C144 Caly 3.5

The Caly 3.5 is a slightly longer version of the Caly3. The Caly 3.5 lineup is part of the Prestige series.

Appearance in catalogs

The C144 Caly 3.5 appears in the following catalogs:

• 2014 Spyderco Product Guide
• 2015 Spyderco Product Guide
• 2016 Spyderco Product Guide
• 2017 Spyderco Product Guide
• 2018 Spyderco Product Guide
• 2019 Spyderco Product Guide
• 2020 Spyderco Product Guide
• 2021 Spyderco Product Guide
• 2022 Spyderco Product Guide
• 2023 Spyderco Product Guide
• 2024 Spyderco Product Guide

Designer

Sal Glesser

History, mentionings from the forums etc.

Discussion on the Super Blue sprintrun

In this post on the Spyderco.com forum, from 18 March 2022, Sal Glesser shares a story about the Caly 3.5 being used to fight off a mountain lion:

A few years ago, a couple was walking in National Park in Texas. Their young son was walking between them each holding his hands. A mountain lion jumped between them, grabbed the boy and dragged him off into the forest. The Dad chased the cat into the forest and found them with the cat holding his mouth over the boys face in an effort to smother him. The Dad beat on the cat with his fists, but the cat did not respond. He remembered that he had a Caly 3.5 in his pocket. He pulled the knife from his pocket and stabbed the cat in the side. The cat ran off and was later found dead.

They attended the Blade Magazine show that year and we had a chance to speak with them. The young boy told Gail that, "He didn't cry". Pretty brave for a 4 year old. The Dad said that it surprised him how easily the knife slid into the cat.

• In this post on the Spyderco.com forum, from 22 May 2022, Sal Glesser shares some information on the designs related to the Caly 3.5:

The Caly 3.5 is a very special design for me, keeping in mind that I'm biased. I'm looking forward to the FRN version of the 3.5, (which is designed to be screw construction), which I feel will be the ultimate variation of the concept. The Caly 3, and the 3.5 were designs of love. Kind of a very evolved and refined version of a design that I've been working on for many years. The Calypso, Caly 3, UKPK, Caly 3 and Caly 3.5 are an example of CQI, or Kaizen decades in their refinement.

Ergonomic, User friendly, maximum cut in a easily carried urban format. The "Urban" and "Squeak", and eventually the "Metropolitan are all offshoots of the concept as the concept, in various forms as they came into production over the years.

Information from the Spyderco catalog on the web

C144G:

"Spyderco has several knife designs that remain steadfast year after year. What keeps people buying them over decades is their basic function but also that they're upgraded or refreshed with new technology and materials when they become available. A prolific design in Spyderco's line is the Calypso.

Its arrival over a decade ago as a mid-sized folder has spawned numerous variations and converted legions of knife buyers to the benefits of flat-ground, thick leaf-shaped blades. This is a workingman's or woman's folder founded on the premise that a comfortable, usable pocketknife is one that feels like a natural extension of your hand.

A larger, newer Bionic version of the original Calypso Jr. is the Caly3.5. The latest Calypso progeny has a three and a half inch VG-10 leaf-shaped blade that is thick at the tang, then tapering to a tip. The cutting edge is flat-ground and thin for precision and receptive cutting. Ergonomics and control were taken into the designs' consideration and where handle and blade meet is a substantial finger choil. This is the spot where the index finger settles ergonomically leading the thumb to naturally position itself directly above on the blade's spine. Also the spine is textured with slip resistant jimping making the knife feels like part of the hand with no sliding forward or backward while cutting. The black G-10 handle has a mid-positioned back lock and a low profile wire clip, holding the folder deeply in a pocket facing tip-up."

The C144 Caly3.5 in Spyderco's online catalog

See also:

The C144 Caly3.5 Carbon Fiber in Spyderco's online catalog

The C144 Caly3.5 Super Blue in Spyderco's online catalog

Variations

All are made in Seki city, Japan and have:

• a mid-positioned Back Lock
• boye dent on the lock bar lever

Variations of the C144 Caly3.5

SKU	Handle	Edge(s)	Steel	From/To	MSRP	Note	Number made	Grind	Clip	Clip positions	Collectors club
C144G	black G-10	PE	VG-10	2010-2014	204.95 $ (2013)		N/A	Full Flat grind	Low profile Stainless wire clip	Ambidextrous tip-up	Main
C144CFE	black CF	SE	ZDP-189/420J2 laminate	2011-	274.95$ (2013)		N/A	Full Flat grind	Low profile Stainless wire clip	Ambidextrous tip-up	Variant
C144GGY	grey G-10	PE	Aogami Super Blue	2011	224.95$ (2012)	sprintrun	1000?	Full Flat grind	Low profile Stainless wire clip	Ambidextrous tip-up	Variant

Most collectible variation

The Super Blue C144 sprint run.

Questions regarding collecting the C144 Caly3.5

Some interesting questions we are looking for an answer to:

Questions with an answer:

Technical information

Typical measurements (mm and grams) of the C144 Caly3.5:

SKU	Length overall	Length closed	Blade length	Cutting edge	Hole Ø	Blade thickness	Weight
C144G	194mm	110mm	89mm	79mm	12.5mm	3mm	89g
C144CF	194mm	110mm	89mm	79mm	12.5mm	3mm	88g

Typical measurements (inches and ounces) of the C144 Caly3.5:

SKU	Length overall	Length closed	Blade length	Cutting edge	Hole Ø	Blade thickness	Weight
C144G	7.625"	4.313"	3.5"	3.125"	0.49"	0.125"	3.1 oz.
C144CF	7.625"	4.313"	3.5"	3.125"	0.49"	0.125"	3.1 oz.