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Private company

Spyderco

Logo: spyderco.com4

Knife and sharpening company

Spyderco is an American cutlery company based in Golden, Colorado, producing knives and knife sharpeners. Spyderco pioneered many features that are now common in folding knives, including the pocket clip, serrations, and the opening hole. Spyderco has collaborated with over 30 custom knife makers, athletes, and self-defense instructors for designs and innovated the usage of 20 different blade materials.2 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 21, 2026.

Overview

1978Founded1
  • Industryindustrial manufacturing1
  • HeadquartersGolden1
  • Founded inGolden1
  • Websitewww.spyderco.com
  • Legal formFor-Profit Corporation3
  • LEI254900FALVVRXZHRA3873
  • StatusActive3
  • LEI statusIssued and current3
  • Registered addressC/O LOUIS S GLESSER, 80403 Golden, United States3
  • Registered withBusiness Division of the Secretary of State’s office, 198714548933

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Spyderco is an American cutlery company based in Golden, Colorado, producing knives and knife sharpeners. Spyderco pioneered many features that are now common in folding knives, including the pocket clip, serrations, and the opening hole. Spyderco has collaborated with over 30 custom knife makers, athletes, and self-defense instructors for designs and innovated the usage of 20 different blade materials.2

The story

Spyderco was founded by Sal Glesser. The name Spyderco was coined after Glesser noticed that many high-performance sports cars had 'Spyder' in the name, which inspired the name Spyderco to signify high performance cutting tools. The first product Spyderco produced was the Portable Hand in 1976, this "spider-shaped device", was a series of angles, ball joints and alligator clips that helped people such as jewelers and hobbyists to work with small parts. Spyderco's founder, Sal Glesser, and his wife Gail, converted an old bread delivery truck into a motorhome and traveled to shows. As they became more successful, they graduated from the bread truck to a truck and trailer. They settled in Golden in November 1978. The firm began producing knife sharpeners in 1978 and produced their first folding knife, the C01 Worker, in 1981; this was the first to feature a round hole in the blade designed for fast, one-handed and ambidextrous opening, which is now the company's trademark. Additionally, the company claims that this was the first knife to feature a pocket clip on the right side of the handle.

From Wikipedia’s article on Spyderco, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5

Products and brands

  • blade

Listed on Wikidata.1

Products

Most knives produced by Spyderco are folding knives of various designs, blade steels, handle materials, and locking mechanisms (including two patented proprietary locks); however, they have also produced fixed-blade knives for various purposes.

The firm's knives are made with a plain edge, a partially serrated edge, or a fully serrated "Spyder Edge" configuration. Their most common handle material is FRN (Fiberglass Reinforced Nylon) and G10, although they make knives with steel handles as well as some limited editions with handles from various other materials.

A large part of the firm's knife production is outsourced to foreign contractors in countries such as Japan, Taiwan, Italy, and China, though many of their flagship knives are made in the US. Knives made with CPM S30V steel were previously all made in Golden, Colorado; however, Spyderco began shipping CPM-S30V to Taiwan to have their highest end knives produced there using this steel.

Spyderco knives are popular with many markets including private citizens, fire and rescue personnel and law enforcement officers.

Read the full text

For his many influences in tactical knife design (most notably the pocket clip, serrations, and opening hole) and many collaborations with custom knife makers, Spyderco's President, Sal Glesser, was inducted into the Blade magazine Cutlery Hall of Fame at the 2000 Blade Show in Atlanta, Georgia.

Byrd brand

Spyderco designs and produces knives under the Byrd brand. These knives use high quality materials and are manufactured in China, allowing much lower prices while retaining most of Spyderco's quality. To differentiate the brands, Byrd knives have a "comet" shaped opening hole in the blade, rather than the trademark round hole found on Spyderco models.

To date, Byrd knives have featured 8Cr13MoV as their blade steel except for the Byrd Catbyrd titanium which uses 9Cr18Mo steel. The brand's early knives were marked 440C, but tests found that the steel was something entirely different from American 440C. This steel was closer to AUS-8 than American 440C, and also went by the name 8Cr13MoV.

The first Byrd models, the Cara Cara, Meadowlark, Flight, Pelican, and Crossbill, initially featured stainless steel handles. Newer Byrds have featured aluminum, fiberglass reinforced nylon (FRN), and G10 handles.

From Wikipedia’s article on Spyderco, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5

Timeline

  1. 1978Founded Founded in Golden1

Sources

The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.

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    Company websiteSpyderco logo
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