Free spinning pivot on PJ 31?

PeteyTwoPointOne

PeteyTwoPointOne

Platinum Member
Joined
Jun 10, 2014
Messages
8,025
I've only owned 21's, 25's, Umnumzaans OP and new pivot, and Inkosi<s>....I have a chance to buy a 31 at a greatly discounted price but the owner claims the pivot is free spinning.

I've never had another CRK that had a free spinning pivot...mof, most of the time the pivot screw gets so well locked into the Ti, I don't even have to use a second wrench to break it loose.

Questions please, thank you:

1. Should I buy it? It would be a user.

2. If anyone can diagnose the cause of that issue, do you think CRK would warranty it? What could cause the pivot to spin?
 
I have a 25 that the pivot spins when not in locked open position. It’s perfectly fine. As W WedgeAntilles mentioned I would guess the pivot is lock tighted however you don’t need to send that to CRK you can buy a new pin and screw from them for about $10. I don’t see any reason you should not buy it especially at a great deal, Congrats!
 
Of all the companies that one could purchase from, CRK is amongst the top in terms of service and warranty. If it's the genuine article, go for it; and as others have said, you have the peace of mind that they can make it right - assuming there is something wrong at all.
 
If the pivot has some locktite you could use some heat on the pivot (soldering iron-small tip) to loosen it and then remove the hardware. I did not do that on a Spyderco and stripped the cheap fastener. I am sure that CRK uses better quality material than most for their fasteners so you should be good there. I also use a machined tip driver so the fit is much better than allen wrenches.
 
353 said:
I think it’s weird that the pivot spins on a 31. The bushing should stop that and lock everything in place.
Click to expand...
I disagree, respectfully. I can visualize the pivot spinning if lock tight was used, especially if held in place and not cranked all the way down to gall against the titanium. When it’s open, I agree the bushing will push against the pivot, but otherwise it is free to spin in the bushing when the lock is disengaged.

Hopefully the op will get the good deal and come back to report.
 
Wild Willie said:
If I don't crank the pivot screw down all the way, especially on my small, it'll move a bit with the wrench. Particularly with a fresh dab of locktite

Edited for redundancy
Click to expand...

Bit confused there buddy; if u tighten the pivot all the way, clamping the scales, bushing and screw/pin nice together there should be no need for loctite.

Unless u really like redundancy that is ;)
 
353 said:
Bit confused there buddy; if u tighten the pivot all the way, clamping the scales, bushing and screw/pin nice together there should be no need for loctite.

Unless u really like redundancy that is ;)
Click to expand...
When the knife was new the pivot liked to back out a bit. Haven't had any issues since I got it broken in, but I still don't crank it right down... I have an irrational fear of stripping hardware.
 
Wild Willie said:
When the knife was new the pivot liked to back out a bit. Haven't had any issues since I got it broken in, but I still don't crank it right down... I have an irrational fear of stripping hardware.
Click to expand...

Never had CRK hardware strip on me, but I understand. U need to have some force control. Still think if ure sure u have seated the bit and also have a good fit, it would take a lot to strip the screws.
 
Last edited:
353 said:
Never had CRK hardware strip on me, but I understand. U need to have some force control. Still think if ure sure u have seated the driver and also have a good fitting driver, it would take a lot to strip the screws.
Click to expand...
No doubt, and I haven't felt any sign of it in my tinkering. However, I could f-#& up an anvil with a rubber mallet, so I tend to err on the side of caution. Some of it is habit based as well, most of my equipment wants snug, but not overly tight hardware.

I didn't even run the screws on the small 21 I had for a while as tight as I probably could have.

It's also not like I can't get new hardware either, but then my knife would be out of commission until it arrived. I mean, sure I could carry something else, but that should be by choice, not necessity.
 
Unless it's an unbelievably worn knife, a spinning pivot is not an issue at all. If both the pin and screw spin together, and it's tight enough for your preference, there's no issue. If it's spinning because the screw is actually turning independent of the pin, it means you simply loctite it. Depending on who you talk to, this is a nightmare, because the 21 didn't require it, so all knives produced after the 21 should never need it. In reality, it means you take an extra 3 seconds to apply a dab of the loctite provided with the knives, and continue on with your life, eventually forgetting altogether that your knife required an extra 3 seconds of maintenance
 
gonna buy it thanks to everyone's advice....THANKS!

another question: does swapping out dual thumbstuds <on my own> void CRK factory warranty?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top