Problems with Northfield #25 Barlow

[Will Power]

This sounds very annoying for you. All I can suggest, in addition to the flush out with soap and WD-40 is this: Get a toothbrush to scrub the joints, find a pipecleaner if you can to get inside the liners near the joint, open the pen blade using pliers with padded liners or a vice with some padding to protect against gouging, open the blade half way and leave overnight with a dab of vaseline or other grease on the joint. It may improve matters. As for oil, I use the car's Valvoline or Mobil synthetic (unused of course!) in a tiny plastic bottle.

Hope matters improve.

 

[coyote711]

Update. Already use WD-40 and clean with hot water. The bigger blade is easier to open but the smaller one is harder to open than ever. Actually I cannot open it. My thumb's nail was torn a bit now. Tomorrow I will have to use a Case Peanut instead.

You didn't specifically mention whether or not you lubed it after washing with the hot water. To state the obvious, a knife definitely needs to be lubed after washing with water. In any event, I'd suggest re-reading David's post from yesterday at 8:38 pm, and today's post at 1:27 - good stuff there! Just keep at it and don't give up. It may never be a silky smooth easy opener, but you should be able to get it to the point where you can at least open it!

 

[ea42]

It sounds like you've got something jamming up the tang, possibly a burr somewhere. Since it's closed, take a look at the round end of the tang, is it smooth or is there any kind of gouge in it? If that's the case something's likely embedded in the spring. If it's smooth, then the problem's likely against the scales. If you look into the knife, are there any curved scratches in the scales on either side of where the tang travels? Are the front edges of the scales (the top part where the blade drops in) smooth at the tang area, or can you catch a fingernail under it?

Eric

 

[midnight flyer]

It sounds like you've got something jamming up the tang, possibly a burr somewhere. Since it's closed, take a look at the round end of the tang, is it smooth or is there any kind of gouge in it? If that's the case something's likely embedded in the spring. If it's smooth, then the problem's likely against the scales. If you look into the knife, are there any curved scratches in the scales on either side of where the tang travels? Are the front edges of the scales (the top part where the blade drops in) smooth at the tang area, or can you catch a fingernail under it?

Eric

That is really a valid point.

I just bought an old Kabar Barlow that was in excellent shape. It looked almost new and the price was right. So why did it look new and why was it priced so aggressively?

The pen blade was binding very badly, and with a ton of effort and split nail on my part I got it open. The used knife dealer (this is at a gun show) told me he thought all it needed was a bit of oil and it would snap like a new knife, easy to open and easy to close. I got a helluva laugh out of that, and since he knew better, even he laughed. He knocked down the price a bit and I bought it.

I had to open it with a pair of pliers, when I got it home. I oiled it up, worked it a bit, and while it worked better, it was still pretty awful. While peering into the insides of the knife with the offending blade about half open, I saw little burrs on both sides of the kick of the pen blade. I got out a diamond file and rounded them off. That made an immediate difference.

I flushed it out with brake cleaning spray, and put about 3 drops of machine oil and worked the blade back and forth. Lots of gray metal powder came out of the pivot joint, and I oiled and worked until the oil stayed clear.

On careful examination you can see the marks where the burrs were literally cutting into the liners, and when they did the swarf was stuck in the pivot joint.

The knife is great now, and while the pen is a bit stiff, it opens fairly easily (and quite smooth) with a fingernail.

Robert

 

[jk13542]

I did it again last night. WD-40, hot water clean and oil. It seems that the bigger blade is easier to open, almost to acceptable level. The smaller one also easier to open but still very hard. I also noticed that last night, for small blade, while easier to open but very hard to close. It almost impossible to close by hand without tools.

This morning I try to open it again and find that the big blade is ok. The smaller one is more easier to open and close than last night. This evening I will clean and oil it again. Let's see what will be.

By the way, I had already got 3 cut on my fingers.