my CF Stretch for this same reason (but in reality, I sort miss it). This R fits my hand more perfectly than just about any other Spyderco I've handled.
Here's a couple of video reviews:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6famI6-cAcE
This one has it laid out next to a Tenacious and Para-2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-JQRGbwdIo[/QUOTE]
It is a whole lot of knife for the price - and it is a Sprint-run, so it won't be around forever. My only complaint would be that it might be a little too large for me (and only because it fits into "dress" or "classy" knives by my taste - and I usually prefer those to be a bit smaller). This is a big knife. It has a lot more blade-to-handle ratio than the majority of Spydies (a bit more blade length than the Para-2, but less handle).
Scales were beautiful indoors, but then I took them outside and looked at them in the sun... Holy crap there is some beautiful 3D detail underneath that glassy finish.
I'll say this though - it needs an uncoated matte clip badly (IMHO).
Here's pics. I'm still not capturing the overall look of the scales (part of that is because my greasy fingerprints are all over it).
Tried to get some different angles here (but the camera just doesn't pick up how cool these things look - the videos show it much better when it's moving and the light reveals all of that detail).
The locking finger on the lockbar is a little longer than any of my other lock-back Spydercos, but to be fair - it is the largest lock-back I own (I don't have a Police or Endura to compare it to). When this thing engages, it makes a big fat "SNAP" and you know it's locked. It also requires you to push the lock-bar a tad further down than some of my other lock-backs before it disengages (and the spring is more than stiff enough to let you know it's got good tension). When it's locked, it's a bank-vault (no play in any direction).
I don't know if this is typical of larger lock-backs, but it would make sense to have a lock that's built a bit more stout since it is a larger knife. It's definitely not a bad thing, but it's just a little surprising how "over-built" it is - especially for being a very slim fancied up Sprint-run knife. The liners are almost as thick as those on my Superleaf. The blade-stock is a tad thinner than that of the Para-2's (which I think is 3mm, so the R is probably at 2-2.5mm? - man I need some calipers) so overall, its absolutely perfect for a large slicer, but being that it's a gorgeous Sprint-run that I can't just go out and replace in a few years, I'm hesitant to use it like it should be used (and I'm trying to avoid any shelf-knives now days). I fear that I may not keep this one for that reason alone. It is absolutely perfect for me in almost every way other than it contradicts my norm for a dress-knife.
I sold my CF Stretch for this same reason (but in reality, I sort miss it). This R fits my hand more perfectly than just about any other Spyderco I've handled.