Sebenza pocket clip

T

teeky

Joined
Jul 20, 2002
Messages
12
Hey... I need some reassurance. I've carried spyderco delicas for years. Loved them. A few months ago I bought a sebenza. Loved it. Put it in my pocket. First night out on the town (strange town, i was on vacation), it feel out of my pocket in the cab i rode, in. Luckily i had tipped the cabbie well. she found it the next day and returned it. THEN it fell out of my pocket a couple more times over the next few days. i got paranoid and put it in the drawer. tough to swallow losing a knife that pricey. (i'd use the crap out of it, but couldn't stand to lose it.) Anyway, never had a problem with my spydercos falling out of the pocket. it seems that the sebbie has sort of a "two stage" clip that makes the knife want to ride up on my back pocket. Am I imagining things? Are my spydies just sticking needles in a sebbie voodoo doll somewhere? Or so you think that these occurences were pure coincidence?
 
I've got an older sm. sebbie, I beleive the clip style has since changed, never had a problem with the knife falling off what ever it was clipped to. It had ruined several several pants pockets however.
The sharp edge of the clip just abrades the fabric.
 
You might want to try to email CRK and tell them about it. There might be too much clearance between the scale and the dent on the clip? Just a thought.
 
Definitely sounds like a defective clip.

Shoot CRK a e-mail. . .they may want you to send the knife back to them or they may only need to send you a new clip.

Good luck. . .and don't lose your Sebbie ! ;)
 
Definitely talk to CRK about it. I've got an old clip and new clips and none of them slip. I adjust clips that don't feel right, on any of my knives. On the Sebenza it's especially easy. Remove, bend gently, replace.

But carrying in your back pocket sounds risky anyway. It's easier to lose and not notice, it's easier for a thief to lift. I only carry in a flapped back pocket myself, and rarely then.

Remember too that a Sebenza probably outweighs your Spydercos by enough for its shifting to pull it out when the Spyderco would just sit there.
 
Not too fond of the CRK clip design. Definitely not of the same tensioning quality of either the Spyderco or Benchmade clips.

Also, the offset design makes them rotate in a way that a centered clip does not.

I had a small sebbie that regularly rode up off my pants in IWB carry.

The older style non-kinked clip may have been better, but that one was a large, and I think the weight kept it better ballasted. Also, the smoothness of the Ti slabs are not as grippy as the volcano-textured FRN on the Delica.
 
I have had mine sense 1997 and carry it every day and it has NEVER fallen out of my pocket and I have it snagged many times...it grips great! Send yours in for a replacment!;)
 
Originally posted by Architect
I had a small sebbie that regularly rode up off my pants in IWB carry. ... Also, the smoothness of the Ti slabs are not as grippy as the volcano-textured FRN on the Delica.
Click to expand...
You got that right. The Sebenza is not a great hideout knife, it will slide up, although the new style clip would probably be pinned down by a belt better than the old.
 
This is another of those questions where "diagnosis on the internet" is difficult. As the guys have suggested, it might be an older clip, it might have been sprung somehow. Which pocket do you wear the knife?

You all know that it is very important to us that our customers are happy with their knives. Most times, we need for you to contact us directly, so please either email or call or send the knife back to us to we can see the problem.

Anne
 
Well Anne, I am going to jump in again since I see you are looking at this thread.

The original post brought up a specific point, and it is possible that the clip on their particular Sebenza was out of adjustment.

My comment about CRK clips in general comes from lots of experience clip carring knives from a number of manufacturers and makers.

It seems to me that the following factors are more likely to produce a reliable clip carry:

1. Position clip high on the knife. As the clip moves lower on the body of the knife, the more weight and bulk are left up above the clip, increasing "walk" and "rise". (Yes, there is a trade off with accessibility here).

2. Center the clip on the body of the knife. This balances the rotational forces on the clip. Eccentric clip positioning increases problematic rotation.

3. Make certain that there is significant contact area between the clip and the clipping surface. Wide and long clips increase friction between the knife body and the clothing. YMMV depending on friction of knife surface (toothy G-10 is the best) and the clothing you are wearing. Narrow, short clips with minimal contact area (like Sebenza clips) are the least favorable.

4. Very light and very heavy knife bodies seem to provide the most reliable clipping. The light knife simply won't rotate or rise up too much. The very heavy knife is self-ballasting. The clip design needs to take this into account.

My favorite clips/folder combos (as examples):

CRK Mnandi (solves all of the problems that the Sebenza and Small Sebenza clip designs have)
Spyderco Chinook
Spyderco Native G-10
Benchmade Stryker
Benchmade 690 Series
Allen Elishewitz Matrix series clips
Microtech LCC

There are many more, I am sure, these are off the top of my sleep-deprived memory (that's my 14 month old getting up in middle of night).

The absolute worst clip designs of all time(short list):

MOD Hornet
CRKT S-2

Feel free to criticize my very subjective points. However, most of my points are simple physics issues. When I carry a Sebbie, I try NOT to use the clips. I just take the clips off and carry them in a slip sheath. If I happen to be wearing jeans, they slip just fine into the change pocket.

I like Sebenza folding knives very much, particularly the Classic designs. I just think the clips are not particularly sucessful designs.
 
If you are going to continue to carry it in your back pocket, you may want to attach the lanyard to one of your belt loops. Even when I carry my large in the sheath, it still is attatched to my body somehow. I don't want to risk loosing a knife of this quality. Military 550 cord makes for a strong lanyard, and it can be had in a number of different colors! I usually give myself about 2 feet to work with and make it so it can be disconnected from the knife itself if need be. Once attached, just tuck the slack into your pocket or waist band.;)
 
I have carried a large since late 97. My methods of carry are front pocket and IWB. IMHO the CRK clip is the best design out there. Never had a problem. I own several "plain" large sebies.

Bill
 
As always, lots of great input and opinions. I wear the knife on my right rear pocket. bought it in january 02. just spent the last 15 minutes messing with it. it seems that it's almost TOO tight. once it rides up, it stays up. then the next brush with something pushes it off.
 
That is really strange! Mine goes nowhere, the kink latches onto the seam and it stays there. I think it is the best pocket clip out there, bar none!:)
 
All the points about clip design are well taken and make a lot of sense. Our clips, as with all parts of our knives, are under continual review for performance. Remember, a clip is to intended to hold the knife conveniently, it is not intended for it to be an entirely secure attachment.

Perhaps the least secure place for a knife of any kind is the back pocket. The movement of sitting down and the wriggling, especially getting in and out of a car, is certainly going to add to the possiblity of the knife coming out of the pocket.

Anne
 
"I think it is the best pocket clip out there, bar none!"

K man, I heartily agree. I have a large plain Sebenza (birth date Dec. 29, 2000) with the new style clip. It has the best clip I've ever seen. It clips well, without tearing what it clips to.
 
Why not detach the clip, secure the flat area in a vise surrounded by something soft as not to abrade it, and bend it to tighten the clip's tension? I've done this with every clipped folder I've ever carried, inclusive of Sebenza's with both the old and new-style clips.

Just a thought...

Professor.
 
As Anne said, "Perhaps the least secure place for a knife of any kind is the back pocket."

Put it in a different pocket. This ain't hard stuff.
 
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