Small Sebenza 21 PJ Lockup Issue

bladesngear

bladesngear

Joined
Feb 13, 2018
Messages
83
Hey guys, I recently purchased a small pj Sebenza. It was used but in good shape. I took it apart to take the lanyard pin out and put it back together. The action is smooth and the detent is good. However, when disengaging the lock bar a great deal of pressure is needed to move it. There's also a gritty, grinding sound coming from the the top of the lockbar when contacting the bottom of the blade as you move it over to let the blade down. I have taken it apart 4-5 times and have had the same results. Any ideas??? I will be calling CRK soon but just thought maybe someone has had this issue in the past. Thank you all.
 
I am not sure what is happening, but I would start by cleaning the lockfaces with rubbing alcohol-eliminate that from the equation
 
Same thing happened to me with my first Sebenza 21’s. My issue was that I wasn’t getting the washers placed properly and they were being slightly pinched, which was causing a “gritty” feeling action, and difficulty disengaging the lock. Once I taught myself the correct way to assemble (slow down, pay attention, I tend to get ahead of myself), it’s nice and smooth.
 
A good rule of thumb is to take everything apart, clean it well (dish soap, soft bristle brush, rinse, and dry well), inspect contact surfaces, and reassemble with some light lubrication around the pivot. If you’re still experiencing an issue sending some well-lit pictures and maybe a video to CRK might help remotely diagnose it. Otherwise sending it in is the fallback.
 
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How are you assembling it? Are you building it like a sandwich or assembling the handle and sliding in the blade and washers. I have found the second to work best.
 
Thanks for all the replies! The knife was working just fine before I took it apart. I have been doing the sandwich method and have not tried slipping the blade in on this one. I can try that and I will be giving it a thorough clean as well after work. How would I be able to tell if my washers are damaged? Thinning, bending, warped? Thank you all.
 
If you put the washers on a flat surface (inside of knife scales will do) and look around at the edges. You can use a flashlight as well. Look for gaps or raised edges, anything out of flat. It should lay flat with no gaps. If you've bent a washer, unfortunately it has to go back to CRK so they can fit new washers. Good thing is it's not expensive (outside of shipping) and you can ask them to make a spare set just in case for the future.

The sandwich method works great for Inkosi/Umnumzaan, not so great with the 21 because it's hampered by the pivot bushing.
 
I second the suggestion of completely assembling the scales, then sliding in the blade, pivot bushing, and washers.

Also, I’ve seen some suggest leaving the screw on the stop pin a little loose when sliding the blade in, but that never worked well for me. I say tighten down the stop pin and bottom screw completely, then slide the blade and washers in. It will be tight, but it will fit, and there will be zero chance of misalignment if the scales are nice and tight.
 
Definitely slip the blade/pivot assembly in with the handle assembled. It's very easy to pinch a washer otherwise. On mine I have to leave the stop pin screw a half turn loose or the blade/pivot assembly won't go in. After the blade is in, I tighten everything to finger-tight then torque the stop pin screw, the back screw and lastly, the pivot screw.
 
bladesngear said:
Thanks for all the replies! The knife was working just fine before I took it apart. I have been doing the sandwich method and have not tried slipping the blade in on this one. I can try that and I will be giving it a thorough clean as well after work. How would I be able to tell if my washers are damaged? Thinning, bending, warped? Thank you all.
Click to expand...

bhyde bhyde did a great video on the non-sandwich method. It helped me considerably. https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/chris-reeve-knives-how-to-threads.1464189/
 
Thank you everyone for the advice. I will be attempting the clean/reassemble in the am when the boss ain't watching. Will follow up- thanks all
 
I tried cleaning and assembling the correct way but no changes. I ended up calling CRK and it may be an issue with the temper of the lock face. Off for a spa treatment she goes!
 
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