Folding knife lock failure

Sosa said:
Yup that's the kind of stuff that pisses me off. And to the guys preaching proper use of this and that: if every tool was used exactly as it were designed and every rule and regulation were followed nothing would ever get done. It would be impossible to complete a project. You'd get run off the job.
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So if we properly use our tools, nothing will get done? I'll get run off the job?

Don't pound nails with a pipe wrench, use a hammer... that kind of thinking will "get nothing done" and "get me run off the job"?

Yes, Sosa, I'm going to preach proper use of a knife here. Don't use it as if it were something else (awl, screwdriver, ice pick, PRYBAR) AND IT WON'T FAIL.

A knife will not fail at being a knife, it will fail at being SOMETHING IT ISN'T SUPPOSED TO BE.

If you have a knife fail on you, you were not using it as it was intended.... either you need to use it as a knife, or learn how to use a knife.

And for all of you who are going to say you had some gas station knife fail on you... (Croc Dundee accent here).. "That's not a knife".

Will the LOCK fail? Maybe it will. But if you are using the knife the way it should be used, you needn't be concerned.

I wonder how I've survived all of these years with all of these slipjoints around me.
 
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I'll never drive a nail with a pipe wrench because I don't drive nails for a living. And carpenters have no business using a pipe wrench anyhow.
 
Back to the topic of knife lock failures... I have to say that my first folding knife (apart from SAK's) was a Colt AR15, combo edge tanto style, lockback. I bought it like 18 years ago when I was in the US as an exchange student. At the time I didn't knive better and had limited funds. I remember that after using it for a few years, the lockback started acting up. It would close with moderate presure on the back of the blade. Not the propper use I understand... however, I didn't expect it to fail like that.

My second decent knife was a CRKT M16-14 (liner lock, combo edge, no LAWSK). I always thought it was a beast of a knife! And once in a while used it for stabbing stuff... just for fun (gloves always on). The profile of the blade and heft of the knife kind of called for it. Now I know better and while that knife is still in service... I no longer stab with it. The liner lock failing on me is a big concern after reading that very same knife failures!

Mikel
 
Velitrius said:
A knife will not fail at being a knife, it will fail at being SOMETHING IT ISN'T SUPPOSED TO BE.
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That's myth.

Knives can fail for variety of reasons, such as manufacturing defects, bad design, sub-par materials, wear and tear, improper use (abuse), etc. And if we stick with improper use, it's not always user's fault either. Manufacturers will often advertise their knives being more capable than they really are.
 
Originally Posted by Velitrius View Post
A knife will not fail at being a knife, it will fail at being SOMETHING IT ISN'T SUPPOSED TO BE.
Click to expand...

bghorn said:
That's myth.

Knives can fail for variety of reasons, such as manufacturing defects, bad design, sub-par materials, wear and tear, improper use (abuse), etc. And if we stick with improper use, it's not always user's fault either. Manufacturers will often advertise their knives being more capable than they really are.
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I'll rephrase Velitrius quote.
A quality knife will rarely fail at being a knife, it is much more likely to fail at doing something it isn't supposed to do.
 
Dean51 said:
I'll rephrase Velitrius quote.
A quality knife will rarely fail at being a knife, it is much more likely to fail at doing something it isn't supposed to do.
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Lock is primarily a safety feature. Mostly for unintended use case scenarios. Not by choice, but by accident.
 
My first ever knife was a gerber paraframe 1. Got loose when it fell. I still have it after 3 years but it cannot be fixed sadly. Moral of the story, some gerbers are bad

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Dean51 said:
I'll rephrase Velitrius quote.
A quality knife will rarely fail at being a knife, it is much more likely to fail at doing something it isn't supposed to do.
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You know, Dean51... I should hire you to do this for me every time I go off the reservation on some topic.

Nicely put, my friend... my exact sentiment there. Thank you for the assist. :)
 
Yes, a cheap chinese or pakistan made lockback with a 3 inch blade closed across my finger working on baseball glove when I was a kid 35 years ago. That put a strong distrust of lockbacks in my mind. It made me appreciate frame locks and Axis locks.

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Ragnar Lothbrok said:
My first ever knife was a gerber paraframe 1. Got loose when it fell. I still have it after 3 years but it cannot be fixed sadly. Moral of the story, some gerbers are bad

Sent from my SM-G530W using Tapatalk
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That was the only knife that gave me a cut while closed. It went into the trash that same day.
 
Yes. Corrosion develops on the exposed parts of the springs wrapped around the bolt thus weakening the integrity.The Axis Lock's second failure is if the omega springs loosen and the blade base comes behind the bolt in failure pushing it forward and breaking the springs.
 
I had a cheap lockback from the 80s fail on a friend of mine. He was carving initials in a tree with it (we were young teens) and it closed on his fingers. Sliced them up good but not enough to require stitches. Lock was worn from use, not dirty. Tossed that POS in the trash.

Otherwise, the only issues I have had with locks are frame locks that would stick in the locked position. Had it happen with a high end production and a famous custom maker's knife. The production company fixed it free of charge, the custom maker wasn't all that interested in getting it back to work on. No more knives from him.
 
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