(FIXED MY INCREDIBLY STICKY PARA 2 LOCK)
Hello all,
I know this is an old thread but I thought I would share my experience. My first para 2 was the all black version. I was stoked when it came in the mail but I had a similar problem. The lock felt like it was snagging on a burr or something. Once I cleared this "catch", the rest of the disengagement was smooth. If you have this issue,
send your knife to spyderco and have them fix it. No question its the right move. BUT, if you're impatient as all hell like me or you've already voided your warranty, try this:
Take the knife apart and polish all components with a fine grit sand paper. (I used 2500). Inspect the tang and the "lock ramp" (the area on the tang opposite the stop pin that pins the liner to lock the knife, not sure what to call this) and see what the surface looks like. Make sure there are no burrs or indents. Go through all of the standard solutions mentioned above, because the less you can alter the knife to get a solution, the better. Out of the box, aside from a rough finish, my lock ramp had a slightly concave surface. Just barely but enough to raise concern. If the surface is uneven like this, it only makes sense that the lock would stick, as all of the pressure is digging into this concave area.
Put the blade in a vice using a towel to protect it and remove some of the metal off of the bottom part of the lock ramp using a dremel, some files or some sandpaper. Really whatever you have handy. DONT remove any metal from the top of the ramp. Doing so will make your knife lock up farther than it should and is totally unnecessary. All you are trying to do is flatten the convex surface. We are talking thousandths of an inch here so don't go crazy. If your unsure, work on flattening for a bit, polish the tang and test the lock. Repeat these steps until it works like it should. Make sure to polish the ramp to a mirror finish as well as any parts that come in contact. Clean the knife, oil, and put back together. TIP: When reassembling, getting the perfect lockup is a matter of balancing the tension on the pivot screws, stop pin, and the rest of the frame. Take your time when tightening to ensure this is solid. You want absolutely no play in the blade with the least amount of tension required to accomplish it. It is also recommended to loctite these screws now if possible (blue 242 loctite)
When finished, my lock ramp had an almost convex surface, but only barely. However, the lockup of the knife didn't move any farther up the lock ramp, because i focused on not removing metal from this area.
THE KNIFE WORKS LIKE A CHARM. Disengaging the lock is buttery smooth, but the lockup hasn't been affected. (I've put an enormous amount of pressure on the spine to test this and this thing still locks like a champ) Also, the pivot is mint.
I DONT RECOMMEND DOING THIS IF YOU ARE NOT MECHANICALLY INCLINED. Just send your knife to spyderco. But if you're confident in your fixer-upper abilities or you already voided your warranty, this is a great option. My para 2 went from a dust catcher right out of the box to what is now my daily carry knife, and it has only gotten smoother since. A basic understanding of physics and mechanics and a few good tools can solve just about any problem
I hope the 2 sprints I have on pre order are perfect.
I'll be doing the same "mod" to this one and I'll post the result. It's funny that despite both my para 2s being almost unusable out of the box I still freakin love them.