Do you have the same problem?

S

spydutch

Joined
Jul 4, 2005
Messages
978
Greetings you all:)

After removing the annoying loop on my Pioneer and Farmer, I noticed that the action of the awl is a whole lot less smooth than before.

I cut away the main portion of the loop with pliers and grinding the remains with an old coarse waterstone(don't have a metal file)
Before I made sure to tape off the area around the loop to prefend further scratches and filings coming in the pivot area.

After the grinding I cleaned the pivot area with WD40 and soapy water.

However even after oiling, the action remains gritty and less smooth and snappy.

Wonder if I did something wrong or you having the same thing.

Thanks very much for reading.:thumbup:
 
I just left the piece there but took the loop off. I hate how it's in the way of the awl and then you close it it dents the awl. Made me crazy! So now if theres one near the awl i take the ring off, but keep the piece on. I've thought about grinding it down, but i may want to use it in the future. After all, it is a function in the list of SAK functions :-)
 
Did you hold the knife in a vice or pair of pliers while cutting and grinding? If so, you may have squeezed the bolsters/handles together just a smidge. Go by a gas station or whatever and blow out you knife with high-pressure air and then oil it with RemOil or light 3M machine oil. Lube the joints.
 
Modoc ED said:
Did you hold the knife in a vice or pair of pliers while cutting and grinding? If so, you may have squeezed the bolsters/handles together just a smidge. Go by a gas station or whatever and blow out you knife with high-pressure air and then oil it with RemOil or light 3M machine oil. Lube the joints.
Click to expand...

Nope, just held it in my hand and after I cleaned it I put some high grade sewing machine oil in the pivots.
 
spydutch said:
Nope, just held it in my hand and after I cleaned it I put some high grade sewing machine oil in the pivots.
Click to expand...

You may have slightly twisted the section that you've cut and ground, it also acts as a spacer between the liner and the awl.
 
I have had the same problem, but without the ring removed.

My best guess, its the WD40.

I dumped the knife in boiling water and cleaned it dry.
Without any lube it runs far better. Not as smooth as before, but nearly so.

Lesson learned: Never oil any SAK.
 
You can grind the keyring knob down very quickly with an xtra course DMT stone. I bet it only took 2 minutes to get it flush, then I smoothed the rough edges with a ceramic stick. Feels so much better without that little tab gouging my palm.
 
Arend, my guess is that in the process of grinding off the keyring stud there was a slight burr formed next to where the awl opens & closes. It will feel smooth when rubbing your hand around the outside end of the knife - where the stud used to be. The burr was likely formed (or "pushed over") on the inside - where the awl rubs against when opening & closing. The keyring stud is very soft metal - with the knife closed take a fingernail file, or even an old junk knife blade, and scrape inside next to where the awl rubs against when opening & closing.

Had that happen on my Pioneer and Farmer when grinding off the stud, and they're smooth as silk now. Hope I explained it well enough so you can understand what I'm trying to say. ;)
 
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I've removed the ring loop on a few of my Pioneers using a good wire cutter to snap most of it off. Then use a fine grit wheel (it's gray in color) on my dremel to smooth it out to match the contour of the other liner.

My first attempt was about a year ago and I experienced the same difficulty opening the awl after removing the loop. Gritty. What happened is fine particles of metal ended up getting into the action of the tool, making it really tough to open. I had to open and close it about 800 times under flowing water.

Now, it sounds like you taped off the area around the loop. What worked for me was completely taping the knife with electrical tape so no grit could get in anywhere. The only part exposed was the part I wanted to grind. I pulled all of the tape off then flushed the knife under flowing water PRIOR to opening any of the tools. This did the trick for my two other Pioneers.

Anyway... all we can do is guess what happened. You still have a stiff awl. Grab a rag and wrap it around the awl so you dont cut the crap out of your hand, firmly grab the wrapped awl with one hand and the handle with the other, then work the thing back and forth under a running faucet. Dry it off then try it with lube. This is what I had to do to fix my gritty awl.
 
Thanks a great deal for all the tips you guys:thumbup::thumbup:
I first filed the inside of the loop remains like Keith said and after that a good rinse under the tap while opening and closing the awl.
After thouroughly drying I put just a small drop of sewing machine oil in the pivot and the action is much better now.
Not as good as before I took the loop off, but I can live with it now.
 
TheHunt said:
I have had the same problem, but without the ring removed.

My best guess, its the WD40.

I dumped the knife in boiling water and cleaned it dry.
Without any lube it runs far better. Not as smooth as before, but nearly so.

Lesson learned: Never oil any SAK.
Click to expand...

Bad advice. WD40 is not a lubricant. It's a moisture displacer. Read the can. Read the MSD.
 
I went to the WD40 website and see that they now claim that one of the uses of WD40 is light lubrication. That didn't used to be the case. Maybe they've added a light lubricant over the last few years. Hey!!! Us old guys learn something every day.

Just my opinion but I'd say 3 in 1 oil, RemOil, or even mineral oil would be better choices than WD40.
 
Modoc ED said:
Bad advice. WD40 is not a lubricant. It's a moisture displacer. Read the can. Read the MSD.
Click to expand...

Even so, Leatherman's care instructions, for one, recommends WD40. There have been reports posted on this forum about problems with WD40, but I must say that after decades of using the stuff, I have never experienced any bad results.

Modoc ED said:
I went to the WD40 website and see that they now claim that one of the uses of WD40 is light lubrication. That didn't used to be the case. Maybe they've added a light lubricant over the last few years. Hey!!! Us old guys learn something every day.

Just my opinion but I'd say 3 in 1, RemOil, or even mineral oil would be better choices than WD40.
Click to expand...

WD40 has been the same ever since it first came on the market, a mix of mineral oil and Stoddard Solvent (mineral spirits similar to hexane). AFAIR, it has always been advertised as a moisture dispersant and also light lubricant, at least so it says on the can. Maybe RemOil or 3 in 1 might be better lubricants, but the thing about WD40 is that most of it evaporates after a while, leaving little to attract lint or dust. I like that in a pocket knife. :)
 
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