Speed-Safe Life Expectancy?

J

JNieporte

Joined
Nov 1, 2004
Messages
3,352
Just wondering if anybody knows how long the Speed Safe torsion bar lasts. Kershaw's FAQ says that they test it to 10,000 openings; but I don't count every time I open it. Something like "it will last around 5 years during normal use" would be helpful. Does anybody have any experience with theirs wearing out?
 
I've installed a meter on mine with a digital readout that counts each seperate opening, that way I know when to start to slow down.

Seriously I wouldn't worry too much about it as swapping out the spring is really a piece of cake. Kershaw provides them when needed along with an instruction sheet; we're talking maybe five minutes time at most. Just enjoy it as I do.
 
10,000 openings is 3 a day for 10 years, or 6 a day for 5 years, or 30 a day for one year.

So if the knife is only good for 10,000 openings, you calculate how long you expect the spring to last based on your average daily usage.

But I expect the spring to last longer than 10,000 openings.

Carl
 
I have my Kershaw Chive sitting on my desk, and the torsion bar finally broke after sitting there flipping it open and closed every night for 1 1/2 years. I emailed Kershaw and within a couple days I had a new torsion bar and a neat 3 piece hex screwdriver set. They sent me the torsion bar, no questions asked, and now the knife works like brand new.
 
IIRC Thomas wrote that Kershaw has to replace something like 1.5% of the torsion bars after some usage. That would mean that 98.5% stay good. He didn't say over what period of time.
 
I've been using my Blackout as a work knife for about 4 years now. I open it ~10 times a day. Works like new.
 
I see a good amount of used Leeks for sale which are just clogged with debris, causing the blade to sometimes stop short of full opening. The spring still feels strong in the first half of opening, but the second half of the arc is not as smooth as a new knife. They really just need a good disassembly and cleaning, maybe some more grease inside the spring compartment.

The knives usually look well-used, so I am guessing they last a while before needing to be cleaned.

EDIT:
I also vaguely recall hearing that Kershaw improved the spring a while back.
 
my spec bump lasted almost half a year before i had to place a call but upon inspection it looked like it had been stressedd to much at the bend
 
I've been using my Randon Leek as my EDC for years now. No problems what so ever. I just clean and lube every now and again. Still works as good as the day I got it.
 
How are these constructed compared to the Camillus Heats, and such? Is the mechanism similar, or a totally different critter? I have had a Blaze for about 3+ years, and been EDC'ing a Heat for a while now, and neither have shown any trouble. Just wondering.
 
The one on my Needs Work broke after about 3 weeks - I only cut the hair on my arm and my pinky with it. The bad part was that after it broke the blade would not lock into place when opening it manually. The knife was clean and free of debris.
 
how many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop?
 
beckerhead said:
How are these constructed compared to the Camillus Heats, and such? Is the mechanism similar, or a totally different critter? I have had a Blaze for about 3+ years, and been EDC'ing a Heat for a while now, and neither have shown any trouble. Just wondering.
Click to expand...

The Heat uses a leaf-like spring attached to the back end of the handle, which flips the blade out by pushing against a small bump sticking out of the blade.

The Leek has a metal bar bent near the middle. One end makes a short (1/8" maybe) 90 degree bend to swivel in a hole in the blade tang, and the other also has a short bend that fits in a slot in the handle. The spring bar remains connected to the blade but moves freely in the handle slot. As the blade is closed about halfway, the bar hits the back end of the handle slot and compresses.
 
Carl64 said:
The Heat uses a leaf-like spring attached to the back end of the handle, which flips the blade out by pushing against a small bump sticking out of the blade.

The Leek has a metal bar bent near the middle. One end makes a short (1/8" maybe) 90 degree bend to swivel in a hole in the blade tang, and the other also has a short bend that fits in a slot in the handle. The spring bar remains connected to the blade but moves freely in the handle slot. As the blade is closed about halfway, the bar hits the back end of the handle slot and compresses.
Click to expand...

I have disassembled both of my Robos, and I knew that, to my eyes at least, it seemed like a very solid design, with little to actually fail. The spring is long, and would appear to take very little stress because of that.

BTW, to the OP, sorry for the temporary hijack.
 
i've had one break as well. good thing about the design is that the knife still locks up and functions normally. i opened and closed my chive obsessively, yet i rarely cut with it. i sent it back to kershaw and they sent me a new one, no questions asked.
 
How many bubbles in a bar of soap?

Back to the question.... mine Chive has got to have opened at least 3 thousand times since I bought it in 2004. There's no noticeable loss in speed of opening in that time. I occasionally blow it out to keep it clean, and have only lubed it with 3 in 1 about four times.
 
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