Slipjoint disassembly - is it doable?

T

theron

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Apr 20, 2009
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Is it possible to take apart a slip-joint without ruining it? I have a Schrade Old Timer I would like to take apart and clean up. I will have a link to some pics later on.

T
 
Taking it apart is possible. Putting it back together is another story altogether. Generally speaking, you have to drill out the pins and replace them with new ones. I usually tell people, "if you have to ask, don't try it" because those with the skill, confidence and mechanical aptitude to pull it off don't need to ask, they already know they can. They may be wrong, but they believe. ;)
 
If the scales are anything brittle (bone, old celluloid, etc) I would suggest not doing so. There are probably hairline cracks in the material, and even a slight amount of warping will destroy them.

Various members on the traditional forum have mentioned soaking slippies in food-grade mineral oil to flush out grit. You might want to repost this on that site. (Moderator, could you move this?)
 
That 8OT looks better now than the one I usually carry. Unless there is severe rust on the sides of the backsprings, there is no reason to take it apart. The scales are Delrin and reasonably resilient, but they do have limits. The liners are brass and are pretty easy to bend and not very easy to flatten back out.

If you can get it apart and back together in as good a condition as it is now, you could probably start a new career as a knifemaker.
 
Generally, that's all that is ever needed. Folks still want to take things apart. I've done it to a few knives myself, but only when something was broken. Sometimes I even get them back together. Putting a three blade stockman back together is NOT easy. Frankensteining my Victorinox Champion out of two others to replace broken blades and customize tools was a major challenge, and one I'd not care to repeat.

A little TLC is all that 8OT needs to become a boon companion for many more years.
 
Soak the knife with WD 40 for a few days. Shake/wipe it off, an d use a toothpick to clean the gunk out of the inside.
 
WD 40 seems to be pretty good stuff. That's actually what I used on it before. It didn't see much use after I cleaned it last, oh say 8 years or so. But none the less, it's gonna look pretty again once I'm done :D
 
You are going to wince at the suggestion but why not put your knife in the pocket of a pair of pants that you put through the wash? It will come out clean and dry. Just oil it an use it. The wash won't hurt or corrode the carbon steel because it isn't wet and in the open air long enough to hurt anything. If it corrodes a little (unlikely), you can clean that off with some Barkeeper's friend or Flitz.
 
theron said:
WD 40 seems to be pretty good stuff. That's actually what I used on it before. It didn't see much use after I cleaned it last, oh say 8 years or so. But none the less, it's gonna look pretty again once I'm done :D
Click to expand...




Post pics of the cleaned knife please ! :D


Tostig
 
yablanowitz said:
That 8OT looks better now than the one I usually carry. Unless there is severe rust on the sides of the backsprings, there is no reason to take it apart. The scales are Delrin and reasonably resilient, but they do have limits. The liners are brass and are pretty easy to bend and not very easy to flatten back out.

If you can get it apart and back together in as good a condition as it is now, you could probably start a new career as a knifemaker.
Click to expand...

this is all very true.

i have tried to take apart an old scrade back when i was a kid, & i did get it apart, never got it back together though lol,
 
is it just me or is that an example of whats called patina (and some rust) ? Knife's been soaking since yesterday. I was gonna do it Tuesday but didn't have time, so yesterday afternoon sprayed some wd 40 in a big ole shot glass filling it to the brim, it's covered with a ziplock bag and some electrical tape.

T
 
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