TJ Schwarz Perpetua

I got mine and to say the least I'm disappointed as hell. Bad action, blade off center to the point of nearly rubbing, clip screw sheared off, free spinning pivot. I've already messaged Massdrop about it. I know Millit is way more capable than this, so what happened?
 
dkb45 said:
I got mine and to say the least I'm disappointed as hell. Bad action, blade off center to the point of nearly rubbing, clip screw sheared off, free spinning pivot. I've already messaged Massdrop about it. I know Millit is way more capable than this, so what happened?
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Well that is disappointing. Mine comes Saturday. I will be interested to see how it is.
 
dkb45 said:
I got mine and to say the least I'm disappointed as hell. Bad action, blade off center to the point of nearly rubbing, clip screw sheared off, free spinning pivot. I've already messaged Massdrop about it. I know Millit is way more capable than this, so what happened?
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I'd be curious to see some pics or a post about it, if you'd be so obliged. I was really curious about these.
 
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marrenmiller said:
I'd be curious to see some pics or a post about it, if you'd be so obliged. I was really curious about these.
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No pic of the centering on me, but here's the screw that broke. I thought it was cross threaded, so I backed it out, realigned it, and screwed it in twice. The screw only went about half way in, when I tried to muscle it in the threads were so out of spec that the screw broke. The pivot felt like it was permanent threadlocked, I finally got a screw out after a lot of muscle and it was just mis sized, not a hint of threadlock but it felt like my Wiha driver was going to deform from the force required. I'm shocked at how bad this knife is, especially coming from Millit. I'm waiting on Massdrop to respond now.
 
Mine has a centered blade. Came well sharpened. Haven't tried removing any screws or adjusting the pivot, though I may try the latter. The way the thing is tuned is much stiffer than any Benchmade I've ever handled. Slow out and even a vigorous shake will only close it enough so that I can reach it with my finger to finish the closing action.

Design-wise, I think it's nice except I don't like the thumb stud placement. Since the action is so stiff I need a lot of purchase on the stud, which the design prevents to a certain extent.

Had high hopes for this knife. Time will tell but first impression is not "awesome."
 
From the looks of that pic, the thumbstuds look pretty hard to reach. Maybe it's just me.

I missed the drop but am still super curious about these blades.
 
dkb45 said:
View attachment 983271
No pic of the centering on me, but here's the screw that broke. I thought it was cross threaded, so I backed it out, realigned it, and screwed it in twice. The screw only went about half way in, when I tried to muscle it in the threads were so out of spec that the screw broke. The pivot felt like it was permanent threadlocked, I finally got a screw out after a lot of muscle and it was just mis sized, not a hint of threadlock but it felt like my Wiha driver was going to deform from the force required. I'm shocked at how bad this knife is, especially coming from Millit. I'm waiting on Massdrop to respond now.
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Wow, that's not great. Looks like there are some bugs to work out. Thanks for sharing!
 
There were so many delays with this knife I wonder if they half assed the QC just to get them out the door...
 
dkb45 said:
View attachment 983271
No pic of the centering on me, but here's the screw that broke. I thought it was cross threaded, so I backed it out, realigned it, and screwed it in twice. The screw only went about half way in, when I tried to muscle it in the threads were so out of spec that the screw broke. The pivot felt like it was permanent threadlocked, I finally got a screw out after a lot of muscle and it was just mis sized, not a hint of threadlock but it felt like my Wiha driver was going to deform from the force required. I'm shocked at how bad this knife is, especially coming from Millit. I'm waiting on Massdrop to respond now.
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In todays day and age there are some sins I can’t believe companies are still making. Free spinning pivots or body screws. Worse free spinning with smooth screws on the rear that have no drive recess. Permanent threadlocker. Poorly designed access to opening the knife. A knife I just got came with a stop pin that isn’t shouldered so that tightening down the stop pin screw causes the scales to pinch together. This is despite the fact that in the backspacer there is a floating “stop pin” holding the backspacer in place along with another smooth free spinning screw.
 
Hate to say the pocket clip seems like it is going to be the major weak point on the perpetua. Just clipping and removing it from a pair of gym shorts has caused it to bend and lose contact with the scale after three times. Also seems like it will be a hot spot with any extended use. Got lucky the ones I received don't show any other issues at the moment.
 
The massdrop talk page is just as negative as this thread. Major complaints: pivot, clip and thumb stud. That's some pretty basic design stuff right there. However there are some finish issues reported too. I don't think anyone involved (T.J. Schwartz, Massdrop or Millit) are coming off looking well with this one.
 
SpySmasher said:
The massdrop talk page is just as negative as this thread. Major complaints: pivot, clip and thumb stud. That's some pretty basic design stuff right there. However there are some finish issues reported too. I don't think anyone involved (T.J. Schwartz, Massdrop or Millit) are coming off looking well with this one.
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Looks like TJ himself is conducting damage control... Grab the popcorn.
 
I would like to share that I received my knife yesterday and that my initial impressions are mostly positive. Now just as a disclaimer, I’ve only had this knife for one day. It has sat in my pocket, opened and closed it a bunch of times, and cut some paper with it. With that being said here is what I think of the perpetua.

Overall I feel that the design is good. It feels comfortable in hand using a Sabre grip. However, in a hammer grip, the clip feels like it would be a hot spot if used for an extended time like if I had to break down several large boxes (but more on the clip later on). The g10 is grippy but not so much of a pocket shredder like an Emerson. I would say that it is just a touch smoother than my BHQ Para 3.

The clip on my knife provided good retention. I was able to slip it in and out of my pocket with ease but felt that the tension on the clip combined with the g10 provided enough retention to keep the knife securely in place. The one downside to the clip is that it is a bit high for my preference. And by that I mean that it sits too high off the scale. I assume it was designed that way to provide clearance for those who pants with thicker material but I feel that it was over done. This goes back to where I previously mentioned that the clip might be a hot spot if used for an extended time. The position is fine, it just pops up too high. I haven’t “hard used” my knife yet so it is only an assumption.

As far as the thumb stud goes, I agree with most that it is placed too close to the handle. However, I wouldn’t go as far as to say that it renders it useless. I can still open the blade using the thumb stud, I just needed to get used to it’s position. It kind of reminded me of my sebenza. When I first got my hands on a sebenza, I could not open it to save my life. I had to learn to position my fingers to stay off the lock bar before I could open it effortlessly. The position of the stud is not perfect but it works. Maybe if there was a relief cut into the finger choil, it would help with accessing the stud.

The action out of the box was a little stiff but I didn’t feel that it was a problem either. I was able to flick the blade open, although it flew open sluggishly. When opened and the lock disengaged, the blade does not drop freely but with a slight flick of the wrist the blade will snap shut. I don’t think I will be adjusting the pivot anytime soon. I am curious to see if the action will “break in” and get smooth on its own

Again this is just my limited experience on the model I received. It sucks that others had negative experiences with theirs. I just hope that this short review helps others or at least removes any worries for those still waiting to receive theirs.
 
Man I'm glad I didn't get one. With all these issues you wonder. They should start charging a bit more and adding qc into the equation. Plus I hate how some companies don't trial there knives. They make only one prototype and don't do enough long term or pass around.

Also its probably hard to roll out new knives in large batches... Might be benift to make a run of 100 then get feedback and make changes on the final run. But then again it sucks to be a beta tester like that. But would certainly limit the high amount of issues people see. After the annoying ffkw+massdrop knife I got, I'm rarely going to be a first time buyer.
Though tbo I did get on the ochs knife. But reate is top notch, hopefully it's going to be stellar.
 
Mine came perfectly centered and with no flaws. After initial impressions I agree the thumb studs are less than great especially with the stiff action. Otherwise seems like a decent knife.
 
I finally got mine after a long, slow boat delivery process. You need to work on that Massdrop!

Fortunately, mine is perfect. The fit and finish is fine for the price point. The lock functions great and I can open it with a lock flick or a thumb flick. The blade is sharp and well ground with no “wash” markings. Those who are griping about a burr inside the liners need to look again; that’s the anchor for the lock spring extending thru the liners. Remember, this is the first legit, mass market Axis lock so it’s done a little differently than a typical Benchmade. I did add a drop of lube to the pivot and that improved the action.

For those of you griping about the stud placement...that’s not how they’re meant to be used on this knife. Just like on a Zaan, you need to contact the posterior side of the stud as you sweep your finger along the scale toward the pivot. If you try to attack the scale from the dorsal side of the pivot, you’re in for a world of hurt. Changing the scales has nothing to do with how you’re supposed to contact the stud.

The clip ain’t great because the pronounced ramp makes it easy to catch on things. Remove the clip and bend the ramp down a tad with some needle nose pliers and you’re good to go.

All in, this is a great knife for what I paid for it. I think Massdrop was doomed with this knife due to production delays. The droppers were fit to be tied and ready to rage. I’m happy with mine and suspect that there are lots of folks who need to temper their expectations.

This is, after all, a knife that dropped at $110 USD with $20 in credits applied along the way. Pretty sweet deal if you look with some perspective.
 
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