Domino & Dice Owners; please read

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sharkattacksw

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Aug 4, 2008
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Has the issue with Spyderco and their washers & bearings been blown out of proportion by the “YouTube gurus”? I own a Dice and Domino and absolutely love them.

A coworker has owned both a Dice and Domino since they came out and carried them both daily, and uses them daily as work knives. He’s not had a single issue with either knife. Did he just happen to get a good pair of knives? Or has the “issue” been blown way out of proportion by guys like apostlep and others?

Any other Dice / Domino owners concerned or worried about future problems with your knives, or has it not even crossed your mind?

Thx for the input, everyone.
 
I have both knives and both of mine flip great and I have not had any issues. I think the Domino is the best Spyderco flipper I own. I am comparing it to the Mantra, Rubicon, Rubicon 2 Southard, Sliverax and Positron. I dont know about blown out of proportion I feel that issues that arise do need to be shared with the community. I am not worried about my Domino or future problems. I have sympathy for the people who have had issues and I consider myself lucky to be able to enjoy mine as much as I do. If I did have a problem I would send it to Spyderco to have them make it right.
 
I have owned a pair of Dominos and kept one of them. They are ultra smooth and so well built, I’m kicking myself for not buying one sooner. No issues for me. As stated above, should any problems arise, Spyderco will fix it.
 
I've had 3 Domino's and 2 Dice. I love the Domino's and still have 2. I never had an issue with the washers deforming and causing opening issues. I've opened them up once or twice and no usual wear. I don't have any grit or unsmooth action during the opening.

I could never get the Dice to flip properly but not because of damaged washers. I just couldn't get leverage enough to get a good consistent flip even after daily carrying it for a year. Eventually I gave up on it and sold them. Nothing wrong with the washers on either one; I double checked.

Having said that, I suspect its possible to damage the washers if the pivot is too tight and you are constantly flipping it open like a fidget device. If you get dirt in there that could also contribute. I've seen photos of the Mantra & Southard with warped washers so I know its possible. I'm just not that concerned about it especially since there hasn't been a lot of outcry from the forum about the issue with the Domino specifically.
 
i own two domino's and three brad southard's and never had any problems,but sometimes they need ajusting!just don't crank the torx screws down to hard or you will have bearing problems.
 
You can see cop cars every day multiple times as you drive too and fro but they never imprint into your memory until you get a ticket. Then suddenly that one bad impression fills your memory. For some people that bad impression becomes everything to them and they find they have to broadcast their view constantly. There is something in human nature that pushes people to broadcast the negative. The guy that sees ten cop cars a day but never gets a ticked doesn't jump online and present his experience. He just moves on with life.

I have a Southard from the first run in blackout. Never had a problem with it, just like thousands of other users. But if I didn't own one and saw the freakout review of them I'd have pause.

It's a normal part of a product's life to see some sort of problem crop up. Maybe bad tolerances that don't crop up in assembly, just after some use. For the maker they won't be able to fix the issue till they've had a few on the bench to take apart and measure.

The folks that "flip" out and demand parts be sent out or something be re-engineered for them seem childish to me. They have an unrealistic view of life where to them a knife is merely a toy and what happens when a toy breaks? Well they throw a tantrum and demand a new one from mommy or daddy instantly. Drive to the store tonight! Get me a new one! I want it sent overnight FedEx etc. That whole mindset is just tiresome.

Spyderco has robust method of dealing with problems that involves having the knife sent to them for inspection and repair or replacement. It's not new and it's pretty much the way any small consumer good like this gets dealt with.

Some people unfortunately put them selves on the wrong end of a bad impression to often. So they speed and get a lot of tickets that aren't their fault. Or they rush to take apart their new knife out of curiosity but they don't take the time to understand how to take it apart or proper tool use and they constantly create problems for themselves that they won't take responsibility for. Online forums and social media can create an echo chamber that amplifies this negative vibe way out of proportion to reality. You can have one photo of bad washers go viral and seem like 100s of issues when it's just one simple production issue that would be covered by the maker.

So for a person who's uses a knife model for years without an issue it can for sure seem weird to come across a rant about a knife being all bad and junk that's so at odds with their experience.

To add to that the current EDC Insta flipper opening blade sales flipper (yeah double flipper) craze is aggravating it. Someone needs to have a Brand X knife to put on their EDC hank and take a picture of, of course with a custom scale because they're not like everyone else. Then as soon as that picture is online they have to flip the knife in pursuit of their next grail. If they stripped a screw changing the scale the wheels come right off their scheme; they're going to have to wait weeks while the knife is repaired before they can post it up for sale. Then he tantrums start because they can't wait for the next rush of Instagram likes.
 
I used my early production Domino for construction work and have never had a problem. I got a Dice used and it has always fired with authority for being such a small blade. I've never taken them apart and never intend to as it seems unnecessary. Soap and hot water is all I've ever needed to clean out even the dirtiest of knives.
 
I've had my dice for years and my domino for about a year and no problems yet. Combined they must've been flipped thousands of times. Keep in mind though I rarely carry mine. Mostly collectors pieces.
 
I just took apart my Domino last night. It was feeling very gritty and sluggish and oiling it was not helping. Lo and behold the washers were cupped. I took 2 flat pieces of steel and hammered them flat again. Yes their is a cupping issue and no, if you are creative you can fix it yourself. There is definitely an inherent problem with their is a problem with their washers. I had the same issue with the washers. What I find funny is that when you call Spyderco and tell them they always sound surprised.
 
emjay4248 said:
What I find funny is that when you call Spyderco and tell them they always sound surprised.
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I've only had one issue with a Spyderco knife (which is a huge credit to the company because I have a ton of Spydies and use them all), but that was my experience contacting their CS department that time, too. I posted about my issue on their site's forum to see if it was something I should be concerned about, and someone even said they had the same thing happen before so sent their knife in and had the problem fixed. I contacted CS, and instead of bring told they'd look at it or to send it in, I was told this:
I've never seen that happen before so I'm not really sure how to be of much help.
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kreole said:
I've only had one issue with a Spyderco knife (which is a huge credit to the company because I have a ton of Spydies and use them all), but that was my experience contacting their CS department that time, too. I posted about my issue on their site's forum to see if it was something I should be concerned about, and someone even said they had the same thing happen before so sent their knife in and had the problem fixed. I contacted CS, and instead of bring told they'd look at it or to send it in, I was told this:
Click to expand...

Sounds like the person you contacted hadn't seen the problem before.

They're pretty clear that a knife with a problem needs to be sent back to be looked at.

That old "well my cousin's uncle's brothers neighbor had a teacher that said" might not have given them enough info to resolve the issue.

You sure haven't given any info here.

What was the problem? Where is the source to the other person with the same problem? Where is the source showing how the other problem was resolved? How was your problem resolved.?
 
Possible Silver Bullet for Spyderco cupped washer issue!

There are several threads on BF that address and discuss cupped washer issues with Spyderco Southard and Domino knives. I plan to post my findings on multiple threads with the intent to help fellow BF members with what I have found to be a solution that has worked for me. I own 6 Southard C156GPBN knives and all of them had cupped washers when I disassembled them brand new from Spyderco. Their "new condition" flipping action varied from good to average. As you can tell I really like the Southard model since I own 6 of them and my concern over time is the action was going to degrade as the very thin (.005") stainless flat washers continue to cup and eventually fail entirely.

What I have determined is that the plastic bearing washer works just fine and is not a concern for wearing out, the issue as we have all noted is the cupping of the thin (.005") flat stainless steel washer the bearing washer rides on. My silver bullet is that I have found a replacement flat stainless steel washer that perfectly fits the Southard knife pivot and is .010" thick which is twice as thick as the factory .005" flat washer. The extra .005" thickness on each side of the pivot has not impacted the blade centering nor blade play and in my opinion improves the flipping action. Best of all, NO MORE CUPPING!!! I do not own a Domino but I bet a dollar to a doughnut this washer is the same size as the washers used in my Southard. It would be great if someone with a Domino could validate this for the team.

The replacement washers can be found at Superior Washer & Gasket Corp. ( www.superiorwasher.com ), part number 300-1044-010. Their dimensions are, ID .219", OD .432", thickness .010". They cost $2.00 each. I have used them in a couple of my Southard knives and have flipped them 100's of times. It worked for me, I hope it works for you!
 
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I'm not going to say anything in this thread beyond this:


There seems to be an epidemic of the logic that "because I didn't have a problem with X or Y then there must obviously not be a problem with X or Y."

News flash, you might use your knife differently, or not use it as much, or not use it as hard, or got a better example. Any number of things. Just because *you* didn't have a problem doesn't mean that Joe Bob down the road is having the same experience. This is not a dig at anyone here, but let's be honest - many members here never have issues with their knives because they don't actually use them. It's a pocket flip toy and as long as it opens and closes satisfyingly to them, then it's perfect. Some people actually use their knives, daily, for tasks harder than cutting strings and apples.

Again, this is not a dig at anyone here and it's not really even related to the Domino. But the idea that "because I didn't have a problem means there's no problem" is folly and it gives you bias. Bias is never a good thing.

The fact that spyderco changed their design should be indicator enough that they found something they could do better. Instead of opining about whether or not there was "really a problem" why not just say "thanks Spyderco!" and move on?
 
Thanks Norgman, sorry I couldn't provide you my washers separate from the kit and at a steep discount. FYI, those specs will not work on all Southards, there are at least 4 tolerance variations through the years that we know of. I will say that these specs do not match my kit, although they will work in some Southards.

Also, to anyone ordering these, make sure that the supplier is able to provide them "full hard". Otherwise you will absolutely end up with grooves over time.
 
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