The Most Annoying QC Defect

[BD_01]

What QC issue annoys you the most?

For the sake of discussion, let’s omit lock slip and lock-rock/vertical blade play which IMO are no-go unsafe fails and would top everyone’s list.

what did I leave off my list?

As for me, I can tolerate the blade being a bit off center, so long as there’s no side-to-side blade play.

It hard to get past a weak detent though...

 

[Undefeatable]

For sure a too-soft detent. The rest still yields a functional folding knife, but I have had 1 knife in the past that the detent was so soft, that if the blade wasn't making love to the crease of my pocket, it would open. After stabbing my hand reaching for my phone in the same pocket, I sold it to a friend/fellow collector who bought it cheap (yes, he was aware of the detent issue, which is why I sold it to him for cheap. I texted him after I stabbed myself with it) and bent the lock bar himself.

 

[Kmikaz3]

Off-center for me especially if the knife has a proprietary pivot that cannot be disassembled. The only option is to return to the manufacturer which is meh! Everything else seems fixable.

 

[RoyalHolic]

I ditto the off centering as that just grinds my gears, lock rock and blade play can usually be fixed on easier disassemblies.

 

[Alsharif]

My Sebenza 31 was off center. Yep, I sent it back to CRK.

 

[guy g]

I voted uneven grind as #1. Next is too hard of detent and third is not having smooth fit and finish of the parts.

 

[Owen K.]

What QC issue annoys you the most?

For the sake of discussion, let’s omit lock slip and lock-rock/vertical blade play which IMO are no-go unsafe fails and would top everyone’s list.

what did I leave off my list?

As for me, I can tolerate the blade being a bit off center, so long as there’s no side-to-side blade play.

It hard to get past a weak detent though...

Biggest issue I have is centering. I also hate sharp handles. I had a microflip that was so sharp at the back of the handle that it cut up my palm. I also have a brous with stonewashed on the blade but the last quarter inch back from the cutting edge is buffed to the point that the wash is gone. It looks like Timmy took a buffing wheel too aggressively when polishing the edge. Drives me nuts and I'll most likely acid wash it soon.

 

[DangerZone98]

My non-negotiable red flags would be any detectable bladeplay and weak detent. Those “minor hiccups” could potentially get you hurt. Any folder worth its salt should lock up tight and only deploy when you want it to.

 

[Dr Heelhook]

I voted side to side play. I'm not really into liner locks anymore, but if I were I'd have voted weak detent, because it's a safety issue.

 

[DocJD]

Most of my folder buys in recent years have been Cold Steel with Tri-ad locks .

Excellent locks , IMO , very strong and reliable . Mostly trouble free once fully broken-in .

But some do come with horrible lock stick . It will wear-in with use , just repeated opening and closing . But kinda a PITA !

 

[Sigsog226]

I voted detent too strong. I have had a couple where the detent is so strong, its a two handed opening knife with thumbstuds. All they had to do was try to open it once and they would have known it wasn't right.

But my biggest complaint would be that I had 2 liner lock knives that didn't stay shut due to no detent at all. One the ball popped out and no help from the company. The other is that they didn't even drill the detent in the right spot and didn't lock shut from the get go. Also no help from them either.

 

[Omnius]

Weak detent is the worst and has been an instant dealbreaker since I started knife hobby.
Probably blade play is more annoying, but for me it is rare and usually cleaning and screw adjustment fixed it, while weak detents are quite common and I don't think can be fixed without drilling and setting a new ball.

I think for me qc defects annoyance depends on the price. If something don't make the knife unsafe, I can live with some problems other than weak detent if the price is $25 or less and especially if the design is nice. But for $60+ all of them annoy me enough to be a dealbreaker.

Not mentioned on the list, but I'm also very annoyed by rounded tips, blade hitting the backspacer when closing and bad screws, soft, stripped, not standard or glued shut.

 

[goldie]

Off center blade and lock stick, and the more expensive the knife, the more annoying it is,especially when ive seen cheap knives without these issues.With all the advancements weve made in the last 20 years i cant see why its still an issue .

 

[braillediver]

Off centered blade or an uneven grind that makes the tip off centered. What Goldie said above /\

 

[Insipid Moniker]

For me it's not one particular thing, but the degree to which it happens. A blade where the tip is 1mm off center wouldn't bother me much, but rubbing scales is egregious and it's the same way for most of the other issues listed (though anything but the slightest blade play will irritate me).

 

[evilgreg]

The top vote-getter is side to side play, something that I've found I care less and less about over time. After using some knives with play more for actual work I realized I never even notice it when I'm cutting things, it's only fondling them that I ever found it annoying. One of my favorite autos has side to side play that would have driven me crazy years ago, but I use the hell out of that knife and never feel it wobble when I'm cutting, never.

I hate overly weak detents and bad lock stick much more. Detents because flipping action aside, I want knives to stay closed until I open them. Lock stick because, on the knives I've had issues with, it made some of them too annoying to use.

 

[afishhunter]

1-a): "OTHER": Blade "serrations". (AKA: "Chipped Edge" and "Saw Blade")

1-b): Excessive pull. I have no need of, nor any desire for, a knife I have to fight to open any of the blades.
In the field, when (not "if") your hands are cold and/or wet, one of the last things you need or want is a folding knife you can't open.

1.c: Noticeable blade wiggly wobblies when open.

Actually any one or more of these is a "Deal Murderer" for me.

 

[comis]

Hmmm...choosing uneven grind vs side-to-side blade play is like choosing diarrhea vs constipation. If only I could choose both, I hate them just as much.

 

[000Robert]

A dull edge doesn't make the list? I guess a detent too soft would be worse than a dull edge.

 

[Insipid Moniker]

A dull edge doesn't make the list? I guess a detent too soft would be worse than a dull edge.

I view sharpening my knives as something akin to putting gasoline in my car. If I buy a new knife I'd rather it was sharp and if I buy a car I'd rather it come with a full tank, but I'm going to have to sharpen/fill it fairly soon anyway, so it's not worth spending too much mental energy on.