Spyderco Endura 4 — 3.75 inch drop point blade in VG-10

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Spyderco Endura 4 · Drop Point
3.75″ blade · 0.125″ spine · 3.4 oz · ~1.29″ tall

Spine thickness, same scale

0.125″

Length and spine thickness drawn to true scale from published specs. Outline traced from the maker's side-profile photo.

Spyderco

Spyderco Endura 4

EDC FolderFolding

The Spyderco Endura 4 is a 3.75" drop point folder in VG-10, full flat ground. The handle is FRN, secured by a back lock. Made in Japan, one of 4 here from there.

Blade: 3.75″
Weight: 3.4 oz
Steel: VG-10
Price band: Mid

Best for

Everyday carry and general utility

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Specifications

Manufacturer-published figures, cross-checked against knifeworks, cutleryshoppe.

Blade length: 3.75″
Spine thickness: 0.125″
Blade shape: Drop Point
Grind: Full Flat
Steel: VG-10
Overall length: 8.75″
Closed length: 5″
Weight: 3.4 oz
Lock: Back Lock
Deployment: Manual
Handle material: FRN
Country of origin: Japan

Why a drop point

The default hunting and EDC shape, and the safest general answer. The spine curves down to the tip in a convex line, which keeps the point low and strong and leaves plenty of belly for skinning. It is hard to make a drop point bad at anything.

Every drop point here →

About VG-10

The Japanese standard. Takes a very keen edge quickly; loses it sooner than the powder steels.

Edge retention

2/5

Toughness

3/5

Corrosion resistance

4/5

Ease of sharpening

4/5

1-5 is a relative ranking drawn from published composition and hardness, not a lab measurement. Higher is better on every axis, and no steel is a 5 across the board — edge retention and toughness pull against each other. All VG-10 knives

What owners say

Drawn from 769 owner discussions of the Spyderco Endura 4 since 2024. The opinions are theirs. The specifications above come from the maker.

What owners like

Carries much smaller than its 3.75-inch blade suggests: several owners who long dismissed it as too big say it carries like a smaller knife, one finds it slim, pocketable and light, and that owner now prefers it to the Endela
VG-10 hits a sweet spot for one owner who has used Enduras in a tree removal job, for skinning deer and for camp whittling: easy to resharpen, quick to take a mean edge and good at holding it
Survives hard work: a concrete worker carried theirs five or six days a week for nearly a year, cutting expansion joint rubber, cement bags, wire and hose, and it still opened and closed one-handed
One owner's has lasted: a green FRN VG-10 Endura 4 bought about eight years ago has held up well and done the job
Light enough that one owner forgets it is there, and another finds it slim, pocketable and light even with a titanium backspacer fitted
Spyderco stood behind one owner whose K390 sprint developed lock rock from cutting peppers and boxes: it was replaced outright even though the company said it fell outside warranty
Cheap upgrades suit it: owners have fitted Flytanium scales for $9 to $14, and two who added titanium backspacers say they make it feel more robust

What owners flag

Too long for everyday carry for some: one owner finds it too big to be practical and the Delica too small, settling on the Endela, and others call it a touch long or not an office knife
Hard-grip comfort is not for everyone: one owner stopped carrying theirs because the inside edges of the scales become a hot spot when gripping hard and moved to a Stretch 2, and another says the ergonomics do not suit their hand
Back-lock play: one K390 owner saw bad lock rock develop from light kitchen and box cutting, and a new VG-10 owner found slight side-to-side play when the blade is closed, though it is solid when open
Grind quality varies on sprint runs, with one M4 owner getting an uneven bevel and a Damascus buyer finding the core steel off center
One owner of a first-generation G-2 Endura says it feels made with more care than current models

Owners who stayed away from the Endura for years because 3.75 inches of blade sounded like too much say it carries smaller than they expected once they have one. It weighs 3.4 oz in FRN and VG-10, and people use it for tree work, concrete work, mechanic work and camp chores. One owner's VG-10 Endura 4 has held up for about eight years, and another bought a third after losing two.

Concrete, cement bags and air hose are what one owner cut with it for nearly a year, and the lock and action kept working through that. One owner prefers VG-10 for being easy to resharpen while holding a mean edge, and one K390 Endura kept its factory edge long enough to frustrate its owner. The complaints are a hard-grip hot spot from the scale edges for one owner, lock rock on a K390 knife that Spyderco replaced, and an uneven grind on one M4 sprint.

The Manix 2 is the knife one buyer was steered between, with owners split between the Manix's comfort and the Endura's carry. The Endela is the smaller step for one owner who finds the Endura too big, and the Stretch 2 is where another went for a more comfortable hard grip.

Is the Endura too big to carry every day?

Several owners expected it to be and changed their minds, saying it carries and feels like a smaller knife; one finds it slim, pocketable and light. One owner still finds it too big for practical everyday carry and settled on the Endela as a middle size between the Endura and the Delica.

Endura or Manix 2?

Opinions split. Three prefer the Manix 2, one of them for comfort, though another of the three says the Endura carries better; two others prefer the Endura. One owner who has both plus a Mini Bugout puts the Manix first unless you specifically want a lockback.

Is the Japanese-made Endura as good as Spyderco's US knives?

The Endura has always been made in Spyderco's Seki City factory, which one Endura fan says makes wonderful knives, and another says Spyderco's factories are pretty good wherever they are.

Will Spyderco fix lock rock?

In one owner's case, yes and then some. Their K390 Endura developed bad lock rock from light cutting, and Spyderco replaced the knife entirely even though it said the issue was not under warranty.

Endura or Stretch 2?

One owner switched to the Stretch 2 because its handle does not create the hot spot the Endura's scale edges did in a hard grip. Another owner grants the K390 Stretch 2 may be the better knife but says the Endura hits the price sweet spot far better, having found theirs on clearance for $110 CAD.