New knife rituals

C

cutter17

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May 16, 2006
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What are your rituals when a new knife arrives? What are some things you always do when you get that new knife? For me, I do a few things, just depends on the knife. For example, I just received a new ZT0500 yesterday, and the first thing I did was to tighten the pivot to my liking. Next thing was to check and tighten any screws that may be loose, none were. Lastly, I had to work with the pocket clip to get it where I like it to be. The ZT already comes with a deep carry clip, but due to the way it is mounted it feels loose in my hand and I'm just too anal to stand it!:eek::). I used a Dremel with a small grinding attatchment and I made the screw hole longer so that the clip would slide down farther on the handle. Had to cut a small piece off the end to get the clip to slide down as far as I wanted. Then I cut an inch of the clip off on the front side, rebent a small tab to lift it, rounded that small tab, and then covered the entire clip with some 3M Stair Step tape. Now the clip is only a little more than 1.25" in length and it is barely noticeable on the outside of my pocket. In fact looks more like a pen clip than a knife clip due to it's thiness. After putting the clip back on, I made a small laynard for it and was through.

On knives that can be disassembled, I will usually do so and then do some polishing on the inside of it, and sometimes I have to tweak a liner or frame lock by giving it slightly more bend to increase the tension of the lock during lockup.

Most of the times I also polish and wax the blade and bolsters.

So, what are some of your rituals when that new knife finally gets into your hands?
 
For folders, I usually over lube the hinge area and let it drain on a white paper towell to see how much "black stuff" comes out.

Been rather annoyed with the amount of black stuff that can be seen of late.
 
Folders:
Examine it then disassemble. Clean and polish pivot area and then lube. Remove any sharp edges from the liners. Stone a slight ramp for the detent ball to make the opening smoother if it has one. Adjust pocket clip so it doesn't destroy the pocket or make a new clip if necessary. Check the edge and sharpen if not up to my standards. Start using it. Then after a week go back to my Sebenza till I get another new knife.
 
The FIRST thing I do is hide the knife and all packaging from my wife! :D Then, when the coast is clear I usually strop then clean, lube and adjust the pivot tension.
 
I always sharpen the blade and move the clip to the lefty position (if possible). This could include some reprofiliing of the edge bevel.

I'll usually then disassemble, and polish and lube everything. Especially on flippers.

If I can think of anyway to make the knife better or more personal I do that next. Exotic wood handles, high-performance regrinds, satin or mirrored blade finish, and so on. It makes the knife much more satisfying to carry when it has these personal touches.

Phillip
 
Whenever I get my folders I always end up opening and closing them a couple hundred times :D
 
tes the clip strength pull out some newspaper see how it slices grab some rope test the serration adjust pivot if needed things like that
 
When I get a new knife I usually drink a bunch of beer and play with it until I cut myself.
 
I am embarrassed to say that when packages arrive I often don't have a knife on me so I immediately curse that I don't have the knife that's just arrived in my hand so I can open the damned box. Please don't tell anyone.
 
I usually chuckle to myself and open the box IMMEDIATELY. No fooling around for this guy! Rip the box to shreds if I have to (I don't cause I always have one or two knives on me at the time) and then I admire the craftsmanship, test the edge, and go home and use it on SOMETHING.
 
To hide it from my wife I usually cut up the Priority mail box that it came in. Then sharpen and lubricate.
 
First I hide packaging from wife, I have so many she wont even notice, Then I shave a patch of hair on my arm, slice up a box in the garage, slice some paper then usually sharpen it. Then I go outside and take some swings on the Ficus tree. Then open and close it for a few hours while watching tv until my wife says, put that thing away. :rolleyes:
 
First my son will call me at work and say"You have a box or boxes". Then I make a mental note as to, do I have any JW Black at home and plan accordingly. When I get home I check on parcel or parcels. Then I go greet the Wife. All is good, now I take the dogs out. I get a Cold Deit Pepsi and pour a glass of JWB straight. I see who the boxes are from and then open them. Empty boxes on the shelf and knives on the desk. I check them over and if all is well I begin to slice away at the junk mail or the 10th extra copy of my lame health insurance policy...Always alot of good slicing there. After that and a few tips of the Scotch, I start to find homes in the drawers or cabinets for what ever I have received. thats about it. Goes about like that each time. It's what I do on the days there are No boxes that is interesting!!! ;)
 
I try to not immediately open the box.... I will set it on my desk and check my email, make some tea... maybe examine the box.. Then I pick it up, and open it CAREFULLY, trying not to damage the box. ..also, the only time I use a nice knife to open a box is when I am opening another knife! That's my ritual, and I'm stickin' to it!
 
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