- Joined
- Sep 27, 2011
- Messages
- 1,864
Hello my CRK brothers and sisters. . . I want to give a shout out to my man Kinagoo (Alex) for the great transaction on his gently used Umnumzaan. I purchased it from him a week or so ago and have spent some time getting to know it. Despite his funny screen name, Alex is a good man--don't hesitate to deal with him!
My new (to me) Umnum came to me in great condition--she was sharp and had very few scratches, mars, or dings on the Ti or on the blade. I put her in my pocket and went on my way. I am used to carrying a small Regular Sebenza, but despite its much larger size the Umnum carries slim and quietly in my pocket. I spent a little time getting used to the different opening method required on this beast and after some sore fingers I am starting to effectively open her up.
As is my usual M.O with a new CRK I like to break them down, inspect them, clean them, and get to know them in general--let's call it "bonding time." No room to tease me about bonding with an inanimate object, I know you CRK freaks do the same thing--even if you won't admit it. So, before I started to break her down I noticed that the blade was a tad off-center--not rubbing liners, but enough to clearly see it with the naked eye. I know the pivot sometimes needs to be adjusted to correct this so I was unphased. I began the dismantling process and was a little put off by the two size of hex keys--it is so simple on the Seb's to have one tool needed! No biggie--I put on my big-boy pants and got to work. I tore her down and she resisted a little, but I eventually got her dismantled, inspected, cleaned, lubed, and began the re-assembly. The level of difficulty exceeded that of the Seb's I have been used to, but I am sure there is a learning curve. After some struggle, a few drops of blood, a few beads of sweat, and some mild expletives, she was reassembled.
I then re-inspected her for ease of opening, centering, etc. She was still off-center. So I adjusted the pivot until she was centered. Too stiff to even open. Readjusted the pivot a little, she can now open with some force, but is a tiny bit off-center. Re-adjusted tighter--closer to center, harder to open. And so on we went with adjusting, readjusting, etc. I cannot find the "sweet spot" as some have called it. The utopian spot where wine flows from the rivers and angels tears water the gardens--the spot where she is centered and still opens easily. I had an open discussion with her about the need to be "centered" in life. We discussed the idea of her being centered AND easy to open. She refused. So, I quietly wrapped her in her CRK cloth, put her back in her box, and spent the next hour or so weeping gently over my now tainted relationship with her.
For those Umnum users--any suggestions, tips, tricks, or other mechanical or psychological steps I can take to reason with her?
My new (to me) Umnum came to me in great condition--she was sharp and had very few scratches, mars, or dings on the Ti or on the blade. I put her in my pocket and went on my way. I am used to carrying a small Regular Sebenza, but despite its much larger size the Umnum carries slim and quietly in my pocket. I spent a little time getting used to the different opening method required on this beast and after some sore fingers I am starting to effectively open her up.
As is my usual M.O with a new CRK I like to break them down, inspect them, clean them, and get to know them in general--let's call it "bonding time." No room to tease me about bonding with an inanimate object, I know you CRK freaks do the same thing--even if you won't admit it. So, before I started to break her down I noticed that the blade was a tad off-center--not rubbing liners, but enough to clearly see it with the naked eye. I know the pivot sometimes needs to be adjusted to correct this so I was unphased. I began the dismantling process and was a little put off by the two size of hex keys--it is so simple on the Seb's to have one tool needed! No biggie--I put on my big-boy pants and got to work. I tore her down and she resisted a little, but I eventually got her dismantled, inspected, cleaned, lubed, and began the re-assembly. The level of difficulty exceeded that of the Seb's I have been used to, but I am sure there is a learning curve. After some struggle, a few drops of blood, a few beads of sweat, and some mild expletives, she was reassembled.
I then re-inspected her for ease of opening, centering, etc. She was still off-center. So I adjusted the pivot until she was centered. Too stiff to even open. Readjusted the pivot a little, she can now open with some force, but is a tiny bit off-center. Re-adjusted tighter--closer to center, harder to open. And so on we went with adjusting, readjusting, etc. I cannot find the "sweet spot" as some have called it. The utopian spot where wine flows from the rivers and angels tears water the gardens--the spot where she is centered and still opens easily. I had an open discussion with her about the need to be "centered" in life. We discussed the idea of her being centered AND easy to open. She refused. So, I quietly wrapped her in her CRK cloth, put her back in her box, and spent the next hour or so weeping gently over my now tainted relationship with her.
For those Umnum users--any suggestions, tips, tricks, or other mechanical or psychological steps I can take to reason with her?
