Is it normal for a GEC knife to be IMPOSSIBLE to open by hand?

scotchleaf

scotchleaf

Joined
Oct 23, 2006
Messages
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I have a gorgeous Northfield Burnt Stag Drop Point Scout Linerlock. Love it, EXCEPT, that it is all but useless - I literally cannot open it with my nails - I have to find a coin or something. Any fix for this?
 
Flush the pivot joint with oil or WD- 40 cycle the blade open and closed. Continue flushing until oil is clear. This will help some, but they are known for their strong pull.
 
This is a known issue as phillll said. If you get it open...be careful closing it. IMO it's a good idea for a traditional but one of the worst GEC knives around. I love the company and have a bunch of there knives and have had liner locks.

Oiled and left them open at 3/4 open to expand the spacers...not much help. I sold one and destroyed the other as I consider it a dangerous knife to anyone but an expert.

Mike
 
I love extra hard pulls (8+) but if it's not your thing, oil it and leave it half open for a bit and see if that helps. If not, you can send it to me for disposal😅:D lol

Ryan
 
556hunter said:
I love extra hard pulls (8+) but if it's not your thing, oil it and leave it half open for a bit and see if that helps. If not, you can send it to me for disposal[emoji28]:D lol

Ryan
Click to expand...

Hey Ryan you may have a whole new service to provide. I should have sent you mine. [emoji14]
 
I have been fortunate to get solid snap but no nailbreakers from GEC! The advice above is great, I have used it successfully on other knives that had overly stiff springs.
 
I have a G.E.C. Northfield Viper with stag scales that was hard for me to open.
I put a little sewing machine oil on the joint and exersized it and then let it sit in the
1/4 and 3/4 position for a few days. It is now one of my favorite knives to carry.
Sometimes it might also be finding the right place to put Your fingers on
the blade at the same time as You use the nail nick to open it.
 
Had a gorgous 2011 73 longpull and tried for 20 mins to get it open. Never could so I sent it back to the dealer.
 
Not sure if this would work on the models being discussed, but I had a very similar problem with a custom slip-joint...not wanting it to just sit in the drawer given the expense, I had a local knife guru (for lack of a better term) address the issue. What he decided on has worked beautifully and saved a knife from eternal "drawer-dom"! He attached a piece of g-10 to the back spring just under "the kick" on the tang, thus lifting the blade above its usual position and allowing it to be pinched open. Now, of course, there are a few issues with this "fix" - the back spring now sits a bit "proud" and the g10 could come off if I allow that blade to slam shut too often I suppose, but so far, after months of normal use, it's worked perfectly. :thumbup:
 
Both my 73's were extremely hard to open, even after working them and working them, leaving half open for days, etc. I finally took a file and beveled the corners a little on the square edges that ride on the spring (sorry I don't know exactly what they are called) and that eased them to where I can safely open and close them. They are still pretty stiff, but now at least useable. My 82 Dixie Stockman, though, has a perfect pull on all three blades.

Maybe they've gotten better at making them. The 73's are 2006 and 2007 production; the 82 is fairly recent.
 
I've heard the early GEC knives were real nail breakers.

Never have come across one myself, except for a the 25.
 
scotchleaf said:
I have a gorgeous Northfield Burnt Stag Drop Point Scout Linerlock. Love it, EXCEPT, that it is all but useless - I literally cannot open it with my nails - I have to find a coin or something. Any fix for this?
Click to expand...

You can send it in but if you can't bear to wait 2-6 weeks for it I've had very good luck sticking a metal rod between the spring and tang and forcing the spring a bit beyond its normal passage. I've turned literally impossible knives into smooth and easy users this way. Be careful not to overdo it though or you'll break the spring or end up with an overly weak spring.
 
Then again you could consider carving an easy open notch as I had done to a Northwoods Forest Jack:

 
The worst I've had was a Forest Jack as well. I have strong hands and touch thick nails and it gave me fits. I suggest putting a bit of wire between the tang and back spring as mentioned above. Leave it opened with the spring proud for a few days and it should settle in.
 
There there was this one! :eek: Returned it to the dealer.



If you choose to return the knife, be aware that it could take a while before you get it back. Based on very recent experience, I understand that Bill Howard handles any returns himself, and since he's busy, you could be waiting six months.
 
Lemmy's trick is the only thing that has worked for me, and it's worked well on three knives. But do start with a quite narrow wedge.
 
Here is a quick sketch I made comparing the backspring pin location on a #15 and a #73. As you can see the "X" dimension is greater than the "Y" dimension on the #15 which equates to a longer backspring, ie, more leverage for the blade and a softer pull.

fish%20bone-Model_zpsomjvniwr.jpg
 
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