Savvy Spyderco fans are no doubt familiar with the relationship between the Spyderco product line and our economical byrd^® line of knives. You’ve probably also noticed that our most popular byrd models—the Cara Cara™ and Meadowlark™—were inspired by their Spyderco brethren, the Endura^® and Delica^®. While that type of evolutionary inspiration has been the norm, the new Spyderco Polestar™ reverses that trend.

The inspiration for the Polestar actually came from the byrd Raven™—or more accurately, the second-generation Raven 2. Released in 2008, the original Raven was an all-purpose utilitarian folding knife designed by Spyderco co-founder Sal Glesser. In 2015, Sal’s obsession with Constant Quality Improvement (C.Q.I.) prompted him to rework the design to incorporate improved ergonomics, enhanced edge geometry, and US-made CTS^® BD1 blade steel. The resulting Raven 2 marked a significant turning point for the style and manufacturing quality of the byrd line. It also made die-hard fans of premium Spyderco products stand up and take notice of the iconic lines and impressive features of the Raven 2 design. Soon, customers were clamoring for a true Spyderco version of the knife, Trademark Round Hole™ and all. The response to that demand is the Polestar.

Like the Raven 2, the Polestar was designed specifically for budget-conscious knife users. It packs all the defining features and benefits of our most iconic Spyderco models into a practical, full-service folding knife priced to fit virtually any budget. The heart of the Polestar is its signature leaf-shaped blade, which is precision machined from American-made Carpenter^® CTS^® BD1 stainless steel to offer outstanding edge retention, corrosion resistance, and ease of sharpening. Its Trademark Round Hole is fully accessible from either side to allow quick, ambidextrous, one-hand opening, while the full-flat grind and distal taper give it an exceptional combination of edge geometry, point utility, and low-friction cutting performance. Unlike the Raven 2, the Polestar’s impressive PlainEdge™ cutting edge extends the full length of the blade and does not include an index-finger choil.

The Polestar’s high-performance blade is paired with an ergonomic handle built with full, skeletonized stainless steel liners. The liners provide excellent structural strength and form the foundation of a sturdy LinerLock mechanism that locks the blade securely open during use. To ensure a secure, hand-filling grip, they are capped with handsome gray G-10 scales with a non-slip “checked” texture. The handle’s open-backed construction style reduces weight and simplifies cleaning, while a strategically placed relief cut in the obverse side scale allows easy release of the lock when closing the knife. A four-position hourglass clip with a broad, triangular base supports all possible carry positions, including right or left-side tip-up or tip-down carry, and an oversized lanyard hole allows the easy attachment of fobs, lanyards, and safety lines.
 
A shining example of “reverse evolution,” the Polestar sets a new standard in affordable high performance.