Question for Kershaw OD-1 owners

5.56

5.56

Joined
Sep 27, 2008
Messages
6,602
I recently picked up an OD-1 and wow, the bang for the buck factor is great.

One question though, when the knife is in the closed position, should the flipper have some slight wobble/play? Mine does. I'm wondering if everyones does?

Here's some pics of the new addition
od-1-2.jpg

od-1-1.jpg

od-1-3.jpg
 
Mine has the same “wobble” I don’t think its gonna matter though. It seems to just be a function of how the flipper is designed. I’ve heard of blade play before but this is my first knife with “flipper play”.
 
The flipper on the Od-1 is a mechanical flipper and not part of the blade. It acts like the crank on your bicycle by being the lever upon which it turns a "gear" to take the ratio from 1:1 to 2:1 theoretically.
I'm crappy at explaining but it means it's not part of the blade so it can't be 100% immobile or you couldn't open the knife.
It takes 90 degrees of turn into 180 degrees of turn. It's a slick device but I can't explain worth a crap.
Maybe johnnymac or 2brothers will explain it better. They are the true kershaw nuts.
 
A_Blade_Afficionado said:
The flipper on the Od-1 is a mechanical flipper and not part of the blade. It acts like the crank on your bicycle by being the lever upon which it turns a "gear" to take the ratio from 1:1 to 2:1 theoretically.
I'm crappy at explaining but it means it's not part of the blade so it can't be 100% immobile or you couldn't open the knife.
It takes 90 degrees of turn into 180 degrees of turn. It's a slick device but I can't explain worth a crap.
Maybe johnnymac or 2brothers will explain it better. They are the true kershaw nuts.
Click to expand...

You forgot SPX, spiral, and the rest of the gang! :thumbdn:


:p
 
Mine did & based off of others that I've talked to, theirs have, too. Since it's not a molded together piece of the blade, as explained, I think that that is as expected.

It sure "flips" open like an A/O though.
 
Hey 5.56, Like already mentioned ..."it's part of the mechanism" and nothing to worry about ;). One thing I have noticed, it opens great using an inertia opening :D. Take Good Care and Be Safe Always.


-ROOK-
 
Thanks for the info, I figured it was part of the mechanics, plus the lock up is still very tight.
 
Mine has the slightest wiggle in the flipper switch. More like a rattle. The knife is awesome though. I got mine this weekend along with a ZT and an Emerson and it is just as well built as the more expensive knives. So you are correct about "Bang for the buck" factor! :thumbup:

DSC05456.jpg




:)
 
Does anyone have some kind of picture or a graphic showing how the mechanism works by any chance? Because I somehow still don' t understand how it works despite some people here trying to explain it:confused:
 
There were some great pictures of the mechanism posted a while back on the Kershaw forum, but I have not been able to locate them.

One issue I have found with my OD-1's, is that one opens very smoothly, while the other required considerably more force to unlock, then is very smooth. Problem was the ball bearing lock was too high. Unlike the AO models, the OD-1 has a depression in the blade that engages the ball lock. I took it apart and pushed the ball back about .005" and it now is as smooth as its mate and still is positively locked when closed.
 
miro44 said:
Does anyone have some kind of picture or a graphic showing how the mechanism works by any chance? Because I somehow still don' t understand how it works despite some people here trying to explain it:confused:
Click to expand...

I’m not exactly sure of the physics involved but I think there must be black magic involved. Don’t know how else it would be possible.
 
5.56 said:
I wouldn't call it a cult, it's more like a "connection.":cool:
:D
Click to expand...

...or a support group of sorts. KA - Kershaws Anonymous. :D


Yeah, the wiggle/play/looseness is part of the design. You can't tighten it up either, I tried. But it doesn't affect the operation at all.

Great knife by the way. I have it on me right now. :cool:
 
I've messed around a bit with the OD-1's flipper mechanism. Like others said, there's a bit of a rattle from the flipper on the stock knife.

When I was making scales for it, I experimented with the depth of the cutout. A little too deep and it would rattle like crazy. A little shallow, and it was not free enough to to move easily.

It is possible, however to almost completely eliminate the rattle with a little fine-tuning. I think there are multiple reasons for this. With the recess slightly shallower than the G-10, the flipper cannot gain enough momentum to make an audible sound. The resonance of wood is also much more "dead". I also like to put a dab of lithium grease in the pocket to smooth things out.

I've also considered removing the flipper and the clip, tightening the pivot (more than possible while retaining flip-ability), and making one into a gentleman's, two-handed opening knife. Something that can just be tossed into a pocket and be classy (especially with a hardwood scale), but inexpensive.

Phillip
 
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