Talk to me about lockbar inserts

Justin Schmidt

Justin Schmidt

Joined
Feb 18, 2016
Messages
2,209
Apparently ive been living under a rock and this is all new to me. I know i know.
So whats your opinion? Good, bad, indifferent? I think if the same material as the blade is used and locator pins are used its pretty genius. It seems to eliminate the "early lockup syndrome"
Which im not a fan of at all. So, whats the general consensus?
Also if other makers that make these wanna chime in that would be sweet
 
So they are good when they include a detention ball. The lockbar itself is very unlikely to wear out, but I've had many detention balls run flat. It is a lot easier to replace the insert than to remachine the lockbar to add a new detent ball. The insert does, however, decrease cost in the fact that you don't have to harden or carbidize the lock face if it was full titanium, and there is little to no risk of it galling.

It's a little extra machining to make the knife a lot easier for everyone and cheaper in the long-run.
 
Wouldnt a ceramic detent fix that ? It seems a great idea in theory. Especially since a maker can throw in an extra one with some extra screws as a great insurance policy
 
I don’t like the steel lock bar inserts. I do however like what Chris Reeve does with the umnumzaan and inkosi, using the ceramic detent ball as the lock interface. A very clever and elegant solution in my opinion.
 
I’m generally a fan. Ti framelocks are nice for weight reduction, and the inserts solve what I see as the two foremost issues with them: lock stick and lock wear.

Additionally, as previously mentioned, putting the detent ball in there makes for easy all-in-one repairs for lockbar problems. It’s worth noting that even a ceramic detent ball can still pop out and get lost.

The only negative is visual, in my opinion, as not all folders benefit aesthetically from having 1-2 additional screws on the lockbar.

I feel as if most the negative feedback on them comes from a K.I.S.S. mindset - those that want as few parts as possible to a knife. I’ve not seen any mention of actual functional problems with them - only theoretical and aesthetic ones.
 
I have no opinion either way on them. I don't think they are a bad thing but I have also never had a ti frame lock ever wear through. I bet if I had I would be screaming about how great the insert is. So far my Ti frame locks without inserts have barely moved, and some of them I carry and use everyday, and have for years.
 
"I'll take carbidized and spot on geomentry over the insert but its still a good feature"

This works too. I haven't had any of my knives with the insert that didn't also have great geometry. With the super high wear steels in use now there is some comfort for me that these expensive knives won't wear out sooner than they should and if need be they can make servicing by the maker easier. Honestly though I've had pretty good luck with my regular Ti locks and not having the insert won't stop me from buying a knife without. If I was an obsessive compulsive knife flicker it would make a bunch of sense though.

Joe
 
It benefits the manufacturer more than the customer. It's for easier repairs. It's definitely preferable to how Strider fixes lockup issues by replacing the stop pin with a larger one. They can only do this once and then the knife cannot be fixed. You need to replace the whole titanium scale after that.
 
If it works it doesn't really matter to me. Sebenza is where it's at. Not to many more are built as nice and designed with the right lock geometry. Thats why I generally get knives with lock bar inserts... Cause not a whole lot of brands get it right.
 
I like them. I have always worried, probably unnecessarily, about lockbar wear. So, it let's me sleep better at night. lol!
 
Never had a problem either way, though I don't own 101 different frame locks. I like the idea that if I ever do wear the interface down so much that it needs replaced, I don't need to spring for a whole new slab of titanium, just a small insert. That should keep the cost to continually maintain the knife down in the long run.
 
If you can get it right it seems pretty legit. Ive never owned a framelock always been a fixed blade guy or cheap liner lock.
Also, why hasnt anyone done an insert on a liner lock. Then youd get the best of both worlds. In theory at least
 
Carbidizing vs Lockbar inserts is a bit samey to me in the end. They both account for lockstick issue. So generally I don't think I have much of an opinion on the matter. I think inserts are nice for that extra bit of service-ability, without needing to replace large components of the knife. So in that sense, I suppose inserts may be marginally more appealing, but in the end most people don't use their knives to the point of needing to worry about extremely long term use (at least on this forum, since most of us tend to rotate our carry choices).
 
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