Inkosi / 25 Takedown

TripleF100

TripleF100

Joined
Dec 30, 2014
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195
I'm a little concerned about disassembly and reassembly of my Inkosi. Actually it's more the reassembly that has me worried. How do I adjust the pivot and apply the loctite . . . never done this! How much do you use? How long do you have to wait? Any tricks?

I've looked on YouTube but couldn't find anything. Googled to find written instructions. Nothing!

So I'm betting someone here knows exactly what to do!
 
I don't have an Inkosi, but it seems to be a small 25 to me; adjust the pivot until there is not side to side movement and the blade is easily opened and closed (I doubt you will have a lot of side to side movement even with the pivot loose), I don't use loctite on any 25's and I have not experienced any loosening of the pivot at all (though I am not an obsessive "flicker") , I just leave the residue from the factory in there and it works, whatever is left on the pivot screw when you disassembled it should be enough to hold it in place; if you cleaned the old loctite with a wire brush and you really want to use some in it, just a very small amount, less than a drop, on the threads will do. Grab the screw and squeeze a tiny bit on one side of the threads, that's it, it should distribute itself as you screw the pivot back in place; the key is to use very little of it. Maybe other guys with an Inkosi can pitch in, but as far as I'm concerned I wouldn't use any, or like I said, just a tiny bit. Hope that helps.
 
These are just my 2 cents, and anyone can feel free to disagree with me...just my experience with the Inkosi.

With loctite, period, use less than you think you need. Just a tiny drop on the end of the threads will suffice. I suggest wiping any excess off with your finger.

What I'd do first though, is get the knife set where you want before trying loctite and see if it loosens on its own. You might be ok with a little blade play or tightening up your pivot every couple days. With a CRK, I can't accept any blade play. If that doesn't work out for you, then try the loctite.

The first time I took apart the Inkosi I cleaned the factory loctite off the threads. So with a clean pivot, I had trouble with it loosening so then I resorted to loctite. Everyone here says to set the pivot a little tighter than you want and then it'll loosen up in a couple days. That wasn't working for me and it was a lot tighter than I wanted so I had disassembled to polish my lugs and washers and didn't care to clean the pivot threads. Upon reassembly, I didn't even reapply grease and wiped the blade clean. Tightened to where I want it, and it's as smooth and rock solid as it's ever been, and I've opened and closed it at least a couple hundred times since then to keep testing it, even with a few flicks.

So what ended up working for me basically was letting the loctite set, break it loose completely, then screw the pivot back in to where I wanted and it's stayed since. I won't be cleaning my threads until they get nasty or become a problem. If you don't clean the original loctite off the threads, it should work for you. I was originally applying my loctite before I went to bed and let sit overnight, but I think it'll set well enough in a couple hours.
 
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With the 21 that has the bushing system, you can tighten down on the pivot and the bushing will prevent it from becoming too tight. Not so with the 25/Inkosi. You can over tighten it to the point that it won't open.
I've taken several of my 25's down. I use the sandwich method to re assemble and have not had any issues to date. I've learned if you remove the male screw from the pivot, it will still function without issue. What that means to me, is that the female/barrel pivot piece does not move. Upon re assembly, the female part sets in place and it's a matter of adjusting the male half to where you feel confident it won't loosen/back out. If you're unsure about using the locktite, you can use Teflon tape to prevent the male side from moving once it's set. It doesn't take much.
I'm not fond of using the locktite and haven't yet used it. I've yet to have a screw back out or become loose. Typically, I'll get the male screw snug, and that is my sweet spot.
On the 25, one washer has a tab on it that fits into a divot on the frame. I'm extremely careful to not damage the tab portion of the washer.
As long as you take your time, you should not have any issues with your Inkosi.
 
makariotes, uofaengr & Ajack60 . . . thanks guys (or gals it that is the case!!). My plan is to not remove the old locktite unless it comes off by itself! Does it matter if I loosen up the scales first or the pivot?
 
It really doesn't matter which screws you remove first, it's not like it's going to fall apart by itself. Even after you remove all the screws, it stays in place. You'll have to give it a nudge to take it apart.
I'm different when it comes to re assembly. I put it back together and tighten/adjust the pivot lastly. In my mind, if I tighten the frame screws first, it trues the frame up and doesn't put undue stress on the pivot.
 
TripleF100 said:
makariotes, uofaengr & Ajack60 . . . thanks guys (or gals it that is the case!!). My plan is to not remove the old locktite unless it comes off by itself! Does it matter if I loosen up the scales first or the pivot?
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Ajack60 said:
It really doesn't matter which screws you remove first, it's not like it's going to fall apart by itself. Even after you remove all the screws, it stays in place. You'll have to give it a nudge to take it apart.
I'm different when it comes to re assembly. I put it back together and tighten/adjust the pivot lastly. In my mind, if I tighten the frame screws first, it trues the frame up and doesn't put undue stress on the pivot.
Click to expand...

You're welcome TripleF100! I think I agree with Ajack60, the awesome thing about CRK in general is that they are engineered brilliantly; it's really hard to mess up the procedure when assembling them, unless you're not paying attention.
Uofaengr and Ajack's comments are valid; once you get enough practice you will discover what the easiest way is to put you knife together.
Like I said, I don't own an inkosi, I don't think I ever will since I prefer larger knifes cause my hands are large, and I don't really like small blades, but it looks like a mini 25, I think the pivot is the same as in the 25 so what has been said up to this point I think is solid advice.
It is a good thing CRK includes the tools to service your knife, which means in my mind they actually encourage the user to do it without fear.
If you contact CRK to ask for guidance they will probably tell you exactly how it should be done, or search the stickies in this subforum, there is a wealth of info in there.
Anyway, enjoy the learning process and don't get hung up too much in the details, you will do fine. If you end up messing it up by bending a washer or cross threading a screw, just put it in a Baggie and send it in; it will be fixed for sure.
Congrats on your inkosi! Oh and I forgot, there is a thread called Inkosi, I haven't read it but you might want to check it out, it has 612 entries so you might find some useful info in there too.
Have fun.
 
For assembly, I get the frame screws almost tight, then get the pivot started. I then tighten the frame screws and proceed to further tighten the pivot. YMMV
 
Ajack60 said:
It really doesn't matter which screws you remove first, it's not like it's going to fall apart by itself. Even after you remove all the screws, it stays in place. You'll have to give it a nudge to take it apart.
I'm different when it comes to re assembly. I put it back together and tighten/adjust the pivot lastly. In my mind, if I tighten the frame screws first, it trues the frame up and doesn't put undue stress on the pivot.
Click to expand...

I know this is old, but this is what I do as well. Actually a little different. First I'll tighten the pivot down well. Not like cranking on it but definitely tighter than you would want to use it as. Then I tighten the frame screws. Once everything is tight I will back off the pivot, open the knife a couple times, then set the pivot to my liking. This has given me the smoothest most solid feeling assembly and also centered my blade. Just my 2c
 
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