Are lockbacks easier to open than slippies?

It's an 8-9 on the pull even with the extra leverage afforded by the long blade. Closing is just as hard with a lot of tension necessary on the lever. The up side is that when open it's as close to a fixed blade that you can fold up and put in your pocket as you'll ever find. Not a bit of wiggle vertical or horizontal.
 
Doesn't this lock up the same as a traditional Buck 110 except the release is up front instead of in the rear?

Looks interesting but I'm not sure I get the point of a more complicated closing system. It is different though, which is cool in and of itself.
 
Yes, a lockback is much more easy to open.
The GEC 72 is the hardest lockback to close that I have(or have ever had), but I do have a bad thumb that doesn't help with this.

I've found Moki is by far the easiest to open and close of any lockback. The Case Copperlock is another one that is pretty easy to open/close, but nothing like a Moki.
 
My Buck 110, my Schrade 51OT and all my Bokers open and close smooth as glass with solid lockup. The 23L is firmer but still opens and closes easy with a "bankvault" lockup! :eek: :cool:
 
IMG_1789copy2_zps86ba7398.jpg


My 72 is very smooth and easy to open. It came to me with so much vertical play that it rattled when shaken, with the blade opened and locked, but, after service by GEC, it locks up with absolutely no blade movement, now. Unlocking it is still a tiny bit sticky, but it'll likely get better as it wears in over time.
 
deskil said:
My 72 is very smooth and easy to open. It came to me with so much vertical play that it rattled when shaken, with the blade opened and locked, but, after service by GEC, it locks up with absolutely no blade movement, now. Unlocking it is still a tiny bit sticky, but it'll likely get better as it wears in over time.
Click to expand...

Does anyone know exactly what GEC does to eliminate the vertical play?
 
Just thought I'd throw out that I've a couple Fallkniven lock backs which open smooth as glass and the lock clicks in nice and solid. Well built items. Blades are quite easy to open too by pinching the blade. They use nail nicks on both sides of the blade which is a bit different than the norm.

I've a Fallkniven slippie too that opens very nicely, but seems to have a bit of a weak back spring. I'd like it to be a little more snug when it's open. Always feels that it would like to close up on your fingers if you don't handle it properly. I've two, and they're both the same so I don't think it's just my particular knife.
 
Of the lock backs I have, the GEC #99 Farmerlock is by far the smoothest to open and easiest to close. I'm not sure if that's the norm - I only have 1. As others have said, the 72's are a little stiff on closing; I have several, and they're all about the same. The one 23 I have with a bull lock is actually very smooth to open and easy to close. OTOH, the 23 slippies (I have 4) are all like bear traps - I kind of like that with a larger blade though.

Also, the Al Mar Eagle, with the front lock, is a very smooth opener & closer.
 
Joe58 said:
I've a Fallkniven slippie too that opens very nicely, but seems to have a bit of a weak back spring. I'd like it to be a little more snug when it's open. Always feels that it would like to close up on your fingers if you don't handle it properly. I've two, and they're both the same so I don't think it's just my particular knife.
Click to expand...
The U1 I presume? It's well known for having a weak spring. Precisely the reason I moved mine on. Fantastic knife as far as F&F goes, and materials, but Gods it doesn't take much for it to fold in use.

It's been said already, but generally speaking lockers are easier to open than slippies. The lock mechanism eliminates the need for the spring tension that makes slippies hard to open/close. Even on the stiffer lockbacks I've had, all you have to do is push the lock in as you would when closing, and the opening resistance is practically non existent.
 
SAK Guy said:
That one must have slipped through quality control...better send it back! :p ;) :D
Click to expand...

Send it back? No! Never! It's my precious, I would be sad without it.:p

So after I posted how easy mine is to open and close I handed it to my wife and asked her to open it then close it. Opening it was a piece of cake and she had no problem at all getting it to lock open. Closing it was another story. She was able to push down the lock release on the second attempt. She had a slightly pained look on her face while doing so and I believe it caused her a little very temporary discomfort.
So I guess I have to retract my earlier post and say that while my 72 is very easy to open it is harder to close than open and that some people may have a little trouble with it.
Still I really like this knife. A lot more than I thought I would, and the fat spear blade works great as an all-around edc.
image.jpg
 
The "normal" lockback does not use a spring in the slip joint sense, that is, a full-length, pinned to the frame spring.

The conventional lockback construction has the lockbar (has a "key" that drops into a slot or keyway on the tang of the blade to lock it), pivots around the center pin and is sprung with a steel bar that is set in the back of the frame. It usually provides enough tension to push the key into the keyway and to keep the blade closed, but not "walk and talk" pressure like a conventional spring.

There are variations on that general theme, see below where the spring is integral with the rear "spacer."

wglb_1_600.jpg


But generally, that construction is going to yield a much lighter pull than an equivalently sized slipjoint. Also, by depressing the lockbar while opening, you can remove almost all tension from the blade.
 
My #72 Cody Scout stag is a bear to open. It's at least an 8 to 9. I tried leaving the blade at a quarter stop for several days but it didn't help much. As such I hardly ever use the knife anymore.
 
Daniel J said:
The U1 I presume? It's well known for having a weak spring. Precisely the reason I moved mine on. Fantastic knife as far as F&F goes, and materials, but Gods it doesn't take much for it to fold in use.
Click to expand...

Yeah - the U1. I've thought about moving them along too but I really like them. I do plan on contacting Fallkniven just to see what they say about them. I guess I wasn't aware the issue was so well known. That's my bad for not researching before purchase. :)

Mark - great explanation on the knife workings. Appreciate that. Funny how little the actual workings of the "device" have changed after so many years. Certainly materials and such have changed, but the basic design is pretty much the same. Good stuff.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top