Problems with standoffs

OnionPoptarts

OnionPoptarts

Joined
Aug 18, 2013
Messages
249
Just got my emerson roadhouse, been wanting this knife for awhile, and when it came i couldn't wait to flick it open all day then clean it that night. Everything was going great, lock up was early, grip was awesome and the blade shape was exactly what i thought it would be. After a day of opening it i decided to disassembling it, cleaning it, and reassembling it. After doing this im having problems getting some of the screws to grip into the rear stand offs. in-fact almost none of the screws are gripping the rear stand offs very tightly, and now i got a brand new blade i cant carry because i cant get a few of the screws into it. I just emailed emerson and im awaiting their response. Im sure from past experience that there make me happy, but i gotta say im really not liking the new stand offs. I feel like if emersons gonna use stand offs they should use ones similar to ZT's stand offs that have a little ridge at the top that locks into the handle so when you screw it in theres no movement. These new stand offs would make the knife considerably more difficult to service in the field as i see it as a former soldier.
 
Are you saying the standoff is turning as you try to tighten the screw? Or, even if you're gripping the standoff with something the screws still won't tighten securely?

Speaking just for myself - I liked the old G10 spacers better that the new standoffs. I bought one of new tan mini 7's when they came out with the standoffs and have seriously considered sending it to Yester5 to get one of his spacers installed.

If I ever had to send it in, it would be easy enough to put the standoffs back one if I had to. I have some other knives with standoffs that are ok with me but I guess I just like my Emersons without 'em. :)

Hope you get it figured out. I'd be curious to see how it gets resolved.
 
Yes it does spin when tightening it, that's an issue but not my main issue. The real problem for me is the screws won't grip the spacer its self to tighten, and the screws won't tighten up enough. The screws tighten to a point, and if I tighten them any further they loosen up again. Really not liking this, hopefully tomorrow I hear from emerson about it.
 
Just received my first two EKI's with standoffs, a stonewashed Horseman (which looks flippin' sweet!) and a black blade 15 (both straight edge). I will say both exhibit perfect blade centering. The Horseman has flathead screws in the grip whereas the 15 had panhead like the pocketclip screws. I like the look of the flatheads better. I also LOVE LOVE LOVE that my new Horseman has a wave that more resembles most other Emersons instead of the "nub" looking one my previous 8-series EKI's have had.
 
Take one of the known good screws from a known good standoff and try screwing it into the standoff that's giving you trouble.
Also try putting the screws that won't work into the good standoff.

This will help you figure out if it's the screws or the standoffs that are stripped. Or both.

Rotate through all of the screws and standoffs in this manner and seperate the good from bad.

Let us know the results.
 
spketch said:
Take one of the known good screws from a known good standoff and try screwing it into the standoff that's giving you trouble.
Also try putting the screws that won't work into the good standoff.

This will help you figure out if it's the screws or the standoffs that are stripped. Or both.

Rotate through all of the screws and standoffs in this manner and seperate the good from bad.

Let us know the results.
Click to expand...

good call, and thats what i did in addition i took the stand offs on there own and tried to fit the screws to them that wouldn't fit them when they were in the knife, the screws were able to screw into the standoffs tightly. From where im standing it seems that the problem is the tips of some of the screws that are exposed when you're trying to tighten them is whats become stripped. This explains why they wont tighten into the stand offs when in the knife, but will tighten into them when taken out of the knife. The problem i cant figure out is why do some screws tighten up to a point then go lose, then tighten up again to the same point and go loose again. I'm wondering if thats not to do with the screws threading being off somewhere in the middle, but when i take the screw out and look at it, it looks just fine. I thought i might be able to just fix this problem on my own with some new screws, but i think now im gonna just send it in.
 
Asking a few dumb questions....

Are the scales loose when you get past tight and the screws spin or feel loose? Or do the scales feel snug and solid?

Is it possible the screw is fully seated and the stand off is spinning? Have you tried using two screwdrivers to hold the other side standoff screw still while tightening the other side?

Thanks for the feedback...
 
Is this one of the older emersons with liners of different thicknesses?
If so, it's possible that the screws for the thicker liner are a hair longer than the others, and you're getting them switched around.

What you're describing sounds to me like too few of the threads are making it into the standoff. I would guess either they're stripped or not long enough.

Do you have a micrometer or good eyes?

I should have been more clear; the procedure I described earlier should be done with the knife assembled. It's worth trying again.

One more crazy question: are you certain the pocket clip screws went back into the proper holes?

Good luck to you!
 
tried two screw drivers, in the case of the screws that tighten then loosen they continue to do this with two screw drivers, and pliers holding the stand off.

im about to disassemble it and check if maybe some screws are longer then the others, because one liners thicker than the other. Im not holding out much hope for this as the blade says 2013, but then again that doesnt mean the liners were made then.

Positive on the pocket clip screws as they are shaped differently (mushroom cap i would describe it) vs the shape of the liner screws.

cant really comment on how the scales feel when together, as i cant get the knife tightly together due to 3 screws not wanting to go in.
 
checked all the screws, and their all the the same length. i've tried different screws when it was a assembled, and disassembled just to make sure they could go into the stand offs.
 
appreciate all your help guys, but this morning i sent it in to emerson for repairs. Thanks for all the suggestions. Ill post here when it gets back with how the issue was solved.
 
That's a sure way to get it fixed. Please do update us when you get it back, I'm very curious to see what they say.
 
Got my roadhouse back yesterday, disassembled it today with the up most care. Emerson replaced so,e of the screws but none of the spaces, I can tell because I secretly marked every spacer. I disassembled it and cleaned it, then when I went to go reassemble it I found it was having the same damn problem as before. Only this time all the screws go and screw in but one, this one screw will tighten to a point, and after this point it just goes loose again. No the spacr isn't spinning when this happens. I can repeat this result on any of the spacers simply by taking out the screw that's in that spacer and trying this screw in it, and sure enough it tightens to a point then goes loose. Now I'm at the point where I'm actually upset, Im a huge emerson fan, but I just feel like I can't trust my roadhouse. I'm a email emerson tomorrow when I have some free time and request some new screws be sent to me, I'm not going to pay to have my knife shipped out only to come back again with bogus screws. I'm certain this was in no way caused by me, as I was careful to disassemble the knife with the up most care as I said. So anyways that's my story, and my dislike of the new spacers is only hardened.
 
I just got a Emerson with new spacers and also have a problem with a brand new knife.

What sucks is Emerson wants us to pay for shipping return way over what it should cost.

I see the older Emersons with the good ol spacers becoming more popular and getting a premium on the exchange.

And I will say it again..."if it ain't broke don't try and fix it Mr Emerson"
 
I contacted emerson right after posting here.

Apparently the back spacers are there to reduce overall cost and production time.
 
Well, I don't know if that's the specific reason for them, but they likely would accomplish both of those goals. Additionally, they should improve the serviceability of the knife - if you strip the threads out of the liners, the knife must go back to EKI, whereas threaded standoff's can be shipped to you. In fact, it would be fairly easy to keep some on hand for replacement purposes. Additionally, you have more options as to screw/standoff combinations (for mod's) since there is only a hole diameter to deal with in the liner, not thread pitch.

Sorry you appear to have an example of faulty execution, but that really doesn't disqualify the design. I have EKI's with standoff's and spacers, and can honestly see some (at least theoretical) benefits of the standoff design, ie replaceability and longer thread engagement. Probably just anecdotal, but the two standoff models I have (15 and Horseman) exhibit the best out-of-the-box centering I've had yet in an Emerson - spot on perfect.
 
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