Cutouts Under Pocket Clip

[J. Doyle]

“Safer” because of the aforementioned explanation that it’s less likely (though highly unlikely either way) to break if the milling is on the outside?

Personally, I don't buy that nonsense. I think it would depend on a lot of factors.....lock interface angle, lockbar tension, early/late lockup, etc.

*IF* one managed to break a lockbar, then one is an absolute idiot because they were doing something with a knife it was never intended to do.

I'd wager which side the cutout is on has everything to do with personal preference/looks/ease of machining for each individual's process and nothing to do with safety.

Although I could see certain makers preferring a certain side and THEN arguing it was for "safety" just for the sake of arguing "I'm right, you're wrong". That is very much in the wheelhouse for a few.

 

[J. Doyle]

For a well done framelock, and for me, it's not. For a mass produced knife with not much time for hand adjustment of each knife, steel inserts prevent lock stick.

That's my view anyways.

Totally agree.

Steel on steel, titanium on steel, ceramic on steel, carbidized ti on steel.....there's going to be wear somewhere, period.

But if they're well made, the wear won't be appreciable no matter which materials are used.

The reasons a material is chosen are usually other reasons but "less wear" is often the (false) reason given as a selling point.

 

[Teesac81]

Totally agree.

Steel on steel, titanium on steel, ceramic on steel, carbidized ti on steel.....there's going to be wear somewhere, period.

But if they're well made, the wear won't be appreciable no matter which materials are used.

The reasons a material is chosen are usually other reasons but "less wear" is often the (false) reason given as a selling point.

So how is the CRK Inkosi going to wear at the interface between that tiny ceramic ball insert and the spot it lands on the MagnaCut?

 

[J. Doyle]

So how is the CRK Inkosi going to wear at the interface between that tiny ceramic ball insert and the spot it lands on the MagnaCut?

CRK's are well made knives. If you want one, buy one and use it with confidence. I'm sure wear will be a non issue and the knife will last a lifetime.

 

[shinyedges]

So how is the CRK Inkosi going to wear at the interface between that tiny ceramic ball insert and the spot it lands on the MagnaCut?

I have 3 crks now, and I like them very much. The ceramic ball is actually larger than you'd think. It wears a small track in the tang of the blade that grows ever so slightly over the course of the break in. Think of it as, when the knife is brand new, and there is no track worn in to the tang from the ceramic ball, the contact point is at its smallest.

Over the course of however many opening and closings, the path the ceramic ball travels upon gradually widens (somewhat miniscule), increasing the surface contact on the tang and therefore decreasing the amount of wear to any one given spot.

The tang is machined to have an angle, as the ball eventually settles in the path it has worn and reaches the maximum distance it can travel due to the aforementioned angle, it plateaus on the wear for a very very long time.

 

[Teesac81]

How does a Rick Hinderer knife feel in comparison, and are they as perfectly constructed as CRK?

 

[ferider]

How does a Rick Hinderer knife feel in comparison, and are they as perfectly constructed as CRK?

Very different knives, but regarding framelock, yes. The older Hinderers have no steel inserts (much less knives produced), the newest ones have. The lock in the older ones (Ti on steel) is very safe. Below an example, large folder, (XM24 Skinny), very solid and smooth lock. Flips great, too.

It's funny actually: The RIL was invented by CRK and is used by Hinderer, obviously; the newest CRKs (Zaan) add a Hinderer invention (LBS = Lock-Bar Stabilizer).

Hinderer has many more knife and blade shapes to choose from than CRK. If you compare similar ones, they are not so different, actually. The two on the left below have roughly similar thickness and weight, identical pivot diameter, etc.

BTW, the LBS would prevent a lock from failing outwards, forgot to mention that earlier.

 

[Teesac81]

Very different knives, but regarding framelock, yes. The older Hinderers have no steel inserts (much less knives produced), the newest ones have. The lock in the older ones (Ti on steel) is very safe. Below an example, large folder, (XM24 Skinny), very solid and smooth lock. Flips great, too.

It's funny actually: The RIL was invented by CRK and is used by Hinderer, obviously; the newest CRKs (Zaan) add a Hinderer invention (LBS = Lock-Bar Stabilizer).

Hinderer has many more knife and blade shapes to choose from than CRK. If you compare similar ones, they are not so different, actually. The two on the left below have roughly similar thickness and weight, identical pivot diameter, etc.

BTW, the LBS would prevent a lock from failing outwards, forgot to mention that earlier.

By the way, how do I load photos on here?

 

[ferider]

By the way, how do I load photos on here?

1) You host on another site, most here use imgur, I use smugmug.
2) Then, you get a pointer to the jpg file.
3) Then, you put it into IMG tags, like this, all spaces removed:

[ IMG ] https : // blablabla / blablabla / ... / file.jpg [ / IMG ]

 

[Teesac81]

1) You host on another site, most here use imgur, I use smugmug.
2) Then, you get a pointer to the jpg file.
3) Then, you put it into IMG tags, like this, all spaces removed:

[ IMG ] https : // blablabla / blablabla / ... / file.jpg [ / IMG ]

Thank you!

 

[shinyedges]

Or you can become a paying member and gain the ability to directly post pictures without a third party website. You'll also get the ability to private message which is valuable for selling and buying here.

 

[Franz_N]

This thread answers some of my questions I had about lock bar cut outs inside vs outside. I had wanted to ask why do many makers opt to put their cut out on the outside on a frame lock vs on the inside.

Personally I think primarily it’s because it’s easier to machine that way and makes the knife making process simpler. Some have stated here it’s a strength thing and that the cut out on the outside will be stronger and not fold but who uses their knife that hard especially a smaller knife and most folders are. As someone said too a lock bar stabilizer would help stabilize the lockbar from bending out. I think honestly it’s for easier machining which I can understand for the maker but harder to accept as a customer.

I think too many expensive framelocks are taking advantage of the customer. Selling them up on how great the knife is but overall I find a frame lock design to be sub par if the lockbar is on the outside. Even my beloved strider’s would be better if their had the lock bar cut on the inside.

Many bring up Chris Reeve and with good reason as they are in my opinion the best designed frame lock with the best design for the cut out that is more machined, intricate and probably took more R&D to produce than what other makers settle for with the outside cutouts.

With that said I think makers that came out later like in the last ten years that market such a expensive knife that goes for like 600-800 plus such as Oz Machine, Koenig, SPK unlimited ect. even older company like Grimsmo charging a tier higher than CRK and claiming all the refinement and R&D but they charge you for an inferior and cheaper cut out design that is on the outside and frankly a weak point exposed and that doesn’t flow with the handle and not covered at least by a pocket clip.