Does a little side to side play bother you in a folder?

[Tostig]

I won't stand for bladeplay! If I can't adjust it out then the knife gets sent back or sold.

I have owned tons of knives from price levels of $50 to $1000 with no play, so I don't feel that I need to accept it. A well made folder shouldn't have play, in my opinion, and you don't need to pay through the nose to get a folder without play either.

What he said ! I do not own any really expensive folders but I can also say not one of my folders ( slipjoints aside.... ) has any play whatsoever or I will not want it any longer.

Tostig

 

[mongomondo]

None of my knives have any blade play, and if they do they get returned or sent in for warranty work.

 

[Tsujigiri]

Blade play isn't characteristic of Kershaw assisted openers; all of mine are fine. Maybe you're not actually tightening the screw? One thing that annoys me about some Kershaws is that the other side of the pivot is circular instead of flattened off, so if you try to tighten it beyond a certain point, the pivot can spin in its socket instead of tightening. I'm not sure if your knife is built like this too, but look on the other side of the screw to check. If that is the case, you have to push the side of the blade against something while tightening to provide tension.

 

[thedmasterr]

The hate of blade play burns in my heart like the fire from a million Suns. Even with my cheap folders. I even went so far as to hit one of my sanrenmus with a wrench. I'm pretty sure it helped.

 

[cziv]

The hate of blade play burns in my heart like the fire from a million Suns. Even with my cheap folders. I even went so far as to hit one of my sanrenmus with a wrench. I'm pretty sure it helped.

Hear ya go!

My almost new phone and answering machine puked so the katana was used instead of a wrench!

My Dad always told me his phone was the best one ever made (for years) and mine was the cause of any static in our conversations. He made the mistake of putting it in the back seat of my car!

12 gauge wrench!

 

[drewg13]

I only have one Kershaw. A Chive and it has no blade play whatsoever. I would exchange it for another.

 

[NaturalMystic]

Blade play (BP) drives me nuts! I've got 3 BM Mini Grips, multiple Spydercos, etc and don't recall any really having any BP.
Two weekends ago I got my first Zero Tolerance, the 0200, and between the minor BP and the fact that I couldn't get the screws on the pocket clip to tighten all the way in when I switched from tip down to tip up was all I could bare. I went back to the store to exchange it but the new one had minor BP also. I finally ended up changing it for a 0350 instead. Lock up was great until I again tried to convert it from right-hand tip down to tip up. Just removing the clip screws from the tip down position caused the blade to go off-centered and rub against one side on the liner when closing.
In tip up position the BP was ridiculous, so much so that I had to return it to tip down, but now it still has minor lateral BP.
I thought they said they had "Zero Tolerance" for all these defects? I love the 0350, much more than the 0200, so I'll have to play around with the pivot screws, etc. Just waiting for my new Torx screwdriver set to come in since I stripped my T6 trying to adjust the 0200!

 

[cziv]

That's odd NaturalMystic. Ya don't hear many reports of ZT knives having those knida problems. Mine haven't. I guess you got a lemon? I'd be sending it off to Kershaw/ZT/KAI for warranty or replacement. They have excellent Customer Service. Blade play in the axis locks (mild), for me, is normal and the way I'd want mine to be for that fast deployment. :thumbup:

 

[BluesStringer]

I just bought a Kershaw Needs Work from a Snap On Rep that comes to my work. It has some slight side to side play that even with tightening on the pivot screw wont go away. It doesn't bother me a ton although the knife wasn't cheap so it seems like it shouldn't be there. Also this seems characteristic of Kershaw's assisted opening knives. The Skyline I bought had no play if I remember correctly. So does this bother anyone or is it not a big deal to you guys?

I've got three Kershaw AO's, a blem Blur, Cyclone and a Boa, and none of them have any play whatsoever, and the Boa has been used to the point of the dimensions actually having been altered from repeated sharpening. If I believed that it was characteristic of Kershaws to have blade play, I would not buy 'em.

I also have a Kershaw Breakout, which is an auto-opener, and it has absolutely no play either.

I am just curious, where did the OP get the idea that blade play is characteristic of Kershaw AO's?

Blues

 

[RxEnergy]

First of all, define blade play. If you put your folder in a wise and start shaking the blade vigorously almost any folder will show some blade play. If you move the blade by the very tip you may notice blade play in some folders as well. That is totally acceptable, by my standards. YMMV

 

[NaturalMystic]

When I say blade play I mean just holding the knife firmly in one hand then with my other hand, holding the blade tip and trying to move it laterally. None of my other less "robust" knives have any to speak of. It's not bad but still noticeable when I keep the clip in the default right-hand tip-down position but I prefer tip up. I was expecting the ZT, especially with their marketing about having Zero Tolerance for inferior product, to be rock solid.
As I mentioned in another post, what really surprised me is that in removing the clip from it's factory default position it seemed to loosen the tension at the pivot end of the handle and throw the blade totally off center while closed. I didn't notice it till I opened and then closed the blade again that I heard a scraping sound. I thought it might be the clip screws in the now tip up position that were scraping the blade tip. Upon closer inspection I realized that the blade was much looser and rubbing against one of the liners.
Once I get the right sized Allen and Torx tips I'll play around and hopefully get it adjusted how I like. As I said, I really like this knife and have every intention of keeping it. It's actually knocked my Caly3 out of my pocket which to me is saying something!

 

[NaturalMystic]

Hey bud, yeah that's exactly what I thought. Every review or vid I've seen for these has been nothing but high praises. I don't know if my expectations of a folder are too high or what. I just was expecting this to lock up tighter than it does. I'm just surprised that all three that I've handled had the same issue. The store owner who helped me exchange the 0200 noticed it too.

That's odd NaturalMystic. Ya don't hear many reports of ZT knives having those knida problems. Mine haven't. I guess you got a lemon? I'd be sending it off to Kershaw/ZT/KAI for warranty or replacement. They have excellent Customer Service. Blade play in the axis locks (mild), for me, is normal and the way I'd want mine to be for that fast deployment. :thumbup:

 

[knarfeng]

I just bought a Kershaw Needs Work from a Snap On Rep that comes to my work. It has some slight side to side play that even with tightening on the pivot screw wont go away. It doesn't bother me a ton although the knife wasn't cheap so it seems like it shouldn't be there. Also this seems characteristic of Kershaw's assisted opening knives. The Skyline I bought had no play if I remember correctly. So does this bother anyone or is it not a big deal to you guys?

I prefer a knife with no side play, but Lord knows I've had enough knives that did have side play to know that it'll cut just fine if it's there.

If it were a showpiece, it'd be a problem for me. But for a working blade, not a problem.

 

[Toyz]

If the knife is a blem and a limited run, or deeply discounted in a B&M store to move it off the shelves then I can live with it as long as the lockup is still solid.

If it's a new model then I would like them to start off with no vertical or horizontal play.

 

[Mad_Maxx]

no play is better, can't stand it when using a knife

I hammer bolsters gently and sand the pin
tighten the pivot screws even it the opening becomes a little less smooth and harder

Maxx

 

[Frankki]

First of all, define blade play. If you put your folder in a wise and start shaking the blade vigorously almost any folder will show some blade play. If you move the blade by the very tip you may notice blade play in some folders as well. That is totally acceptable, by my standards. YMMV

Yep. There's blade play that's noticeable and can often be adjusted. And then there's blade play that's inherent in any folding knife if you grab the handle and blade firmly and really make an effort at it.

I'll take the "as little as possible" stand myself.

 

[230grains]

I would accept it on a lower end knife like the needs work, however my needs work has no blade play. I wouldn't accept it on any mid range spyderco and I certainly wouldn't accept it on a strider/CRK or custom.

 

[cziv]

I would agree with the "no blade play" group but I have two things I'd like to throw out there...

On longer knife blades if you hold the tips of both ends and wiglle them, won't you feel some play?

I've sold most of my folders but my only play is with my Benchmade 940 and 710. If I tighten the pivot even a hair more, then I'd have to use them with two hands to open & close.

At this point (tightened to zero blade play), retracting the axis lock leaves the blade stuck. If I loosen them enough to allow free movement, then I get a tiny amount of side to side. I'm okay with that how about you guys.

I just pulled these out and got zero blade play with the exception of the 2 axis locks I mentioned:

large Sebenza - 0
xm-18 - 0
Military - 0
Centofante 3 - 0
Resilience - 0
Endura 4, G10 FFG - 0
Kershaw Random Leek - 0
Wife's Pink Leek - 0
CS Large Voyager - 0
CS Recon 1 - 0
Sanrenmu 710 - 0
BM 710 - slight play
BM 940 - slight play

 

[Reeek]

IKBS can exhibit side to side play on smaller, shorter blade knives if you want them to deploy easily. Especially in flippers such as the CRKT Eros.

Because you simply don't have the kinetic energy and thus, suitable centrifugal force from a short, light blade to aid in the complete opening and lockup, the IKBS system comes somewhat loose on the Eros and probably on other similar sized knives. You can adjust the side to side play out easily enough but then the pivot will be too tight to allow easy flipping without some dramatic wrist action behind it.

I think side to side compromise is often required in short, light knives that lack enough weight in the blade to allow enough kinetic energy to get the blade out and locked up without some help.

But then, a little side to side play on such a knife is not near as detrimental as a medium to hard use folder since they are probably designed for very light use and gentlemen type carry.

Surface area around the pivot area also has an effect. More surface area in the washers and entire pivot area is going to allow a tighter pivot screw while still allowing some reasonable level of ease in deployment while minimizing the side to side.

 

[ballsagne]

Maybe its just OCD but I cant stand any side to side blade play