Hinderer XM-18-is the lock bar really paper thin?

elkins45

elkins45

Joined
Jun 17, 2006
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A poster in one of the threads I was reading has a mention of an XM-18 in his sig. I didn't know what that was, so I Googled it. I was really impresses with what I saw...until I saw he relief cut for the frame locking bar. The photo makes it look like the lock bar is absolutely paper thin at that point.

I'm obviously not an expert, nor have I seen one in person, but wouldn't that severe a relief cut have to potential to be a failure point for the lock?

Just curious...
 
All Ti framelocks have a cut out. STR did a comparison with real measurements a while back.

I wouldn't worry about it.
 
The XM-18 is an awesome knife, and tough as nails. I wouldn't worry about it.
 
The purpose of the cut out is that the maker can bend the Ti to create the lock bar. It would be very difficult to bend full thickness of Ti, and even if a maker could, it would be too strong to release the lock by hand.

If you are concerned about failure points, you probably should be more concerned with lock and the angle of the lock,blade contact. Much harder to get right for some makers.
 
It's thin but it's not paper--it's Titanium. ;)

I have a few Ti framelocks and they are tough as nails.
 
That's where the lock bar bends. If it didn't have any cutout it wouldn't bend at all.
 
I can't imagine that the lockbar cutout would affect lock strength much. I mean, the stress on the cutout arrives from the lockbar's tip, not laterally. I would think you would have to exert a huge amount amount of pressure on the lockbar to make even the thinnest cutout buckle. So much so that if you're using the knife that hard, you would probably have a bunch of other things to worry about first. Like hanging onto the knife without having your hand slip onto the blade, for instance. :)
 
DaveH said:
The purpose of the cut out is that the maker can bend the Ti to create the lock bar. It would be very difficult to bend full thickness of Ti, and even if a maker could, it would be too strong to release the lock by hand
Click to expand...

Certainly, but e.g. BM Gravitator doesn't need such radical cutouts to be comfortable to unlock.
Some pics if you are not familiar with BM Gravitator.
IMG_4197.jpg


IMG_4187.jpg
 
DaveH said:
All Ti framelocks have a cut out. STR did a comparison with real measurements a while back.

I wouldn't worry about it.
Click to expand...

My Benchmade Pinnacle 750 is a titanium framelock and it has no relief cut at all. The lockbar is the full thickness of the handle.
 
The pinnacle is much thinner than the Hinderer. I've got an XM-18 right here, and I would not worry about it. If you can release the lock using it, you shouldn't have been using a folder in the first place. It is stout.
 
I was wrong about the Pinnacle (kinda) because when you examine he inside of the lock bar you can see that it has a long groove milled into it which parallels the sides.
 
elkins45 said:
I was wrong about the Pinnacle (kinda) because when you examine he inside of the lock bar you can see that it has a long groove milled into it which parallels the sides.
Click to expand...


The Pinnacle does indeed require more force to unlock. To be more elaborate, the "grooved milling" it is actually a capsule shape cutout. Odd though, the edges of the lockbar remain uncut- both on the outside where the fingers rest against and the opposite side where the long slot cutout is located. If the bend of the framelock pivots in this area, I don' t see how its tension can be lessened. Mechanically, this does not work. Do you all follow?

N.

www.dozierknives.com/forum
 
Nakano 2 said:
The Pinnacle does indeed require more force to unlock. To be more elaborate, the "grooved milling" it is actually a capsule shape cutout. Odd though, the edges of the lockbar remain uncut- both on the outside where the fingers rest against and the opposite side where the long slot cutout is located. If the bend of the framelock pivots in this area, I don' t see how its tension can be lessened. Mechanically, this does not work. Do you all follow?

N.

www.dozierknives.com/forum
Click to expand...

Yes, and I thought the same thing. Since the edges remain full thickness, the whole thing would function sort of like an I-beam or a composite floor joist. For the cutout to have any effect on lessening the bending force required, wouldn't the material along the remaining edges need to compress or stretch significantly?

It's a shame someone from Benchmade doesn't read these threads like Sal from Spyderco does--- I would love to hear an explanation of that particular design feature from the person who came up with it.
 
Don't forget Rick's knives have his patented lock stabalizer built in on them. This adds a great deal of stability to the lock so even if that lock cut is thin its not anything to worry about. You'd still have to wedge the blade locked open in a mortar joint and use the folder for a leg up to tweak it so don't let it stop you from buying it.

Oh, and for what its worth, the XM-18 I owned was on par with the Reeve Sebenza for thickness. I don't recall the exact measurement but it certainly wasn't a lock cut that was paper thin on mine.

STR
 
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