Torsion bar on a frame-lock: How's it made?

I doubt it was just "bent". Maybe someone else has a better answer, but given how springy the steel is and how much it resists taking a permanent set, I would guess it is heat treated after being manipulated into that position.
 
If you mean the lock bar, typically the curve and adjustability is enhanced by the milled out portion you usually see on the lock bar that creates the bend toward the inside of the handle. Adjustments are typically made with manual bending like many of us have had to do when we have lock rock on a frame lock. I'm not sure if they bake the Ti or whatever material the knife scale is made of after the milling and bending. I do know well made Ti frame locks often utilize a hardened lock bar face but I'm not sure if the entire scale goes into an oven after the milling and manual bending adjustment.

I'm not sure how it's done with a liner lock though . . . probably similar to the fram lock minus the milled out portion of the liner.
 
Terminology is wrong. The lock bar is not the same thing as a torsion bar. A torsion bar is a spring rod within the handle that creates the ability for ssisted opening (Kershaw/ZT). Titanium has more ductility than regular steel, allowing for multiple bends over and over without breaking. Steel will stress at the point over time much faster than Titanium will.
 
My mistake. I will lock-bar from now on. Thanks for the replies.

How would you harden the face of a lock-bar? Torch?'

I wish someone had a video of the process.
 
With titanium, just mill the cut-out, then bend.
One I did, I used the advanced technology of thumbs to give the bend. Clamped it to a desk, then used the thumbs.
My step-brother is still beating the hell out of that knife to this day, a good number of years later. It's held up to batonning and everything.:)
I didn't harden the face or anything, and it doesn't seem to matter much.
 
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