Although Sal liked the design, development of it happened slowly, so Janich decided to “tip the scales” a bit. Janich had already been working on a rough prototype of a folding tactical Wharncliffe, so he quickly adapted the design to incorporate Spyderco’s Trademark Round Hole and delivered a set of drawings and his own handmade plastic concept model of the design. Sal liked what he saw and the Spyderco Ronin was born.Īt that time, Spyderco’s fixed blade market was still limited, so Sal also asked Janich to design a folder as well. Janich showed Sal the Ronin, explained the logic behind it, and hammered the point home with the help of Pork Man. As the program gained steam, Sal also thought it would be good for Janich to design a signature Spyderco knife that reflected his system of knife tactics.
Yojimbo knife series#
Sal was fresh from attending James Keating’s “Riddle of Steel” training camp and wanted Spyderco to host a series of knife self-defense courses at our headquarters in Golden. Ultimately, he not only made a number of custom Ronins but shifted the course of his own knife designs to focus heavily on Wharncliffe blades.Īround this same time (1999), Spyderco founder Sal Glesser invited Janich to take over as the instructor of the “Martial Blade Craft” program. When he finally made one and cut with it, however, he was blown away. Initially, Snody was not thrilled with it and began to backpedal on his offer. Despite their elegant demeanor, Wharncliffes are tactical cutting and thrusting machines.Īrmed with this knowledge, the Ronin design Janich presented to Snody was pure Wharncliffe. The Wharncliffe’s needle-like point also penetrates almost effortlessly during thrusts. Conversely, the cutting power of blades with upward curving edges and lots of “belly” diminishes near the point.
Yojimbo knife full#
To his surprise, of all the knives in his collection, the ones that cut best were a pair of Frank Centofante-designed “gentlemen’s” folders from Spyderco with classic Wharncliffe-style blades (the C25 and C50).Īs Janich dug deeper, he realized the secret of the Wharncliffe blades was their perfectly straight edges cut with full power all the way to the point. To determine which blade styles cut with the greatest effect, Janich invested a small fortune in pork roasts, crafted an army of Pork Men, and started cutting.
Pork Man-a hefty pork roast tied around a wooden dowel and wrapped with multiple layers of plastic-not only demonstrated the cutting power of typical carry knives, but it also quantified the significant performance differences between different blade shapes. He had already begun incorporating a demonstration called “Pork Man” into his knife self-defense courses to illustrate the cutting capability of small knives.
Although Janich had designed other knives previously, including the Tempest folder for the Masters of Defense knife company, he was determined to approach the design process from a fresh, empirical perspective. As a gesture of thanks, Snody invited Janich to design “the ultimate neck knife,” which he would make as a custom blade. Janich had written an article on Snody’s knives that became the tipping point for him to become a full-time maker. The original Ronin (literally “wave man” in Japanese, a term for a masterless Samurai) actually began as a collaboration with custom knifemaker Mike Snody. Janich’s design-the first-generation Ronin fixed blade-challenged that convention and literally pioneered the concept of the “tactical Wharncliffe.” Today, Wharnie-style tactical knives are everywhere, but the roots of that trend can be traced directly back to Janich’s early designs-and Spyderco’s willingness to take a chance on them. When Michael Janich designed his first knife for Spyderco nearly 20 years ago, most personal-defense knives had traditional martial blade profiles, like spear points, Americanized tantos, and variations on the Bowie theme. Description Spyderco Yojimbo 2 Folding Knife
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