I don't like lockbacks

Kru03 said:
Posted by Zero-Effect

'All I could think is, "I don't like you" upon reading that.'


Wow! You don't like me simply b/c I don't like lockbacks? That doesn't sound like you're ambivalent about them. It's nothing personal if we don't like the same thing on a knife.

Where'd you get the idea that lockbacks or locking blades were illegal in San Antonio, Texas?
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It was a response to your admittedly inflammatory title, "I don't like lockbacks". You felt the need to express a gut-level reaction in harsh language, and I shared what my gut-level reaction to that was. I didn't mean to personally attack you, and I answered logically and intelligently after that.

San Antonio: Section 21-17: http://library.municode.com/index.aspx?clientId=11508 (just use cntrl+F "blade" to get to the relevant section).

Combine that with Texas law where blades over 5.5 inches are illegal to carry (http://www.criminal-lawyer-houston-texas.com/TEXAS-WEAPON-LAWS.pdf) , and between the two, folding knives are outlaws in San Antonio. Rumor is it's selectively enforced, but when I've visited, I once left my delica in the car and carried my ontario RAT-5 with bulky factory sheath under my shirt, legally. It was absurd to say the least.

Zero
 
In response to lockbacks with play in the blade.....

They can do that, even the more expensive ones. The hinge pins are not always seated well in the factory. When this happens I place the bolster on a block of hard wood and get a a hardwood doll about the right size and shave it down on one end maybe just a bit larger than the pin and place that on the pin and strike it a few times. Carefull though if you do this, start out tapping lightly and flip the knife over and work each side evenly.
This can tighten it up too much if you are not careful and if not done evenly on both sides the blade can get cantered to one side a bit instead of resting dead center in the handle like it should. You also have to be carefull not to use steel tools as these will deffinately mark up the metal bolster. Even using wood can sometimes do that so take great care.
This will also, if done properly, seat the pin in the bolster so it won't loosen up again.
The trick is to get the pin to swell up inside the bolster without making it so tight it won't open and close easily and smoothly, or leaving a mark on the bolster.
I've done this successfully on more than a few of my folding knives and can do it successfully every time now. It's not hard to do once you get the knack, but if it's your first time you might not be so successful.
I recommend trying it on junk knives first. And if you have a bolster with fancy etching or engraving, maybe not do it all.
You might also have to repolish the bolster depending on how well you did.

I have never had one where the locking mechanizm itself didn't fit tightly in the notch in the hinge of the blade. This trick has always removed any play in the blade.
Of course, just because I have always had good fitting locking mechanizms doesn't mean EVERYONE will have the same experience.
 
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Zero_Time said:
It was a response to your admittedly inflammatory title, "I don't like lockbacks". You felt the need to express a gut-level reaction in harsh language, and I shared what my gut-level reaction to that was. I didn't mean to personally attack you, and I answered logically and intelligently after that.

San Antonio: Section 21-17: http://library.municode.com/index.aspx?clientId=11508 (just use cntrl+F "blade" to get to the relevant section).

Combine that with Texas law where blades over 5.5 inches are illegal to carry (http://www.criminal-lawyer-houston-texas.com/TEXAS-WEAPON-LAWS.pdf) , and between the two, folding knives are outlaws in San Antonio. Rumor is it's selectively enforced, but when I've visited, I once left my delica in the car and carried my ontario RAT-5 with bulky factory sheath under my shirt, legally. It was absurd to say the least.

Zero
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I live a two hour drive from SA, and I go there frequently. No one has ever given me any static about carrying a knife anywhere in the city, and I make no attempt to conceal it. That includes bars. It's one of those city ordinances that even the cops ignore.
 
I like back locks just fine as far as safety and strength go but I don't really like to disengage them that much. I still buy them and own them in small numbers though.
 
MajorLonghorn said:
I live a two hour drive from SA, and I go there frequently. No one has ever given me any static about carrying a knife anywhere in the city, and I make no attempt to conceal it. That includes bars. It's one of those city ordinances that even the cops ignore.
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I'm aware of that. But I'm a Letter. Of. The. Law. Kind of guy. I make people mad enough on my own (see above) that I don't need to do something that is technically illegal but not enforced. To me, breaking the law is breaking the law. Further, I fully believe that selectively enforced, or not enforced but still on the book laws are among the WORST problems with the American justice system today. Not to get political, but there's another country that shows the dangers of selective enforcement of laws.

Zero
 
"It was a response to your admittedly inflammatory title, "I don't like lockbacks". You felt the need to express a gut-level reaction in harsh language, and I shared what my gut-level reaction to that was. I didn't mean to personally attack you, and I answered logically and intelligently after that.

San Antonio: Section 21-17: http://library.municode.com/index.aspx?clientId=11508 (just use cntrl+F "blade" to get to the relevant section).

Combine that with Texas law where blades over 5.5 inches are illegal to carry (http://www.criminal-lawyer-houston-t...EAPON-LAWS.pdf) , and between the two, folding knives are outlaws in San Antonio. Rumor is it's selectively enforced, but when I've visited, I once left my delica in the car and carried my ontario RAT-5 with bulky factory sheath under my shirt, legally. It was absurd to say the least.

Zero"

I'm having trouble Replying w/ Quote so I'm having to cut-and-paste - apologies.

First of all, I didn't "admit" that the title was inflammatory. What's inflammatory about expressing dislike of an inanimate object? Unless your last name is "lockback" there's no reason for you to have a similar emotion/reaction towards me - simply based on your like and my dislike of the inanimate object. If you didn't mean to personally attack me, you need to think more before you type. It's like Ricky Bobby saying "with all due respect, Mr. Dennit, I had no idea you'd gotten experimental surgery to have your balls removed."

Secondly, the code you've referenced is a code that is never enforced. I happen to know this because my wife is an attorney who has been representing criminal defendants for the last 15 years. Not once has she represented someone charged with that offense. As an attorney myself, I can tell you that it's virtually uneforceable as written, which is probably why they never charge anybody with it. Now the 5.5" law is a different story, but the folding knife law is not.
 
Eh. If you didn't think the title was going to be controversial, and you've been here since '08, I'm not sure what there is to say. I didn't mean to personally attack you, because literally, upon reading the title, I replied to the thread without ever seeing your username or who you were. I responded to the words/thought and not the speaker. In real life where people blurt out things like that out of the blue, I respond in kind, as a reaction to the words/idea that seemed to be equally thoughtless. Nevertheless, if you got offended by that, then I apologize. I've engaged in public speaking events where people heckle me over one line they dislike, and just no longer care. Sometimes I forget that I'm atypical.

Re: enforced, not enforced. See above. You asked where I got the "idea" they were illegal so I cited municipal code.

Zero
 
Controversy is okay. I think it's a good topic if it gets people talking. There were a ton of responses that were along the lines of "I love lockbacks" or "I think they're great" or even, "how could anybody not like lockbacks." Your response was "I hate you," which seems unneccesarily offensive. I understand that in Whine and Cheese, but not here.

Regarding the legality of it, I would also point out that if it were to ever be enforced, it would only be a class C misdemeanor (equivalent of a traffic ticket).

Okay, I'm done. I'll stop harping on it. My apologies for staying off-topic too long.

...I still hate lockbacks!
 
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