Mini Griptilian - Looseness and Axis Lock Issues

[tateu]

So far, I'm not overly happy with my new Benchmade Mini Griptilian 556, plain edge, satin finish, black handle. I've been out of the knife game for awhile and this is my first new knife in a long time. I'm not overly fond of loose parts and I seem to be having some issues with mine.

Should there be any wobble in the axis lock slider? If I put my fingers on either side of it, open or closed, I can wobble the axis slider bar slightly back and forth, one side up toward the tip of the blade and the other side down to the opposite end of the blade. The blade locks up tight with no movement up/down or side to side, though, and if I shake the knife I don't here any rattling sounds.

Sometimes when I flick open the blade, the axis lock sticks and is slightly harder to disengage. Is this normal?

How loose should the pivot screw be? If it is loose enough for the blade to flick open all the way with the thumb stud or axis lock, then it is loose enough for me to turn the screw just by putting pressure on it with my thumb and it seems to loosen up on its own the more I open and close the blade. I can also pretty easily flick open the blade to atleast 75% open (and sometimes 100%) without using the thumb slider or the axis lock (I found this out just by shaking the knife to check for rattling noises from the wobbly axis lock). This seems a little too loose to me. Most of the reviews I have seen on the internet say the open and close is buttery smooth and lots of videos show the blade falling with gravity from the open position when the axis lock is disengaged. Mine does not do that, the blade stays fully open. This is not a problem, it is just different than what I have seen and I am wondering what is normal. I'd like to be able to easily flick the blade open and closed with the thumb stud and/or axis lock disengaged and not worry about the pivot screw coming loose and also not have to worry about the blade flicking open accidentally. I know you can put loctite on the pivot screw but I don't want to even try that until I decided whether I am keeping the knife or not. And doesn't something like that void the warranty?

Even with the pivot screw super loose so the blade will fall from open due to gravity when the axis lock is disengaged, I can still feel some friction against the inside of the knife when I manually open and close the blade. The blade seems close to centered but not perfect by any means, I'm not sure if this causes the friction.

Should there be any clicking noises coming from the springs? If I slowly open the blade manually, I can here a slight click of the springs as the blade gets just past the point where the spring tries to keep the blade closed.

I'm wondering if my expectations are out of line. Am I being too picky/critical? Are they all like this or did I get a defective one? If this is just the way they are, I may end up returning it.

Thoughts or suggestions? Thanks.

 

[FlaMtnBkr]

Nothing sounds too out of line. There is nothing to keep the lock bar from moving around. The lock has to slide back and forth so movement is to be expected. The lock is meant to be pulled back from both sides. Are you trying to pull back just one side?

The blade pivot tension can be hard to find the sweet spot and just a few degrees can greatly effect the way it feels. And since different people like their blade to feel a certain way, it can't come where it makes everyone happy and probably needs to be tweaked a little. Pulling the pivot screw isn't really disassembling the knife and I personally like Teflon tape better than loc tite. No need to dry and you can adjust the screw without breaking the bond and needing to reapply the liquid. It also isn't messy and can be easily cleaned up.

I have had a few AXIS lock that aren't super smooth and need a little break in time like many other lock types. They have all smoothed out with some time and use. If it feels rough even when pivot is loose you may want to try cleaning it. I get some warm to hot water running and put liquid soap in the pivot and open and close the blade as well as working the lock. Then do the same under running hot water to flush everything out. Once cleaned up a bit, I shake as much water out as I can. The hot water will also speed up the evaporation and this process will clean my folders 99% of the time even when the folder has been used to clean animals and has dried blood and fat if a toothpick and Q tip are incorporated.

The noise from the springs is not something I have heard and I have lots of AXIS lock knives. Could it possibly have to do with the detent and where the lock moves when the spring tension decreases? I would say you are being a little bit picky, but without seeing it, it is hard to tell. I would say give it a couple days and cycle it open and closed a bunch to see if it gets better. Good luck!

So far, I'm not overly happy with my new Benchmade Mini Griptilian 556, plain edge, satin finish, black handle. I've been out of the knife game for awhile and this is my first new knife in a long time. I'm not overly fond of loose parts and I seem to be having some issues with mine.

Should there be any wobble in the axis lock slider? If I put my fingers on either side of it, open or closed, I can wobble the axis slider bar slightly back and forth, one side up toward the tip of the blade and the other side down to the opposite end of the blade. The blade locks up tight with no movement up/down or side to side, though, and if I shake the knife I don't here any rattling sounds.

Sometimes when I flick open the blade, the axis lock sticks and is slightly harder to disengage. Is this normal?

How loose should the pivot screw be? If it is loose enough for the blade to flick open all the way with the thumb stud or axis lock, then it is loose enough for me to turn the screw just by putting pressure on it with my thumb and it seems to loosen up on its own the more I open and close the blade. I can also pretty easily flick open the blade to atleast 75% open (and sometimes 100%) without using the thumb slider or the axis lock (I found this out just by shaking the knife to check for rattling noises from the wobbly axis lock). This seems a little too loose to me. Most of the reviews I have seen on the internet say the open and close is buttery smooth and lots of videos show the blade falling with gravity from the open position when the axis lock is disengaged. Mine does not do that, the blade stays fully open. This is not a problem, it is just different than what I have seen and I am wondering what is normal. I'd like to be able to easily flick the blade open and closed with the thumb stud and/or axis lock disengaged and not worry about the pivot screw coming loose and also not have to worry about the blade flicking open accidentally. I know you can put loctite on the pivot screw but I don't want to even try that until I decided whether I am keeping the knife or not. And doesn't something like that void the warranty?

Even with the pivot screw super loose so the blade will fall from open due to gravity when the axis lock is disengaged, I can still feel some friction against the inside of the knife when I manually open and close the blade. The blade seems close to centered but not perfect by any means, I'm not sure if this causes the friction.

Should there be any clicking noises coming from the springs? If I slowly open the blade manually, I can here a slight click of the springs as the blade gets just past the point where the spring tries to keep the blade closed.

I'm wondering if my expectations are out of line. Am I being too picky/critical? Are they all like this or did I get a defective one? If this is just the way they are, I may end up returning it.

Thoughts or suggestions? Thanks.

 

[Yo Mama]

Some wiggle is completely normal.

Don't flick a knife, it's not good for it, but the sticky feeling you have is also normal and will go away after a few thousand cycles. Using the axis bar, you can gently open to avoid feeling the sticky.

Pivot just needs to have some locktight applied, blue NOT RED. This is more than likely the cause of your action not being smooth.

Clicky sound is odd. This is what I'd have looked into, send into Benchmade they will look it over. Look at it on the bright side, while it's sent to Benchmade, you can have them engrave it for cheap.