Is a little wobble a good thing?

M

missin_hobo

Joined
Aug 9, 2007
Messages
761
I was playing with my Umnum recently, and realized that it's quite easy to force a bit of vertical play. It doesn't seem to be due to bad tolerances, but rather the lockbar just seems to have a bit of give in it. If you push down on the top of the blade hard enough, you can feel the blade moving, and sometimes you can see the thumb lugs ever-so-slightly depart from the recesses on the front of the knife.

Is this normal? I could see how it might be mechanically practical to put some give in the locking mechanism, but I could be wrong. I realized I could do the same thing with my Seb, but with greater difficulty - something to do with the thicker lockbar or the greater mating surface area, I think.

It's kind of alarming. I hope anyone who's enough of a stickler for quality to own a Reeve can relate.
 
that shouldn't happen at all. send it in
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Might be tricky. I live in Canada, and the way our customs office is, there's a chance I won't get it back. This is upsetting. No one else has experienced this?
 
i probably should have suggested this first...i would clean the locking interface. even a little crud can sometimes cause some blade play.
 
you need to send it back,but i see it is impossible to tighten the pivot,try cleaning then go to plan b good luck..........
 
Just because the lockbar is made of titanium doesn't mean that it's impossible to get it to bend. If I press down hard enough on my blade I can get the thumbstuds to separate a little from the handle scales. That shouldn't be a problem unless you plan to push down VERY hard on the blade frequently, which isn't very practical. It seems that you're trying way too hard to find something wrong with a knife that is otherwise functionally perfect.
 
Well the lock is on the ceramic ball in the Umnum and I will have to say it depends on the force you are applying it might actually start dislodging the ceramic ball. Any folding knife with enough force to the spine will have blade play. It is not a fix blade. That is not a tolerance problem. If there is no blade play under normal use then there is not a problem.
 
It seems that you're trying way too hard to find something wrong with a knife that is otherwise functionally perfect.
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I'm not looking for something wrong. I have observed something I didn't before, and wanted a bit of discourse on the matter. I like the Umnum too, you know.
It sounds like a little give in the lockbar is normal, and the first posters just weren't trying hard enough :p
To give you an idea of how hard I was pushing, when the knife slipped from grip, it badly gashed my thumb. Inch long, half-inch wide, half-inch deep. Eight stitches, sling, codeine.
Bit of a shame, I use that arm for rolling dice, and other similar chores. :jerkit:

Least I'm pretty sure the knife still works. :D



Either way, I'll probably write CRK about it and tell everyone what the response was.
 
missin_hobo said:
Might be tricky. I live in Canada, and the way our customs office is, there's a chance I won't get it back. This is upsetting. No one else has experienced this?
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Customs aint that bad, at least from my experience. Have sent and recieved dozens of knives, never had a problem yet
 
My brand new Umnum has that same type of play on occasion. Sometimes I can feel the slightest give in the lock when I force the blade hard towards closing. But the lock never disengages and the play isn't always there. I think the presence of this play depends on how hardly or softly I open the knife.

I noticed it a few days ago, but I am not losing sleep worrying about it and don't feel the knife is defective. The blade needs to be worked HARD to feel it and the play still isn't present every time. Maybe as the knife breaks in it will get better too.
 
I noticed it a few days ago, but I am not losing sleep worrying about it and don't feel the knife is defective. The blade needs to be worked HARD to feel it and the play still isn't present every time. Maybe as the knife breaks in it will get better too.
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That's my sentiment as well. I'll let you know what the good folks at CRK say.
 
missin_hobo said:
Might be tricky. I live in Canada, and the way our customs office is, there's a chance I won't get it back. This is upsetting. No one else has experienced this?
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I sort of doubt any crud could cause this blade play and there is something more to do with the mechanism in the pivot etc. I would call them and arrange to ship it in.

You should not have any problem getting it back from CRK. I have dealt with them on a few occasions and touch wood never had any issues. They normally ship UPS and I would suggest you have them change to USPS or FedEx. UPS will gouge you on their 'fees'.

Thalestin said:
Customs aint that bad, at least from my experience. Have sent and recieved dozens of knives, never had a problem yet
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Same here. As long as it is documented correctly and the pivot is snugged up, it shouldn't be a problem.

"returned from repairs" works well IMO.
 
missin_hobo said:
I'm not looking for something wrong. I have observed something I didn't before, and wanted a bit of discourse on the matter. I like the Umnum too, you know.
It sounds like a little give in the lockbar is normal, and the first posters just weren't trying hard enough :p
To give you an idea of how hard I was pushing, when the knife slipped from grip, it badly gashed my thumb. Inch long, half-inch wide, half-inch deep. Eight stitches, sling, codeine.
Bit of a shame, I use that arm for rolling dice, and other similar chores. :jerkit:

Least I'm pretty sure the knife still works. :D



Either way, I'll probably write CRK about it and tell everyone what the response was.
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Sorry if I was a little over-the-top, didn't mean to sound so like I was talking down to anyone. You mentioned that you notice the play now and didn't before so it must have developed recently. If this is the case then contacting CRK is probably a smart thing to do. Keep us posted on your situation...
 
missin_hobo said:
I'm not looking for something wrong. I have observed something I didn't before, and wanted a bit of discourse on the matter. I like the Umnum too, you know.
It sounds like a little give in the lockbar is normal, and the first posters just weren't trying hard enough :p
To give you an idea of how hard I was pushing, when the knife slipped from grip, it badly gashed my thumb. Inch long, half-inch wide, half-inch deep. Eight stitches, sling, codeine.
Bit of a shame, I use that arm for rolling dice, and other similar chores. :jerkit:

Least I'm pretty sure the knife still works. :D



Either way, I'll probably write CRK about it and tell everyone what the response was.
Click to expand...

Sorry to hear about your accident, I wish you well................

:D:D:D Rickster :D:D:D
 
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after seeing how much force you used to get that "wobble," i think it's normal. i just checked my umnumzaan and xm-18 and they both move very very slightly if you put a bit of force on the spine.

edit: i dont think this constitutes blade play, this is a significant amount of constant force.

edit #2: i should also add that hyou can't tell by the feel, you have to actually look at the thumb studs to detect any sort of motion. still seems very solid. i think it's just the lock changing it's engagement percentage, no sort of tolerance issue. i wouldn't descirbe what i'm finding as "wobble." maybe "give"
 
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Thanks for the well-wishing, Rickster. Exam season is about the worst time to go through life without the use of one hand.
Safetyman, I wasn't trying to call you out either. I'm sorry too. When I say I didn't notice it before, it was because I never really fiddled with it when it was new. It could have been there the whole time. Who knows.

In any case, I have opened a correspondance with CRK, so I'll let you know what's going on as soon as the matter is settled to both our satisfactions.
 
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