Like all smart consumers, Spyderco customers appreciate a good value. Led by our best-selling Tenacious™ model, our Value Series of folders was specifically created with that thought in mind, packing all the high-performance features that define a Spyderco knife into an entire family of very affordable models. To accomplish that feat, we had to figure out how to make calculated compromises that reduced the cost of production while maintaining the highest overall product quality and reliability. After exploring all the possibilities, we realized that the best way to do that was by choosing an economical blade steel.
Using a less expensive blade steel allowed us to maintain the highest quality materials and craftsmanship in the overall execution of the knife, while still achieving a significant cost savings. For hundreds of thousands of satisfied Value Folder owners, this works perfectly. They use their knives, sharpen them when necessary, and keep on cutting. Other customers, however, told us that they were ready for “the next step”—folder models that were still very reasonably priced, but featured a more advanced blade steel. To meet that need, we created two of the newest additions to our Value Folder family, the Alcyone and the Polestar.
Alcyone is a brilliant multiple star system in the constellation of Taurus. Its official astronomical designation is Eta Taurus, and it was once believed by the Mayan people to be the center of our solar system. Polestar is another name for Polaris, or Alpha Ursae Minoris, commonly known as the North Star. Like these namesakes, the Spyderco Alcyone and Polestar were specifically created to shine brightly above their peers.
The heart of the Alcyone is its full-flat-ground, PlainEdge™ blade, which is precision machined from American-made CTS® BD1 stainless steel. This high-carbon, high-chromium steel offers an excellent balance of hardness, corrosion resistance, and wear resistance, making it ideally suited for use in working knives. By design, the Alcyone’s leaf-shaped profile has a very small ricasso (the unbeveled portion of the blade near the handle) to give the blade a long, exceptionally capable working edge. The fully accessible Trademark Round Hole™ proudly identifies the knife’s Spyderco pedigree and provides an excellent purchase for swift, ambidextrous one-handed opening.
The Alcyone’s ergonomic handle features full skeletonized stainless steel liners and an open-backed construction style that minimize the knife’s weight, make it easy to clean, and provide a sound structure for its sturdy LinerLock mechanism. To ensure a comfortable, non-slip grip, the liners are sandwiched between gray G-10 scales with a unique high-traction checked texture. The obverse (near-side) scale and liner also include relief cut that allows easy release of the lock when closing the knife and makes one-handed operation simple and intuitive. To support all possible carry options, the Alcyone features a four-position pocket clip that is easily configured for left or right-side, tip-up or tip-down carry. The clip has a broad, triangular base for strength and a center hole that works in concert with a generously sized lined lanyard hole to allow the easy attachment of fobs and lanyards.
The Polestar shares all the same qualities and performance features as the Alcyone, but in a package that is about 11 percent larger. While the Alcyone is ideal for smaller hands or jurisdictions that require a sub-three-inch blade length, the Polestar fits larger hands more readily and offers a longer and somewhat thicker blade for more demanding cutting chores. Best of all, it does all that while keeping its weight a trim 3.9 ounces (111g) and remaining amazingly pocket friendly.
No matter which one you choose, the Alcyone and Polestar truly do “shine brightly” and proudly offer all the best features of our world-class knives at budget-friendly prices.
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