Customer Reviews

Spyderco Sage Carbon Fiber Plain Edge Knife

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Let me say that the Sage just blew me away. It was only the second Spyderco I owned and because of it I became an addict.

I usually like my knives a little bigger, with blades between 3.5" and 4", and I was never a great fan of liner locks. Well, this little 3" Sage really changed my perspective.
The grip you get is perfect, especially if you take advantage of the choil and "choke" the blade (i.e., if you keep your index finger on the choil on the blade rather than on the handle). The peel-ply carbon fiber scales are the best around, period. They are grippy while still smooth enough to clean, and they look terrific.
Moving on to the lock, if I had to chose one liner lock as an example of how they should be made, this one would be it. The lock is incredibly smooth yet offers plenty of resistance to keep the blade safely closed in your pocket. And it is strong enough to keep a blade this size securely open.
I am not a great fan of pocket clips, maybe because I use sheaths for my larger folders. However, I can see the benefit of a clip on a folding knife this size. The Sage has a very discrete black wire clip that will go unnoticed on most occasions. It is reversible for left and right-hand carry, but it is tip up only, which is fine by me.
Finally, the most important part of any knife, the blade. The Sage's is pure Spyderco leaf-shape full-flat-grind design, and it is perfect (OK, maybe it could be 1/8" longer). It is a real slicer straight out of the box and is extremely easy to re-sharpen thanks to the flat-grind profile.
The steel is S30V, which is the current standard for high-end knives, and is, of course, stainless.
Finally, all the screws on this knife, from the pivot to the clip, are Torx T8.

As a conclusion, I would say this knife presents an interesting contradiction: if you get a Sage, you reasonably will not need any other folding knife. However, you are at risk of getting hooked just like me and will want to try many other Spydercos...

When you pick up the Sage, you can feel the quality dripping off of it. Everything about the knife is nice. It's really like a piece of 'pocket jewelry', everything locks up tight, the blade is razor sharp and the carbon fiber is finished nicely. It's not as smooth as CF on, say, auto parts. But, you want a little roughness in your surface to hold the knife securely. Highly recommended.

I ordered mine from [...] for about [...]...similar price as you see here. I have gone through a lot of knives to determine which one was best for EDC in an office type environment. Basically, I wanted a three to three and a half inch blade, thin profile, and light weight. I found the Benchmade 530 and loved it. Then I came across the Spyderco Sage. This is one fine knife. S30V steel, gorgeous CF scales, and the blade was centered perfectly. The knife is super easy to open and close one handed...even for lefties. By far it is the best value I have found in a knife. I wouldn't pass this opportunity up.

I can't say enough good things about it, it's my favorite knife and I take it with me every day.

The blade is scary sharp. Seriously, a good friend shaved the hair off his forearm with it, smooth as a baby's bottom. I was pretty pissed about him getting his nasty hair all over my brand new knife, but it washed clean easily because of the open back handle design. Having an open back design makes it easy to get pocket lint, dirt, grit, onion and tomatoe juice, and what ever else out of the handle of the knife.

The carbon fiber scales on the handle are absolutely gorgeous, and have great texture. The fiber is not polished smooth and glossy like many knives out there, instead it is slighly rough, and gives the knife a more rugged feel, but more importantly, good grip. The grip is not quite as good as G-10, but it's very good, and it doesn't make it difficult to get in and out of my pocket like the G-10 does.

The clip is very stealthy. It's got a blackened chrome coating, so it doesn't grab attention, and it allows the knife to ride very low in my pocket, but not so low that it's difficult to grab. People just don't notice it that I have this knife on me until it's in my hand. I like that the clip is completly rounded so it doesn't scratch things if I accidently brush against them, and it doesn't wear out the fabric at the top of my pockets. If I could have this clip on all of my knives I definitly would.

The fit and finish is flawless. The blade is perfectly centered, the scales are nicely bevelled, the blade easily and quickly deploys with a flick of my thumb, and locks up with zero movement in any direction. The knife oozes quality, and people always comment on how cool it looks.

I have one issue though, and it's the liner lock. It's very effective and easy to unlock with one hand... if you hold the knife in your right hand. I'm a south paw, and it's virtually impossible to close one handed in my left hand so I have to use both to get it closed. Not a deal breaker for me.

In everyday use this knife is great. It slices through paper, cardboard, zip ties, onions, meat, tomatoes, and unruly rose bush stems with ease. It's very light and thin and I usually don't notice that I have it on me until I need it. The only other time I notice it is when I put my hand in my pocket to grab my keys. It's a little on the wide side, not a problem though. What can be a problem is using the knife around people who might be sensitive about knives. You have to understand, this blade can be opened pretty much as fast as an automatic knife, faster than your eyes can follow, plus it makes a very satisfying snick sound when the blade locks. The blade is three inches long too, so while not huge, it's not really all that small either. You might startle folks if you whip it out and flick open the blade. I usually open the blade slowly with two hands if I think people might be uneasy with the whole knife situation.

I highly recommend this knife. Definitely will buy Spyderco again.

Originally I was between the Sage 1, Caly 3, and the Stretch 2 and went with this knife, here's my take on it. This knife has the s30v steel where the other two have the ZDP 189, so the ZDP steel does hold and edge longer and is a newer steel but from what I've read across forums is these things are starting to rust or patina just being on their pockets. Some people are saying the opposite so I'm not really sure about it, where as s30v has been around a good while has great rust resistance and really good edge retention and I felt it makes a WAY better EDC steel because I don't want to have to baby it. I also kind of felt the 3 1/2 inch Stretch 2 was a tad to big for an EDC. Then with the Caly 3, it's laminate steal (Not a big deal)and it does keep the upper part of the blade stain free for the most part BUT I've read that it scratches if you even look at it so I didn't know what was worse, a blade that rusts easy (semi confirmed) and looks bad or a really scratched blade that looks bad.

Enter the Sage 1, I'd have to say it's about as close to an EDC knife possible. 3 inches seems to be the perfect medium between not scaring people when you take it out and being usable on 95% of things needing a knife. The s30v steel is a perfect balance of corrosion resistance and blade retention and from the factory this thing comes pretty sharp (I got it even sharper on the sharpmaker). Fit and finish is PERFECT, the knife opens and closes with ease, it has enough texture to feel totally secure in your hand and it feels perfect in your hand. When closed the blade is perfectly centered in the liners when closed. The handle is a Carbon Fiber with Torx screws holding it together (Recessed so the handle is smooth) so it can be taken apart and cleaned easy and being CF it's nearly indestructible. No rough unfinished edges anywhere on the knife. I can guarantee if you decide to get this knife you will not be disappointed using this knife in an EDC role.

Now before you think I'm a ZDP 189 hater I'm not, it's an amazing steel but I just feel it's a little to temperamental for EDC because as an EDC you will probably be cutting some food, boxes, occasional branches that kinda stuff. Like I said earlier, I've seen people complain they rust in their pocket on a hot day, they fall in a puddle, cut certain foods and if you don't wipe it off ASAP it rusts. That said it's still amazing steel and I plan on getting one on my next knife purchase, just not in an EDC role. Hope that helps you decide on your new baby ;-)

I bought this knife because I wanted something for everyday carry, that was nice looking but functional. Something my son might want, and would last long enough to pass down, but that I could use inside or outside until that "pass down" day comes.

After reading and watching many reviews and demonstrations, I knew I was going to buy a Spyderco. They have great quality, good designs and an wide selection of good knives and different price points.

I narrowed my selections down to this knife (Sage Carbon Fiber), the Manix2 and the Cat Carbon Fiber.

The Manix2 was slightly larger and perhaps too aggressive looking for an office environment. The Cat Carbon Fiber seemed too small for me.

I chose this knife because I thought it looked classy, was sturdy and had great build quality and steel.

Things I noticed out of the box.

The good: Extremely sharp. Fit and finish are great. Size is perfect for me. Blade is very tight opened and closed; no movement.

The bad: The edging of the opening hole is not beveled, and took some getting used to. Took some use to get the open/close smooth.

I would recommend this knife to anyone looking for an everyday carry pocket knife they expect to last for years to come.

I have a small collection of pocket knives, and I absolutely love Spyderco Sage.
It has perfect build (no wobbling, very solid), extremely good powder-base steel and very comfortable handle.

I have a couple of bigger knives, and they could be a bit too large for everyday wear.
However their steel is inferior, and I had to sharpen them several times. Meanwhile I own Spyderco Sage for more than 3 months, and I have been using it generally for opening letters/cutting food/some other everyday tasks. So far it remains almost as sharp as it was, and its edge doesn't shine yet.

I currently have a Spyderco Tenacious, Benchmade Griptillian and a ESEE Izula. I find myself reaching for the Sage everytime. I love the look, lock and feel of this knife and have used it for everything from cutting boxes to field dressing a wild boar when I lost my skinner on the trail and had only it on my waist...It's not a cheapie knife but you get what you pay for in a spyderco...

Spyderco SAGE-1: Carbon Fiber, Liner Lock

First in Spyderco's "SAGE" series, the Sage-1 may be the best of the 3 so far. The SAGE series give a respectful nod to the famous blade locking mechanisms of worthy designers. Each model is further distinguished from the others with it's own handle material befitting it's design.

The over-all Sage form-factor is a winner. Size-wise, it nestles nicely between the smaller Delica 4, and the larger "Tenacious". Unlike either of those, the SAGE models incorporate a forward choil giving the user the option to choke up on the blade for close detail work, or to apply more pressure directly to the edge via the filed thumb ramp on the spine. SO nice. For me, more options means more tool for the money.

I like the strong and slick wire clip. The full flat grind leaf blade is a proven winner already, and the larger Spider hole is a hit with clumsy guys like me. The blade length makes for a comfortable EDC for most people, and may be legal most places, depending on how constitutionally challenged your individual State is. (heavy sigh)

The esoteric S30V blade steel is a great marketing buzz-word these days. Time will tell if it's real-world performance is worth the sharpening effort, or if micro-chipping issues will leave it in the wake of a "NEW" super-steel of the day. For medium duty daily use, it's great.

Distinguishing this one from others in the series, the Sage-1 pays homage to Michael Walker's venerable Liner Lock. I'm all about one-hand, ambidextrous operation. Remember folks, while we still have a FEW freedoms left, in many countries ONE-HAND deployment is prohibited, as is locking-blades. Tomorrow may be too late. (pay attention to how y'all vote, please.)

The other distinguishing feature on the SAGE-1 is the textured carbon fiber handle scales covering the steel frame and liner lock. Spyderco used the natural weave of the CF fabric itself to provide the texturing. It's not an aggressive feel, but rather comfortable. I find it oddly "organic", which is a paradox, considering it is Carbon Fiber cloth sealed in polymer resin. But the over-all feel is both warm, and inviting, as well as visually impressive, and quite functional. Well done.

Fit / Finish / etc: Good. As one would expect from Spyderco. No sharp corners, all edges softly radiused inside the frame. I'm not fond of the finish on the blade. Vertical machine marks remind me of the finish one would find on a stove or refrigerator. I would much prefer a finer satin finish, or better yet, a more industrial stone-wash. But that's just a matter of taste, I suppose.

Side Note: The finish on the wire pocket clip is a dark mirror finish. It's not paint. Whatever it is, it doesn't seem to wear off. I've been toting this little fellow around for quite a while now, and it shows zero signs of wear. Unusual.

Unfortunately, there is ONE annoying CON associated w/ this knife.
Much to my surprise, stamped right there on the blade, "Made In Taiwan". And it's stamped a little crooked, I might add.

Mind you, I don't care where a knife is made, as long as it's made well. (and this one IS very well made) HOWEVER, this is a premium knife sold at a premium price. If I have to display "MADE IN TAIWAN" stamped on a Spyderco, then I FULLY expect that they pass those savings right along to me, their valued customer.

I was going to send this one back because of that, but I figure it's my own fault for trusting the manufacturer. There's nothing "wrong" with the knife. I like it. I just paid WAY too much for a Chinese import. My Bad. But Spyderco, I'm a BIG believer in "voting" with my dollars. I will not make that mistake again.

So, Knife looses one full star for "pulling a fast one", and over-pricing.

As for the knife itself. I rather like it.

Hope that review is of value to you.
Happy shopping.

-Berk

I have carried this knife everyday since I got it. The knife feels great in the hand. It is lightweight. The blade locks up good. There is not much I can find wrong with this knife. I have used it to open boxes and cut cardboard, paper, and plastic. The knife is still pretty sharp. Overall great buy.