Question about the Benchmade Axis Lock.

S

Shiva11

Joined
Feb 20, 2007
Messages
20
I've had a Benchmade mini griptillian for about 6 months. and I absolutely love it. The axis lock is amazing.

There is a slight problem though. I loosened up the knife right when I got it so that I could open the blade just by pushing down the lock and flicking my wrist.
But recently I noticed that I can open the knife without even touching the lock or the blade. All I have to do is flick my wrist. I am not too big of a fan of not having to touch the blade or the lock.

So my question is:
Is this a knife defect?
Is it just because I loosened the blade?(I only loosened a little bit)
Or is this the result of my flicking the knife open and closed too much?

Thanks
 
Tighten the pivot up a bit, the screws back out a little over time and get loose, if you really want take the screw out keeping the knife clamped together and locktight it where you want the tension.
 
I tried to tighten it, but if I tighten it anymore I will not be open to even open it while holding down the lock and flicking my wrist?

Am I just going to have to make a choice between too tight where I cant flick it open with holding down the lock or too loose where I can open it any time?
 
Shiva11 said:
Am I just going to have to make a choice between too tight where I cant flick it open with holding down the lock or too loose where I can open it any time?
Click to expand...

Most locking folders can flick open. It's not a defect. Had you ever tried to flick it (with just your wrist) open before you adjusted the pivot? If not, chances are it's always been like that and you just didn't realize it.

I wouldn't worry too much about it, assuming that the blade doesn't just fall out of the handle when held parallel to the ground. The Axis bar will keep it from opening unexpectedly on you.

When the blade is open, is there any side to side play? The blade on my 710 will swing freely when the lock bar is pulled back, but when locked open there's no play at all, this is how it should be. Don't loosen to the point that you create play, but don't tighten to the point that opening is difficult.

It's all a matter of trial and error. Find the spot that's best for how you want to open the knife.
 
Adjusting the pivot is a very fine process, when I adjust the screw, the screw barely turns a few degrees, from really tight blade to a loose blade. I'm sure you can find the right tightness if you try it a few more times and with more patient
 
My recommendation is take the screw out put some blue locktite on it, then screw it back in find your G-spot for it, let it sit for a few hours, and admire some other knife.
 
Shiva11, I have a MiniGriptilian. My blade pivot is loose enough that the blade swings free when I pull back the axis lock. Very easy to flip the knife open or closed, while holding the axis lock back.

I 'can' flip it open without pulling back the axis lock, but it takes an extreme effort on my part to do so. I do not find this to be a safety issue, as it has to be a very deliberate effort to do it. Once the pivot is loose enough to allow the blade to swing free (with the axis lock pulled back), further loosening is counter-productive (allows side play), but will not allow you to flip the knife open any easier.

Hope that helps..............Frank
 
Doesn't the axis lock design also act as the detent?. If the blade still gets sucked into the handle when it's almost closed, everythings in order.
 
Shiva11 said:
I loosened up the knife right when I got it so that I could open the blade just by pushing down the lock and flicking my wrist.
But recently I noticed that I can open the knife without even touching the lock or the blade.
Click to expand...

The knife isn't defective. When the pivot screw was loosened the seal holding the screw in place was "broken." Use of the knife just caused the screw to wiggle to cause the action to become looser.

It may be necessary to remove the screw completely, and place a small amount of blue loctite around the treads of the screw. After that, tighten the screw to just exactly where you want it, then set the knife down and don't touch it for 24 hours, or whatever the directions on the Loctite box says. Once the loctite sets, the pivot screw will stay set until you decide to ajust it again, which you hopefully won't need to. Otherwise, regular use of the knife, etc., will not affect pivot screw at all.

Just make sure when you re-tighten the pivot screw to use the blue loctite. There is another loctite available (don't know the color) which will set permanantly. If you use that, don't even think about adjusting the pivot screw ever again.
 
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