Should all Spyderco knives have centered blades?

S

steponmytoes

Joined
Sep 5, 2012
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Just wanted everyone's opinion on this and also what to do if the blade is not completely centered. Recently purchased a Spyderco Chicago with a slightly off center blade. Too much of a pain to return/ship back for a knife less than $100. Thing is I have half a dozen Kershaw knives without this problem (all knives perfectly centered even though they are all different shapes and sizes, i.e. Leek to ZT line). Want to know your experience/opinion...
 
My opinion is if it's not rubbing the liners it's a non issue. Regardless of brand.

Production knives are going to be less then perfect. A slightly off center blade will have zero impact on performance or effectiveness.

Like I said, non issue. But if it really bothers you, you can adjust it to your liking in most instances.
 
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It couldnt matter less. A knife is made to cut and a slightly off-center blade has no effect on its cutting capabilities. Ive even got a H20 Griptilian, where the blade rubs the liner, but it still performs like a champ.

Theyre mid-range production folders, not exclusive custom pieces.
 
As long as the blade is straight and ground symmetrically I don't really care where it sits between the liners.
 
It would matter to me allot these knives are pricy and with the reputation we give them they should all be centered you can get another washer to center it if you don't want to ship it.this site worships these knives for the quality production or not you pay for perfection not close to perfection. It might not do much to the opening but it matters allot this is a defect in my book. Don't except anything but perfection unless sold as a defect.send it back they will fix it and you will be much happier cause of it didn't bother you you wouldn't have posted.i bet all of you would be upset if you're knives were of center. I don't think spider I would want a knife out there like that ruining there rep production model or not.this is a top brand no exceptions a scratch is a defect and so is this.a knive is on a pivot it must be centerd that's the way it should be no exceptions you're cuts won't be straight.i am a chef if my food is not perfect people complain and I understand a professional knife company should be held to the same standards. I am not bashing spiderco this happens but it is not ok to me I would go and find a couple of washers at Home Depot if I didn't want to send it in or I would send it to the dealer for an exchange or back to spiderco for a fix
 
Yes, they should. Being slightly off-center is no big deal, but all makers should strive for (reasonable) perfection.
 
It's common to have a slightly off center blade on most brands using a liner lock.As long as it doesn't hit the liner no big deal.It doesn't affect the function.
 
endgamer said:
It would matter to me allot these knives are pricy and with the reputation we give them they should all be centered you can get another washer to center it if you don't want to ship it.this site worships these knives for the quality production or not you pay for perfection not close to perfection. It might not do much to the opening but it matters allot this is a defect in my book. Don't except anything but perfection unless sold as a defect.send it back they will fix it and you will be much happier cause of it didn't bother you you wouldn't have posted.i bet all of you would be upset if you're knives were of center. I don't think spider I would want a knife out there like that ruining there rep production model or not.this is a top brand no exceptions a scratch is a defect and so is this.a knive is on a pivot it must be centerd that's the way it should be no exceptions you're cuts won't be straight.i am a chef if my food is not perfect people complain and I understand a professional knife company should be held to the same standards. I am not bashing spiderco this happens but it is not ok to me I would go and find a couple of washers at Home Depot if I didn't want to send it in or I would send it to the dealer for an exchange or back to spiderco for a fix
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Um, please don't take this guy's advice. The last thing you should do is try to modify it with washers or anything, you could seriously affect the lockup, safety, and longevity of your knife.

If it bothers you enough, and it has an adjustable pivot it is quite easy to modify blade centering. But it's a non issue in my opinion. It affects nothing unless it is rubbing the liners or otherwise making more contact or friction.
 
Years ago I might have questioned this too, but at that price range "slightly off center" wouldn't stress me out too much now.
 
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I don't understand why you should not expect perfection from the factory.why shouldn't it be correct.please explain why if I order a knife that is supposed to have a centered blade and it doesn't there is no problem.of course you can fix it but why should you have to.that maybe okay to you but I have standards and I work very hard tor my money when I buy a knife for $100 pluss I expect it to be perfect or its going back.I wouldn't fix it myself either I would exchange it or have it fixed.a company like spiderco shouldnt want any knife to go out like that. I no its not going to affect much but that is not the point.when I spend my money I want what I paid for don't listen to me like he said I have a scratched up black blade para 2 for the same price as a unscratched you want to buy it works the same just has scratches.I am not beeing rude its just the way it should be someone who takes pride in there work wouldn't want a uncentered knife to go out it happens but needs to be fixed.I didn't say don't listen to you I just gave my opinion
 
This happens on knives in this price range.
As long as they don't touch the liner it doesn't bother me at all.

The only brand I have gotten a centered blade 100% of the time is Chris Reeve, but at that price they should be centered.
 
i cant remember 1 knife besides my umnanzaan and jumper that were 100% center. well maybe my manix 2 lol. but most of the time i need to adjust them a little. but it doesnt bother me as long as the pivots dont slowly come loose or the blade scratch against the liner. if it opens, locks, and stays sharp its good to go for me.

thats also why i like fixed blades. i always have blade centering on my esee knifes. they come with perfect lock up and never develop any lock rock or lockbar wear.
 
I believe your expectations are not rational if you want perfection in a knife for less than $100. Some with a more philisophical bent would say that man is not perfect, thus why should we expect perfection in what man creates?

If it's off center and does not affect functionality, I wouldn't care.
 
As everyone else has said slighty off centered is not big deal. Rubbing is no dice for me in any price range.
 
I think that blade should be centered of cause within some +/-. As long as blade is not touching liner, I can live with. Usually I do not pay attention to this :(
 
An off-centered blade isn't really a defect in manufacturing (usually), but more of an assembly issue. You can correct 99% of off-centered blades put out by high-quality manufacturers with the simple instructions that are in several places on this message board (it does require you to loosen/tighten some screws).

That really doesn't bother me anymore regardless of manufacturer until you get into Mid-Tech knives - sure, if I just dropped $350+ for a mid-tech that supposedly had a master craftsman's hands on it most of the way through assembly, then I'd be upset, but on a $40 production knife?

I'll go ahead and adjust it myself and call it good.
 
Thanks for all the input. I really do love the ergos on this little knife. Sharp as hell and just fits right in the hand, even for its small size. It's a keeper, even with the slight imperfection. If I were to ever get lets say a Sage 1 however, I would definitely expect the blade to be perfectly centered, even if it doesn't affect functionality.
 
I've had pretty good luck with most of my production knives being well centered. Even the ones that came slightly off were easily fixed buy loosening the frame screws and pushing on the blade or frame while re-tightening them.
 
endgamer said:
I don't understand why you should not expect perfection from the factory.why shouldn't it be correct.please explain why if I order a knife that is supposed to have a centered blade and it doesn't there is no problem.of course you can fix it but why should you have to.that maybe okay to you but I have standards and I work very hard tor my money when I buy a knife for $100 pluss I expect it to be perfect or its going back.I wouldn't fix it myself either I would exchange it or have it fixed.a company like spiderco shouldnt want any knife to go out like that. I no its not going to affect much but that is not the point.when I spend my money I want what I paid for don't listen to me like he said I have a scratched up black blade para 2 for the same price as a unscratched you want to buy it works the same just has scratches.I am not beeing rude its just the way it should be someone who takes pride in there work wouldn't want a uncentered knife to go out it happens but needs to be fixed.I didn't say don't listen to you I just gave my opinion
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don't take it personally, I said not to listen to you because you gave horribly unsafe advice about finding washers at home depot and swapping them out. First of all, you can fix most centering issues by loosening and tightening some screws, takes maybe five minutes and you don't need to disassemble anything. Second, swapping washers is potentially very dangerous and will affect the function of your knife. Unless you are VERY knowledgeable with tinkering on stuff like this it's just a flat out bad idea.

That's it, I'm not trying to insult you. just trying to keep bad advice off the forums. I couldn't care less if you want to send a knife back for scratches or centering. Every single one of my spyderco knives have scratches, dings, dents and stains because I use them, so it is really a non issue for me. Granted mine have all come nearly flawless from the factory, so I haven't had to worry.

OP as long as it has screw construction it's not really that difficult to center your blade, there are plenty of instructions on the forum if you search.
 
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