Yes, I’m a total Spyderco fanboy, but I just can’t help but love their knives…
I think most of their designs are really cool, and they’re always build to a high standard and using quality materials…
As a result, time and time again, their knives just perform…
So yeah, I’m a fan, and I’m super excited about the two designs we’re going to discuss in this article, which are…
| Image | Products |
 | Spyderco Shaman (Check Price And Reviews On Amazon!) |
 | Spyderco ParaMilitary 2 (Check Price And Reviews On Amazon!) |
We’re going to be putting these two awesome knives up against each other today with a Spyderco Shaman Vs PM2 comparison…
And as usual we’ll be discussing how these two knives compare in the following six categories…
- Blade Steel And Materials
- Blade Shape And Handle Design
- Locking Mechanism
- Size And Dimensions
- Pocket Clip And Carry Position
- Price Comparison
At the end of this comparison, I’ll reveal to you if I prefer the Shaman or the Para 2, and you should have all the information you need to decide which knife is going to work best for you…
Let’s start by taking a look at the materials used in each of these knives…
Blade Steel And Materials…
Spyderco Shaman
The Spyderco Shaman is basically a larger version of the very popular Spyderco Native 5…
Part of the reason the Native 5 is so popular is because of the high-quality materials that are used in its construction, and the Shaman inherits many of those quality materials…
To begin, the Spyderco Shaman uses CPM S30V blade steel. CPM S30V is considered a premium blade steel…
I like it because it resists rust and corrosion well, and it also holds an edge for a long period of time. In addition to that, it’s not too difficult or tedious to sharpen…
So when you eventually do wear down the edge on your blade, you’ll be able to get it razor sharp again without too much of a hassle…
Now the handle on the Shaman is made from G-10. I love G-10 as a handle material especially on an EDC knife because it’s strong, holds up to the elements, and it feels extremely comfortable in your hand…
So overall, I’m pretty impressed with the blade steel and materials that Spyderco chose to use in the Shaman.
Spyderco Paramilitary 2
The Paramilitary 2 is, perhaps, Spyderco’s most popular selling knife. It’s basically a smaller version of the Spyderco Military…
The Spyderco Military was created as a utility knife for forward deployed soldiers, so it’s built to be extremely tough and uses very high quality materials…
The Paramilitary 2 has the same tough build quality and uses the same high quality materials. In fact, The Paramilitary 2 uses the same CPM S30V blade steel (on most versions) that is used in the Shaman…
Again, I love CPM S30V because it does a good job at resisting rust, and maintains a fine edge for a long period of time…
It’s also not insanely expensive the way some premium or ultra premium blade steels are, which helps keep the cost of the Para 2 down as well…
Now the handle on the Para 2 is also made from G-10. Once again, I love G-10 as a handle material because it very strong and it feels very comfortable in your hand…
All in all, the Shaman and the Paramilitary 2 use the same blade steel and the same handle material. So in this category, they’re basically neck and neck because they both use the same high quality materials.
Blade Shape And Handle Design…
Spyderco Shaman
Like I mentioned earlier, the Shaman is a slightly larger version of the Spyderco Native 5, and because of that, it has a similar leaf-like blade shape…
I think it has a very attractive look to it, and it features a full flat grind, which I think is awesome because it makes the knife an extremely good cutter and slicer…
Now you can get the Shaman with either a Plain Edge or the Spyder Edge, which is Spyderco’s version of a serrated blade…
Personally, I prefer the Plain Edge version because it’ll end up being easier for you to sharpen when you eventually wear down your edge, but the Spyder Edge version is very popular as well…
You can also get the Shaman with either a stainless steel blade or a black coated blade. I think the black coated blade version looks really sleek, but I think more people tend to prefer the stainless steel blade version…
The Shaman also has the traditional Spyderco deployment hole which allows you to easily and quickly flick open the blade with one hand…
…and there is jimping on the finger choil and the spine which allows you to really choke up on the knife when you need to.
Now as I mentioned earlier the grip on the Shaman is made from G-10. It’s a very ergonomic shape and very comfortable in your hand…
It also gives you a good amount of traction, which allows you to really lock in on the knife when you’re using it to make cuts.
Paramilitary 2
The Paramilitary 2 also has a version of a drop point blade. However, because it’s a scaled down version of the Military model, it has a similar blade shape that is much more angular than the blade shape on the Shaman…
Even though it looks a little different than the Shaman’s barrel, I still think it’s very attractive looking, and it also features a full flat grind which, again, makes it a fantastic cutting and slicing blade…
Just as with the Shaman, you can get the Paramilitary 2 with a Plain Edge or with the Spyder Edge (which again, is Spyderco’s version of a serrated edge)…
And it should be no surprise that I also prefer the Plain Edge version on the Para 2 for the same reason that I like it on the Shaman… It’s much easier to sharpen the blade when you eventually wear it down…
The Paramilitary 2 also has the traditional Spyderco deployment hole, which allows you to easily and quickly flick open the knife (with one hand)…
And there’s jimping on the spine of the blade and the finger choil so you can choke up on the blade for more control when you need to…
Now the handle on the Paramilitary 2 is made from textured G-10. It’s very ergonomic and comfortable in your hand, and it gives you a great amount of purchase on the knife when you’re using it…
It also comes in some cool color/pattern options such as: black, blue, and camo, and overall, I think the handle design on the Para 2 is fantastic.
Locking Mechanism…
Both the Shaman and the Paramilitary 2 utilize the Compression Lock locking mechanism. This is a locking system that uses a leaf-like spring, a stop pin, and a ramp on the tang of the blade to work…
It’s a locking system that was developed and patented by Spyderco, and you’ll find it on many of their more high end knife designs, which is definitely where I would classify the Shaman and the Paramilitary 2…
The Compression Lock locks the blade out very securely, and it’s also an incredibly smooth mechanism that really gives you a sense of quality when you deploy the blade on your knife…
Overall, I love the Compression Lock locking mechanism, and I think it was a great choice by Spyderco to feature it on both of these knife designs.
Size And Dimensions…
Spyderco Shaman
Even though the Shaman is a larger version of the Spyderco Native 5, I still consider it to be a medium sized knife…
It has a blade length that measures in at 3.58 inches long, and the handle measures in at 4.67 inches long…
That brings the overall length on the Shaman to 8.25 inches long when the blade is fully locked out, and just as a comparison, the Shaman is 1.30 inches longer than its little brother the Native 5…
So again, I think it’s a medium-sized knife, and I think it’s a great size for an everyday carry knife.
Paramilitary 2
As I mentioned earlier, the Paramilitary 2 is a smaller version of the Spyderco Military (the Para 3 is even smaller), and it ends up being a very similar size to the Shaman…
It has a blade length that measures in at 3.42 inches and a handle length that measures in at 4.82 inches long…
That brings the overall length on the Paramilitary 2 to 8.24 inches when the blade is fully locked out. Just as a comparison, its around 1.28 inches shorter than its bigger brother the Military model…
And it’s only 0.01 inches shorter than the Shaman when both of their blades are fully deployed. Now even though they’re basically the same size, I do want to point out that the blade on the Shaman is longer than the blade on the Para 2…
And the handle on the Para 2 is longer than the handle on the Shaman. So if you have large hands, the Para 2 might end up being a better fit for you.
Pocket Clip And Carry Position…
Both the Shaman and the Paramilitary 2 have a 4 position adjustable pocket clip. That means you can set your clip up (on both knives) for tip up or tip down carry, and your clip can be swapped to either side of the knife as well.
Personally I prefer tip down carry, so I’m glad that both of these knives have that option available, but tip up carry is incredibly popular too. So if that’s what you prefer, both the Shaman and the Para 2 have you covered…
I also really like that you can swap the clip on both of these knives to either side as well because that means you can optimize your clip for left handed or right handed carry…
Now neither of these knives features a deep carry clip, so the end of the knife will stick up a little bit out of your pocket…
But that being said, they’re both still pretty discreet and because they’re both very slim knife designs, they’re very comfortable to carry around in your pocket all day long.
Price Comparison…
Unfortunately, I won’t be able to give you exact numbers in the price category because the prices of these knives are known to fluctuate as the market changes…
That being said, in general, you’ll usually find that the Paramilitary 2 is around 60 to 70 bucks less expensive than the Shaman…
So if you’re on a budget and trying to keep the price down, the Paramilitary 2 is probably going to be the less expensive option for you.
Spyderco Shaman Vs PM2 – Final Thoughts…
So to sum it all up, in the Blade Steel And Materials category, both the Shaman and the Paramilitary 2 use CPM S30V, which is a premium blade steel, and they both have G-10 handles…
In the Blade Shape And Handle Design category, both knives have a version of a drop point blade. However, the Shaman’s blade has a bit of a leaf-like shape to it, and the Paramilitary 2’s blade is more angular…
They both perform very well at cutting and they both feature a full flat grind. In addition to that, both knives have ergonomic and comfortable handles…
In the Locking Mechanism category, both the Shaman and the Para 2 utilize the Compression Lock locking mechanism which is a system that locks the knife blade out very securely and allows it to deploy very smoothly…
In the Size And Dimensions category, the Paramilitary 2 is around 0.01 inches shorter than the Shaman when both of their blades are fully deployed…
In the Pocket Clip And Carry Position category, both knives have a pocket clip that can be set up for tip up or tip down carry and that can be swapped to either side of the knife…
And last, in the Price Comparison, the Paramilitary 2 is around 60 to 70 dollars less expensive than the Shaman…
So which of these knives do I prefer? I prefer the Paramilitary 2…
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I prefer the Paramilitary 2 for a few reasons. First of all, I love that the Paramilitary 2 is a smaller version of the Military model…
At this point, the Military is a classic knife design, and I think it’s cool that it was designed for soldiers. It is a bit large for an EDC knife though…
So the Paramilitary 2 takes that kind-of legendary knife design and puts it in a compact package that is more friendly for everyday carry…
I also like that the Paramilitary 2 is around 60 to 70 bucks less expensive than the Shaman, while having the same CPM S30V blade steel…
That means you’ll be able to save some money and still get an awesome blade steel by going with the Para 2. And last, I just like the look of the Paramilitary 2’s blade a bit more than I like the look of the Shaman’s blade…
Now if you prefer the look and design of the Shaman, then feel free to go with it because it’s still an awesome knife…
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Both of these Spyderco knives are amazing, and they’ll both serve you extremely well in the role of a medium-to-large EDC knife.