The Spyderco Paramilitary 2 is widely hailed as one of the best pocket knives ever made. For a long time, knife nuts demanded a smaller version of the iconic knife. Sal and Eric Glesser finally answered with the Para 3.

The Para 3 uses the same basic design of the PM2 but distills its essence into a smaller package. With a blade at just under 3 inches, the Para 3 uses the same shape and S30V blade as the original PM2.

Like its bigger brother, the Para 3 boasts the reliable and easy-to-use Compression lock, which allows for easy one-handed openining while keeping the fingers out of the blade’s path.

A textured finger choil and thumb ramp and the standard Spyderco hole round out some of the features of the full-flat ground blade.

The handle is black G-10 that contours to the palm for a reliable grip. The four-position pocket clip also allows for maximum preference in how the knife is carried.

Even though the Para 3 is known as a shrunken version of the PM2, the knife has begun building a cult following of its own.

For more info on this Badass Knife of the Week, see the product page for the Spyderco Para 3.