CRK Grease: The Final Attempt

O

Oakengroves

Joined
Sep 4, 2012
Messages
418
I purchased a new Sebenza 21 approximately nine months ago that has consistently had a stiff, tight action. It does not open or close smoothly and requires a decent amount of force to operate. It does not "glide like glass" or appear "butter smooth."

Before purchasing the Sebenza 21, I primarily used axis-lock knives and was accustomed to the axis lock's rapid, fluid deployment. I attributed the Sebenza 21's stiff action to the fact it utilized a robust, tough frame lock and different pivot system. Despite the stiff action, I've carried and used the Sebenza 21, literally, every day for the last nine months. It carries and functions better than any knife I have ever used.

I usually clean and apply Benchmade Bluelube to it every two weeks. It is stiff after each reassembly, even after checking for common issues [such as pinched washers]. However, something magical happened last month. For the first time, somehow, the Sebenza 21 "glided" after I re-assembled it. The blade literally felt like it was gliding on hydraulics. The action was magical but only lasted for two days. I am convinced that this is how the action should be!

I am hesitant to send it in for warranty service without first trying CRK grease. I hope the grease will fix the stiff action and lead to constant glass-like action.

Does anyone have a similar experience or advice for evaluating and correcting the action of a Sebenza?
 
Last edited:
I got a new Sebenza 21 a couple of months ago and at first I thought I was going to send it in to CRK. The thing was extremely hard for me to use one handed. I finally learned that my thumb placement had to be perfect for easy opening, and still it doesn't flick open. I also own a Three Sisters 'Beast" framelock and it flies open with a flick. Also in my collection I have a Laconico "Blast" and a Curtiss F3, all great knives. However the knife that is my EDC is the Sebenza, it just doesn't open as smooth and easy as the others, but it's a great knife.
 
The tolerances are super tight, so it you have less "wiggle room" for comparison to other knives. HOWEVER, your knife will feel like it did for the first two days of astonishment. I have polished the washers on mine and got amazing results. these knives need breaking in and I would recommend that you try using 10wt Nano-Oil.
 
When applying lube ensure that some is in the detent hole and a smear across the detent ball track on the blade.
One way of easily assessing if friction is too high from either the pivot thrust washers (pivot) or detent ball is to hold the lock bar open (so detent ball is just off the blade) and feel the pivot torque needed to make the blade rotate.
If lube is not the issue, eg the lock bar loading is very high or pivot bush makes for too much pinch on the thrust washers then it may be worth having CRK do the adjustment for you.
Good luck.
PS - Like BBQ Boy above, I also like 10 weight Nano Oil. The thrust washer surface area on my Sebes makes for too much friction with teflon based grease for my preference. I use Nano Oil on the thrust washers and some Krytox GPL 205 on the detent ball track and hole.
YMMV
 
If it has the non perforated washers, you may be using too much lube, essentially making the washers thicker as the lube is compressed, which would make the pivot out of spec and stiff. Only a tiny bit is needed.
 
I had the same problem when I would tighten Down the pivot screw it was almost impossible to open. I spent about 2 minutes polishing the washers on a superfine wet stone and it is amazing how easy and smooth that sebenza now opens
 
Last edited:
After tightening the pivot screw, back it off ever so slightly. This will result in less pressure on the washers.
 
BBQ BOY said:
The tolerances are super tight, so it you have less "wiggle room" for comparison to other knives. HOWEVER, your knife will feel like it did for the first two days of astonishment. I have polished the washers on mine and got amazing results. these knives need breaking in and I would recommend that you try using 10wt Nano-Oil.
Click to expand...


Is there a major difference between the nano oil and the fluorinated grease? I've always used the latter but wanted to give the nano oil a try if it is worth while.
 
I feel that there is. To me, the Nano-Oil is MUCH MUCH easier to apply, if you get the bottle with the skinny syringe tip. I did a test a few nights ago and the Nano came out on top. I took my large Insingo apart, which was already nice and smooth from CRK, and cleaned it, lubed it. I performed these steps with the CRK grease, Nano-Oil, FrogLube and Wilson Combat lube. The Wilson Combat was also very good.
 
Nice, i will be giving it a try. It looks like it has a precise applicator for sure. Im interested in seeing the difference it makes in the action compared to the fluoro, thats pretty much the only thing ive used on crks.
 
jumpman said:
Is there a major difference between the nano oil and the fluorinated grease? I've always used the latter but wanted to give the nano oil a try if it is worth while.
Click to expand...
The fluorinated greases generally (depending on type) have a higher viscosity than the Nano-Oil Wt 10. That means there is more damping of movement say when applied to the surfaces of PB thrust washers. That is, more resistance the faster the blade rotates. Hope that makes sense.
 
Across a few Sebenzas I've owned, I found the stop pin screw tightness could lead to poor action "feel."

My suggestion, loosen the stop pin screw and check the feel of the knife. I it's smooth, try tightening the stop pin screw again. Whenever I've gotten carried away with that screw, I've often experienced not so smooth pivot action, regardless of lubricant used. Once the screws are properly torqued, you'll be able to use nearly any lube.
 
Per CRK, the grease is needed for lubrication and rust protection. Nano-oil, being an oil, will not give you the same lubricating or protection qualities as the grease.

The CRK grease should have been your first choice, not your "final attempt". I don't know what is in Benchmade's Bluelube, but if it is like Tuff-glide, it has a wax, thus it won't perform like the grease. If it has no wax, it is an oil, it also won't perform like grease.

You paid a lot for the blade, why not use the lubricant the manufacturer says it is designed for? Use the CRK grease. Who's the knifemaker, you or Chris Reeve?
 
brownshoe said:
Per CRK, the grease is needed for lubrication and rust protection. Nano-oil, being an oil, will not give you the same lubricating or protection qualities as the grease.

The CRK grease should have been your first choice, not your "final attempt". I don't know what is in Benchmade's Bluelube, but if it is like Tuff-glide, it has a wax, thus it won't perform like the grease. If it has no wax, it is an oil, it also won't perform like grease.

You paid a lot for the blade, why not use the lubricant the manufacturer says it is designed for? Use the CRK grease. Who's the knifemaker, you or Chris Reeve?
Click to expand...

It's unfortunate that the written materials that came with the Sebenza do not state how important it is to use grease, as opposed to other forms of lubes. It's strange that the lube I use on virtually ever other knife I own, including other frame locks, does not work on the Sebenza.
 
brownshoe said:
Per CRK, the grease is needed for lubrication and rust protection. Nano-oil, being an oil, will not give you the same lubricating or protection qualities as the grease.

The CRK grease should have been your first choice, not your "final attempt". I don't know what is in Benchmade's Bluelube, but if it is like Tuff-glide, it has a wax, thus it won't perform like the grease. If it has no wax, it is an oil, it also won't perform like grease.

You paid a lot for the blade, why not use the lubricant the manufacturer says it is designed for? Use the CRK grease. Who's the knifemaker, you or Chris Reeve?
Click to expand...
I use oil with a lot of my high end fire arms, such as Wilson Combat lube and FrogLube CLP. They get wet and go through thousands of rounds with no issues of rust and the machine stays smooth as glass. I am not the knife maker, Mr.Reeve is and he's the best, but I am the end user and I find that there are products out there that perform just as well, and for me they perform better. CRK grease DOES NOT give the knife a nice glassy action like the Nano Oil does. That is my experience. I agree with you on the Tuff-Glide though. a wax based system isn't the greatest thing.
 
If you hold your sebenza horizontally and dis-engage the lockbar, does the blade fall by gravity alone?

If it does then I would say it is the detent and/or pressure of the lockbar which 'usually' just needs more break-in time.

If the blade doesn't fall free then I would recommend what someone said earlier, polishing the washers with a VERY fine abrasive on a FLAT surface( I used 3,000 grit in the past with buffing compound). I have found that this really helps and prevents me from sending it back to Idaho. There is also a YouTube video you can reference.

Also, use enough lubricant but not too much. From my experience, high viscosity oils don't last long and grease works well so long as I don't use too much. I use 'Christolube' ,which I have heard is identical to CRK fluorinated grease. I just know it works well for me. I have some I can spare, so please contact me if you would like to try it out before you buy any (it is a bit expensive)

I hope you find a fix for this. What you described is not standard operation for a sebenza IMO. Good luck
 
I would be curious to have some other CRK users take a look and a feel at the OP's Sebenza in its current condition and gauge for themselves according to their own experiences just how "tight" or "smooth" or "glassy" the Sebenza is/is not. I am guessing that a lot of the variations people experience are not variations from Seb to Seb, but variations according to their own experiences or expectations. The OP stated he is used to an axis-lock type mechanism, which operates and feels much different than a Seb. Of all the Sebs I own the action on each one feels nearly identical in the broken-in ones and nearly identical in the NIB ones--all with very slight, almost imperceptible differences.

Sort of like two people looking at the same piece of abstract artwork--one person sees a mountainscape and the other an ocean--same painting, different point of view.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top