FG CPM-D2 Military - it's finally here!

Three generations from the Spyderco C-36 'Military' model
This is the latest incarnation of Spyderco's flagship folding knife

Wah! Rejoice! Rejoice! I've waited for a while to score another Spyderco folding knife and well, its a dream come true when I cut open my package.

The Spyderco Military and I had a bit of a history. Its my first large high-end production knife bought in late '99.

My first Millie was a fully-serrated blade. Hard used, I could hardly find any flaws on the blade, but with a slight exception on the tip.

The one I have is a gen-2 version using the CPM-440v steel (crucible particle metallurgy - offered as a high-tech powdered steel, then formed and milled into billets before stock removal) which performed flawlessly in our humid weather.

I must say that when Spydercos came into the Malaysian knife scene, there were hardly any awareness about it. It was sold in two outlets - Eddy Ng's toolshop in Section 14, PJ (now at a new location in Section 17) and the defunct Tight Line tacklestore owned by renowned fishing columnist Uncle Bob Chang.

The one I snagged from Bob at about RM380 a piece was a steal! It was the most affordable piece of cutting tool that I am still using today.

As far as corrosion resistance and edge retention is concerned, there's hardly anything to worry with the Millie.

Its a top-rate service knife that saw plenty of action in the jungles of Peninsular and East Malaysia.

Later, I was given an update version of the knife by Spyderco (I was a field tester with a column on knives in The Malay Mail, a local tabloid) which was tested in my excursions.

There has been at least three upgrades on this knife - Carbon fibre scales - BG-42 and S30V and the latest incarnation is the Foliage Green CPM-D2 blade.

What I found most impressive -- are the improvements on the overall handling of the blade. It has a good grip, plenty of belly when it comes to cutting.

Sharpness is hair-popping right out from the box. I think this knife will continue to give years and years of service before a replacement is warranted. You can find out more about Spyderco and their high-end cutting tools from http://www.spyderco.com/