Spyderco Delica 4 Review: Light & Reliable EDC

In this Spyderco Delica 4 review, we will see why the Delica 4 is a widely useful knife available with many different options.

spyderco delica 4 review

While some of the models make for excellent outdoor or survival knives, most of them aim at being an everyday carry knife.

Having been around for about three decades, the Delica has been an extremely popular knife, and for good reason.

With all of the features that you get at an affordable cost, it continues to be a popular knife for EDC.

The Delica 4 features a very high-quality Japanese stainless steel blade, a one-handed opening mechanism, a four-way pocket clip, and a high-quality handle. Read on to check out all of the features of this great knife.

Disclosure:   Some of the links in this article are affiliate links, where I make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Spyderco Delica 4 Review​

Spyderco​

Spyderco has been a pioneer in the pocket knife industry.

They created the pocket clip, a serrated edge on a pocket knife, and their patented opening hole design. The company is well respected in the knife industry.

Spyderco is headquartered in Golden, Colorado. Their knife catalog features hundreds of different knives, each one backed with a warranty.

Spyderco allows you to return your knife for repair. This gives you peace of mind in your purchase.

Blade

Most of the blades of the Delicia 4 are made from a high-quality Japanese stainless steel, VG-10. Spyderco uses VG-10 in multiple models.

delica 4

For a budget friendly knife, VG-10 provides an excellent steel option.

It is relatively easy to sharpen to a very fine edge and holds that edge for a reasonable amount of time.

Another feature of VG-10 is its corrosion resistance.

Most of the blades are silver in color, with one exception—black.

Spyderco manufactures two additional blade types.

One special edition knife, known as the Delica 4 Titanium/Damascus, features a Damascus-clade blade made of unique Japanese steel, DPS 15.

DPS 15 features multiple layers of etched steel.

The result is an extremely nice-looking blade; however, it is twice the cost of the other Delicia 4 knives.

A second special edition of the knife, the British Racing version, contains newer steel, ZDP189.

ZDP189 is slightly higher quality than VG-10, but it is comparable.

delica 4 black

There are multiple edge options available. They are all just less than 3 inches long.

Most of them have a saber grind.

However, the Wharncliffe style blade is full flat ground.

There are some fully serrated edge blades, plain edge blades, some combination edge blades, and one trainer blade without an edge.

The Wharncliffe style blade possesses a flat, serrated cutting edge with a spine that tapers down to the point at an angle.

Opening Hole

Most of the knives are opened by Spyderco’s infamous opening hole. One exception includes an opening hole and an Emerson opener.

Spyderco’s opening hole is an excellent opening mechanism. It is larger than comparable opening mechanisms such as a thumbstud.

This makes it much easier to open with just one hand.

The Emerson opener features a notch on the back side of the blade, which allows you to open the blade using your pocket.

The blade of the knife with the Emerson opener has a plain edge with a saber grind.

EDC

For carrying purposes, there are a couple of awesome features on this knife.

spyderco delica 4

The pocket clip can be positioned in four different ways: tip up or tip down and left-handed or right-handed.

This allows the user to carry the knife however they see fit.

The closed length of the knife is 4.25 inches long.

It has a very rounded shape so nothing catches on your pocket.

The only exception is the Emerson opener, which is designed to catch on your pocket to open the blade.

The weight of the knife is only 2.5 ounces. These features make this an absolutely awesome everyday carry knife.

Handle

The handles of these knives are made of different materials. The majority are made from fiberglass reinforced nylon scales. This material allows for previously mentioned light weight.

This high strength nylon material resists wear. It is molded in a way to provide plenty of gripping surface. Additional grip comes from the jimping along the spine.

The handle is shaped specifically to fit your hand and has a deeper indentation to prevent your hand from slipping towards the blade.

Handles are available in quite a few different colors.

The Titanium/Damascus knife may be purchased in two additional handle materials: stainless steel and titanium.

delica 4 stainless steel

The stainless steel is slightly more expensive than the fiberglass reinforced nylon handles.

While the knife’s shape remains the same, the handle lacks the texture.

The Titanium/Damascus knife is more expensive. These two knives are extremely sleek looking.

If you want an everyday carry knife, we would avoid these two.

While they will definitely meet some peoples’ needs and look awesome, they would not make excellent everyday carry knives in our opinion.

Conclusion

Overall, the Spyderco Delica4 meets multiple needs.

The knives feature multiple blade options—serrated edge, plain edge, combination edge, a training blade, and the Wharncliffe blade.

There are multiple blade colors available with various types of blade steel. Similarly, there are multiple handle colors and materials available.

The high-quality steel of the blades makes for plenty of cutting strength.

Spyderco’s opening hole provides for easy one-handed opening. The four-way pocket clip, as well as the extremely light weight and small size, make this an excellent everyday carry knife.

Some different models of the knife are more expensive as a result of nicer materials, but the basic knife with a basic handle makes an excellent everyday carry knife in our opinion.

At an affordable price and with a warranty, the Delicia 4 will exceed your needs.

If you are debating the spyderco delica vs endura, keep in mind that the Endura 4 is around 1 inch bigger and weighs 1 ounce more.

And if you want something just a little smaller, check out the Dragonfly 2.​

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