Got bitten BAD!!!

P

poopdot

Joined
Jun 11, 2007
Messages
68
I got cut bad last week by an older Kershaw with a liner lock(right through my finger and tendon,7 stiches...) The liner failed and there went the blade...I've never been a real fan of liner locks,my hand always seems to be in contact with the lock.Anybody else have any concearns with these locks?
 
Sorry that happened.

I have a few liner lock folders. I'm a little uncomfortable with liner locks, but I've have not had one fail. I worry about moving my hand on the handle and maybe moving the liner lock.

OTOH, frame locks give me a more secure feeling. I can feel that the lock is closed. The more I squeeze the knife the more the lock is pushed into the locked position.
 
Get yourself a Spyderco Endura or Delica and you'll be good to go for a locking folder. Although I collect tons of knives those 2 Spyders, a Sog Paratool and V'nox soldier and classic are all I ever use anymore.
 
Bad news. Can you tell us specifically what you were doing and how it failed?
 
Rich357 said:
OTOH, frame locks give me a more secure feeling. I can feel that the lock is closed. The more I squeeze the knife the more the lock is pushed into the locked position.
Click to expand...

There's a common misconception that frame-locks are stronger and more reliable than liner locks only because a frame is a thicker and stiffer locking mechanism than a liner. However the real difference, as you allude to, is the fact that with a frame lock your hand actually reinforces the lock whereas in a liner lock it doesn't. If you had a knife where the locking liner was 1/8" thick it still wouldn't be as reliable as a 1/8" frame lock, all else being equal.

I've never had a catastophic lock failure with a linerlock or any other type, but simply on the basis of common sense my opinion is that all else being equal, liner locks are not as strong or reliable as lockbacks, framelocks, or Axis locks. Therefore fairly recently I decided to divest myself of all my liner lock knives, and I'm not going to buy any more. I might keep my CRKT M-16 due to the LAWKS safety feature, but that's it.
 
poopdot said:
(right through my finger and tendon,7 stiches...)
Click to expand...
Sorry to hear that. Hope there was no significant nerve damage (you should be able to tell by now).

Back when I was in med school, I used to work with a hand surgeon. One piece of advice I'll give you is to start moving the finger as soon as your surgeon says it's OK to do so. That's usually within a couple of days to weeks, depending on how severe the damage was (a severed tendon will require a longer rest period, for example).

The finger will feel stiff for a while and it will hurt to curl it up. It might feel like it's stretching painfully. But you have to slowly work through that. If you don't, you'll find that you have a diminished range of motion due to a stricture. Once you have a stricture, it's a real b1tch to deal with and you will probably never get your full range of motion back.

So, talk to your hand surgeon about this! See what (s)he has to say about it. Consider opting for some physiotherapy if it's offered.

Emre
 
an Emerson CQC 7 nailed me in 1994, Had to disable a suspects rear car tire in a hurry... not sure what happend, whether or not it ever locked or my grip caused the lock to fail. but, I cut my thumb BAD. Tendons and bone. $6500 operation to fix it and 6 months before I could Qualify my weapon. I watched the doctor pull back the tendon out to reattach. Brutal! Thank Gawd for morphine. Yeah, I learned my lesson. I now EDC a Microtech UT.After that incident I started carying a BenchMade Mini reflex Auto. I own several Liner Locks, but I am VERY wary and careful. Dont trust 'em. Never owned a frame lock (Kershaw Leek considered a frame lock? I have one of those) I want a Sebbie but not sure about the locking mechanics of that knife.

Reminds me of gun models as well... I have witnessed alot of AD's (accidental discharges) with guns like glocks and such that I will never own one. These AD's were with experienced gunfighters too... SWAT,SpecWar,USSS,DSS and FBI so please belay any lessons to me.Been there and done that. Some safety designs while nifty, just dont hold up in stressful,combat or hurried situations, IMO. Why I carry and own 1911's

I'll shut up now. Hope you're Okay and heal quick. Be Safe
 
Had to disable a suspects rear car tire in a hurry...
Click to expand...
If you need to do that again, cut off the valve stem if you can. It's a safer way to deflate the tire.


As far as liner-lock failure, Bob Terzuola says in his book The Tactical Folding Knife that, should a properly designed liner lock fail, it will fail so that the liner springs to the opposite side of the blade. If that happens, the blade will be wedged against the liner and it won't be able to close on your hand. Unfortunately, it appears that the knives in question were not properly designed.
 
I don't trust any lock 100%; and certainly not liner locks. The only liner lock that I have now is a Kershaw JYD II and it seems to lock up fine.

I've been moving towards fixed blades for EDC. With a proper sheath, fixed blades are not that hard to carry.
 
ElectricZombie said:
I don't trust any lock 100%; and certainly not liner locks. The only liner lock that I have now is a Kershaw JYD II and it seems to lock up fine.

I've been moving towards fixed blades for EDC. With a proper sheath, fixed blades are not that hard to carry.
Click to expand...

Good attitude to have with locks...I just explained this in another post but here is the short version...NO lock is 100% safe all the time...treat your knives as if they are slipjoints and you will never have a problem...If you have a hard cutting task, maybe go with a fixed blade so you dont have to worry...

Im sorry to hear you got cut badly... :(
 
axis lock by benchmade probably is your strongest lock. I have had liners fail on spine whack tests. Also have had lockbacks do the same. Gonna try the spine whacks on a frame lock next. The only knife lock that has not failed the spine whack is the axis lock.
 
nerver had a failure with a linerlock but have with lockback once ,a schrade lb7 bit me deep in the forefinger halfway thru the tendon( i could see it). iwas 4miles back in the woods when it happened, pinched it shut with my other hand and walked out to get help.not being able at the time to afford a sawbones i put a splint on it and a butterfly . thankfully it healed up just dandy. when the going gets tuff the folder gos back in my pocket and the fixed blade comes out.
 
FireInvestigator said:
Reminds me of gun models as well... I have witnessed alot of AD's (accidental discharges) with guns like glocks and such that I will never own one. These AD's were with experienced gunfighters too... SWAT,SpecWar,USSS,DSS and FBI so please belay any lessons to me.
Click to expand...

They were ND's, or negligent discharges, not AD's. I don't care what department or unit they were with, they screwed up to make the gun go off when they did not intend it to. The only way to fire a Glock (or Sig, or XD) is to pull the trigger, just like a revolver. Granted, the pull is shorter and lighter than a double action revolver, but you can't blame the gun for going bang when you pull the trigger.

Mike
 
Not saying it can't happen, (obiously it can!), but I don't understand how a linerlock can fail if it's engaged at all. There's a mechanical barrier to the blade closing that would be pretty tough to overcome. I've seen several posts recently regarding liner locks, indicating that the posters aren't comfortable with them for one reason or another. Could someone please explain their objection?

Thanks
 
That must have been bloody!

My Kershaw NW works quite well. I just don't do anything that a fixed blade is supposed to do.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top