C05 Economy/Standard

The C05, originally named "Economy", was Spyderco's first model designed with a low-cost objective. The name was later (year?) changed to "Standard".

To reduce the production costs the initial variation introduced in 1984 featured:

• AUS-6 blade
• thinner, and less polished scales than other stainless steel handle models of the same time
• a clip directly punched out of the handle

Due to the similarities in size and shape of the blade the C05 is often viewed as the predecessor of the C11 Delica, another model targeting low production costs introduced a few years after the Economy. The C05 continued to be popular and was not discontinued until 1995. In the early 90s (?) the C05 was updated with thicker scales, a screwed clip, and "regular" polishing of the handles.

A project started at Spyderco to replace the C05 resulted in the C52 Calypso Jr., and in 1996 a Delica variation (C43 Delica II) with stainless steel handles was introduced.

The C05 Standard was reissued in 1998 with G-10 handles and an ATS-55 blade, but discontinued shortly afterwards due to low number of sales.

Appearance in catalogs

The C5 Economy/Standard appeared at least in the following catalogs (older, newer):

• 1986 Spyderco price list
• 1990 Spyderco Products
• 1993 Spyderco Products
• 1994 Spyderco Products
• 1998 Spyderco Products
• 1999 Spyderco Products

Designer

Sal Glesser

History, mentionings from the forums etc.

• Remark by Sal about the G-10 Standard on the Spyderco forums.
• "Standard model variations?" thread on the Spyderco forums.

Information from the Spyderco catalog on the web

Not listed.

Variations

The C05 Economy/Standard is made in Seki-City, Japan, and has a

• Back Lock locking mechanism

SKU	Handle	Edge	Steel	From/To	MSRP	Note	Number made	Grind	Clip	Clip positions	Collectors club
C05P left (1005L-STR)	Stainless Steel	PE	AUS-6	1984-198?	29.95$ (1986)	Economy	N/	Flat Saber	Integral metal clip	LH, TD
C05P right (1005R-STR)	Stainless Steel	PE	AUS-6	1984-198?	29.95$ (1986)	Economy	N/A	Flat Saber	Integral metal clip	RH, TD
C05S left (1005L-SER)	Stainless Steel	SE	AUS-6	1984-198?	29.95$ (1986)	Economy	N/A	Flat Saber	Integral metal clip	LH, TD
C05S right (1005R-STR)	Stainless Steel	SE	AUS-6	1984-198?	29.95$ (1986)	Economy	N/A	Flat Saber	Integral metal clip	RH, TD
C05	Stainless Steel	PE SE	AUS-6	199?-1994	61.95$ (1994)	Stainless Standard; left hand version?	N/A	Hollow?	Metal clip	RH, TD
C05S	Stainless Steel	SE	GIN-1/G-2	~1992-1994(?)	?	G-2 stamp on blade; left hand version?	N/A	Hollow	Integral metal clip	RH, TD
C05GP	Black G-10	PE	ATS-55	1998-1999	114.95$ (1998)	sub-variations with zero, one, or two liners(?)	N/A	Hollow	Metal clip	RH, TD
C05GS	Black G-10	SE	ATS-55	1998-1999	114.95$ (1998)	sub-variations with zero, one, or two liners(?)	N/A	Hollow	Metal clip	RH, TD

Most collectible variation

Questions regarding collecting the C05

Some interesting questions we are looking for an answer to:

Questions with an answer:

Technical information

Measurements (mm and grams) of the C05 Economy/Standard:

Variation	Length overall	Length closed	Length blade	Length edge	Hole Ø	Blade thickness	Weight
C05 SS punched out clip	168mm	99mm	71mm	64mm	9.9mm	2.8mm	106g
C05 SS metal clip	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
C05 G-10 (1999)	165mm	?	71mm	?	?	?	79g

Measurements (inches and ounces) of the C05 Economy/Standard:

Variation	Length overall	Length closed	Length blade	Length edge	Hole Ø	Blade thickness	Weight
C05 SS punched out clip	6.61"	3.90"	2.80"	2.52"	0.39"	0.11"	3.74oz
C05 SS metal clip	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
C05 G-10 (1999)	6 1/2"	?	2 7/8"	?	?	?	2.75oz

Pictures

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  C05P Standard left side 1

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  C05P Standard clip side

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  C05P Standard left side 2

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  C05P Standard clip side 2

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  C05GS Standard

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  C05GS Standard

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  C05S Standard (metal clip)

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  C05S Standard (metal clip)