The 2018 Fremont Jack has WEAK pull & is lazy from half stop to close

After I flushed my Fremont, the action is similar to other recent Northwoods I have/had (Fayette, Lincoln). Even my Little Bay needed a flushing to unleash it's action, which is very stout.

 

I think it is becoming evident that this last run had weak pulls and lazy snaps... I flushed mine with mineral oil and worked it open/closed a bunch of times and was able to improve it however it was still not to my liking. I have purchased many GEC and Northwoods knives over the years and the action on these out of the bag was probably the worst I have seen yet.

 

I'm surprised by all the comments I've been reading about bad walk&talk. I bought one in stag and it has a slightly softer pull that my mammoth fremont from a previous run but closes with a very audible snap. Maybe I lucked out.

 

Mineral oil, then Break Free CLP. I had two solid bits that came out, that improved the action considerably after each one dislodged.

 

I opened and closed mine several times (about 10 or so) and it became noticeably snappier. There was no need to flush the pivot on my stag FJ.

 

Flushed my burlap and it feels just like my buddies denim from last run

 

I am not impressed with mine. Worst walk and talk of any GEC I have owned. In addition the tip is almost proud of the handle right from the factory.

This is the only GEC/Northwoods I have been disappointed with. The recent Fayette Jacks and Big Bays have absolutely perfect pulls on the other hand.

 

Send them back to the dealer or GEC.

 

Both my burlap and mammoth from this run seemed kinda gritty at first and the mammoth would do a lazy close 2/5 times. After opening and closing a bunch both are pretty snappy. I didn’t do any flushing or relubing.

 

After reading this, I just checked mine again and realized that the tip is a bit exposed when closed. Now I am disappointed. Other than the tip being exposed, I really like my FJ and it is my first knife in stag. Any suggestions? Should I file down the kick?

 

Flushing, sharpening, and filing the kick is pretty much standard "break-in" procedure for GECs.

 

I've owned over 50 and never had to do any "break in".

 

From the factory they grind the kicks to the bare minimum for the blade to sit in the liner, it's explained by Bill Howard in a GEC factory tour video. The reason is that after prolonged sharpening and use when you have to file the kick down to keep the blade inside the liners your pull stays accessible for as long as possible.

 

My latest 2 Fremont Jacks are no different than any of my others since 2014 (about 8 or 9). Pull is about a 5, good snap both ways, good fit & finish.

Maybe I got lucky this go around or maybe the frenzy to join the frenzy to own the hot item puts some folks in the position of not really knowing what they're spending their money on.

Many of the complaints are not new; nor are the recommended remedies. A little homework/research will confirm this. But each time the Fremont Jack is released it's like Groundhog's Day... all over again.

There's a search function on the forum or you can use this string in Google: site:bladeforums.com fremont jack

Heck, you can do this for just about any knife ever made.

If you're not happy with your Fremont Jack, return it.

Or sell it... just don't forget to disclose all the issues.

 

Sorry if I offended anybody. I assumed most people flushed their knives and put a final edge on 'em.
As far as filing the kick, I've had to do it on several of my GEC knives as the tip could be felt when running a finger along the well. I realize why they do it this way and wasn't bashing them, just stating what I do to my user knives.

 

No offense John. I think it may be a change in the last two years or so. Most of mine were previous to that. Only a few were recent. And, there are too many that have the same experience as you for me to doubt you.

 

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I would like to clarify my last post, which I quoted...

This is my fifth northwoods knife. All needed sharpening and had some other sort of imperfection. I was not looking for a perfect knife when I ordered my FJ. I really love my FJ and would like to keep it. I was okay with the the edge not being perfectly straight or the walk and talk being “mushy”. The only thing that got under my skin was the tip being exposed when closed.

That being said, this is my first traditional in stag and I always wanted a Fremont Jack. If that means I have to file down the kick to get the tip tucked in nicely then that’s what I will do.

So if it sounded like I was complaining, I didn’t intend it to sound that way. I was just looking for some advice from more knowledgeable folks here on how to get this knife the way I prefer.