Spyderco Sprint Run Kevin Smock Button-Release Compression Lock Folding Knife 3.45" CPM-REX121 Satin Plain Blade, Burnt Orange G10 Handles - C240GPBOR

Description

SP240GPBOR: C240GPBOR Sprint Run Smock CPM-REX121

Spyderco

The Smock folder is one of the most anticipated Spyderco knives to be released in recent history. Incorporating both a sleek front flipper and a unique button-release Compression Lock, it is also Spyderco's first collaboration with custom knifemaker Kevin Smock.

Smock's fascination with knives goes all the way back to his childhood and fond memories of hunting and fishing with his father, but it wasn't until about 2012 that his interest really turned serious. After watching a TuffKnives video in which Geoff Blauvelt (aka "tuffthumbz") modified a Spyderco Paramilitary 2, Smock decided to try his hand at customizing a factory-made knife. He began cautiously with a budget-friendly Tenacious and was extremely pleased with the results he achieved. After sharing his work on the Internet with his own video, he soon began receiving requests from other people who wanted him to customize their knives. Smock's hobby quickly blossomed into a part-time business, so he started a company called Bower Bladeworks and began specializing in modifying and embellishing various production knives.

A professional product designer by trade, it was only a matter of time before Smock combined his experience in that field with his passion for knives to create his own "outside-the-box" knife designs. Building on the skills he developed as a knife customizer — and with the generous help of fellow Spyderco collaborator, Brad Southard and other knifemakers — Smock learned to craft knives from raw materials. He soon became a true custom knifemaker, changed his business from Bower Bladeworks to Smock Knives, and ultimately decided to pursue knifemaking full time. Smock specializes in stylish everyday carry pocket knives but is willing and able to tackle everything from camping to kitchen knives.

A longtime fan of Spyderco designs, in 2015, Smock requested permission to license Spyderco's patented Compression Lock mechanism and their Trademark Round Hole for use in a custom folding knife design called the "SK23." To make the release of the Compression Lock even easier, he added a button to the mechanism. Pleased with the result, he showed it off to the Spyderco Crew at the Atlanta BLADE Show. Spyderco was impressed with his craftsmanship and the uniqueness of the design and asked to display it with their other concept models and prototypes at the show. The design attracted a lot of interest, and the feedback on it was overwhelmingly positive. A collaboration was born.

Based on a knife designed by renowned custom knifemaker Kevin Smock, the Spyderco Smock was Spyderco's first model to feature a Button-Release Compression Lock mechanism. A novel variation of the signature Compression Lock, it makes one-handed operation of the knife even simpler and easier. This elite expression of the Smock supercharges the design with a blade crafted from CPM-REX 121 - a high-vanadium, cobalt-bearing tool steel specifically formulated to bridge the performance gap between high-alloy tool steels and carbide materials. Applied to knife blades, it offers exceptional sharpness and unequalled edge retention. The blade of this remarkable knife features a deep hollow grind, a contrasting bi-directional satin finish, a fully functional Trademark Round Hole, and an understated flipper opener. It is paired with a handle boasting skeletonized full stainless steel liners, burnt orange peel-ply-textured G10 scales, and a reversible hourglass clip that provides a choice of left- or right-side tip-up carry.