GEC knife springs?

[Daddyo16]

I actually like the strong pull on the Bullnose. For some reason, it just adds to the character and purpose of that particular model.

[jackknife]

hey Carl.
I'm gonna equate the bear trap spring with the V8. ya don't need it . but its good.
cheers.

Oh, well that explains why I don't get it. I've only had 4 bangers my whole life except for my '62 Ford Falcon that had a strait 6. When we had three kids and went the mini van route in the 70's, it was a VW bus. Heck, I drove the same VW bug from 1966 to 1996. I was a fanatic for air cooled VW's. I still kind of miss my old bug now and then. It was a peanut of the automotive world.

Carl.

[kamagong]

I need a Strong Blade Pick to open the 2010 Forum Knife.

Can't blame GEC for that one. The 2010 knife was made by Queen.

- Christian

[Planterz]

I own a 62, and it is not that bad. The smaller blades have really nice half stops and the main blade is a smooth pull. I tend to trim my fingernails short for work, and I haven't had significant problems. I have wondered about the 61 myself, specifically the 4 blade flavor.
Cheers.

My 61 is slightly stiffer than my 62 whittler. I'd say the 61 is very close a Pioneer/Soldier.

[Peter Parker]

You GEC spring shy guys if you like a jack with spear blade give a #85 a try. I can easily pinch open the spear blade and the little pen is only slightly heavier if any!

[Alann45]

I'm pretty much a novice when it comes to traditionals, but it strikes me as odd that there is so much variation in spring stiffness from pattern to pattern.

Is this intentional, based on the particular pattern or is there some other reason?

Doesn't seem like poor QC, since from what I gather from you guys is that the amount of stiffness is pretty constant for a particular pattern.

[Railsplitter]

I'm pretty much a novice when it comes to traditionals, but it strikes me as odd that there is so much variation in spring stiffness from pattern to pattern.

Is this intentional, based on the particular pattern or is there some other reason?

Doesn't seem like poor QC, since from what I gather from you guys is that the amount of stiffness is pretty constant for a particular pattern.

My theory, which may or may not be correct, is that the folks at GEC are dead set against blade play. I think they would rather have blades that are hard to open than have knives with blade play so they pin down the pivots nice and tight. The squared off tang that it takes to produce half stops combined with a tightly pinned pivot results in a nailbreaker.

This is not to say that there are no GEC's with blade play. I'm sure there are but I think GEC tries real hard to avoid it.

[reader1]

"Originally Posted by reader1
I need a Strong Blade Pick to open the 2010 Forum Knife.
Can't blame GEC for that one. The 2010 knife was made by Queen.

- Christian"

Christian,

Thank you for your correction.

Mike H.

[HuntBomb]

The bigger the knife, the tougher the duty, the stronger the springs.
I think

[Skylar23]

I dont understand why people don't like the spring to be stiff on a slip joint. ESPECIALLY it being a slip joint!!! Now if it were to be any other locking mechanism then it wouldn't matter too much on whether it is soft or stiff. A true correct slip joint should use a pretty stiff spring.. The reason is that it helps the blade in the open position to lock in place and stay that way better. If it were to be too soft then the thing would practically close on its own.. IMO. Half stops are used on specific types of knives but not all. A very big fan of the half stop. I have a gec 25 with a half stop and I agree with its design for that blade. Now my white owl does not because of the type of tang and it being a single back spring and it being a "lighter user" gentlemanly type of knife. Just my two sense. Everyone has their opinion but for someone to not like a stiff back spring is in my opinion not realizing the reason for it. Bill Howard is known to be one of the best in the business. I have spoke with him about these topics. I believe what he has told me which is what I have in turn told you great people.
Thanks, skylar.

[Whitedog]

MY GEC 73 Beaver Tail had a spring from hell. Finally sent back to see what they will do about it. I like stiff springs but this one would open smoothly at times and then sometimes it would not. Bought it off the internet and I knew they had stiff springs but not that stiff. Hoping it turns out well after I get it back because it is a nice knife. Handle them if you can before buying.

[tomsch]

My 56 dogleg jacks are pretty stiff with my Bullnose coming in close. Can't be pinched open and takes some care to make sure your nail does not slip off resulting in a cut. Should smooth out with time though. I really do like the no blade play approach though.

[richstag]

Well, I can tell you from having examples with and without blade play for the same exact knife, same date model and everything, it doesn't have to do MUCH with blade binding.

Kevin

[RevDevil]

My GEC Redneck Farm Tool with orange delrin has a hard pull, dare I say tougher than the 62 I have. I did actuall bust a nail on it the day I received it and pulled the blade open. I love the knife so it's a nonissue in the long run. I guess I'd prefer a knife to be a bit more of a nailbuster than not. It stands to reason that a stiffer pull means the liklihood of the knife closing on your fingers is reduced a bit.

[knarfeng]

I dont understand why people don't like the spring to be stiff on a slip joint. ESPECIALLY it being a slip joint!!!
Thanks, skylar.

That's OK Skylar. Strong springs make no sense to me at all. I've never been able to figure out why someone would want to have to struggle to open a razor sharp sliver of steel. Never had them on any slipjoint knife I've had in the past 50 years, except on the ones I've bought from GEC. Don't want one now. Won't carry one now. Have NEVER had a blade close when I did not want it to.

[puukkoman]

That's OK Skylar. Strong springs make no sense to me at all. I've never been able to figure out why someone would want to have to struggle to open a razor sharp sliver of steel. Never had them on any slipjoint knife I've had in the past 50 years, except on the ones I've bought from GEC. Don't want one now. Won't carry one now. Have NEVER had a blade close when I did not want it to.

Same here.
Ideally, I think the pull should be right around the middle of the range. Not too heavy, not too light. I don't need the spring tension to be super-heavy to prevent my blade from closing; just using the knife properly takes care of that. What I DO need is a knife that's pleasant to use, which rules out nail-breaking springs that are a pain to open.
When I get a knife whose pull is too heavy for my taste, I clean out the joint really well and then leave the knife sit for several hours (sometimes overnight) in about the 1/4-open position. By the next morning, it's usually much better suited to my preference.

[Thomason]

I was wondering how GEC did on adjusting a hard to open knife that was returned to them. If anyone has got one back from a tune-up, how did go? Were they able to help?
I am expecting a #73 trapper to be delivered today and am fretting before I even know if there is anything to fret about.

[Pipeman]

I have one GEC, the Executive whittler, the springs are too soft IMO. The master has about a 4 out of 10, the pen has the strongest pull at about 5, the coping blade has virtually no snap on opening and not much better on closing. I like a strong spring and it's what I expected from a GEC knife

Best regards

Robin

[Peter Parker]

My NF #85 and my Case Canoe have the same pull except the 85 has half stops. I very rarelly use the nail knicks on either one when opening! Sorry; didn't take the time to look and see this is another old post brung back up!!

[puukkoman]

I have one GEC, the Executive whittler, the springs are too soft IMO. The master has about a 4 out of 10, the pen has the strongest pull at about 5, the coping blade has virtually no snap on opening and not much better on closing. I like a strong spring and it's what I expected from a GEC knife

Best regards

Robin

Robin,
How long have you had that one? Have you tried to tweak it at all? If not, maybe a thorough flushing out/cleaning the joint would bring some snap back to the coping blade...
Alex