Lock Stick Question - Your Experiences Welcome

TTTis

TTTis

Joined
Mar 8, 2010
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For those who have/had a sticky Sebenza brand new, please chime in.

Did it eventually wear in and not stick with use? Or did you send it in?

Gracias
 
21s and 25s should not stick.

Regulars 99% of the time have a slightly sticky lock.

If your 21 or 25 is sticky try cleaning the lockbar face and blade tang with iso propl alcohol or similar.

Did you buy it brand new from authorized dealer or second hand?
 
Steel_Addiction said:
21s and 25s should not stick.

Regulars 99% of the time have a slightly sticky lock.

If your 21 or 25 is sticky try cleaning the lockbar face and blade tang with iso propl alcohol or similar.

Did you buy it brand new from authorized dealer or second hand?
Click to expand...

Really? Why are the regulars a little sticky? Weren't the lock bar faces treated the same way as the 21's? Just curious as to why they're more prone to sticking.
 
From someone that has has had 20 regular sebenzas in large and small, I have never really noticed what many refer to as a sticky lock. To me, the regular does seem to have a stiffer lock and with the small scallops cut out, its a little harder to unlock, so maybe thats what people think. Not sure. For me, anytime my regulars feel like they are sticking, I look inside and see lots of pocket crud which says its time for a cleaning. After doing so, its super slick again, opening, locking, and unlocking. I have tried the pencil on the lockbar face, have tried graphite, and have noticed no difference. To me, its just always been the different ergo's that make it feel different is all, and what many consider a sticky lockbar. The 21 and original/P sebenzas I have owned are alot different as they have more of a cutout to grasp, so they seem to unlock easier. In the Original/P sebenzas/ Regulars I have had, the lockbars seem to be much stiffer. While the 21's I have had seem to me not so stiff and weaker. Perhaps thats just my perception, not sure as I am not a 21 fan because of the blade shape, so have sold all I have owned, even the tantos.

With the Sebenza 25 and the Umnumzaan, you should never have a sticky lockbar as the lockbar never touches the blade tang, only the small surface of the ceramic ball.

I personally feel the regular sebenza, and for me, the Large Regular Sebenza is the finest folding knife ever designed. I compare ALL other knives to it and none has come close. Sometimes, I will carry something else for a few days, but that large reg. is back into my pocket soon.

In the end, you cant go wrong with any sebenza, as they are all the finest folding knives money can buy.
 
My Umnumzaan is sticky if I flick it open quickly. I think it just needs to break in more (there is a groove being carved into the tang of the blade where the ceramic ball hits).
 
None of my 21's have had any feeling of "stickiness." However, my regulars have needed a slight bit more force to unlock--sometimes feeling a little "sticky." It has never presented itself as an issue to me though so I have no suggestions for correction.
 
I've never had a sticky CRK but when I got my 25 there must have been something on the ceramic ball detent b/c there was a little bit of hesitation before it would unlock. Almost like you would build up pressure and then it would move over. I cleaned it and put a little Nano Oil on the tang and wallah, smooth as a CRK should be:thumbup: Try cleaning as others have mentioned, if it's still there send her in.
 
dirt, pocket lint may make the lock seem sticky, just clean it and it goes smooth
had 1 sticky 21 I sold after a while, after 6 months use no change (so not a big fault)

my umnum has a groove where the ball sets on the tang, if flicked hard it sticks, if I open it normally it's fine (it's normal looking at the tang, ceramic is harder than steel)
 
Thanks for the responses.

Knife was purchased new, Large 21 (first large). Took it apart, doesn't look like any issues with the lockbar (flaking, etc.)

I've heard so much conflicting advice about whether to apply a little lube to the tang. I cleaned this sucker real good and tried it both ways, lube and no lube... both ways stick. Didn't seem to make a difference either way. Personally I've always put a little grease where the lockbar engages the tang. On the four smalls I've had, this never caused them to stick.

This is my first Large, none of the smalls I've had stick. I've actually never talked to someone who had a sticky Small. But have heard of people with sticky Large's.

Mad... thanks for letting me know on your other 21 that was sticky. I was curious if this would just wear in, but it doesn't seem like it will.

This one will probably just get sent in.
 
Did you give it a flick after putting it together? As the intructions from CRK describe?
This solves my problem with a sticky lock on my large regular.
Hope this helps.
 
madmath said:
Did you give it a flick after putting it together? As the intructions from CRK describe?
This solves my problem with a sticky lock on my large regular.
Hope this helps.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the suggestion. Unfortunately yes, just like always I give it two good flicks open to seat the lock. Unfortunately that didn't help.

It's all packaged up and it's going in! I'll see if they can fix it, if not I'll just live with it.
 
I'm sure they will take care of that for you. I have had several sebenzas and umnumzaans and I can tell you that is not normal for a Chris Reeve knife. They are usually smooth from the factory and break in to buttery smooth in a very short period of time.
 
Jensen81 said:
I'm sure they will take care of that for you. I have had several sebenzas and umnumzaans and I can tell you that is not normal for a Chris Reeve knife. They are usually smooth from the factory and break in to buttery smooth in a very short period of time.
Click to expand...

Yes definitely not the norm, I've never had one that was sticky. It was already buttery smooth, but just sticky.


Chris actually called yesterday after my knife was received. Had a nice conversation with him regarding a few of his philosophies. He explained what the issue was and how they will fix it. Stand up guy and a pleasure to talk with. How often do you get to talk to the owner about an issue regarding a product? He just reinforced why I only buy folders that are CRK's.
 
So... what was the issue? What did they do to fix it? My regular lefty is and always has been sticky. Going to break it down, clean and reassemble again today. Takes two hands to disengage the lock.
 
50mmnormal said:
So... what was the issue? What did they do to fix it? My regular lefty is and always has been sticky. Going to break it down, clean and reassemble again today. Takes two hands to disengage the lock.
Click to expand...

It might help to polish the titanium lockface a little with a dremel polishing pad. Besides the first flick did it help my large lefty regular lock stickiness.
It also made it easier to disengage the lock when pushed in further because of harder use and gripping of te knifehandle.
Some might say don't do it. I don't think however that a little polishing will void the warranty.

"Do this at your own risk, any warranty voiding is not my intent, neither is a bad advice."

Math.
 
I squirted a drop of Nano 10w on the lock face - it bonds with the metal - and now it is smooth as silk. YMMV
 
50mmnormal said:
So... what was the issue? What did they do to fix it? My regular lefty is and always has been sticky. Going to break it down, clean and reassemble again today. Takes two hands to disengage the lock.
Click to expand...

It was at the beginning of a long convo, we discussed a lot. So I won't pretend to remember everything that was said or exact terms he used. But I believe a little bit of the lockbar needed to be radius-ed off, then he will re-heat treat and re-blast the lockbar. If it's sticking bad, I'd just bite the bullet and send it in. I can't speak for the Regular, but Chris made it sound like an easy fix for the 21.
 
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