The Saga of a Cheap Gas Station Knife

[FlyingMuskrat]

Saga of a Cheap Chinese Gas Station Knife

It all started when I found this knife at the bottom of the river. It is a small key chain type knife with a 1 7/8 inch blade. It is a total rip-off of Spyderco, it has a deer head on the handle so I guess it is from that well respected manufacturer Dyrco.
It started as a junky lock blade then it stopped locking, so it was then a junky slipjoint. Then I got the idea that I could beat the rivets out and file the lock to get it to hold again. The rivets seemed to get caught on something and would not come out so I gave up. The beating on it had made it have like a quarter inch of sideways blade play.

Fast-forward to today, I filed the serrations out of it and benchstoned followed by a steeling, it actually came out all right. It probably won’t hold an edge worth a hoot but…at least it sharpens. Now the final mod was done to fix the blade pay. I took a ball peen hammer and mashed out the end of the pivot pin so it would hold the sides closer together therefore eliminating the blade play. I got a little overzealous with the hammer because now it is freaking hard to open. But at least it is safe and doesn’t wiggle.

You might wonder why I tinkered with this piece of crap……….I guess it was the incoperable urge to fiddle with the thing.

 

[DGG]

It sounds like one of those gimmicky fishing lures like where the fisherman takeses a tea spoon or an old car key, attach a hook to it, tosses it out and sees what bites it. At least you know it will taking a "pounding"!

 

[JohnR7]

You might wonder why I tinkered with this piece of crap……….I guess it was the incoperable urge to fiddle with the thing.

Really, those things cost something like fifty cents each. It is a very good design and a good little knife for the money. The spyderco design is so good, even their rip off copies come out ok. Anyways, better to play around with the fifty cent knives first, then you can work on the more expensive ones. If you got the pin to tight, did you try to put oil on it?

 

[Terry M.]

I've got one of these little cheapos too. Great to practice sharpening.

 

[FlyingMuskrat]

Yes I tried oil. And it still very very tight, but it might be better that it is tight since it no longer locks. It will basically pass a spine whack test. When whacked the blade will come up to somewhere around perpendicular to the handle. It is so tight that it can hardly be opened with one hand. I guess I got a little overzealous with the hammer.