OZ Rosie rattling bearings?

veritas

veritas

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Mar 8, 2002
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Hey guys, figured id post this here to see if anyone ran into this. I've reached to OZ and still waiting to hear back.

I picked up #1779 here, smooth deal, no issues at all. It was advertised as unused and it looked and felt that way. After playing around with the knife for a while (a few days) I noticed what sounded like the bearings rattling when you shook the knife. You could hear it both when the knife was open and closed. I suspected the pivot was backing out and I was correct. I didn't take the knife apart, just backed out the lock side screw, added a little lock tight and screwed it back down. The thing is, I have to tighten it pretty far down which does stop the rattling but pulls the blade very very slightly off center and makes the action pretty stiff side. If I back out the pivot, which frees up the action and centers it, the bearings rattle. I should mention there is zero blade play in any direction weather i hear the rattling or not. The action was good on delivery and became an issue after playing around (these knives are very flickable lol)

So before hearing back from OZ, my OCD got the better of me and I ended up taking the knife apart this morning. The copper looking bearings were installed (pictured) BUT I couldn't find a steel washer that i've seen in other take down videos of the Rosie.
Does anyone know if the all Ti Rosie's have these and if so is mine missing? I ask because i've seen disassembly videos that show a steel washer on a full Ti build and some that don't

I cleaned the knife and installed the white bearings that also came with the knife and the rattling is gone. Action is a little better as well. The copper looking bearings were tight around the pivot as well (The one on the lock side of the blade anyway). Not sure if that was contributing to the issues...not sure. Didn't re-loctite the pivot yet before I hear back about the washer.

Still curious about the washer and rattling over all. I attached pictures of the the bearings that were installed when I got it.

Thanks for any insight guys,
Vin
 

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Are those the Skiffs in the picture you posted? I wasn't exactly sure if they were the originals or the Skiffs when reading the post. I was going to recommend that you put some grease on/in the bearings. I've been using a lot of CRK fluorinated grease lately and really like it. Sometimes you'll get that sound of rolling bearings inside knives and a little bit of grease clears it up. However you got me wondering if you're not missing that washer for the bearing to ride against. I've never owned a Rosie, so I can't really help there.
 
I've seen a few Roosevelts disassembled, and none of them had steel race inserts. The bearings ride directly on the titanium, with witness marks from the bearings digging into the handle.
 
LimpCroissant said:
Are those the Skiffs in the picture you posted? I wasn't exactly sure if they were the originals or the Skiffs when reading the post. I was going to recommend that you put some grease on/in the bearings. I've been using a lot of CRK fluorinated grease lately and really like it. Sometimes you'll get that sound of rolling bearings inside knives and a little bit of grease clears it up. However you got me wondering if you're not missing that washer for the bearing to ride against. I've never owned a Rosie, so I can't really help there.
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Sorry should have been more clear, the ones pictured were the ones that were in the knife when i got it. The Skiffs that came in the baggy I installed. They were white with black bearings
 
HP2114B said:
I've seen a few Roosevelts disassembled, and none of them had steel race inserts. The bearings ride directly on the titanium, with witness marks from the bearings digging into the handle.
Click to expand...
Thats interesting. Thanks for the reply.👍
 
I’ve noticed that a LOT of Zero Tolerance knives I purchased in the last few years have that bearing rattle when they are new (especially with the blade closed).
I’ll put some oil in the pivot/bearings/detent ball (no disassembly), cycle it a dozen or so times and the noise is gone.
I like to upgrade to Skiffs whenever possible tho, even on my Hinderers
 
tony281sc2 said:
I’ve noticed that a LOT of Zero Tolerance knives I purchased in the last few years have that bearing rattle when they are new (especially with the blade closed).
I’ll put some oil in the pivot/bearings/detent ball (no disassembly), cycle it a dozen or so times and the noise is gone.
I like to upgrade to Skiffs whenever possible tho, even on my Hinderers
Click to expand...
Would skiffs be worth it on the Project X?
 
veritas said:
Sorry should have been more clear, the ones pictured were the ones that were in the knife when i got it. The Skiffs that came in the baggy I installed. They were white with black bearings
Click to expand...

The ones pictured look to me like all the Skiffs I've installed in 6+ knives. Is it possible the original bearings were in the baggy when you received the knife?
 
LLRJ17 said:
The ones pictured look to me like all the Skiffs I've installed in 6+ knives. Is it possible the original bearings were in the baggy when you received the knife?
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I guess thats possible. I wasn't even aware Rosie's came with an alternate set of bearings. I'm new to this knife, so its entirely plausible the bearings installed initially were the skiffs. And now that i've done some research it appears you are right which to me is even more peculiar since the white and black bearings that were in the baggie seem to have 2 more balls then the bearings listed on OZ's website. I'm gonna reach out to the seller.
 
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So yeah the bearings pictured above are 100% Skiffs so i'm hoping the white ones that were in the baggie were the ones from OZ. They don't match the ones on OZ's website though. Waiting to hear back from OZ still and I just contacted the seller to see if he has any insight on the steel washer and if the white bearing set is from OZ.
 
The original factory bearings should be 9-ball steel bearings in a steel-colored cage. The 10-ball black silicon nitride bearings with the white plastic cage that OZ sells on their website appear to be an upgrade option.

I checked a few more disassembly videos. Daniel's official video from May 2020 shows a steel race insert in the show side scale but not in the lockbar side. By 2021 the race insert appears to have been eliminated.
 
Thanks for the extra info.
I have the white ones in now but I think they might be 13 balls and not 10 lol.
Also spoke with the seller who’s a stand up guy. All good either way.
It was intimated to me that how it was assembled could have aided in the rattle so I’ll make sure things are screwed down a certain way in the future.
 
tony281sc2 said:
I would. They are much better, even if the action is good it won’t hurt, it’s $12 well spent. They fit great, have more surface contact, and resist corrosion better
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Sounds like they’re worth it, my project X is the only high-end folder I have. I’m more of a fix blade guy, and not very accustomed to taking apart folders.
 
coolbreezy37 said:
Sounds like they’re worth it, my project X is the only high-end folder I have. I’m more of a fix blade guy, and not very accustomed to taking apart folders.
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I never owned a project X, but I’d bet it’s not too bad. No flathead/ spanner bit to deal with, plus you have to tool on the back of the knife 👍
 
tony281sc2 said:
I never owned a project X, but I’d bet it’s not too bad. No flathead/ spanner bit to deal with, plus you have to tool on the back of the knife 👍
Click to expand...
That’s one of the things I like about it. I just want to make sure everything goes back together in one piece.
 
So just heard back from OZ, no steel insert anymore except for non Ti show scales Rosie’s.
Seller confirmed this as well. Original bearings are working fine. Knife works as it should.
Thanks for the all the input guys
 
Good call sticking with the stock bearings. If you're familiar with LefyEDC (Youtube and Divo Knives), he installs Skiffs in damned-near everything, but even he recommends using the Oz bearings for the Rosie.

 
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