Do some knives use washers?

[Fisher of Men]

Hey all,

I was reading a thread at the Spyderco Forum and I noticed a question that someone asked that I wondered about also.

Do some knives have "washers"? Here's what I mean. I notice that in the small amount of time that I have had my Spyderco Scorpius that it's leaving scratch marks on the blade in a cirular patern due to opening and closing the knife. This does not bother me. I assume it's due to the blade rubbing on the liners or the frame of the knife?

On the other hand I have a Benchmade 880BT that shows no such wear. I've had it longer and used it more. When I try to see down into where the blade is in between the liners it appears that there are washers of some sort in there. Is this true? If so, why don't all knives have washers? It seems it would make them last longer. Heck I wouldn't mind replacing washers every few years if the knife lasted longer.

Thanks for reading

Cheers,
Fisher of Men

 

[Esav Benyamin]

Some knives use metal washers, like phosphor bronze, some use "nylatron". Some allow a tiny bit of grit to get in, and THAT will produce scratching.

 

[Fisher of Men]

So my Spyderco must not have washers at all since it's only two weeks old and is getting circular scratches? Had my BM for about 1.5 years and never had this happen. Hmm..... interesting

It would seem that if this is like this with all Spyderco's that Benchmade has a better design.

 

[TorzJohnson]

It would seem that if this is like this with all Spyderco's that Benchmade has a better design.

Some Spydercos have washers too, it all depends on the model. There are plenty of good Spydies in a large range of prices and as far as innovative designs they're one of the top companies out there.

 

[4 s ter]

FoM

You can't make a generalization between two manufacturers base on one knife. Thin washers (like nylatron) provide little clearance between the blade hilt and the liners, or scales if unlined. Just carrying the knife in your pocket can result in grit in the mechanism - a few openings and the scratches start to appear. One advantage of the thin nylatron washers in a SS handles is the reduced room for lateral bladeplay.

David