Anyone else appreciate a good liner lock?

mael333ca said:
once you spine wacked a folder, you intentionally messed it up. It is made to resist been accidently knocked out closed on your hand a few times, but not wacked on purpose... once you've done that, the lock will be prone to slipping un-engaged...

I would not test it by doing any thing else then simply applying hand pressure only on the spine. If you need something that cannot folder over, then a fixed blade will suit your need.
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I never understood this obsession with testing the durability of a lock. It feels a lot like people intentionally driving into a tree at 50 MPH to determine whether or not the safety features of their new car meet their expectations. And when the airbag hurts their face, they complain about it. I don't get it.
 
Kwon Kwang said:
I love Spyderco's other locks, but I disagree about them doing liner locks well. I recall making a thread about it. My Tenacious' lock would disengage when light blows were applied to the spine of the blade. I'm not okay with that, and it seriously puts me off buying another liner lock from Spyderco.

Would be nice to see some lock strength testing regarding other Spyderco liner locks, though, especially the Military and the GB2.
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You are not alone. I do not trust liner locks and this is only reason I have no purchased a Military. Liner locks and frame locks are simply not as strong as many other types. I do not hate them, but if I were looking for a work knife, I would not choose one with a liner lock or frame lock. I have seen too many fail. Spyderco does them better than anyone. I have a Cat I like, but it will never replace my Chaparral simply because of the lock and nothing else.
 
I agree, Jed.

Why does this discussion always lead to this downward spiral of paranoia?

Just like any other tool known to man; choose the proper one and don't use it carelessly.
 
It isn't just light spine whacks that can cause liner locks to fail. Piercing cuts with your body weight behind the blade can put a lot of stress on a liner lock if the knife is not angled correctly so the force is on the pin instead of the lock.
 
I have 2 ~ Cento Knives and they just go in a Safe with my Collection as I just don't carry or use liner locks as I have had two close on me ~~ no they were not Spyderco Knives but they were Liner Lock Knives and that is good enough for me not to carry or use.! I seem to have grown accustomed to my fingers over the years for some reason.!** lol
 
my counter argument to liner locks being unreliable is Emerson! boom, what do i win? :cool:
 
They are perfectly serviceable for what I use a knife for. That's all have to say really. Other than that I like the design and operation. Whatever you like, you like. Makes no difference to me.
 
nothing bad has ever happened using any of spyderco's liner/frame locks with the ones i own! but then i don't go around wacking the back of the spines just to see if i can get them to fail-close !!! like that idiot on t-tube trying to get a manix 2 to fail,its a pocket knife not a hatchet for god sake,and think spyderco make one of the best liner locks around!as far as a tactical folder go's,my 2 cent's,there.:grumpy:
 
I like liner locks just fine. My first truly one-hand knife (not a lockback) was a linerlock and that was about 20 years ago. I have liked them just fine ever since. In my EDC rotation most of my knives are not liner/frame locks. This is not because of any bias against liner/frame locks but more because I like the PM2 and Manix 2 and have a lot of them. Of the rest of my rotation I have a frame lock, some liner locks, and an axis lock. All locks can vary in their execution and some liner locks are more pleasure to use than others. For instance my easiest to use is the Military, hardest to use is the Bradley Folder 1.

A properly executed liner lock is more than strong enough for anything that a person would reasonably expect to subject a knife to even beyond normal cutting. (All folding knives should be designed to instantly turn to dust the minute someone tries to chop down a tree by hitting the knife with a stick, that would end that silliness forever.) I have a "cheaper brand" knife whose liner lock moves back and forth across the blade tang if you put pressure on the spine of the blade with your hand. That one doesn't inspire much confidence and I refrain from relying on that lock.
 
I really like the Millie nested liner locks - maybe, even more than a frame lock Military.
 
MattWRog said:
There is always an exception to the rule. I don't believe what you experienced is the norm. I'll leave the spine whacks thing alone.
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I hope you're right, and that my particular knife was an exception to the rule, but I did see another test of the Tenacious' lock and it didn't hold up well, readily disengaging when similar blows were applied.

spketch said:
Kwon, it's not fair to judge all Spyderco liner locks on one (faulty) example you tried. I have used many from them and haven't had any issues.

It's my favorite lock as well. Simple, easy to use one handed, and plenty strong when done right (as by Spyderco)

OP, check out the Lum Chinese. Maybe not as narrow as you're hoping for but it's an elegant knife that locks into the hand far better than you might assume from pictures.
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Perhaps. I'd still like to see tests of other Spyderco liner locks. Spyderco is one of my top three favorite brands and I usually have complete confidence in their knives.

mael333ca said:
once you spine wacked a folder, you intentionally messed it up. It is made to resist been accidently knocked out closed on your hand a few times, but not wacked on purpose... once you've done that, the lock will be prone to slipping un-engaged...

I would not test it by doing any thing else then simply applying hand pressure only on the spine. If you need something that cannot folder over, then a fixed blade will suit your need.
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I know that Spyderco makes many other knives which can handle it without a problem. The caged ball lock, compression lock, the back locks, and I'm sure their framelocks are also up to the challenge, too. Keep in mind, this isn't something I normally do, but at the time I couldn't find any tests of the lock and I wanted to know. I don't normally abuse my knives and don't perform spine whack tests - I've only done it on two knives and I haven't done it in at least three years - but still.

My issue is that the Tenacious is marketed as a tactical folder. A tactical folder needs a strong lock. A tactical folder without a strong lock is a guillotine for your fingers. If it was marketed in the same manner as an urban light duty utility folder, that would be very, very different.
 
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If I wanted to use a work knife as a hammer, I would get a fixed-blade. On second thought, I'd just get a hammer.
 
Ocarr said:
If I wanted to use a work knife as a hammer, I would get a fixed-blade. On second thought, I'd just get a hammer.
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I agree, but sometimes accidents happen. That's why lock strength is important to me. I'm a clumsy oaf. :)
 
I remember a guy who was firing the wrong ammunition in his revolver. I kept telling him it wasn't safe but he kept saying he new better. After all, he'd been doing it for nearly 20 years without an issue, he would say. That is, until one day he did.

Stubby is not a nickname I want to have.
 
Kwon Kwang said:
I agree, but sometimes accidents happen. That's why lock strength is important to me. I'm a clumsy oaf. :)
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I get it Kwon. The point I am trying to make is that if you need a knife for so called "hard use", your best bet is still going to be a fixed blade. That being said, the majority of modern folders (regardless of style of lock) would hold up just fine when most accidents happen. (That being, accidently putting negative pressure on the spine during "normal" use) Whacking the spine of a folding knife is not what I would consider "normal or intended" use for most folders. The over built folders that are intentionally built for that type of abuse or misuse, are not usually as convenient to carry in my experience. There's a tradeoff IMO.
BTW, I'm happy to see you can take a joke, pretty rare these days.
 
Ocarr said:
I get it Kwon. The point I am trying to make is that if you need a knife for so called "hard use", your best bet is still going to be a fixed blade. That being said, the majority of modern folders (regardless of style of lock) would hold up just fine when most accidents happen. (That being, accidently putting negative pressure on the spine during "normal" use) Whacking the spine of a folding knife is not what I would consider "normal or intended" use for most folders. The over built folders that are intentionally built for that type of abuse or misuse, are not usually as convenient to carry in my experience. There's a tradeoff IMO.
BTW, I'm happy to see you can take a joke, pretty rare these days.
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I can't disagree with you there. I always EDC a fixed blade just in case.

Actually, considering that, I think I want to carry my Tenacious again because I love that knife (I haven't carried it in a year and I miss having it in my pocket) and I can always use the fixed blade if I perceive that there might be a problem.

I figure a joke is a joke, and come on, we're all friends here. We're all on this forum because we all love Spyderco. :)
 
True on all points. Oh and since I didn't mention it, my favorite liner lock would be the Gayle Bradley since the lock bar is flush with the body of the knife, even in a death grip, it would be difficult to accidentally disengage the lock. I really cannot recommend that one enough.
 
Ocarr said:
True on all points. Oh and since I didn't mention it, my favorite liner lock would be the Gayle Bradley since the lock bar is flush with the body of the knife, even in a death grip, it would be difficult to accidentally disengage the lock. I really cannot recommend that one enough.
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The GB is one of the few liner lock knives I've been considering. Apparently the GB2 is going to be a total improvement in the same vein as the PM2.
 
Kwon Kwang said:
My issue is that the Tenacious is marketed as a tactical folder. A tactical folder needs a strong lock. A tactical folder without a strong lock is a guillotine for your fingers. If it was marketed in the same manner as an urban light duty utility folder, that would be very, very different.
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It's not marketed as a tactical folder though, at least not by Spyderco.

Spyderco places it in the utility section of its catalog.
 
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