Spine Whack Test

A

aj1985

Joined
Nov 3, 2005
Messages
1,029
Hey guys hope you are all well

Honestly i see a few threads every week and also a youtube video or two regarding this test. Can you just make me understand what does this test prove and why do people love to do it and then complain about the knife afterwards. It really it does not prove anything of value in my mind, and just seems like some people love to complain over the most minute of things.


take care and i look forward to your responses

aj
 
Here is my answer that I originally posted here:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=498269

With a slipjoint the spring mechanism holds it open.
With a locking folder, the lock holds it open.

You would not carry a slippie with a broken spring mechanism because it would be too dangerous. There would be nothing to keep the blade from closing on you. (I know. I've got an old slippie with a broken spring and I don't carry it. I keep it in my dresser drawer for remembrance of the one who gave it to me.)

Just so with a locking blade. With most locking blades there is no spring. If the lock fails, the blade can flop back on your hand. A lock failure could cause the blade to fold back on your hand even with the little side pressures that develop during normal cutting. So you have to be assured that the lock works.

Passing a mild spine whack test assures us that the lock will not fail under normal usage. And that is what we are looking for. Assurance.
 
aj1985 said:
Hey guys hope you are all well

Honestly i see a few threads every week and also a youtube video or two regarding this test. Can you just make me understand what does this test prove and why do people love to do it and then complain about the knife afterwards. It really it does not prove anything of value in my mind, and just seems like some people love to complain over the most minute of things.


take care and i look forward to your responses

aj
Click to expand...

Let's say you have a lock on your front door....the lock appears to function as it should and appears to be 100% secure.
But if you give the door a firm rap with the palm of your hand, the lock then fails and door readily opens.
Would you be satisfied with the lock's performance?

Essentially, that is what the spine-whack-test is all about:
For a knife that fails the spine-whack-test, the knife looks locked and 100% secure, but when you give it a firm rap on the blade-spine, the lock fails and the blade closes.
This is unacceptable to me.
After all, I have plenty of locking folders that easily pass the spine-whack-test everytime, so why should I tolerate a locking folder that fails?

And for those who claim that they never put pressure on the spine of their knives, and so the spine-whack-test is not valid, I ask this....

Then why have a locking folder at all?
 
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