GEC nailbreakers

4

.41Dude

Joined
Apr 11, 2004
Messages
187
Hi guys.

I just purchased a stag linerlock Scout from Mike at Collectorknives.net

Thanks Mike :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

BUT

It is my hardest opening GEC (so far)

I noticed it is not the pulling open that hurts me it is the snap to half stop.

I have had good luck with just barely pulling the blade out so it stays

open then grabbing the sides of the blade with thumb and index finger.

Then I can pull it past the half stop to full open without the nail slot

tearing my thumbnail to shreds.

Maybe this will help someone else :D
 
I do the same thing when opening my newly aquired Tidioute.

I like a tough opener though...:D
 
It's true, some of the GECs are brutal. If you find that it's overly tough, maybe contact Mike and see if he can swap yours out for something a bit less.... malicious? It's no fun to spend a bunch of money on a knife and not be able to use it because it tears up your thumbnail. Believe me, I know.
 
I have a Big Jack with the same issue. I contacted GEC and told them I didn't enjoy opening it, so I don't carry it. They said they would take care of it if I sent it to them. I haven't gone to the trouble yet, but I'm sure it would be a fine pocket knife when I got it back. I just hate going through the process of returning knives to mfgr's., I've done it with Case and Boker and usually with unsatisfactory results.
 
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I open my 73 the same exact way as the OP describes. I did actually break a thumbnail the first day or two of owning the knife. You eventually find a way that works for you. I do love that Alligator Snap of the knife closing so I wouldn't want it any other way. Funny to go back to Case or any other brands after toting a GEC for a bit; other backsprings feel so weak afterward.
 
I might be flamed here for being repetitious, but I'll say it again: I think it is a shame that the good people at GEC don't take the time to give their otherwise great knives that final touch to put them over the top.
 
Hmmm. I disagree. I think this must be on purpose. This must be what is intended because they're all like that. This is not an accident and this is not a quality control issue. It's a design issue. Some people may like to have an alligator in their pocket, but my knives are EDC'd for general use and emergencies. If I was weak, I wouldn't be able to open a GEC. Period.

Hear this, GEC, I LOVE your knives, but I may have to only buy larger ones because the little ones are too hard for me. (I edited it from the original.)

To me, this is worse than Queen shipping their knives dull. At least with those I can put the edge that I want on them. There's no fixing this. And, no, I don't buy knives to ship them back. ???? You're kidding, right???

Ah. Rant off.
 
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.41Dude said:
Hi guys.

I just purchased a stag linerlock Scout from Mike at Collectorknives.net

Thanks Mike :thumbup: :thumbup: :thumbup:

BUT

It is my hardest opening GEC (so far)

I noticed it is not the pulling open that hurts me it is the snap to half stop.

I have had good luck with just barely pulling the blade out so it stays

open then grabbing the sides of the blade with thumb and index finger.

Then I can pull it past the half stop to full open without the nail slot

tearing my thumbnail to shreds.

Maybe this will help someone else :D
Click to expand...

My GEC Scout (73) has gotten easier to open the more I've used it.

I was concerned at first that I, like another poster, wouldn't want to use it for the way it abused my nails. But I oiled the pivot area and opened and closed it repeatedly when I first got it. That helped it open more easily.

I also find that grabbing the handle as far at the end as possible gives better leverage and makes a huge difference in how much pressure needs to be applied to the "nail nick" to pull out the blade. You wouldn't think it would make that much of a difference just looking at the slight shift in finger hold on the handle -- but it does.

This is my favorite knife that I own, by far. I like the way GECs are designed with a stout back spring that acts like a safety device, yet doesn't require that I manually disengage anything to open or close the knife.

That said, if my nails are too long, they will chip when opening my Scout. So it turns out that the knife often reminds me to cut my nails. :D
 
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Chewy1 said:
Hmmm. I disagree. I think this must be on purpose. This must be what is intended because they're all like that. This is not an accident and this is not a quality control issue. It's a design issue. Some people may like to have an alligator in their pocket, but my knives are EDC'd for general use and emergencies. If I was weak, I wouldn't be able to open a GEC. Period.

Hear this, GEC, I LOVE your knives, but I WILL NOT buy any more because they are not usable.

To me, this is worse than Queen shipping their knives dull. At least with those I can put the edge that I want on them. There's no fixing this. And, no, I don't buy knives to ship them back. ???? You're kidding, right???

Ah. Rant off.
Click to expand...

Mine has gotten easier to open. So you're wrong in that "there's no fixing this," as applied to my particular example.

Like most things mechanical, the user's input has just as much of an effect on the function as the device's design.
 
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Also, it is nice to know that if I drop my GEC, my toddler won't be able to open it...
 
It can be a good thing to leave the knife half opened for some days. My Case elephant was terrible but is perfect now.
 
I think that the suggestion of leaving the knife on "half cock," might be useful. I have an old coke bottle from the 1920's that would still bite you pretty hard. I don't regard the stiff springs of the GECs to be that big of a deal. I have delicate hands and nails, and I can still deal with it. By the way, I have found that our precious lady friends' attributes are inversely related to the knives.... The older they get, the snappier they get.... especially when they find out where we have been spending our money.... :mad::D:barf::foot::(;):p
 
To be honest I don't like nailbreakers; but I get just as many that love them as I do that hate them. Somebody is going to have to be mad. So, those that don't like nailbreakers stay away from the 23, 73, and older barlows. Get a good old congress, whittler, stockman. ;)

I think it is catching on though; just got in my first sets of the S&M 2010 sets and they are tight suckers. Also have gone to a satin finish that I am not impressed with. Also, also (like p.s.s.) they are leaving burrs on the liners which causes small gaps when assembled).

I'm getting truly concerned over our American cutlery's future.

Mike Latham
CollectorKnives.Net
 
Heavy springs may loosen up after a while, but weak springs just get worse!
I can well understand if somebody is disappointed with a knife for being a drag to open,but I prefer a heavy spring to a wimpy one any day.
Just put the knife in a the swap section and see what gets offered in return?
 
I agree that a soft spring from the factory is not a good thing, because the springs do tend to lighten up a little. I've had 2 different GEC's. One was the Scout & the other was the Barlow.

The Scout was great. It was tight, but not too tight. It was just a little too bulky for pocket carry for my tastes. The Barlow I really liked. It was the Wharncliffe model with a small Clip blade. I really liked it, but the small blade was just too darn hard to open most of the time. If it did not have that problem, I wouldn't kept that one & probably would've still had it.

I do think the GEC's with larger blades are more livable, because there's more room on the blade to open it with vs the small blade on the Barlow, you have to use the nail nick only.

Aside from that, if you can live with the tension on a GEC, I think they make great "working" knives because of the higher pull strength.
 
I had to return a smooth bone GEC 73 Scout recently because I had a tough time opening it. I am 63 and will not live long enough for it to loosen up. Loved the knife otherwise. I really wanted it to work.
 
I do think the GEC's with larger blades are more livable, because there's more room on the blade to open it with vs the small blade on the Barlow, you have to use the nail nick only.
Click to expand...

Now, that's a very good thought. How's this for wishy, washy...I may need to just get larger GEC's. I got a short Barlow; so, really, most of the problem may be in that I'm just not getting leverage. Thank you for that.

Mike- Off topic, but my wife really likes the abalone Queen Copperhead you sent me about a month back.
 
As for leaving it half open I have done that with a many knives I have got. My gec had a tough spring but it really doesn't bother me because I got it for collection purpose only. It's the American Pride Scout one. I bought it from colectorknives.net also.
 
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