stjames
Sebenzanista
- Joined
- Oct 26, 1998
- Messages
- 6,465
You should first see the Chris Reeve Knives Official FAQ hosted by their website.
The Unofficial Sebenza FAQ
History of the knife continued at the top of page three.
The Unofficial Sebenza FAQ
- How is the Lanyard Tied?
The lanyard is a standard hangmans noose.
Other options include the scaffold knot.
- What is the Stonewashed finish?
The stonewash finish is achieved by tumbling the blades in an aggressive stone media - i.e. we place the blades in a tumbling machine, filled with ceramic stones and liquid. The tub vibrates and the blades and stones move against one another. The result is that there are tiny scratches in every possible direction that are, in essence, a polish. A satin finish is different only in as much as the scratch marks are finer and they all go in the same direction.
- Anne Reeve, 02/09/99
- Can you give us some insight as to why
the thumb stud was chosen for the Sebenza over a disk or hole format?
Chris designed the thumb lug that we use on the Sebenza to open the knife efficiently yet be unobtrusive. Bear in mind that design is a whole package - how the knife (or any other product!) looks, balanced with how it functions.
It seems that quite a few Sebenza owners have trouble with the lug and the main reason is that they have a tendency to push down on the lug instead of using a sideways sweeping motion to open the knife. Used as intended, our thumb lug works as well or better than any out there!
- Anne Reeve, 10/16/98
- How do you get the knife so sharp, and what do you recommend to keep it that way?
We really have no secrets - it's just that Chris has spent over 20 years studying cutting edges and angles and generally the best way to do it. Considering the number of knives we have made, and he sharpened every single one of them up till about 3 years ago, he has had a lot of practice! He has been able to impart the skill to Scott and Bryan who take care of the sharpening now. They grind the bevel on a belt grinder and polish the edge on a hard felt wheel, using an aggressive polishing compound.
- Anne Reeve, 11/24/98
Sebenzas are sharpened at 19-20 degrees. We recommend the Spyderco Sharpmaker because it is so easy to use. The way to have a sharp knife is to begin with it properly sharpened and then maintain it! Don't let it get really dull because it can be hard to get an edge back again Because the Spyderco system is so easy to use, a person is inclined to use it. It seems that a lot of people put off the maintenance of things because it is a hassle to get out the equipment and do the necessary!
-Anne Reeve, 10/19/98
- How do I clean the knife? How do you keep the decorated handle clean?
It is preferable to strip the knife down, clean everything, lubricate (don't forget our lubricant in the syringe!) and reassemble. This is not as difficult as it sounds! A damp Q-tip is great to lift off dirt in and around the stop sleeve and pivot bushing. The flat items (blade and phosphor bronze washers) can be cleaned by laying a piece of paper towel on a table and rubbing the items up and down under your fingers, so that they remain flat.
-Anne Reeve, 06/04/99
SOME ADVICE ON CLEANING AND ASSEMBLY OF SEBENZAS.
After taking the knife apart, clean all parts with a paper towel or soft cloth.
When you assemble the handle, tighten all screws firmly.
(Do not over tighten! DO NOT USE LOCTITE! The knife is not designed for that and if you have used Loctite, the screws will need to be drilled out if the knife needs to be disassembled at some time in the future. This will require new screws and pins and can end up an expensive exercise.)
Clean the sides of the blade and the pivot hole, removing any lint or grease. Put just a drop of lubricant into the hole, then slip in the bearing. Seat the thrust washers on either side of the bearing, with just a touch of lube underneath them. Make sure the bearing and the washers are flush. Lightly lubricate the lock ramp and the ball race (the mark that is made by the ceramic ball on the blade).
Slip the blade into the handle, and insert the screw and pivot pin, tightening the screw firmly (but not too tight!). If the blade assembly does not go into the handle, DO NOT force it or loosen the stop pin screw check the blade assembly.
If you have trouble putting it back together, start the procedure again. Check that the washers to do not get crimped this is a common reason why the blade feels stiff.
- Anne Reeve, 07/21/99
- (On the decorated handle) we use Windex and a chamois here at the shop. Any kind of oil or grease (even fingerprints!) will dull the color of the anodizing.
- Anne Reeve, 07/21/99
The color on the decorated Sebenzas is nothing more than light. When the handle face is anodized, an electrical current is passed through it and, according to the voltage, so the surface molecules are re-arranged to reflect back only one part of the light spectrum. Any substance that covers the anodized color will distort the passage of light and so that is why the colors seem to fade. Windex (which is the least obnoxious degreaser and the most readily available) will remove any oily film that may be there and return the color to its former brilliance.
- Anne Reeve, 10/29/99
- I put some keys in the same pocket as my Sebenza, and the titanium handle got scuffed and some brass got abraided into the rough titanium.
What's the best way of touching up the titanium handles to conceal or polish out little scratches and dings?
There is not really a whole lot that can be done to remove the marks. The bead blasting creates a whole lot of miniature peaks and valleys - when you scratch the surface, you are removing the peaks. However, general usage will give the handle a more used and comfortable look - but I know, those first few scratches are killer!
When you are ready, send it back and we'll put it back to 100% for you!
- Anne Reeve, 10/05/98
Brass is very soft and has stuck to the rough surface of the titanium. This can be fixed by a soft cloth and SOFTSCRUB use a gentle rubbing motion. Do not rub hard, it would be best to strip the sebenza down. Remember to lube it at assembly time, we recommend our teflon lube.
- Chris Reeve, 10/10/98
- Whats the best way of "tuning and lubing" your Sebenzas?
We have researched lubricants pretty extensively and have, at last, found a pure Teflon that we are having packaged and are selling under our own name. We have it packaged in a syringe of 9 grams - perfect to be able to put just a drop, exactly where you need it!
It is not recommended that you alter the tension of the locking bar - we set it at a balance between ease of opening and safety. As you say, you don't want your knife opening in your pocket!!
Otherwise, just clean the knife from time to time and make sure there is no built up of dirt around the pivot and lock area. If you use the knife around a particularly corrosive substance - acid food (oranges, tomatoes, etc), blood, salt water, be sure to wash it off in fresh water and lubricate the pivot.
"Take care of your knife, and it will take care of you!"
Anne Reeve, 10/09/98
- I was wondering if any Sebenzas have been returned for blade play due to wear
between the area of the blade tang and the surface of the liner that makes contact
with the blade? If so, would it be possible to purchase a lock side scale from you?
This is not something we have experienced because of "wear" - it can happen for some other reasons - after market modifications or screws not being tight or dirt in the lock or similar things.
We would not send out a lock side scale (or blade or other knife parts!) - we would ask that the knife be returned to us so that we can put right whatever it is that is not correct.(There may well be a charge for the repair, however and we would be in touch with the customer about it.) Part of what you get when you buy a Chris Reeve Knife is "service". It is important to us that the knives work the way they were intended and we will gladly work on any knife that needs it.
- Anne Reeve, 10/09/98
Just to clarify a point here, the pivot pin on the Sebenza is not asymetrical and is also not the part that you are thinking of in terms of rotation! The stop sleeve, against which the blade rests when the knife is open, can be rotated it necessary to get just a tiny bit of take-up.
If you go to our website at www.chrisreeve.com you will see detailed diagrams showing the relationship between the blade and pivot, the stop sleeve and the lock.
Lateral movement in the blade is not acceptable in a Sebenza. If there is play, there is something wrong and the best thing to do would be to send it to us so we can put it right.
- Chris and Anne Reeve, 10/09/98
- My problem is that the lock travels and hits the opposing liner when a firm grip is applied. I disassembled it and cleaned it thoroughly but the problem persists.
There is nothing to fix!! The lock will move over toward the back of the front handle slab if you press hard on it. After all, it is a spring that has a natural position and can move further if pushed. The spec position for the lock is to cover 75% of the blade. If it falls naturally further than that, we will adjust it.
A difference between the Sebenza and other liner locks is that you can get in behind the lock of a Sebenza and push it over. With the others, you can only push from the top of the liner which is a less effective movement.
We know that a lot of owners of Sebenzas like to adjust the lock and the pivot etc. but we DO discourage this. When we ship the knives, they work the way they are intended and modifications usually end up with something not working right!
- Anne Reeve, 11/03/98
- I lost the hex wrench that came with my Sebenza. I used one from the set I already had to remove the clip. I put the clip back on and now when I went to take it off again I stripped the clip screw. Is this screw a special size and only the wrench supplied will work?
Be sure that you (you being everyone out there!) don't over tighten the screw - that is why it strips out! Use a good quality 5/64ths key short series or contact us and we'd be glad to send replacements.
<A HREF="http://www.knifeforums.com/ubb/Forum25/HTML/000144.html" TARGET=_blank>
- Anne Reeve, 01/27/99</A>
- Never owned Damascus before. Can you tell me about the care and feeding of this beautiful blade.
The Damascus blade Sebenza will come with a small container of RIG (rust inhibiting grease). Every so often, rub just a TINY bit of Rig onto the blade. The Damascus (made by Devin Thomas) is not stainless so the carbon layers might show some corrosion over time.
- Anne Reeve, 11/16/98
- If I send a Decorated Sebenza in to get "refurbished" does that include;
1)polishing scratches out of the blade;
2)re-sandblasting the clip side scale;
3)polishing scratches out of the decorated side;
4)replacing the anodized thumb stud with a newly anodized one; and
5)restoring it's factory razor-sharp blade?
Refurbishing of a decorated Sebenza is a bit more complicated than the plain version but we are glad to do it for you. To answer your points:
1. We can polish the scratched from the blade - it requires removing the thumb lug (which destroys it so it needs to be replaced
2. Sandblasting back side of the handle and clip is part of the standard (includes stripping the knife down, checking everything over, sharpening).
3. We can polish the front face of the handle and recolor it. Also, the colors may not be exactly the way they were originally, especially if the color is graded.
- Anne Reeve, 11/24/98
History of the knife continued at the top of page three.
