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The Most Annoying QC Defect

Which QC Defect Annoys You Most?!

  • Total voters
    151
Insipid Moniker said:
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.
Click to expand...

I guess so, but if they neglected to sharpen the knife, what else did they neglect? If it didn't at least have a decent working edge I would probably never buy another knife from them. But I don't expect it to be razor sharp until I unclamp it from my WE130.
 
Any sort of blade play bothers me, but a detent that’s too soft is my #1 pet peeve. I hate spending good money on a blade and I’m able to shake it open with little to no effort.
 
Honestly, my breaking point will be different for various issues:

  1. Off-center blade. - I don't love it. If it can't be fixed with a minute or two of fiddling with the pivot screws, I'm out and it's going back.
  2. Side-to-side blade play. - Absolutely not. This is shoddy at any price point.
  3. Uneven grind. - Not too much of a deal breaker for me, especially on a knife I plan to use. A knife purchased solely as a collector piece, it's going to be a case by case thing.
  4. Lockup too early. - As long as it's not like 0.01%, and I'm not planning to do a ton of whittling with it, I'll be ok.
  5. Lockup too late. - I hate it, and just w... (sit down, Umnumzaan!), sorry, just won't toler... (you too, all my Sebenzas! Dag, everybody SIT DOWN), so yeah, I won't tolerate it. Or something.
  6. Detent too strong. - Not a big deal for me.
  7. Detent too soft. - On a knife that doesn't go in a slip, I'm probably out.
  8. Lock stick. - Hang on, I have Ernie Emerson on the phone attempting to explain that egregious lockstick is a feature, not a flaw. Best of the best, for only $280! HGR!!!! LOL :rolleyes:
 
I went with "lockup too early"

I am thinking as in not locking properly hence likely to chop off your digits. That would be a real bummer for me.

n2s
 
What gets my goat isn't on the list.
How about a knife made from design to first model......
No one noticed the handle doesn't have a texture that will give a good hold?
A thumb stud not in the right place to get it open?
Pocket clips that are more of a problem than help?
Product quality is an issue, but how do the complete process design to make and not notice basic problems!!!
 
BillZee said:
What gets my goat isn't on the list.
How about a knife made from design to first model......
No one noticed the handle doesn't have a texture that will give a good hold?
A thumb stud not in the right place to get it open?
Pocket clips that are more of a problem than help?
Product quality is an issue, but how do the complete process design to make and not notice basic problems!!!
Click to expand...

I guess you just need to study photos of it, and ask people here on BF about them.
 
Which defect and to what degree I'll tolerate it will vary depending on what brand of knife it is and how much of I've paid for it. On a CRK, almost none of those are going to fly. If it's a milder case of any but the first three it usually works itself out. On other knives, stuff like side play I can fix by tightening the pivot. Mild blade off-centering doesn't bother as much on traditionals but on any modern style if it's enough to stand out to me, the OCD kicks in. I'll try to adjust it if the knife is easy to work on but if not and I spent too much on it, it goes back. Lockup depends how close to functionally impairing it is. Never had an issue with detent and lock stick can be remedied if it's not too bad.

But the one that sets me off across the board is a bad grind. It's ugly, effects performance, and can't be fixed without taking off a whole lot of metal and possibly shortening the knife's service life by years.
 
Probably only the first two can be said as defects and even that is a bit stretchy IMO.

You left off far more severe issues/defects like:
up and down blade play
lock rock
scratches on brand new knives
HRC lower than the claimed range
 
Lock slip.
Generally I can fix most issues but slip is usually due to poor design, although I have repaired a couple by lapping lock bar inserts, most were just irreparable.
 
  1. Off-center blade: I don't like it, but in an under $50.00 dollar knife I can tolerate it.
  2. Side-to-side blade play: No way! No How!
  3. Uneven grind: I can regrind it...not a big deal.
  4. Lockup too early: I'm not even sure what this means...does this mean that the blade locks open before the blade is completely extended?
  5. Lockup too late: I known't know that this means.
  6. Detent too strong: I've never had such a problem.
  7. Detent too soft: This is dangerous for a pocket carried knife...especially carried "tip up".
  8. Lock stick: I've never experienced this problem, but closing the knife is rarely needed to be in such a quick manner.
 
Uneven lamination lines on a san mai or laminate steel. I hate it and I can't fix it. The rest can be dealt with.
 
I voted side to side play, but only because up and down play was not listed. Side to side play can be adjusted out most of the time but good luck with vertical play.

Most other stuff I can live with or fix myself.
 
Mainly centering. The more expensive the knife the more I expect them to have everything perfect. I've noticed issues on high end production knives, and from what I've heard it's the same with custom makers. Is it really that difficult to have a list and make someone do QC by checking the items off the list before they ship out the knife? Mind boggling.
 
I left vertical play and lock slip off the list because they’re non-starter, no-go fails that most folks wouldn’t tolerate.

It’s great to read your comments though!

sharp_edge said:
Probably only the first two can be said as defects and even that is a bit stretchy IMO.

You left off far more severe issues/defects like:
up and down blade play
lock rock
scratches on brand new knives
HRC lower than the claimed range
Click to expand...

Barman1 said:
Lock slip.
Generally I can fix most issues but slip is usually due to poor design, although I have repaired a couple by lapping lock bar inserts, most were just irreparable.
Click to expand...

AntDog said:
I voted side to side play, but only because up and down play was not listed. Side to side play can be adjusted out most of the time but good luck with vertical play.

Most other stuff I can live with or fix myself.
Click to expand...
 
I voted for lockstick.
For the guys that have not experienced it, imagine trying with both hands, or both thumbs lol, to disengage the lock.
It's a real pain in the rear.
 
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