Lock reliability, be carefull!

Nice reminder jackknife.

All too often the brand of knife is the focus of failures.It soon turns into a urination match of brand X is better than brand Y.

The main point is to respect the limitations of a folding knife, don't expect it to become a fixed blade once it is locked open.
 
This is an excellent topic. I have cut myself more times than I care to think about. Most were when I was careless and did not concentrate fully on what I was doing at the time. i consider myself to be very fortunate to need medical help only one time. The one time I needed stitches happened with a large hatchet and splitting a piece of wood. I thought my finger was out of the way but it was not. 9 stitches. This also made me realized I never want to get in a knife fight!
Back to locks. I think we have seen a lot of hype/claims/hyperbole about locks. I remember when the liner lock hit the market it was said to be the strongest lock made. I believed it until the last few years and after studying and reading and seeing what was said on the forums have changed my mind. I have all types of locking knives but now I trust the Axis lock and the lockback especially Spyderco lockbacks. Right now my favorite knife Is a Spyderco UK Penknife which does not lock. After using this amazing knife I am not sure I need a lock. I have used a lot of slip joints knives over the years. I now realized I have been too trusting in locks on knives and treat them accordingly. Sorry about my rambling.

RKH
 
Like I have said before every single liner lock knife I rec. and every frame lock I rec. I spine whack it hard out at the tip to test lock integrity. Lots of people don't agree with this method but I do it on every single one. If it fails it goes back to the dealer to make it right. Also any movement of the lock should be towards the right hand side or deepest part of the lock, it shouldn't let go or move towards the unlocking side. Just my 2 cents. keepem sharp
 
longbow said:
I spine whack it hard out at the tip to test lock integrity.
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The question is how hard is hard. Too hard and you damage the integrity of the lock. This is not the manufacturers responsibility to fix. I have had many kinives come to me that had been "beat to death" by some person beating on the lock hard. Kinda like crashing your new car into a wall and sending it back to the manufacturer to fix the font end.

sal
 
I had never heard of the spine wack until I was at a gun/knife show a few years back and a knife dealer demonstrated the spine wack. I was quite impressed but not enough to try it on a knife I put my hard earned money in. I know the weakest link with a liner lock is with a twisting motion. And no play is important in any lock. The most practical way is by pushing on the back the blade with one hand and holding the handle with the other much as if you were closing the blade. But keeping your finger out of the path of the edge of the blade. I had tried this in a mild way over the years in a less forceful way. And I then read this method by STR a couple years ago and this made me feel more confidant that a knowledgely knifemaker like STR recommended this method it must be a good test. STR also said the spine wack can damage the locking mechanism which makes sense to me. This forums has really increased my knowledge by the way. Thanks to all.

RKH
 
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Thanks for the reminder. Safety first! I pride myself on my 'safe' knife & gun handling habits....then I catch myself doing something dumb....
 
topspeclt said:
WHAT WAS THE MAKER OF THE FOLDER!!!?!?!?!

PLEASE TELL US!

Oh, and I DO get the message which is why I've never had a folder fail on me.

TBH, I'm using fixed blades and a SAK nowadays [that way you know you have to be careful because of the slipjoint].

The only folder I trust the most is the ZT0200.

Please TELL US the maker of the folder!!
Please TELL US the maker of the folder!!
Please TELL US the maker of the folder!!
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Okay, okay, okay already!

It was a ________________________(insert your personal favorite brand here). That's right, it was the one you love and trust the most. The one you believe in your heart of hearts that is the best in the whole world. The one you are most certain will never fail. That is the one you are most likely to manage to defeat the lock and hurt yourself with.

Never trust a mechanical safety.
 
I don't know, I think it is pertinent info to know. I have a few different folders, some I trust more than others if push comes to shove. But then you'd need the ENTIRE story.
In the end, some dude cute himself. Instead of "folders are dangerous if your being a tool" how about, "knives are dangerous if you are being a tool". Equally handy information to know! :D
 
I like the liner lock for easy one hand operation, and lock back for reliability. My only axis lock is so nice I would never put it through hard tasks. Maybe I need another, less impressive axis lock. I have never had any fail, though. But then, I am usually pretty careful.
 
Sorry Dekz. I meant my hard earned money. Try to be precise and miss something.

RKH
 
I always handle any folder like it was a slippie. I learned the hard way when I was younger. I was gouging a hole in a piece of wood by sticking the point of my knife (Buck Stockman, mid 60s vintage) in the wood and twisting it. Nice cut accross my right index finger btween the first and second knuckle. No stitches, but gave me a healthy respect for knives and sharp blades. I still have a scar to remind me. I was probably 10 or 11 at the time.

I have both slippies and locking knives that go into the EDC rotation.

Ric
 
The bottom line.. Be careful. If you are cutting with excessive force, even a fixed blade can be dangerous. I feel bad for the kid and hope he heals well.
 
It is for this reason that I always recommend a slipjoint as a first knife.

Learn to cut safely with a slipjoint and even if a lock fails, you will not cut yourself because you will not be depending on the lock to be safe.

And to those of you promoting spine whack tests. Read Sal Glessar's post. That is THE Sal Glessar, of Spyderco. Listen to him and learn.
 
Haze said:
You cant say all that and not tell us what knife it was :rolleyes:
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I think it's better that this thread be about all knife safety rather than turn into a flame war over a particular model/brand.

In all honesty, you know such would be the result if a popular brand were actually named. The thread would be derailed into a very different animal.

I agree with the post just above... Carry an SAK or a slipjoint for a while. You'll gain an appreciation for using a knife, any knife, the proper way.

Phydeaux said:
I always handle any folder like it was a slippie.
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Better advice couldn't be given regarding folding knives. :thumbup:
 
Thanks for the heads up jackknife! Good advice to be sure, and I don't feel that I need to know what type of knife or lock it is. Thanks for respecting that part of his story, it would just start a flame war. For what it's worth, I treat EVERY folder as though it was a slipjoint. If I need to use force, I get a fixed blade. While I appreciate manufacturers making stronger and stronger locks, I try very hard to never need to use the lock.
 
Good advice :thumbup:

Just the other day I foolishly left my folder open on my desk and as I reached over to grab my lansky I hit the table with my knee and the knife fell and put a nice cut in my toe :eek:

Lesson learned :o
 
OK, I'll say some names and you reply with "warmer" or "colder":D



Kidding, just be careful and remember it's a knife you're playing with, not silly putty. I guess it doesn't really matter who made it unless every one of them has failed. I think it's just a knife enthusiast's nature to want to know which brand failed and why, not necessarily to bad mouth the maker although I'm pretty sure some people would turn it into that. I'm sure you're driving an engineer or two crazy right about now.
 
Thanks for the story/advice jackknife. I know at least from time to time I take my knife lock for granted. It helps me to carry a slipjoint along with a locking folder sometimes just to keep it on my mind.

What's kinda funny is I think slipjoints are safer knives across the board. Most of the time my primary carry is a Spyderco UK Pen Knife and also a Case medium stockman (both slipjoints). :)

I also do NOT need to know the brand. I'm glad you didn't say it or it would be a thread dedicated to flaming that brand.

Thanks buddy! :thumbup:
 
Guyon said:
You'll gain an appreciation for using a knife, any knife, the proper way.

Better advice couldn't be given regarding folding knives. :thumbup:
Click to expand...

Agreed entirely...using a slippy for a few days will remind you how much you blindly trust your typical locking knife.
 
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