2 Screw Workers and Evolution Set [Archive]

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The Deacon

03-04-2007, 12:12 PM

Received a PM today that made me realize I had no photos of either my original "two screw" Worker, or of my Evolution Set. That, and a reply in another thread made me figure it might be good to take an post some.

The Worker was Spyderco's first knife, introduced in 1981. It introduced two new features to the knife world, the round hole opener and the pocket clip. The "Spyderhole" would come to be used on all Spyderco folders with the sole exception of the C27 Jess Horn* and the pocket clip would be used on most.

The very first Workers had a "two screw" clip. There may be more than one, slightly different version of the clip. After one or two batches, the "two screw" clip was replaced by the earliest example of the "three screw" variety that is still in use today, due to problems with it loosening and breaking. All of the two screw Wokers are plain edge. They have no lanyard hole and the perimeter of the handle is not beveled. Also unlike later versions, the swedge grind is sharpened.

The two screw clip was resurected in 1993 strictly for the Evolution Set. Like the original, it is plain edged, with no lanyard hole and no unbeveled handles. Blade and clip marking are very similar. The most visible difference is the thickness of the handle slabs. They are significantly thicker on the Evolution set version than thye were on the originals.

The other Worker in the Evolution Set is usually referred to as the "Zowada" Worker. Its main claim to fame is that it was the first, and until now the only, Spyderco with a damascus steel blade. The damascus for these knives was made by Tim Zowada. It also featured the Kraton inlaid that had just been introduced on the Pro-Venator and the Spyderedge, first introduced on the Mariner. Sal had feared that the combination of the very acute point, sharpened swedge, and serrations might be viewed as too agressive looking and turn people off.

Ok, enough "Edge-u-cation" for one day, on with the show! :D

The Evolution set and original two screw Worker...

http://paulberetta.com/images/workers/evo_set_and_2_screw.jpg

Aside from the Evo Set numbering, there's very little difference between the left sides...

http://paulberetta.com/images/workers/evo_and_orig_2_screws_left.jpg

Minor differences in the clip, and in fonts can be seen on the right sides...

http://paulberetta.com/images/workers/evo_and_orig_2_screws_right.jpg

Considerable difference in thickness can be seen in this top down view...

http://paulberetta.com/images/workers/evo_and_orig_2_screws_top.jpg

The Zowada...

http://paulberetta.com/images/workers/zowada_worker_left_03.jpg

The clip also has a Kraton insert, like that of the Pro-Venator...

http://paulberetta.com/images/workers/zowada_worker_right_01.jpg

Closeup of the blade, note the "Zowada Steel" marking...

http://paulberetta.com/images/workers/zowada_worker_blade.jpg

* Before anyone mentions the Laguiole, if you can show me one with SPYDERCO stamped on it, rather than RAMCO, I will recant. ;)

Peter1960

03-04-2007, 12:28 PM

Thanks for the lesson, Paul :cool:

spyderwa

03-04-2007, 12:56 PM

The Deacon

03-04-2007, 01:42 PM

Here is a thought. Is it possible that the two-screw Worker brought back for the Evolution Set is really a three-screw Worker with a special two-screw clip? It looks wide enough to cover a third hole. Because of the thickness changes the 1993 Evo two-screw might be a newer fatter three-screw Worker with unbeveled edges and a different special two-screw clip. This might be a good research project for any Evo and 1st-Gen Worker owners.

spyderwa

Rare Spyderco Page
www.angelfire.com/trek/spyderwaI think it would be more reasonable to think the layout of the two holes on the Evo match the spacing of two outer holes from the three hole clip, but the third hole was not drilled. I think the "center" one would be visible above the front of the two screw clip. However, I think I will leave it to someone else to take clip off to find out for sure. ;) :D

bh49

03-04-2007, 01:47 PM

Thank you Paul. very interesting.

spyderwa

03-04-2007, 02:32 PM

I think you are right on that Deacon. Does anyone have the thicknesses measured between the models?

spyderwa

Rare Spyderco Page
www.angelfire.com/trek/spyderwa

jaislandboy

03-04-2007, 04:16 PM

thanx for the historical lesson Deacon, I enjoy reading your edgucational threads.....I've never come across/nor read the book about Spyderco (is it called The Spyderco Story?).....:o
....its funny how my Kershaws take for example this Junkyard Dog that I just got has 2 screws.....
....I've always felt that 3 screws on the clip like current clipits have "made more sense" from a physical/mechanical standpoint......so when I learned from this thread that :spyder: had "been there....done that"......I guess it just goes to show just how evolved/refined the designs from Spyderco are compared to the rest of the production folding knife industry....:rolleyes:

Darkfin

03-04-2007, 09:01 PM

The only thing under the clip was an old epoxy like substance that retained none of its adhesion. Only 2 holes as of EE #0172.

spyderwa

03-04-2007, 09:19 PM

I looked at my early three screw flat-edge Worker and it had a thin scale on one side and a thick scale on the clip side. My newer rounded-edge has equal thickness on both scales. Based on that it would appear that the Evo Worker is a newer thickness, un-rounded/flat-sided Worker drilled for only two holes. Talk about variations....

spyderwa

Rare Spyderco Page
www.angelfire.com/trek/spyderwa

dialex

03-05-2007, 12:41 AM

Hi Paul, thanks for the lesson and for the great pics (as usually) :) I still think the C01 is one of the best models Spyderco ever made. Although over 25 years old, it's still actual (IMHO).

spydutch

03-05-2007, 01:48 AM

Thanks very much for the info about a holy grail of mine Paul:cool:

Now THAT is a Damscus blade I would really like to have;)

The Deacon

03-05-2007, 02:12 AM

The only thing under the clip was an old epoxy like substance that retained none of its adhesion. Only 2 holes as of EE #0172.Thanks Darkfin, Good to know! Am impressed that there was someone ready to "bravely go where no man has ever gone before". :D

Spyderwa, I think perhaps they found the thinner handle material was a factor in the clip failures. It did not give the screw much to screw into. That, combined with an application guaranteed to place upward pressure with considerable leverage on the screws, sounds like a recipe for stripped threads.
They may also have discovered, considering the early knives were drilled for tip down carry, that it made the length of the screws a bit too critical. The screws had to be long enough to get a decent "bite" on the threads, but short enough not to extend through the handle and scrape against the blade tang.

At least some of the early PE Mariners also used unequal scales with the thicker one being on the clip side, but have yet to see one with two thin ones. Can't say I've ever seen an SE one like that, or a PE with Mariner on the blade, for that matter, and I have several early Mariners with the square edged handles and tiny lanyard hole.

The final shift, to thick scales on both sides, may have been at least partly a question of the economy of purchasing a larger quantity of a single item and the reduced inventory issues of needing to have two similar but different parts available balancing out the higher cost of the thicker stock.

spyderwa

03-05-2007, 10:33 AM

I think that I like the idea of a thin Worker, (lighter, thinner in/on the pocket). At the end of the day it comes around to compromises. Good informative thread guys. One thing that I thought of doing is a little shadowbox display with a copy of the original patent in the background and a flat-sided Worker in the front. Not that I need more projects.

spyderwa

Rare Spyderco Page
www.angelfire.com/trek/spyderwa

fellyjr

03-05-2007, 10:36 AM

jaislandboy

03-05-2007, 10:42 AM

...
Now THAT is a Damscus blade I would really like to have;)

LOL, me too Arend...;) :cool:

Darkfin

03-05-2007, 12:47 PM

Thanks Darkfin, Good to know! Am impressed that there was someone ready to "bravely go where no man has ever gone before".

I rarely miss an opportunity to take something apart, to the chagrin of my parents while I was a child.... But seriously, aside from being curious, whomever I bought it from had left it with some fingerprints and dirt around the clip, and I decided it was high time for a thorough polishing--and a bit of windex for the dome. So now all are back home looking mighty sparkly! (Though i did clean the brownish epoxy residue off of the clip, i was afraid to scratch or otherwise damage the scale by getting it all off there, so it will be hidden for all posterity back under the clip.)

In a big nod to Spyderco's machine tolerances, the screws went back in perfectly, with no stripping or binding.

swissknife

10-19-2010, 01:36 PM

gosh, i LOVED my worker!!! ;)

Jazz

10-20-2010, 06:34 PM

Looking at those pictures really makes me want one - can we please have another Worker, Sal? I wish I had a clue about good knives back in the 80's and 90's - seriously! :(

- best wishes, Jazz.