Spyderco "Warrior" Refinement

[Box]

I like the new spyderco knives... but the police model that was given to me as a christmas present in 1994 still works.

I've had a few others over the years, this ones just my favorite.

[Rob_0811]

Not an SF guy here, but an Infantryman.

I'd attach it on my belt or assault pack. The only knives I wear on my IBA are very small, if any at all.

If you could do a MOLLE/Belt attachment in the same sheath, that would be cool, otherwise I'd offer a choice between both.



Regards,

Rob

[redleg99]

What would be your preference and why?

I'm not an SF guy either, but I think your best bet would be a two-piece Kydex sheath with the holes spaced to accommodate the various Blade-Tech hardware & accessories (i.e., belt loops, tech-loks, molle-loks, etc.).

This would allow a number of different carrying options, and would permit the user to experiment to find what he liked best.

Blade-Tech hardware & accessories here:
http://www.blade-tech.com/Hardware-A...ies-c-251.html

Either way, any idea when this knife will go on sale?

[Bill Harsey]

Originally Posted by redleg99

Either way, any idea when this knife will go on sale?

Tazer Babe, oops, I mean TazKristi,
Is away on business for a bit but I'm sure she'll be along to answer as she can.

[TazKristi]

Originally Posted by redleg99

... Either way, any idea when this knife will go on sale?

redleg99,
Since we're still in R&D with the sheath, we're at least 6 mos. out.

We're familiar with the gear from Blade-Tech, but we'll likely look at something incorporating our own G-Clip. Still taking feedback at this point.

Bill,
You are too kind!

Kristi

[redleg99]

TazKristi,

Thanks for your response – I’ll be patiently awaiting the debut of this knife.

My apologies for not knowing about the Spyderco G-Clip.
It looks like a great piece of gear.

What I intended to recommend was not so much the Blade-Tech product, but that the mounting hardware should attach via Chicago screws rather than be molded into the sheath, or otherwise permanently attached.

I think is the key point is the ability to move the mounting hardware to accommodate strong or weak hand carry, as well as the ability to turn the mounting hardware to allow the user to carry the knife parallel or perpendicular to the belt, or the ability to remove the mounting hardware entirely and attach the sheath to something using zip-ties.

If you are planning on using the G-Clip, I think (for whatever that’s worth!) you are going down the right path.

[TazKristi]

We've made progress on this project, I don't have an ETA yet, but thought I'd share some updated pics with the sheath.

We'd love to hear your thoughts.

Thanx Much

Kristi

[Go For Broke]

Very nice!

The only thing I might offer is that the knife come with additional (separate from the sheath) attachment straps, so that a person could mount the sheath horizontally on their belt.

This will allow the Soldier / LEO to mount it horizontally for carry without a lot of user modification i.e. destruction of the sheath, by hotknifing the current pull the dot fastener straps off and using those. It also shows that Spyderco pays attention to the little things - e.g. it is always nice to get plastic cable ties with "stuff" if they are used for optional carry methods.

Will an instruction / history pamphlet be included? I seem to recall Ek knives used to do that. Nice sales literature, but more importantly as MAB32 pointed out - it is designed to be used in the "reverse grip." Too often, if someone uses a item incorrectly, they will not be satisfied with the performance and therefore "it is a piece of crap! I am never buying one again. You should not buy one."

Just my humble suggestions / questions.

Regardless, I am looking forward to the sales - the Filipinos will be jealous

V/R,

[Carpe Noctem]

Will G-10 be an option? Personal preference, I don't really like plastic handles.

[Kasik]

I am very familiar with this concept / design going back to 1989 when Al Mar felt all was ready to go forward with it as a production knife with AMK.

I spoke with Randy Wanner last week.

During the week in LA when Echanis/Sanders and Wanner were story-boarding the manuscripts for MDE's first three books -

They discussed the "better combat knife" at length -

Referring in part to a "bagful of knives" Echanis/Sanders had brought with them.

Randy drew up some sketches at their shard hotel rooms and when the final sketch was presented - Echanis pointed at it and said "That's the one."

Wanner would take the sketch into four prototypes made by custom makers. He would meet Bob Taylor and the two of them would take the concept to Al Mar at AMK -

AMK produced the knife until shortley after Al's passing -

Taylor would form REKAT and produce a new evolution of the design until REKAT folded -

Spyderco has announced it will release the Pigmy Warrior which is true to the original Warrior concept - and future evolutions of the knife working hand in hand with Bob Taylor.

[Kasik]

The original Warrior was designed with the knife combatives techniques of Hwa Rang Do in mind.

Randy Wanner was Joo Bang Lee's #1 instructor at the time and also trained MDE. Wanner would later become Echanis' logistics POC in southern CALI when MDE and Chuck Sanders were working in NIC.

Echanis never saw a prototype of the knife. He and Sanders and Bobby Nguyen were killed in NIC in September '78.

In 1980, Wanner wrote a letter to Echanis' parents - which they still have and I have read - offering he and Bob Taylor - whom he had become business partners with - wanted to produce a memorial knife using Mike's name and image to promote it.

The knife was to be called the "Echanis Warrior Knife".

The family, still grieving the loss of its son and brother and under siege since '78 by offers meant to benefit off Mike's name, declined. They also declined an offer to see a memorial book ("The Knife") published, as well. Gary O'Neal was associated with this "project" in conjunction with a friend of his then living in Grants Pass, Oregon.

In the October issue of Soldier of Fortune, 1980, Wanner authored an article titled "Circle of Stealth - Echanis' Revolutionary Sentry Removal Technique".

This is the only time I've seen the "Echanis Knife" called such in a photo caption (Page 39). The caption reads in part "Curve of the blade on "Echanis warrior knife" draws it deeper into exposed area."

Randy Wanner is still considered one of the "good guys" by the Echanis Family. He still has the hand ground, unsharpened Warrior prototype that Mike and Chuck never saw.

Echanis' final manuscript notes for the remaining six books he and Chuck Sanders were working on when they were killed were brought back to the United States but not given, as promised, to the family.

Paul Glasser, CW Evans and Gary O'Neal were three of the four escorts of the remains of all three back to the US from Managua. Glasser had spoken with Echanis' mother the day he died and offered to secure / return the material. This never occurred.

Mention of the manuscript notes is made in the 1980 SOF article by then editor M.L. Jones. "The rest of Echanis' material remains in manuscript notes, photographs and the recollections of fellow workers such as Randy Wanner. So far as we know there are no plans to publish this fragmentary material - ." It is said the notes showed up at the SOF convention in Missouri where M.L. saw them and declined on behalf of Bob Brown any interest in turning these into a book.

Said material has never been re-located to this day.

The photographs for four of the six unfinished books (roughly 3000) remain at Black Belt Books and are owned by the Echanis Family. Randy Wanner, who scripted the first three books, is the only authority who can caption these photos correctly.

Mike Echanis was recently inducted into the Black Belt Hall of Fame as its 2013 Weapons Instructor of the Year.

Echanis' preferred close quarters knife was and remains the Gerber Mark II as well as the Mark I boot knife. The family retains one of the only known Mark IIs MDE owned at the time of his death. A close friend of Mike's and Naval Special Warfare / SOG veteran who MDE gave a Mark II to while both were at Bragg has that knife to this day.

[Kasik]

This is a well produced knife, there is no doubt.

I have one and other than having a better sheath made for it I've got no complaints. Very, very sharp right out of the box.

Good friend of mine just returned from Jordan/Syria tour. He carried / used one over there. He's very pleased and offers he carriend it daily, on mission and used it for near everything appropriate.

Spyderco offers they are updating / correcting the original sheath design (primarily interior synthetic "sleeve" which was not so hot).

It may go all Kydex as is the new Pigmy Warrior's sheath.