Loose screws on BM AFCK

J

joh

Joined
Nov 18, 1998
Messages
144
The blade pivot screw on my AFCK keeps working loose, can anyone suggest a way of locking the screw. I have thought of Loc-tite but still want to be able to adjust it later as I suppose there will be wear over time, and I am concerned that the loctite may be too strong. I am also having the same problem with the screws on the clip of my Ascent.
Is this a problem common with Benchmade knives?
Love this forum, my knowledge of sharp things is increasing in leaps and bounds, and the friendly atmosphere is really refreshing.
 
I have been using red loctite on just about everything, and i havent had any problems of it holding too good, but I do not degrease the threads, just wipe any excess oil/grease. The hardened loctite offers enough resistance to keep the screws from jiggling loose. Your Milage May Vary. I have used it on pivot screws, and tiny allen heads, and I have yet to strip any of them.

YeK

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"No, it's a Vaquero Grande in my pocket, but I am happy to see you!"
yekimak@hotmail.com




 
I would not use red Loctite (Loctite #271). I use blue Loctite (Loctite #242) with no problems. The red Loctite is supposed to "hold" about 2 and a half times more than the blue.

Just use a little bit. I dab it on with the tip of a needle or straightened paper clip.

Bernie

 
What a bunch of pansies!! BM uses the dreaded green Loc-Tite on their knives, especially the BM330 (Mel Pardue Gent's knife).

Actually, I think that blue Loc-Tite (either 222 or 242) will serve your purpose admirably. If the screws still loosen, try the red. If this doesn't work, make sure you are degreasing the parts before reassembly.

Don't use the green. It is designed to be applied to fasteners which are tightened already. The stuff seeps down into the threaded area, and unless you know the trick, the fastener will probably not come off again.

The trick? Touch a heated soldering iron tip to the screw for a second or two. This heats the screw, and softens the Loc-Tite. Be careful, however, as heating too much can obviously melt the plastic parts of the knife. Hope this helps. Walt
 
Drill a hole through the tension screw and put a short piece of nylon (weed whacker) wire in it. The screw will not loosen by itself after that. You can still easily change the tension anytime.
I first saw this trick 5 years ago on a belt clip of a photo battery pack. Last year Blade magazine did a tech piece on a custom maker who uses this trick. I think it was the issue with the MOD Ladyhawk on the cover.
Anyone who wants to try this should ruin a few practice screws first before going at the original screw. An #8-32 x 1/4" panhead machine screws is the size to use for an AFCK.
I don't know if modifying the tension screw will void the BM warranty or not, but that might be something to consider before drilling if it matters to you.

Chi
 
I managed to get hold of some blue loctite and put a drop of that on the thread. So far it's been 2 days and seems to be holding tight so hopefully that's fixed it.
Thanks for the advice, it is much appreciated.

John Smith
johana@cairns.net.au
 
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