My First Leek...A Few Questions

[Vivi]

Just received my first Leek today. I had a few questions.

1. Are the thumbstuds easy to remove? I was considering reprofiling it flat to the stone and it looked like they could get in the way of this.

2. AO has been sluggish. I need to give it a fast, hard push on the flipper, otherwise sometimes it won't open. Does it just need broken in, or should I lube it? If the latter, is mineral oil alright?

3. I clean my folders by running them under a faucet, then wiping off and tapping out the excess water and letting them air dry from there. Think I'd get any problems with the Leek or Speedsafe internals by doing this?

4. I have the linerlock version with black and white smoky scales. It says Snap On on the scales with the Kershaw logo as well. I was wondering what type of material the scales are and whether the text printed on the scales would be easy to sand off with high grit sandpaper without scuffing up the scales much.

I think that's everything. Aside from feeling like it needs a break in and the (for my standards) obtuse cutting edge, I really like the knife. I took off the clip, carrying the light and thin profile in a front pocket. I like wharncliffe blades, and find myself really liking this slightly curved bladeshape. Very solid lock-up too. I'm not a big fan of liner locks, I generally avoid them, but I see this one growing on me.

 

[coop1957]

3. I clean my folders by running them under a faucet, then wiping off and tapping out the excess water and letting them air dry from there. Think I'd get any problems with the Leek or Speedsafe internals by doing this?

You should have no problems with this method of cleaning. I have a Leek and a Scallion and use tap water to clean both. I always use an good lube afterwards like Militec.

 

[nygiantsfan3342]

Just received my first Leek today. I had a few questions.

1. Are the thumbstuds easy to remove? I was considering reprofiling it flat to the stone and it looked like they could get in the way of this.

2. AO has been sluggish. I need to give it a fast, hard push on the flipper, otherwise sometimes it won't open. Does it just need broken in, or should I lube it? If the latter, is mineral oil alright?

3. I clean my folders by running them under a faucet, then wiping off and tapping out the excess water and letting them air dry from there. Think I'd get any problems with the Leek or Speedsafe internals by doing this?

4. I have the linerlock version with black and white smoky scales. It says Snap On on the scales with the Kershaw logo as well. I was wondering what type of material the scales are and whether the text printed on the scales would be easy to sand off with high grit sandpaper without scuffing up the scales much.

1. Thumbstuds keep the knife from opening too far. They are the blade stop. Do not remove the thumbstuds.

2. The knife just needs breaking in, unless it is hard to close as well. You could try backing off the pivot screw just a tiny bit, but if you go too far, the blade will be off-center when closed, and could wiggle when open. Try breaking it in first. Open/Close it a few hundred times!

3. Avoid washing with soap, so you don't wash away the lube on the washers. Cold water should be fine, as long as you don't leave the blade wet.

4. The material is anodized aluminum with 410 stainless steel liner. If you scratch off the "Snap-On", you might damage the finish too.


Congrats on your first Leek! Its my favorite design!

 

[Vivi]

Thanks for the response.

The AO has broken in more since I posted this. I think part of the problem was me not pushing the flipper as hard as I should. It helps to give it a nice, quick push.

I forgot about the thumbstud being a bladestop. I might just round off the shoulders and thin out the edge once it needs sharpening. I'd like to hear from others who have reprofiled their leeks.

I don't use soap when I clean my knives, so that won't be an issue. I'll probably just leave the scales as is, but I might be tempted to take some 1200 grit sandpaper to them someday. If I ever do, I'll post the results.

I've been liking the knife so far. I just got my Groove today though, and I think I like that knife a little better. Kind of stole the spotlight from the Leek for me.

 

[johnguy7]

congrats on your first leek!
my random leek hasn't left my back pocket since the day i bought it. in 2004.
definetley perfect for EDC, especially since it has a S30V blade.

 

[wwells20]

Thanks for the response.

The AO has broken in more since I posted this. I think part of the problem was me not pushing the flipper as hard as I should. It helps to give it a nice, quick push.

I forgot about the thumbstud being a bladestop. I might just round off the shoulders and thin out the edge once it needs sharpening. I'd like to hear from others who have reprofiled their leeks.

I don't use soap when I clean my knives, so that won't be an issue. I'll probably just leave the scales as is, but I might be tempted to take some 1200 grit sandpaper to them someday. If I ever do, I'll post the results.

I've been liking the knife so far. I just got my Groove today though, and I think I like that knife a little better. Kind of stole the spotlight from the Leek for me.

The thumbstud is pressed in and can be knocked out, reprofile blade, replace stud.

 

[riffraff]

Speaking of Leeks...anyone know what the factory blade angle is?

 

[krazichinaman]

Just play with the knife for a while. My friend just bought a leek and it seemed slow out of the box. After a week, its much faster than it was before.

 

[ronhga]

I just picked one up yesterday and it was sluggish for a bit but there was some adhesive from the price tag still left on the blade just under the thumb studs. I took it home, ashed of the glue and put a drop of oil don in the pivot and it opens f-a-s-t now. This is my first Kershaw and I must say that I am impressed. Very solid build, much more so than I had expected from a big market knife. The quality/price ratio is impressive. I can't wait till my ZDP Mini Cyclone comes in this week.

 

[Vivi]

Any tips on removing the thumstud? I was going to try and reprofile tonight but I had trouble getting it out. I'm trying to avoid excessive force so as to not damage the thumstud so much that I can't push it back into the blade.

 

[rottwang]

I'm sure others have addressed these issues in greter detail than i but i wanted to weigh in.

Just received my first Leek today. I had a few questions.

1. Are the thumbstuds easy to remove? I was considering reprofiling it flat to the stone and it looked like they could get in the way of this.

Well the thumbstuds act as the stop pin so i would leave them well alone. also you really want to reprofile the leek? isn't it skinny enough?

2. AO has been sluggish. I need to give it a fast, hard push on the flipper, otherwise sometimes it won't open. Does it just need broken in, or should I lube it? If the latter, is mineral oil alright?

I have had three and they have all snapped open quickly. Make sure the pivot screw is not too tight. I use Pennzoil (taa-da!) for lubrication.

3. I clean my folders by running them under a faucet, then wiping off and tapping out the excess water and letting them air dry from there. Think I'd get any problems with the Leek or Speedsafe internals by doing this?

AIEEE!!!! ...... Rust? I don't know about everyone's experiences with 'stainless' steel, but I try to keep water out of the internals of my folding knives. I would open the knife and dry it by hand if i got it wet. The leek will probably trap some of the water and the internal components (torsion bar, plate to hold it in place) might corrode.

4. I have the linerlock version with black and white smoky scales. It says Snap On on the scales with the Kershaw logo as well. I was wondering what type of material the scales are and whether the text printed on the scales would be easy to sand off with high grit sandpaper without scuffing up the scales much.

Scales are probably aluminum. I started with 200 and went up to 600 for my pocket clips. Dremel tool might be less work!!

I think that's everything. Aside from feeling like it needs a break in and the (for my standards) obtuse cutting edge, I really like the knife. I took off the clip, carrying the light and thin profile in a front pocket. I like wharncliffe blades, and find myself really liking this slightly curved bladeshape. Very solid lock-up too. I'm not a big fan of liner locks, I generally avoid them, but I see this one growing on me.

Obtuse edge? really the leek is one of the thinnest blades i have next to maybe the opinel and swiss army knife. I sharpen mine at 17°, strop it on cardboard. it can push cut paper, & shave my arms.

 

[Vivi]

The blade is sharp enough to shave and the profile is very thin (Something I'm fond of), but the actual cutting edge is incoherant with the rest of the knife blade in my opinion. I think the edge is ground far too obtuse to let the entire blade geometry really shine. Opinels are thin and great cutters, but if you sharpen it like you would a splitting maul you'll feel the benefits of the thin blade far less than if you sharpen it at a more extreme angle. The factory edge on Leeks is just too obtuse as it is. It takes a lot more effort to cut through cardboard boxes than it does with fixed blades I have that are over twice as thick at the spine because of it's sharpening angle. It's something I really want to fix, because I like the rest of the knife a lot.

 

[nygiantsfan3342]

It takes a lot more effort to cut through cardboard boxes than it does with fixed blades I have that are over twice as thick at the spine because of it's sharpening angle. It's something I really want to fix, because I like the rest of the knife a lot.

I know you are comparing angles, but it's not fair to compare a leek with a fixed blade. Especially cutting cardboard.

 

[Vivi]

I don't really see why not. I'm not comparing strength, just cutting efficiency. This problem isn't specific to the Leek, or even Kershaw. Most every knife I buy is, in my opinion, ground too obtuse to take advantadge of the blade geometry. Some examples are Byrd Cara Cara's and Spyderco Enduras, Kershaw's Groove and Bump, Victorinox SAKs, Buck Hartsook Neck Knives and 110's, CRKT M18 series and Tupperware kitchen knives. The only production knife I can think of off the top of my head that was ground at an acceptable angle to me was the Kabar TDI (Which surprised me).

This is a tiresome issue because many of the knives I listed have absolutely fantastic designs. The Bump for example is one of the most ergonomic knives I've held and the blade shape is incredibly versatile, but comparing it's edge to a thinned out SAK blade it felt like I was trying to cut with a large axe rather than a pocket knife. This translates either to 10 minutes to a few hours on stones depending on the steel and size / shape of the blade or paying someone more than what I paid for the knife itself to reprofile it for me (Leek was on the forums for 33$, Mr. Krein charges 35$ a reprofiling job). This is why I didn't keep my Spec Bump, because I could think of a million and one things I'd rather do than reprofile a recurved S30V blade by hand, and as good as Mr. Krein's work looks I can't bring myself to spend enough money to buy myself a new skateboard (Skateboarding comes before knives for me) for someone to do what I can do myself.

Bottom line is I know my Leek shouldn't take as much effort as it does to cut apart a cereal box for the trash.

 

[wwells20]

Any tips on removing the thumstud? I was going to try and reprofile tonight but I had trouble getting it out. I'm trying to avoid excessive force so as to not damage the thumstud so much that I can't push it back into the blade.

I've removed mine two or three times with no ill effect. I use a flat tipped punch and it doesn't damage the stud enough to see. With the blade opened but not locked, set the blade over something like a large nut ( I use a slightly opened bench vise) and punch out the stud. Do whatever to the knife and then to re-install, start the stud in the blade by hand and finish with the punch. Even your stud in the blade and thats it.

 

[nygiantsfan3342]

Bottom line is I know my Leek shouldn't take as much effort as it does to cut apart a cereal box for the trash.

Maybe its just your knife. My Leek just cut up a couple of cereal boxes fast and easily. I use my leek to cut up cases of cokes and beers, and the leek just zips thru the cardboard no problem. I also make quick work of the UPS boxes I got today. Maybe your Leek edge is wrong for some reason, because mine seems fine.

 

[Vivi]

No, the edge itself is ground well and was plenty sharp, just ground at too obtuse an angle like all the Kershaws I've had.

I started reprofiling the Leek tonight. I'm not done and I was working quickly and in the dark, so it isn't pretty, but it'll give you an idea of what the edge bevel should look like in my opinion. If you'd like nygiantsfan3342, when I finish with the edge I could mail it to you to let you compare it side by side to your Leek and see what you think. Might be interesting.

As you can see, I couldn't get the thumbstuds out. Hasn't been too much of a problem, except that the angle you have to hold the knife makes the steel grind off a little unevenly and you have to compensate in some way.