GEC nailbreakers

The EZ-Open is probably the best option for a No.25 rather than the 2 blade Jacks. The spring is still tough...but the Northfield version I have has a long pull and can be pinched too. It's my favourite small knife as it has a broad handle making it versatile in all sizes of hand. I'm looking forward to the Acorn shield stainless versions coming out.
 
I saw mentioned on the forums, a tool that can be used to grip the nail nick and assist you to open the knife and it fits on your key ring. Anyone else read that post?
I can't seem to find it now.


Bob
 
chromedome1954 said:
I saw mentioned on the forums, a tool that can be used to grip the nail nick and assist you to open the knife and it fits on your key ring. Anyone else read that post?
I can't seem to find it now.


Bob
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I've got mixed emotions on these, leaning strongly towards the negative side. I guess if a person has a particular GEC that they really love, and want to keep, and for whatever reason they're having trouble (stiff spring even for a GEC, getting old and/or arthritis, etc) then these are probably a blessing. I'm in the 2nd category (getting old), but I'll be darned if I'll carry, and have to fish out of my pocket, a second tool in order to open the first tool! Just my .02. ;)
 
coyote711 said:
I've got mixed emotions on these, leaning strongly towards the negative side. I guess if a person has a particular GEC that they really love, and want to keep, and for whatever reason they're having trouble (stiff spring even for a GEC, getting old and/or arthritis, etc) then these are probably a blessing. I'm in the 2nd category (getting old), but I'll be darned if I'll carry, and have to fish out of my pocket, a second tool in order to open the first tool! Just my .02. ;)
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I guess I'll have to join that camp.

If I have to fight with my knife to get my knife open, then I won't be carrying that knife. It must be a collector thing. I don't know of many working men that would put up with it. The Old Timers were a perfect example of a knife that had a cult following among those who got thier hands dirty. I haven't seen too many nail breaking Old Timers. Or the old TL-29's. Even as 12 year old kids, we had no problem opening the ones we got at the surplus store for 75 cents.

Out on a job, your hands could be a bit slippery with water, cold, mud, dust, oil, anything. A knife that you can only open in clean dry conditions, or with a second tool, is not good. Something is wrong. Nothing should ever get in the way of function, even in a collectors piece. I've often though that Victorinox should be the standard of pocket knife production. Somehow they make ALL thier knives open smoothly, with the same amount of pull. Why can't GEC or some of these 'other' makes? Or take Buck for example. Very few nail breakers there. My old Buck stockman had what some here may have called soft springs. But in 25 years of use, they didn't get any softer, but they didn't interfear with the cutting either. It still opens pretty easy compared to some of the new stuff.

I think some manufactors go a bit overboard on the spring thing.
 
I dunno. I guess I am different from some of you guys, and maybe use my knives differently.

I am pissed off if I have to struggle to open a knife. I don't like the fact I may tear a nail, or possible cut myself because my knives is poorly adjusted.

Using it for work (construction), I am not impressed if I have to stop everything else I am doing and concentrate on the simple task of opening a knife. My Case knives, my Kershaw knives and my Queen knives I open without looking at them. I have for years.

I won't keep a knife that could be dangerous to me if it is a misty/rainy day and my hands (or the knife) are wet, or is a nuisance to use. My knife is in and out of my pocket too many times a day as a work tool to have to worry about its shortcomings.

I guess if I didn't rely on it as a daily/hourly useful tool in my pocket I would get a kick out of the hard springs. Working with a broken or torn nail that was a result of a poorly made knife isn't acceptable.

I wouldn't keep a saw that had a guard on it so hard to open I couldn't easily cut with it, I wouldn't buy a drill that had a trigger so hard to push that it was more of a focus than drilling the actual hole, and I wouldn't use a nailgun that had a safety so hard to deploy I couldn't accurately place a nail.

So why would I pay $75 - $125 for a knife that had "special needs" to be able to use it? Really stiff springs (that break nails, etc.) are a damned annoyance. They aren't cute. Do it 30 - 40 times a day and see how much you admire a difficult to open knife. Your admiration will quickly fade, I assure you.

And as a another thought; how come Case, Kershaw, Queen, Spyderco, Canal Street, Buck, etc., almost always get the springs right? I don't read much at all about them having spring problems. Worse, why should I have to send back an expensive knife to the manufacturer so they can do their quality control?

If you are a collector, I guess the springs don't matter, and that may actually be GEC's target audience. That would explain the serializing of their knives, the small runs of different scale materials, and the different blade offering combinations. Obviously they are quite successful at that creating their own demand for their knives as collectibles.

But if you are a user, I would sure think twice about one of their knives for constant, real world use. I don't abuse the knives I have, but I won't baby them. They are tools. They go in my pocket to go to work, not sit on a mantle or to pull out once in a while to show off to friends.

Just my 0.02.

Robert
 
I would "not" think twice about having a GEC as an EDC.I have carried nothing but GEC's since they have been released.Frankly,I wouldnt carry any other brand currently out there.I'd much rather have a spring a bit stiff,than some of the weak ass springs some of these other companies put out.Granted, the first years offering may have been a little too stiff in the springs,but they seem to have eased up on the tension a bit on later releases.I have no problem opening a #73 or a #53,and I still have to use nailclippers to cut my nails.
 
jackknife said:
I guess I'll have to join that camp.

If I have to fight with my knife to get my knife open, then I won't be carrying that knife. It must be a collector thing. I don't know of many working men that would put up with it. The Old Timers were a perfect example of a knife that had a cult following among those who got thier hands dirty. I haven't seen too many nail breaking Old Timers. Or the old TL-29's. Even as 12 year old kids, we had no problem opening the ones we got at the surplus store for 75 cents.

Out on a job, your hands could be a bit slippery with water, cold, mud, dust, oil, anything. A knife that you can only open in clean dry conditions, or with a second tool, is not good. Something is wrong. Nothing should ever get in the way of function, even in a collectors piece. I've often though that Victorinox should be the standard of pocket knife production. Somehow they make ALL thier knives open smoothly, with the same amount of pull. Why can't GEC or some of these 'other' makes? Or take Buck for example. Very few nail breakers there. My old Buck stockman had what some here may have called soft springs. But in 25 years of use, they didn't get any softer, but they didn't interfear with the cutting either. It still opens pretty easy compared to some of the new stuff.

I think some manufactors go a bit overboard on the spring thing.
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All the knives I've used in the last 50 years have had significantly softer springs, yet they were completely safe to use and never failed me.
 
knarfeng said:
All the knives I've used in the last 50 years have had significantly softer springs, yet they were completely safe to use and never failed me.
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My only knife I have had almost 50 years is my old scout knife. Still works fine, and was easy enough for a 5 year old to open. So I am with you on that one.

My old work knives all work fine as well, and some are really beat to hell. No problems when I bought them, or when I carry them now, decades later after years of use.

I would "not" think twice about having a GEC as an EDC.I have carried nothing but GEC's since they have been released.Frankly,I wouldnt carry any other brand currently out there.I'd much rather have a spring a bit stiff,than some of the weak ass springs some of these other companies put out.
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Spoken like a true GEC fan. Personally, variety is the spice of life for me. I wouldn't think of ever carrying just one knife brand or style.

Regardless of any other considerations, this is a great time to be interested in pocket knives. With some exceptions of course, the quality, variety, and availability (internet sales, Ebay, forum sale venues, trading forums, etc.) of great knives has never been better.

Robert
 
midnight flyer said:
If you are a collector, I guess the springs don't matter, and that may actually be GEC's target audience. That would explain the serializing of their knives, the small runs of different scale materials, and the different blade offering combinations. Obviously they are quite successful at that creating their own demand for their knives as collectibles.

But if you are a user, I would sure think twice about one of their knives for constant, real world use. I don't abuse the knives I have, but I won't baby them. They are tools. They go in my pocket to go to work, not sit on a mantle or to pull out once in a while to show off to friends.

Robert
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I think you may have hit on a very good reason for some of the varying opinions about spring strength.

I'm not a collector and being semi-retired I no longer use a knife for daily work, but as I approach "oldagedom" I don't want to have to fight to get a blade, nor do I want to be concerned about getting bit in the process.

With the exception of spring strength, and the attendant rush towards the half-stop, I really love GEC's. I don't suppose it's economical/practical for them to make two versions of any given knife - one as is currently produced, and another one with a softer spring - but I'll bet they would sell a fair number of the softer spring ones. They could at least try that on a couple of models and see if it flies. They could make the serialized ones stiff, and the non-serialized with a softer spring. Why wouldn't that work?
 
I think they'd sell more if they had a stiffness similar to Queen, rather than being similar to a bear trap.
 
I am off GEC because of the strong springs.

I have a Barlow that is hard to open, and a small Jack where the small pen blade is almost impossible.

Nice knives but I can't fight them to open them.......
 
Chewy1 said:
I think they'd sell more if they had a stiffness similar to Queen, rather than being similar to a bear trap.
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Are they really harder to open than Queen linerlocks? The springs on mine are pretty stiff - I have the Teardrop and Minihunter. I can't imagine springs that are much stiffer than these.
 
Well, I have two stiff Sodbusters by Queen. My wife cannot open them. My 12 year old son cannot open them. They're tight, but I don't even consider them difficult.

But my GEC Barlow had a penknife that simply would not open. It wasn't even about breaking my nails, as mine are short and pretty tough. Mine would have pulled away from the nail bed before bending. But I simply could not open it. I would get my house key and put the teeth of the key into the nail nick and PUSH to open the penknife....risking injury to self and knife, I might add. No comparison to a stiff but usable Queen.

My final solution was to take the edge of my Vic Ranger file and round over the part of the tang that touches the spring. Now I can open it, but, alas, when it is closed, the backsprings are no longer perfectly flush.

GEC knives remind me of a beautiful woman with an attitude. :D
 
fellows the gecs are strong but after opening a coupal of fairly large & sorted collections for 3 or 4 months my nails have gotten ninja strong so i hardly notice anymore. At 1st i used a rag to make sure the blades did'nt close on my fingers.
 
If you've ever had a blade fold over your fingers while using your knife, you can appreciate a really stiff spring. However, if you have had a blade fold over your fingers while using your knife, you were not using your knife properly.

The only GEC that I have that has a really really stiff spring is my 4½", #23 Pattern, Single Blade, Trapper. My GEC Jacks, Whittler, and Mini Hunter Lockback, have I'd say moderate springs -- the Jacks being somewhat stiffer.
 
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