Simply because I just purchased the latest micarta version. But I didn’t buy that version for the handle scales. I bought it for the upgraded blade shape that includes a fuller along the top of the blade and the biggest addition – a sharpening choil at the bottom of the plunge grind. When I saw that, I knew I had to have that knife!

Those became available right after I sharpened the knife above for the first time. Though I could get it sharpened to a nice, fine edge, that protruding plunge grind made it… challenging… But luckily I hadn’t had to sharpen it since I got it and had been simply honing it with a ceramic rod and stropping it to maintain the edge. And I used it to cut heavier material than cardboard boxes.

I wasn’t intending to get the new version of the Spiro. I love the Spiro that I have. The blade shape is perfect and my son is going to love using this knife. But I do love micarta and that sharpening choil is going to make sharpening a breeze!

But as you can see in the picture, that knife has been well-used. The clip is pretty worn. In fact, I’ve had to bend the clip back into position a few times as I’ve inadvertently caught it on something. And though it’s difficult to see, the blade is fairly scratched up and it chipped a bit which prompted me to finally give it a good sharpening.

But as you can see in the picture below, if you’re experienced with sharpening, that slight curve at the bottom of the plunge can make it a bitch to sharpen, and will eventually form what Jared at Neeves Knives a “smile” at the back of the blade. Look at the top picture. Though I was trying to be as careful as possible with not changing the blade shape, once I reprofiled the blade, it formed a slight “smile” or recurve. It’s not very severe and the knife hasn’t lost its cool factor one bit. But that recurve does make it challenging to sharpen.

With the new version, the same, basic blade shape is retained but with very cool additions; not the least of which is a sharpening choil that completely eliminates that protrusion at the bottom of the plunge grind.

The fuller at the top was a cool addition as it will make Spidey-flicking very easy. And BTW, that’s not a thing for me because I generally suck at it. 🙂 That micarta handle!!! I’m very excited about it! This is a great evolution of the knife. To me at least, the blade is the perfect shape.

Though I now have a bunch of knives, there’s a reason I keep going back to my Spiro. It’s a great design with an incredible blade shape that’s VERY slicey. The handle shape perfectly fits my palm making it incredibly comfortable to use. I didn’t think it could get better than this, but this latest rendition of the knife really is an upgrade!

Apparently, the Ti version is coming out next month. Though Ti is cool, I’m kind of meh about it. I know that some folks love titanium, but I could take or leave it. Give me some solid G10 or micarta and I’m a happy camper!