compression lock

Nuts, with all the talk about paramilitarys in this forum I gave in to temptation and got a used one. Much lighter than I expected for a knife with a 4mm thick blade and the lockup is tight without any play. Now I'm thinking about getting one in FG - I get the feeling I'm on a pretty slippery slope now ..:o
 
The comp lock is my favorite lock. Super strong, smooth, ambidextrous, and not a hint of blade play in my Superhawk. The ergos on the Superhawk are unreal, the knife is just an extention of the hand. While I can't wait for a leaf blade in that handle, I am really liking the hawkbill right now for it's cutting. The tip just pierces right in and the blade just slices right through anything in it's path. When I go to sharpen it I may not like it as much as a conventional blade, but I am loving the way it cuts way more than I ever thought I would. Those who aren't fans of hawkbills should try it, though the price of entry is a bit high for a blade shape that you might not be a huge fan of.

Mike
 
Just checked my Vesuvius, which is like the present generation Centofante, but with a compression lock, rather than lockback, and it is tight with no blade play. The Vesuvius is the easiest opening knife I own. I don't know if its the compression lock, but I can flick it open without touching the spider hole.
 
Masteroffajitas said:
What the para has? That's just a mix of a lock back and a liner lock.
Click to expand...

Could you BE any more wrong?:p
It's WAY more of a mix between a liner lock and an AXIS lock(look at the way it functions when trying to make comparisons:cool:).
 
Here are a few pictures that I took about a year ago of some of my Para's taken apart.

This should explain the Compression lock a little bit. :)

paramilitary-lock.jpg


ParamilitaryDisassembly9.jpg


ParamilitaryDisassembly8.jpg


ParamilitaryDisassembly5.jpg
 
Great pics David, that shows how it would be REALLY hard to defeat a comp lock. On my Superhawk you can look right down on the on the lock from the back and see that you would pretty much have to break the stop pin out of the frame to break it. The fact that it is such a smooth lock that I can easily work with either hand is icing on the cake.

Mike
 
lava_lamp said:
Just checked my Vesuvius, which is like the present generation Centofante, but with a compression lock, rather than lockback, and it is tight with no blade play. The Vesuvius is the easiest opening knife I own. I don't know if its the compression lock, but I can flick it open without touching the spider hole.
Click to expand...

Same here! It's still one of my favorite all time knives!
007-1.jpg
 
OK -this will get the award for reviving a long dead thread -BUT-I am somewhat amazed that I can offer 12? more years of compression lock experience. The three designs that have gotten the most use in that time are (in order of years carried/used) :STR/ATR (ATR's with nonlock side replaced with some sort of fibreglass/G10/plastic ) ,Lil Temperance and Yojimbo I continue to have zero blade play vertically or side to side an any of these compression lock knives. The Yojimbo only got about six months of daily use before my regular use of the knife as a drill substitute to put holes into plastic cases before wall mounting broke the tip off (the relatively delicate tips on Spyderco's is the main/only reason I don't own a lot more Spyderco's) . The Lil Temp has lost out simply because of two factors : 1.) my state has passed a preemption law that makes it no longer necessary to stay under 3" blade length when working in the major city near here. 2.) The moded STR/ATR is so light (115 grams)) and thin that it makes the perfect discrete daily user- the Lil Temperance is much thicker (still one of the most comfortable grip n use knives I own) . My STR/ ATR is black so they sorta disappear against my faded black jeans. My point is -even after more than a decade of continued regular use -compression locks just work -period. (And I still suspect that flipping Spyderco's open with the spdie hole flip or snap is REALLY hard on the locks.)
 
Might be an old thread, it's interesting to know they hold up well to the test of time. Enter the Para 3 LW, now we have a knife that's all FRN and manages to use the compression lock. Mine has zero play in any direction and the action is buttery smooth. Goes to show the level of mastery Spyderco has achieved when it comes to this lock.
 
audiopile said:
Very interesting -does the Para 3 LW come in a Tanto blade ? maybe a sprint run of some sort ?
Click to expand...
The Para 3 Lightweight has had a Sprint (Rex 45) and a few Exclusives (M4, 20CV, M390, And S90V). I may be missing some but there's definitely some floating around on secondary market. No Tanto blade so far....
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top