My first CRK -just picked it up today. Ques about lockbar...

seeverscpa

seeverscpa

Joined
May 19, 2015
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I have a local pawn shops/gun store/shooting range/scuba shop/sportsman store in my area. It's a locally owned small business. I've always known they carried knives, mainly microtech and Chris Reeves. And today I went over and took a look at a large Inkosi. The only other time I've handled a CRK is when a friend of mine at the Panera had his large 25. I was pretty impressed for the brief few minutes I had to handle it.

I decided sometime ago that I would get a CRK but just wasn't sure when, so when the owner took a few bucks off the price of the knife I pulled the trigger.

I did have a question about the the interface between the knife tang and the lock bar face, specifically the little round ceramic ball. I wasn't aware until I really looked closely, but the contact point is actually the edge of the ceramic ball, not the titanium lock bar face.

I'm sure they've tested the crap out of this, but no amount of force against that ball would cause the titanium pocket that the ball sits in to deform? I guess I need to start whacking the spine of this knife on the edge of the table to test it? Lol. I'm just kidding..., but I am wondering what everyone thought about that point I brought up.

I'm very new to CRK, like two hours new, so any guidance or support you can provide is greatly appreciated.

Sean
 
I have heard about the ball being loose in the pocket exactly 1x..but the shop took care of the issue when it was sent in. It was likely improperly staked into place.
My thought is, if there is an issue that it will be rectified with a trip into CRK.
These knives have been out for some time, along with the Umnumzaan, so i would call the design to be pretty proven.
 
The umnumzaan was the first out with this lock in 2008, so they have nine years experience with it. Also, CRK is known for making tiny changes or improvements over time without a lot of fanfare if they need to. So if they were getting returns or lots of warranty problems, no doubt they'd have adressed them a long time ago.

It's a solid lock. I have a 25 with it, and prefer it to the standard ti RIL interface, but not for any real reason. I won't wear out either lock. I especially love the CLACK when it opens.
 
Congrats on the first CRK!, and welcome to the spiral.....

I have Umnumzaan, which employs the same lock type. The lock-up is solid on mine.
I too was anxious about the ceramic ball interface at the beginning. I am now very comfortable with it.

I would bet the next thing you will notice is that you can push the lock bar further in from the initial lock-up point, or that the lock engagement becomes a lot deeper in a few days. I have been there. I can say these are normal.

Umnum_wear.JPG
 
seeverscpa said:
I have a local pawn shops/gun store/shooting range/scuba shop/sportsman store in my area. It's a locally owned small business. I've always known they carried knives, mainly microtech and Chris Reeves. And today I went over and took a look at a large Inkosi. The only other time I've handled a CRK is when a friend of mine at the Panera had his large 25. I was pretty impressed for the brief few minutes I had to handle it.

I decided sometime ago that I would get a CRK but just wasn't sure when, so when the owner took a few bucks off the price of the knife I pulled the trigger.

I did have a question about the the interface between the knife tang and the lock bar face, specifically the little round ceramic ball. I wasn't aware until I really looked closely, but the contact point is actually the edge of the ceramic ball, not the titanium lock bar face.

I'm sure they've tested the crap out of this, but no amount of force against that ball would cause the titanium pocket that the ball sits in to deform? I guess I need to start whacking the spine of this knife on the edge of the table to test it? Lol. I'm just kidding..., but I am wondering what everyone thought about that point I brought up.

I'm very new to CRK, like two hours new, so any guidance or support you can provide is greatly appreciated.

Sean
Click to expand...

The Sebenza25, Umnumzaan and Inkosi all have the same ceramic detent/lock face ball design. As already stated, it's been around for a while and has been proven a reliable design. As with any knife, with enough abuse it can be damaged beyond repair. But then again, would you really want to use a CRK beyond it's intended use/purpose for any length of time ?
 
I own four CRK knives now and they are all so perfect that i almost convince myself that something must be wrong, somewhere on each knife. A total 'too good to be true' moment. But the truth is... if it has a solid lockup, no blade play, and is centered....your knife is good my friend. Let it break in and become comfortable with you while you become comfortable with it. This is a fresh relationship hahaha. The two of you are in it for the long haul now
 
"Really loving this thing so far."

I've had lots of these CRK's; various models and sizes. You will continue to love it...
don
 
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