Perrin confusion

[anephedros]

hi there. long time spyderco fan, first time poster.



i was tickled to hear that spyderco was doing a fred perrin street bowie. i've got a custom one and love his stuff. i was drooling over the pics and was about to preorder one from osogrande when i read the measurements *5" blade*.



i can only assume it's meant to be a camp/utility knife. perrin has made his reputation on small concealable tac/utilities.



i guess i'm just not seeing the logic of taking such a great neck knife and pumping it out to such large proportions and narrowing it's market.



anybody have any background on the development?



A

(of course i'll buy the spydie/perrin neck knife in a heartbeat though <img src="smile.gif" width=15 height=15 align=middle> ).

[Lsaulog]

Welcome to the Forum, anephedros.


"Hope for the best. Be prepared for the worst. You'll never be disappointed."

[Carlos]

Hi anephedros,

Welcome to the Spyderco Forum.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size=1 face=arial>quote:<hr height=1 noshade>Fred designed the knife to be the &quot;ideal&quot; knife for the French Military to use as their standard issue. He chose 5&quot; because of the many different types of chores a military field knife might be used for.

The knife is strong, light, has good traction, VG-10 is tough, corrosion resistant and very good in edge holding. FRN/Krton construction keeps the cost down.

We wanted to produce a knife that could actually do a good job at the requirement, be deliverable in quantities and still be reasonable for the French Military to purchase, should they choose to adopt the model. Fred is currently working with the French military as an MBC trainer.

I know I'm biased, and I like Fred's designs. I made the call to run with it. This is really a beautiful all around fixed blade knife.

sal <hr height=1 noshade></BLOCKQUOTE></font><font face='Verdana, Arial, Helvetica' size=2>

Edited by - Carlos on 1/17/2002 9:41:08 AM

[anephedros]

good enough for me. thanks for the help.

A


&quot;Fred designed the knife to be the &quot;ideal&quot; knife for the French Military to use as their standard issue. He chose 5&quot; because of the many different types of chores a military field knife might be used for.&quot;

[wiley sharp]

pictures, anyone? please?

[Pachucko]

Why, oh why, can't it be full-tang???

[Carlos]

Here you go wiley:

[sal]

Hey Pachucko. Modern materials are surpizingly strong and durable. We've never had a Moran handle break. The new Temperance FB is also a tough FRN that I think would be difficult to break.

One of the problems with full tangs is overall weight and balance. The Lum FB has a full tang, but it had to be tapered to avoid the above problems. Tapered tangs, often used in custom FBs, are expensive to produce and drive costs up into the custom range.

sal

[Pachucko]

The Temperance is listed as Outdoor/Hunting/Fishing, but the Temperance Trainer is listed as MBC? Which is it? bob Lum Tanto is gorgeous, but the handle looks fairly slick for serious use, otherwise I like it (note-haven't held one yet). Could the handles be made &quot;grippier,&quot; on the fixed blades especially. Something along the order of a Steve Ryan. (Whats up? I suggested a collaboration with him almost five minutes ago in another post, so whats the hold up??) Pachucks

[Pachucko]

Bob Lum Tanto - We can thank Bob Lum for introducing America to the Asian Tanto style blade.
Product ID: FB03

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Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price: $179.95


It is only natural that Spyderco follow-up Bob Lum's folding tanto with a fixed blade, and a very classy one at that. It has a Hamaguri (appleseed) grind at the tip for added strength and the swedge on the spine lessens the overall weight. The blade has a tapered Tang, running the full length of the handle, adding overall strength. The expanded hand guard, where the blade and handle meet, makes it comfortable in the hand. Blade is hollow ground.

The key words--adding overall strength. Strength is everything. Maybe I'm just paranoid (but I don't think so). I would prefer the Perrin and the Temperance in full tang but I'll accept your contention that they're strong enough. Will I buy them? I'll have to handle them first. Sal, I know it seems like I &quot;complain&quot; alot, thanks for your patience and explanations, despite my &quot;preferences&quot; I do believe you make the finest production knives around--Pachucks

Edited by - Pachucko on 1/20/2002 7:39:19 PM

[Pachucko]

How do you modify a post here? I obviously don't know how to spell--Pachucks

[sal]

Hi Pachuko. To edit your own post, click on the magnifying glass above the post.

There is no requirement here to agree with me. In the end, eveyone learns.

Bob designed his knife and we built it just as he designed it. I try not to alter a custom collaboration design, unless it doesn't meet safety requirements.

Fred Perrin designed the Bowie to be general use for even the military. A full tang would have added significant weight and we wouldn't have been able to balance the knife at the index finger indent, which Fred preferred.

The Temperance is an in house design with the same requirement as Fred's. Reliable high performance. Just another solution. Both designs were produced to be used, they are not really &quot;collector&quot; pieces. The Lum is more likely to be collected. Making the Perrin and Temperance with hand made handles and tapered tangs would also drive the price up into the &quot;collector&quot; range.

I don't think that strength is what you really want. What you want is toughness. The ability to endure despite extreme circumstances. Strength often comes in mass. Mass is difficult to &quot;haul&quot; around.

Thanx also for the kind words. I don't take your comments as complaints.

[Pachucko]

I think you're right about my need/want for &quot;toughness/ability to endure extreme circumstances&quot; versus strength. Maybe I should follow the advice offered in another post about going to a custom maker? I just have a suspicion that if I bought a custom knife I would hesitate to carry it, which would make it practically worthless. Thanks--Pachucks

[Pachucko]

&quot;The Lum is more likely to be collected.&quot; I hereby submit that anyone who would stick a knife with such an awesome blade into some box rather than carry it in an appropriate kydex/concealex IWB sheath (after roughening up the handle, of course)should be considered a tad off. This does not apply if you buy your blades in pairs, as you should. Pachucks