life expectancy of washers (Brass, Teflon, …)

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kreisler

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Have you ever renewed/replaced the brass washers on your folder? Do brass washers really wear out over time, so when would you know that it's time to replace them with fresh ones?

I am not super concerned, just wondering. AX dealers sell a 10-pack for $9 shipped, and i am wondering why. (Is that a good price btw? Seems kinda pricey for a replacement part you'll never install because the original brass washers don't show wear or degradation)

o_O
 
Never had to replace brass or Teflon washers. I suspect most haven't had to either. We're more likely to lose a part during disassembly than wear one out.
 
Most knives that I've seen use Phosphor bronze washers which are more wear resistant that pure brass washers. I would think that if a knife develops side to side play and it didn't have it before, it would be time to replace the washers. I've got a couple of CRK users that are 10 to 12 years old and still have the original washers.
Most bulk products are more expensive in small quantities.
 
Don't get them until you need them. Else your just wasting the money. They don't wear out for a very long while. Most likely just get some for free via the manufacturer if there was a need. Plus they are not all equal in size and dimensions and will likely need different sizes for different knives.

Teflon.. You could probably get better Teflon from knife making stores that will last longer than what come in most Chinese made knives.
 
I would love to see a custom pb washer maker. It would be awesome to specify diameter of washer, diameter of pivot hole and thickness.
 
Bob6794 said:
I'm not even sure I want to know the prices of going custom washers route.
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What like 15$ tops? Think of all the knives that could be fixed with properly fitting washers. You could fix lots of bladeplay issues.

Hell they could even sell washers prepolished on one side.
 
Thanks guys for your contributions.
Excessive polishing attempts :poop: could lead to side to side blade play, so that's one reason to source fresh ones I guess. :rolleyes:
I won't bother buying now but i'll keep an eye on AliX anniversary or holiday sales, they have plenty of coupons for New Customers. I'd ask the knife company only if i had actually worn down the washer in the knife … which seems unlikely at this early point.

Btw which other materials do knife makers use? Pb, Cu, Al, stainless steel, bronze, titanium, gold? ;) Or which physical or chemical property makes brass the preferred choice in production knives? Just curious. Chinese brass will be good enough for my Spyderco :p
 
kreisler said:
Thanks guys for your contributions.
Excessive polishing attempts :poop: could lead to side to side blade play, so that's one reason to source fresh ones I guess. :rolleyes:
I won't bother buying now but i'll keep an eye on AliX anniversary or holiday sales, they have plenty of coupons for New Customers. I'd ask the knife company only if i had actually worn down the washer in the knife … which seems unlikely at this early point.

Btw which other materials do knife makers use? Pb, Cu, Al, stainless steel, bronze, titanium, gold? ;) Or which physical or chemical property makes brass the preferred choice in production knives? Just curious. Chinese brass will be good enough for my Spyderco :p
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Probably avoid aliexpress all together.

Ask spyderco for washers
 
Why would washer wear lead to side-to-side play, other than on a Sebanza, when you would just tighten the pivot?
 
Lapedog said:
What like 15$ tops? Think of all the knives that could be fixed with properly fitting washers. You could fix lots of bladeplay issues.

Hell they could even sell washers prepolished on one side.
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None I don't worry about minor blade play I just use them. And I never had a knife with major blade play that wasnt gas station quality and any in use anymore.
 
geman webshop terms
< -lag- : Beilagscheibe, Unterlagscheibe, Unterlagsscheibe, Lagerscheibe; -leg- : Unterlegscheibe, Unterlegring; Gleit- : Gleitring, Gleitscheibe; Dichtungs- : Dichtungsring, Dichtungsscheibe, Dichtring; Distanz- : Distanzring, Distanzscheibe, Abstandsscheibe; Zwischenscheibe; Nutscheibe; Anlaufscheibe; Passscheibe; Stützscheibe; Karosseriescheibe >

I am planning to replace a ball bearing with a washer. There is nothing wrong with the 478 steel ball bearing on the knife, i just want to experiment and experience the practical option of switching from ball bearing to washer. I took measurements from the blade pivot area and what i'd need is a washer (spacer?) with 1.00mm or even 1.60mm thickness (the thickness of the ball bearing is 1.59mm), wow that's massive :eek:. Material should be phosphor bronze (Phosphorbronze) because that's the common material of choice on premium knives. However no shop sells PB washers that thick! After the ongoing xmas holiday season I'd be lucky to find a webshop selling such sized washers in brass. What i am saying is that the market availability of brass spacers is afaik higher than of PB washers. DIY cutting out a custom washer from a Fechtner 16EUR commercial 1.00mm-thick rectangular sheet of phosphor bronze (1.00mm sheets are the thickest jane doe can get) is out of the question, that'd be a job for a pro (water jet, laser jet, quantum gravity jet) and i shouldn't be considering custom ordering 50000pcs MOQ:p from Alibaba either, especially since i don't know if the swap would be satisfactory and which thickness i should choose (1.00 or 1.60??). I'll do more research and maybe find a source of brass and teflon for either thickness.

Did anyone ever try to substitute a washer for a ball bearing?

What is your actual experience with brass washers instead of PB?
 
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My understanding of bearing Bronze is that it is formed by sintering and that it is slightly porous so as to be able to retain lubricants.
 
My understanding of bearing Bronze is that it is formed by sintering and that it is slightly porous so as to be able to retain lubricants. Does anyone know how to delete duplicate posts that show up in triplicate after not showing up at all?
 
My understanding of bearing Bronze is that it is formed by sintering and that it is slightly porous so as to be able to retain lubricants.
 
My understanding of bearing Bronze is that it is formed by sintering and that it is slightly porous so as to be able to retain lubricants.
 
kreisler said:
and i shouldn't be considering custom ordering 50000pcs MOQ:p from Alibaba either, especially since i don't know if the swap would be satisfactory and which thickness i should choose (1.00 or 1.60??). I'll do more research and maybe find a source of brass and teflon for either thickness.

Did anyone ever try to substitute a washer for a ball bearing?
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i found a 'local' specialized retailer of washers which offers 19 material variants of {steel, stainless steel, aluminum, copper, polyamid, brass, teflon}. unfortunately, no bronze and no phosphor bronze. at MOQ1, brass costs 0.12€/pc, teflon 1.02€/pc :eek:. since the prices are so low, i'll buy and test spares of brass and teflon. in the linked video the hinderer man used double washers per side (teflon + stainless steel, or teflon + phosphor bronze), so I am feeling hopeful that my planned teflon substitution will work fine on my Heinnie knife too; no need to substitute a 1mm phosphor bronze washer for the ball bearing, me thinks.

btw seems like standard-sized washers (standardized thru DIN 125 Form A) do NOT exist in phosphor bronze nor bronze in our country, and it is also rare to see offers in teflon. if a knifemaker here wanted 50000pcs of PB washers in standardized dimensions or any other dimensions, he'd have to have them manufactured on custom order at high cost from a specialized geman company-factory which accepts such orders AND offers PB material; rectangular sheets of PB material are widely available at craft stores but no geman company makes standardized washers out of them. or he'd simply have them manufactured on custom order from Alibaba in de china. fortunately, from what i can tell, all i'd need is a standard-sized washer, so for our purpose i'll be experimenting with {brass, teflon} from the 7 materials which are readily available in our country.
 
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