Spyderco Para3 LW Thoughts

If you've been keeping up with me for a while, you'll know that I absolutely hate Spyderco's Paramilitary 2. I think it's an extremely overhyped knife that I would never want to personally carry. When they announced the Para3 in G10 a couple years back, I wasn't all that interested due to my hatred of the PM2. However, when you throw FRN scales on there, you've got my attention. I can see the appeal of the Para3 LW, but it's still not my favorite mid-sized EDC option. It's a good knife, don't get me wrong, yet still not one that I'd personally want to carry. The Ontario Rat 2 remains as my favorite mid-sized option I've tried.

The Para3 LW is essentially just a shrunken down version of the PM2. I always hated the weird blade-to-handle ratio of the PM2 and was happy to find that the Para3's didn't look as bad to me. I think the handle is still slightly too long though, but that's a minor subjective gripe. It's a simple and straightforward design that would function well for EDC. I'm not in love with the black scales but am sure more color options/sprint runs will be out in the future. I didn't have any quality problems with it, plus it's made here in the USA if that's important to you. The centering was perfect, it was very smooth, and it seemed to drop shut pretty fluidly. 

One slight annoyance I have with the design is the way the lanyard and screw tubes are done. I wasn't able to get a decent photo, but unlike most of Spyderco's FRN knives, there's no backspacer that helps conceals the screws and lanyard hole. They instead opted to only have tubes which look a little cheap and odd to me. That does help save on weight, yet it didn't look the best in my opinion.

The blade is about 3" long with CTS-BD1N steel. I'm not a steel expert, but it was more than sharp enough for my needs. The choil take away a bit of cutting edge, though I do like the flexibility of having it there. The thumb hole is oddly large on this knife, which adds some more width than I'd like personally. I carry everything in the waistband since I have no pockets, so the slimmer the better. It's performed as well as every other Spyderco I've tried. No major complaints here.

FRN is easily my favorite handle material. I love how lightweight it is, how it can be virtually any color, and has a good amount of grip. It's so nice to see Spyderco producing FRN versions of their already popular knives. They do the best plastic handles of any knife company I've tried. I'm a big fan of the compression lock since it's so fun to play with and easy to close one-handed. Mine was very smooth and dropped shut with no problems. I didn't have any lockup issues at all either.

The ergos are comfortable without or without using the choil. I didn't feel any hotspots whatsoever. As you can see in the photos above and below, I can fit a full-four finger grip whether I'm using the choil or not. The edges of the handles are perfectly rounded which makes it melt into your hand. There's some good jimping on the thumb ramp and choil to add some extra grip as well.

I could still fit a comfortable four-finger grip on the handle even if I chose not to use the choil.

It carries well thanks to the FRN, no liners, and very light weight (only 2.4 oz.). The wire clip is Spyderco's best clip in my opinion, so I was very excited to see them use it on this knife. It's perfectly placed right at the end of the handle, making it carry deeply with practically nothing sticking out of the pocket. The larger Spyder hole adds a bit more width than I'd personally like, which led to the knife digging into me when I carried it in the waistband. For you guys with actual pocket space, that shouldn't be a problem at all.

The Para3 is relatively affordable for a Spyderco, coming in at $91. For that price, you're getting a solid knife with decent materials. You could argue that you could find a Kizer or some other knife in the sub $100 range with the same or better materials. Still, I don't balk at the price tag.

I'm happy Spyderco is expanding their FRN and mid-sized knife lineups when it seems like everyone is just focusing on 3.5"+ titanium framelocks. Like I mentioned at the beginning, the Ontario Rat 2 is still a better knife in my opinion, even if the materials aren't as great. It's a third of the price and is just as comfortable in the hand, sharp, great quality, and even smoother. If you think the PM2 is too big for you, the Para3 LW is a decent option for EDC. It's just not one of my favorite choices personally. For a budget knife, I do believe there's more exciting options out there. Thanks for looking!