New love for Taichung Spydercos. Which model next?

Cscotttsss

Cscotttsss

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Mar 3, 2015
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All of my Spydercos are more or less USA Golden made, with a mix of about 10 or 11 Delicas and Dragonflys. I had never owned or tried a Taichung made model other than my Chaparral LW. Which we all know is an amazing knife.

Well, I recently aquired these two and wow, I'm blown away. Not only because of the fit and finish but I love CF handled knives, whether true CF or laminate.

So what Taichung should be next on my list? I'm thinking carbon fiber Chaparral.


Untitled by Caleb Bender, on Flickr
 
I have a few Taichung models and my favorite one just so happens to also have the best fit and finish, the Gayle Bradley 2. Boy do I love that knife!

I don’t agree with some people who think the Taichung models always have the best fit and finish but some of them certainly do.

*edit* I can’t believe I forgot about the Kapara! It is tied with the GB2 for my favorite Taichung Spyderco.
 
Here's a link to a list of every Spyderco Taichung Folder ever that made. This list has been prepared and is maintained by RamZar and I have used it as a want/buy list ever since I 1st saw it.

I have owned more but I currently own 37 of the 94 folders listed, plus an extra Valloton converted to a D/A Auto. I also own a Reverse and couple of Mule Team (20CV & LC200N) fixed blades, which are not listed because they are not folders.

So, I own 41 Taichung made Spydercos in total out of 130+ Spyders overall. Can't go wrong w/any of them IMO but my favorite Taichung folders include the:

Advocate
Amalgam
Drunken
Gayle Bradley 1
Hundred Pacer
Hungarian
Janisong
K2
Nirvana
Tropen
Valloton D/A
 
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The Drunken is a fantastic knife. I carry mine often.

ZfqUdlU.jpg
 
Cscotttsss said:
All of my Spydercos are more or less USA Golden made, with a mix of about 10 or 11 Delicas and Dragonflys. I had never owned or tried a Taichung made model other than my Chaparral LW. Which we all know is an amazing knife.

Well, I recently aquired these two and wow, I'm blown away. Not only because of the fit and finish but I love CF handled knives, whether true CF or laminate.

So what Taichung should be next on my list? I'm thinking carbon fiber Chaparral.


Untitled by Caleb Bender, on Flickr
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The original Gayle Bradley is one of Taichung's finest. Other greats include :

The Sage (classic Taichung Spydie)
The Hungarian (truly beautiful but careful of the fakes)
The Navaja (in my view the best of the ethnic series)
The Chokwe (weird shape but endearing haha)
 
nephron said:
Rubicon, would love one to go with the Magnitude.
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FWIW, I'd recommend buying the original Rubicon 1 (C187CF) w/the solid polished CF scales over the Rubicon 2 (C187CF2) w/the lam CF/G10 scales. Although identical in design, the scales used make a huge difference in terms of attractiveness and hand feel to me, which is why I sold my Rubicon 2 as soon as I could find a Rubicon 1.

Another suggestion is to look for a Brend/Pierla Mamba (C196CFTI) to add to your collection. It's not a practical knife to use/carry IMO but it would make for a nicely matched trio w/the Rubicon and Magnitude, at least that's how they look to me in my collection.
 
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Slysz Bowie was by far the nicest Taiwan folder I had but I hear Paysan and Drunken are very nice too. Of these, only Drunken has CF on the presentation side.

My favorites though which I carry are Chaparral and within the Chap line the Stepped Titanium has incredible and stunning 3D milling. The Stepped Titanium used to sell for $367.22 (MSRP: $564.95) but since they've been discontinued you can get a brand new one for $199.95 at KnifeCenter! Only Chaparral 1 is CF. The FFG blade on the Chaparral is only 0.078" thick and makes for an excellent slicer.

All the CF Taichung folders that I know of:

  • Amalgam
  • Chaparral 1
  • Dice
  • Dog Tag CF
  • Domino
  • Drunken
  • Gayle Bradley 1
  • Gayle Bradley 2
  • Ikuchi
  • Kapara
  • Magnitude
  • Mamba
  • Mantra 3
  • Navaja
  • Perrin PPT CF
  • Positron
  • Rhino
  • Rubicon 1
  • Rubicon 2
  • Sage 1
  • Sage 3
  • Sage 5
  • Schempp Bowie
  • Sliverax
  • Smock
  • Szabo
  • Szabo Black
  • Watu (upcoming)
 
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RamZar said:
Slysz Bowie was by far the nicest Taiwan folder I had but I hear Paysan and Drunken are very nice too.
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I've considered by a Slysz Bowie but people want too much for them and I don't think they are THAT good; neither does Nick Shabazz for that matter. I bought a SpydieChef instead as a more affordable substitute created by the same designer.

I had a Paysan but sold it in lieu of a Nirvana which I think is much more attractive; the Paysan is just boring to me. Both still had some lock stick, even though the Paysan was supposed to have "fixed" that problem. The Drunken also remains in my collection; the only problem w/it being the clip but it's not a problem for me since I don't carry it.
 
sgt1372 said:
I've considered by a Slysz Bowie but people want too much for them and I don't think they are THAT good; neither does Nick Shabazz for that matter. I bought a SpydieChef instead as a more affordable substitute created by the same designer.

I had a Paysan but sold it in lieu of a Nirvana which I think is much more attractive; the Paysan is just boring to me. Both still had some lock stick, even though the Paysan was supposed to have "fixed" that problem. The Drunken also remains in my collection; the only problem w/it being the clip but it's not a problem for me since I don't carry it.
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Slysz Bowie is really that good contrary to some opinions. I had never used mine and was offered a ridiculous sum for it so I sold it!

From what I gather SpydieChef is also an excellent choice.
 
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