Blade play -- a question not a complaint!!

longbeachguy

longbeachguy

Joined
Oct 11, 2005
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I'm fairly new to Emerson, and I'm looking for some input.

I recently bought an Emerson Commander in new condition from a third party. The knife is great in all respects, except that there is some vertical blade play, because the locking liner actually slips along the tang a little.

Now, when it settles in it seems to be very secure, but that slippage worries me.

I know all about the fact that one should not expect the super high tolerances found on some other knives on an Emerson, because Emersons are truly hard use knives, and I totally get that.

So the question is, should I be concerned about the slippage and try to get it serviced, or this this pretty normal for an Emerson, and not something to be concerned about? I've also heard that Emersons sometimes settle with use, and for all I know this issue might just resolve itself.

Thanks for any insights.

Jim
 
Thats the first thing I thought of. I've got it tightened up pretty stiff, and it still happens. Worse when it's looser though.

Thanks for the suggestion. I guess I'll give EKI a call.

This one's got the olive drab G-10 slabs so I really want to make it work. :D
 
it may just need to be broken in. often there are burrs on the liner or blade that require some wear to engage smoothly.

but, it cant hurt to contact eki.
 
if it doesnt lock up correctly send it in to EKI they will make it right.

an EKI liner lock should not slip any FWIW and if it does something is funky.

like mori said it might just be new/not broken in, but it shouldnt slip, none of mine have new or not.
 
send it back. they will fix it fast and whilst they're at it, ask them to resharpen. Those Commanders are tricky to sharpen and the factory sharpening is really wicked!!!
 
Well I got to thinking, the knife is an Emerson, I might as well treat it like one. So, I took it completely apart, cleaned it, and firmed up the tension on the liner lock a little, and for reasons I'm not sure I understand, it now locks up like a vault. Some minute adjustment I made must make the lock now seat properly, so hopefully no more troubles with slipping.

See, this is why people like Emersons. You just can't do this with a Spyderco or Benchmade. Don't get me wrong I'm a huge fan of both, but I'm really glad I have an Emerson in my rotation now as well.

Thanks for all the input from everyone.

Jim
 
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