Native III

fudo

fudo

Joined
Aug 27, 1999
Messages
4,531
SAL-I really like this knife except that I have opened and closed mine close to 4000 times and it is still so tight that I can barely open it with one hand. and the edge of the Spyderhole was very sharp. I know what you said in previous posts about needing to be tight for legal reasons. I gotta tell you, it's too D*mn tight. The tightness dropped my Native out of edc rotation. I'm back to my Calypso Jr. LWT., which is still the best design you made.
 
I too think they are to tight.It would be perfect if all the Natives were right in between the Native 3 and Native.
 
Wonder if lapping compound or valve grinding compound might help. It worked wonders on a BRK Native I picked up. That sucker was stiff as a board, now it's just as smooth and almost as easy to open as my S30V Native. Just have to squirt on some detergent and hose it out REAL good after you're done.
 
The thing that makes the Native 3 tight is the spring so I don't think it would help.
 
Well, using a fairly accurate trigger pull scale, my S30V Native takes about 2.25 lbs of pressure applied at the center of the Boye dent to release the blade. My BRK Native takes 4.5 lbs at approximately the same spot on the lockbar to release the blade, so it does have a heavier spring. It also has a smaller radius to the cam, but seems to lift the lockbar about the same amount, which I think means you have less leverage working for you when you thumb it open, but it's been 40 years since my last physics class, so I could be dead wrong on that. When I hook the scale in the spydie hole, the S30V Native takes less that 2 oz. :eek::D to start start the blade moving. Before I worked on it, the BRK blade took 1 lb 3oz to do the same, after treatment, it took just under 6 oz. Now granted, the Native III is probably finished better than the BRK so there may not be the same degree of improvement, but still think it might be worth trying.
 
fudo,

I have the same problem with mine. I too posted a thread here, sent it in to Spyderco all to no avail. I have four lock backs in Spyderco and none of them are anywhere close to this hard to open. This is a great knife, but I put back in the box and do not use it. I guess we are stuck! (as it were)
 
I checked out some Native IIIs at my local dealer, www.gpknives.com. The newest ones flipped open like a US Native. If anyone orders a native over the net, just ask the people to check through their supply and find you a smooth one.
 
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