Flippers that didn't get the flip right!

[Bigfatts]

Anything assisted. If it needs an assisted mech, you didn't do it right.

 

[bladeboss]

Remington FAST. Cheapo knife, but the flipper is at a very wrong angle.

 

[G. Scott H.]

Yeah the Hinderers don't have a strong enough detent for a good pre-load.

I think that's the main prob with the EL-01 too. The detents on both of mine are plenty strong enough to hold the blade closed in the pocket, etc., but it barely takes any pressure on the flipper to overcome them.

I also agree with the idea of pushing down on a flipper, not pulling back. :thumbup:

 

[bobusx]

CRKT Ripple, the flipper is sharp and painful on the finger and although it is smooth when deployed it just doesn't flip as well as it should.

This is pretty surprising to me. My IKBS flippers (CRKT Eros, Eros 2, Ripple 2, and Ripple AL), are by far the smoothest and easiest flipping flippers I have ever owned. They almost never fail to open completely, and they open so fast, that they seem like autos. My Eros 2 does take a tad more pressure to open than my Eros does though.

 

[ToneGrail]

Enlan EL-01. A solid cheap knife, but the flipper requires a definite flick o' the wrist. You can get it to deploy with a really hard push on the flipper, but the jimping on top of the frame just behind the flipper makes that a painful proposition (and damn near took off my index finger nail when I first tried it).

I have to agree with you here. I think if there was a way to dremel off the spine jimping then it would fix that problem.

The flipper also isn't angled quite enough to get enough leverage either. By the time the flipper disappears in the spine of the handle, the blade is only open about 30 degrees Good manual flippers will push the blade out at about to 90 degrees as they disappear into the handle.

The Cold Steel Ti Lite is another example of a poorly designed flipper. There is no way deploy that knife via the flipper without significant wrist movement.

The CRKT m-16 and the Kershaw RAM are excellent examples of efficiently designed manual flippers. No wrist flick needed with either one of those.

 

[Misanthropia]

This thread should just be called "flippers with weak detents" because that is the problem most people are describing. The Arc Lock/Axis Lock doesn't work for flippers for that reason.

 

[crom]

The CS Ti Lite wasn't designed as a flipper, those are small guards. I tried once or twice to flip it, it's just painful. I have owned a bunch of manual and assisted flippers, I don't care if I have to put a wee bit of wrist action into it like I do with my Lahar. That one was out before IKBS was a household name around here. Quite honestly, after seeing the IKBS equipped knives taken apart on YT, I'm passing. It may be smooth (i've handled a CRKT with IKBS) opening and cool and all, but all those little balls mean more potential (to ME) for problems as I'm a DIY'er and tinkerer by nature. When somebody designs a caged bearing ala, skateboard wheel bearing, I may change my opinion.

 

[TEFL0N_D0N_81]

Although the OP mentioned it already, I have to repeat on the Buck Vantage series. For it's price range, I really consider it among the best EDCs. And although there's nothing wrong about a little wrist flick, they made the flipper too small that requires a hard finger roll.

I'm still keeping my fingers crossed for a limited edition Vantage Pro with TI scales (yes I know about the Buck Mayo).

Off topic now, but the closest to that is the new lionsteel tispine. If only they weren't $400 ish... :grumpy:

 

[evilgreg]

My Inron MY-803 actually flips pretty well (though I did put a drop of nano-oil in it), but with their wide variation in finish quality from knife to knife, I suppose that could just be luck. That said, it flips well but the lockup is scary (the lock bar and tang don't come even close to mating flush, leaving air between them on one side). I'm not a spine-whacker, but the lock-up looks so bad that I had to try it. I threw on some heavy gloves and whacked it hard, repeated on a fence post, assuming I could get it to close based on the small contact area of the lock, but the damn thing wouldn't as hard as I tried. It looks scary, but it seems to lock securely enough for now (who knows how that botched lock will wear).

I actually love the way the CRKT Ripple/Eros knives flip, though I admit I do file down the sharp flipper grooves and handle jimping on mine.

My gold standard for how the flipper should work on a knife is the Spyderco Southard, at this point. I've gone through a fair number of assisted and non-assisted (my preference) flippers, and of the popular production knives I've handled nothing flips better than the Southard.

I buy a lot of flippers, but not for utility reasons. I view flippers as fun toys, neat little machines to have in your pocket. I have yet to meet an opening mechanism outside of the goofy pocket hook thing that will open a knife any faster than wrist flicking an axis lock knife.

 

[Kyui Su Kim]

I owned a few knives with flippers that just don't get the flip done right. The S.O.G. Vulcan, the Buck Vantage to name a two.
I'm I the only one who thinks you should not have to flick your wrist and use the flipper?????
As the flipper is becoming more popular, I figure we should list the short comings....

I hear you on the Vantage. I love the Vantage series and ,next to 110's, are my favorite carry knives, but the "flipper" is not very useful for flipping. I felt that it made a better guard for your index finger when open. In that regard, I do think it should stay the way it is. BTW the Lux's flipper was not very impressive either.

 

[El Bandit0]

CRKT Hammond Cruiser was a sweet, sweet flipper, just not southpaw friendly Luckily, the ZT 0561 is!

 

[JustSomeGuy]

IMO, the CRKT M16 isn't that great. I thought it was when I first got it, but I've seen so much better ones now. My personal favorite is the Kershaw OD-1. I think it's so slick how the flipper disappears into the handle, and it works really well.

 

[elkins45]

Buck Vantage was my first thought when I saw the thread title.

 

[akula83]

I concur that the Ti Lite is not a flipper. I just received mine yesterday and I really like it, but you have to go in knowing it's limited usefullness. Deployment is not ideal.

 

[recon1s14]

The Kershaw Junkyard Dog I owned was super smooth, it only had bronze phos. bushing and I did not need wist action to flip it open with a heavy snap, but I electrocuted the edge and ruined the HT, hence I sold it need a new one, one of these days.

I really want a Kershaw Skyline just to see how smooth it is, my Oso Sweet is sharp around the edges of the flipper but it was a gift from my girlfriend so definatly no complaints the CRKT Ripple is also sharp but flips so smooth it's worth the discomfort :thumbup:

 

[Inthewind]

3rd on the vantage. My flipper came polished...........I mean seriously who the f*** came up with that? I mean what is the logic in polishing the only thing that you need TRACTION in order to flip out the blade.

Here how i fixed mine.