increase frame lock engagement

S

snipes1027

Joined
Dec 1, 2009
Messages
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Hey guys, I have a frame lock that only slides about 2/3 of the way behind the knife. What is the best way to increase the engagement? Should I just shave the engagement point on the blade bit by bit until the frame locks fully behind it or shave the frame bit by bit in the same fashion?
 
Do you mean it engages 2/3 of the way? That's good, you don't want the lockbar to engage the whole tang.
 
Because that is how they are designed. It gives it room to wear in. A frame/liner lock is considered worn out when it is fully behind the blade tang and touching the other side.
 
For a little while, until it wore away some more and then developed blade play... (ask me how I know :o). 2/3 sounds good. :thumbup:
 
FlaMtnBkr said:
Because that is how they are designed. It gives it room to wear in. A frame/liner lock is considered worn out when it is fully behind the blade tang and touching the other side.
Click to expand...

I strongly disagree.

Some folks like full engagement , it is a trade off.


Snipes1027 - it is easy to do but think long and hard if your knife is rare or costly , because theres no going back. :)



Tostig
 
Tostig said:
I strongly disagree.

Some folks like full engagement , it is a trade off.


Snipes1027 - it is easy to do but think long and hard if your knife is rare or costly , because theres no going back. :)



Tostig
Click to expand...

That is not how they are designed? Then why are frame locks made with 1/3 to 1/2 the width of the blade tang engagement?

With the blade tang fully covered by the lock bar ANY additional wear will result in blade play. Blade play that can not be fixed is worn out in my book.

You are the first second person I have ever heard of that wants the lock bar to completely cover the blade tang and I think if you took a poll the very high majority would strongly disagree with you.

But to each their own, it's not my knife.
 
Here's a quote, from Chris Reeve himself (from the thread, "Some words from Chris..." in the Chris Reeve Knives sub-forum), regarding lock engagement on the Sebenza/Umnumzaan knives:

"The lock should engage at between 50% and 75% of travel. With the Umnumzaan, because the interface between the blade and the lock bar is a ceramic ball, it is the ball that must be at 50 – 75%. This will give the visual that the lock bar is further over than with a Sebenza."

" There should be no blade play; there should be no lock movement. If there is, something is out of spec and the knife should be returned to us for inspection. The causes are probably a result of incorrect assembly or modification of the lock. "

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=730951

To Snipes1027:
I've no idea what brand/make of knife you have, but the 2/3 engagement you have sounds just about right to me. In my opinion, the 'best' way to increase the engagement is to simply use the knife. Let it 'wear in' like it's supposed to. Don't abuse it in ways that might put undue strain on the lock. It's supposed to be a strong lock, but only if it's used intelligently (as the maker presumably intended). If you tinker with the lock now, there's a pretty good chance you'll regret it later.

Dave
 
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FlaMtnBkr said:
That is not how they are designed? Then why are frame locks made with 1/3 to 1/2 the width of the blade tang engagement?

With the blade tang fully covered by the lock bar ANY additional wear will result in blade play. Blade play that can not be fixed is worn out in my book.

You are the first second person I have ever heard of that wants the lock bar to completely cover the blade tang and I think if you took a poll the very high majority would strongly disagree with you.

But to each their own, it's not my knife.
Click to expand...

True.

How many framelocks do you own ? I own more than I count not being in front of them , you probably own quite a few too.
With such a variety of knives to choose from in ones collection , one's EDC probably changes once a month or so.
My point is how many times would one have to engage or disengage the lock for it to wear to the point you mention ?

I have a Kershaw Groove that I modded in such a way a week or so after I got it a couple of years ago , it is one of my most carried and used knives and the lock has not worn at all , no vertical play ( or horizontal for that matter ).
You are correct though, once it does wear to that point theres no turning back unless you buy a new model/etc.

Snipes does not mention what brand of knife it is and thus how costly it was. I doubt if I would do the same mod on a knife costing several hundred dollars. :)

Yeap , to each their own.

Tostig
 
I'm actually not a big fan of the frame lock and only own 3 or 4 frame/liner locks. I had a popular knife wear out to the other side in less than a year of light use. I can probably stick a sheet of paper between the lockbar and blade tang now and it has a lot of vertical play. This is one of the main reasons I do not like this type of lock because once it gets to this point there is not much you can do. I would never purposely do this to one of my knives. And if you happen to take away just a little too much material then the knife is shot. I could send the knife in and probably get it replaced but I haven't gotten around to it and it is a reminder to me of what can happen.

I'm sure if you did not use the knife very hard then it could probably last a pretty long time. But if you use the knife somewhat hard where there are forces trying to close the blade then it doesn't take much to deform the metal enough for the lock bar to move over and engage further. When knives break/ wear in the lock moves further over. A lot of knives start at about 1/3 lock engagement and over a couple months use settle in around 2/3 lock engagement. This type of engagement seems to be plenty strong for a lot of people and full engagement I guess could be stronger. I would think if you are squeezing the knife that a frame lock is going to be pretty strong no matter what the engagement.

Anyways, everyone likes things their own way so if that is how you like your knife then more power to you. It's probably not that hard to make the adjustment, just be aware of the pros and cons.
 
Edgyone said:
For a little while, until it wore away some more and then developed blade play... (ask me how I know :o). 2/3 sounds good. :thumbup:
Click to expand...

Edgyone....What have you been up to?:D

I would not mess with your lock, it's not made to go 100% over. The small sebenza in my pocket right now is at almost exactly 50% I could spine whack it all day and never get it to fail.

My Benchmade Mini Skirmish has a curved tang, and I honestly dont think it will ever wear out, before I sharpen away all of the steel. It also will not fail a spine whack test.

BTW: I don't reccomend or tell people to test their knives by spine whacking them. Everyone has their own likes and dislikes about almost everything.

Now, Edgy, be good...:D
 
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