Impinda Issues - Has Anyone Else Seen This?

Kiteman72 said:
I'm the kind of fella that has a little trouble admitting when a knife is giving me problems, but I wanted to just chime in and say I have encountered these troubles you describe as well.

I'm afraid I'm not going to be much help, but when I managed to get the knife to someone who could reassemble it for me, my pivot got loc-tited down. I wanted to just love my new knife but it gets carried hardly at all.

So I wanted you to know you aren't alone and I wish I could be more help. Good Luck!
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Thank you. Just hearing that I'm not alone (and hopefully not crazy) is lots of help in itself.
 
Kiteman72 said:
I'm the kind of fella that has a little trouble admitting when a knife is giving me problems, but I wanted to just chime in and say I have encountered these troubles you describe as well.

I'm afraid I'm not going to be much help, but when I managed to get the knife to someone who could reassemble it for me, my pivot got loc-tited down. I wanted to just love my new knife but it gets carried hardly at all.

So I wanted you to know you aren't alone and I wish I could be more help. Good Luck!
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Out of curiosity did yours have the loosening pivot and the noticeable gap on one side?
 
m.and said:
Out of curiosity did yours have the loosening pivot and the noticeable gap on one side?
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Exactly that. My experience mirrors closely the fella in the video, haha. The way the pivot would loosen was maddening.

My vendor was no help and neither was CRK, really. I was informed that the gap was necessary for the knife to work properly and that the pivot would need loc tite.

I just checked again, and the gap is pretty much gone now that the pivot is locked down properly.
 
Kiteman72 said:
Exactly that. My experience mirrors closely the fella in the video, haha. The way the pivot would loosen was maddening.

My vendor was no help and neither was CRK, really. I was informed that the gap was necessary for the knife to work properly and that the pivot would need loc tite.

I just checked again, and the gap is pretty much gone now that the pivot is locked down properly.
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I have not yet re-Loctited mine. I wanted to resolve the gap issue first. On mine it seems no amount of pivot tightening is going to close the gap.

Everything else about the knife is perfect right now - the action, blade centering, lack of side-to-side blade play - it's just that darn gap.

I may Loctite the pivot and use it for a little while and see what happens. If I'm still not happy I guess I can always send it back to CRK for evaluation.
 
m.and said:
I have not yet re-Loctited mine. I wanted to resolve the gap issue first. On mine it seems no amount of pivot tightening is going to close the gap.

Everything else about the knife is perfect right now - the action, blade centering, lack of side-to-side blade play - it's just that darn gap.

I may Loctite the pivot and use it for a little while and see what happens. If I'm still not happy I guess I can always send it back to CRK for evaluation.
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This is going to drive you nuts. Every time you look at it that gap will be the focus of your attention. It will be a painful time of separation but the best thing to do is get the form from CRKs web site and box it up to ship off to Boise. Trust me, been there, done that with a small Ikosi a few years ago. Don't let it fester!
 
And what’s interesting is that Tim said there was nothing at all wrong with the knife just like K Kiteman72 was told.

I Loctited the pivot yesterday and today it functions as perfectly as I could ask for - there’s just a gap between the backspring and one of the handle scales.

So maybe there is nothing functionally wrong with my knife.
 
m.and said:
And what’s interesting is that Tim said there was nothing at all wrong with the knife just like K Kiteman72 was told.

I Loctited the pivot yesterday and today it functions as perfectly as I could ask for - there’s just a gap between the backspring and one of the handle scales.

So maybe there is nothing functionally wrong with my knife.
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That's pretty much the conclusion I came to. The gap in mine isn't as bad as I remember, I'm just nervous about that pivot starting to back out again with use.

I think maybe my own expectations were too high, then, with my pivot troubles, by the time I got things sorted out, I was kind of soured on the knife in general. I wanted it to be the "Ultimate Slip Joint" and, in many ways, it kind of is. But, like the guy in the video, I didn't really feel like I was getting $450 worth of bang for the bucks. I'm going to give the Impinda a bit more of a chance here pretty soon and see how it goes. I like lots of stuff about it, after all, that's why I bought it. I think I wanted the action to be snappier, or something that I can't quite put my finger on.

Fortunately, when I impulse bought an Umnumzaan for myself for Christmas, I had forgotten about my Impinda troubles. :)

A huge lesson I feel this expensive purchase taught me is that if there if any problem at ALL with my new knife, I don't mess with it. I will contact the vendor and return that sucker. Saves me tons of aggravation.

I hope the loc tite solves your problems and you get to enjoying your new knife! :thumbsup:
 
Wavicle said:
This is going to drive you nuts. Every time you look at it that gap will be the focus of your attention. It will be a painful time of separation but the best thing to do is get the form from CRKs web site and box it up to ship off to Boise. Trust me, been there, done that with a small Ikosi a few years ago. Don't let it fester!
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This is also not the worst advice I've ever heard either. Sometimes it's all that can set a person's mind at ease.
 
After Loctiting the pivot yesterday and opening and closing the knife over and over today I have noticed two things. The Loctite is doing its job and preventing the pivot from loosening. The other observation I made is that the gap between the backspring and clip side scale seems to be slowly closing.

I have attached two photos that I hope show the change. The first one was taken on Wednesday after I first noticed the issue and the second one was taken this evening.

I'm not sure exactly what would explain this gradual change, but one theory is that over time, with multiple openings and closings, the washers are fully seating themselves into the cutouts.

50940641397_96c930e9da_c.jpg


50939839773_28c59af5e1_c.jpg
 
After reading about the issues some people have had with lock rock on the model 31 and the trouble the OP has had with their Impinda I feel so fortunate that my Mnandi works as expected. I really like my Mnandi and I have no intention of getting rid of it but I am leery of buying another Chris Reeves product.

I hope everyone who is having an issue with their CRK product gets it resolved.
 
Post Weekend Update: I've been giving the pivot a little workout since I reassembled it on Friday with Loctite on the pivot. Here's what I've observed:
  1. The pivot has not budged. It hasn't loosened a bit and there is no play in it whatsoever.
  2. The gap has closed to be almost non-existent.
  3. The action is smooth and consistent with a nice snap both opening and closing.
  4. There is no side-to-side play at all when the blade is open.
  5. When closed, the blade is perfectly centered.
I have not heard back from CRK yet, but at this point I don't believe I will return it to them as I don't think there is anything they could do make it any better. I will continue to monitor it for the next week and report back here.

Thanks again to everyone for your comments and suggestions.

Best,
Matthew
 
That’s interesting. Thanks fir the update.

It sounds like maybe something just wasn’t seating correctly?

Anyhow, good to know it’s working out.
 
I thought I would update this thread again since I finally heard back from CRK. I sent them an updated picture of the knife and their reply was:

"The Impindas are designed to have a bit of a gap between the spine and the handles. That looks as if it in spec. If does get bigger, or you don't feel comfortable, Do not hesitate to send it in."
 
m.and said:
I thought I would update this thread again since I finally heard back from CRK. I sent them an updated picture of the knife and their reply was:

"The Impindas are designed to have a bit of a gap between the spine and the handles. That looks as if it in spec. If does get bigger, or you don't feel comfortable, Do not hesitate to send it in."
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I wonder since it is designed to have a gap, what sort of measurement is CRK considered exceptable? Just imagine, dust, lint etc getting into the 'gap', that would be a nightmare to maintain it.
 
Three things to keep in mind on the Impinda gap:
1. If it were a tight fit, the backspring would rub against the handles.
2. There is no pivot bushing and since the bronze washers obviously can't be produced to exact tolerances and thus vary in thickness, there are no "aerospace" tolerances in the pivot area. Also, the bronze washers have to be worn in and will wear thinner with years of usage.
3. The back spring of the Impinda is made from CPM S35VN and is heat treated to achieve a specified hardness to achieve its "springiness". Heat treatment of such an intricately designed shape often induces warpage, and as such an Impinda back spring may or may not be exactly straight.

All of this rambling is a long way of saying that the gap is more or less a part of the design and consequently has to be embraced.

All that said, I very much like the blade shape and the handle shape. Mr. Harsey is a fly fisherman and a hunter through and through. He knows how to shape a knife for the tasks accompanying these activities. But the action of the Impinda leaves much to be desired. I've never experienced a Slipjoint that is this cumbersome to open and close. The Impinda desperately has to be reworked in this regard.
 
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Easyrider said:
After reading about the issues some people have had with lock rock on the model 31 and the trouble the OP has had with their Impinda I feel so fortunate that my Mnandi works as expected. I really like my Mnandi and I have no intention of getting rid of it but I am leery of buying another Chris Reeves product.

I hope everyone who is having an issue with their CRK product gets it resolved.
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I’m curious why someone would be Leery? I can’t imagine any reason.
 
Why would I be leery of buying another CRK product? There seems to be more people having issues with their knives from CRK. For me these are expensive products and I am concerned about getting one that has issues. Will CRK take care of a product out of specs? I a confident that they will but I don’t want to deal with sending it back for any work.
 
Odds are in your favor with a CRK to not have any. Almost everything in this world costs something and is at risk to have an issue. Some people buy exotic cars and expect to never have a problem due to the amount of money they spent.

Dont deprive yourself of a beautiful knife from a company with one of the highest reputations out there over the fear of a warranty. Odds are you won’t have any.
 
A
m.and said:
After Loctiting the pivot yesterday and opening and closing the knife over and over today I have noticed two things. The Loctite is doing its job and preventing the pivot from loosening. The other observation I made is that the gap between the backspring and clip side scale seems to be slowly closing.

I have attached two photos that I hope show the change. The first one was taken on Wednesday after I first noticed the issue and the second one was taken this evening.

I'm not sure exactly what would explain this gradual change, but one theory is that over time, with multiple openings and closings, the washers are fully seating themselves into the cutouts.

50940641397_96c930e9da_c.jpg




Are the cutouts almost exactly the same as as the washers? Is there a chance grease is trapped behind the washer and takes a bit of time to work it’s way out and let the pivot sit where it’s supposed to? I suppose a dry assembly might reveal that is the case or not.
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