Gen 4 XM-18 Detent Differences?

CrimsonTideShooter

CrimsonTideShooter

Joined
Oct 23, 2010
Messages
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I got my second Gen 4 in today, so that makes 3 XM-18s I've gotten in the last couple weeks. It's a sickness!

I have 1 gen3, and 2 gen4's. One of my gen4's has a very strong detent making the blade fly out like a banshee, but the other gen4 I received today has a detent that is literally exactly like the gen3. (I love both types!)

Also, the second gen4 has rounded thumb studs and my other two don't. This piece I got in today is brand new, as it was won at the recent ECCK show. Are these knives supposed to be different? Am I just ignorant to the subtle nuances of Hinderdom?

Let me know!! Either way I love each knife I have, with a passion! But, I'm a curious person by nature so I figured I'd ask.
 
******ALSO*******


The pivot on the Gen4 I carry keeps loosening up literally within just an hour or two of me tightening it. I carry a penny in my pocket and I have to tighten the pivot every time I use the knife.

Is it ok to put blue locktite on the pivot screw? Having to tighten it every time I use it is kind of annoying. Thanks guys!
 
my gen 4 has a much better detent than my 3.And i prefer it .I have heard that not all gen4's have a strong detent.I use the purple loc tite on my pivot screws!
 
I used blue loctite on my XM pivots, though I did this as a precaution, not because my pivots were becoming loose.
 
Ok great thanks guys. I know that Rick and crew do NOT want you to use loctite on the stand off screws, so I just wanted to make sure it was ok for the pivot.

I absolutely love these knives. I wish I would have gotten into them sooner. Incredibly well built and cut like crazy!
 
Just be Careful, I believe I read that using the loctite voids the warranty on the knife and if theres a problem the knife may not get fixed by the Hinderer crew!
 
jspaxton said:
Just be Careful, I believe I read that using the loctite voids the warranty on the knife and if theres a problem the knife may not get fixed by the Hinderer crew!
Click to expand...


That goes for the stand off screws. Their site doesn't mention the pivot at all.
 
Yes on the pivot screw (Hinderer Knives does use blue loctite on the pivot), a definitive no anywhere else on the knife as you are just asking for trouble. Just use a very small drop on end of the pivot screw, a little goes a long way.
 
As others have said, blue locktite on the pivot is ok and in fact should come from the shop like that (sometimes they don't). The detents were strengthened up for the beginning of the gen 4 production run and were fantastic (like mine) after complaints were received the detents were toned down a tad but are still stronger than the gen 3. I had heard others say that the detent ball is of a larger diameter on the gen 4 or the detent hole is deeper on the blade side but I don't know. There may be something to it because there is a strong deliniation between the gens and their respective detents. However, you can strengthen up the detent on your own, at least to some extent, by disassembling the knife and bending the lockbar in.
 
strider214 beat me to it. Most of my Hinderers came with locktited pivots NIB, but 2 of them don't have any. MY edc, a 3.5" flipper has the locktite removed by me and I only have to give it a nudge with my thumbnail in the screw's slot every month or 2 to bring it back where I want it, so I don't mess with it. The ittle bits of locktite residue keep it very snug.

One day, I'll either buy a new blade or retire it and use one of my CTS-XHP models w/o glue in the pivot. When I do, I'll use - and I suggest that anyone w/o locktite use - a smidge of plumbers white tape. I used it on my Benchmades for years and it works just as well as an adhesive without the nasty residue. Just a tiny (slightly larger than thread size) bit of it will hold the pivot screw just where you want it.

Whenever you get read to do something and you have a "possible" warranty issue, it's much safer to re-read the stickies and/or PM Rob about what's going on! :thumbup:
 
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