Vintage Mint condition but nailbreaker

jackknife said:
I will never forget the advise of our scoutmaster when I was a kid; Never, NEVER, carry a knife that is hard to open. Its an accident waiting to happen. That someday, you may have to open that knife in less than perfect conditions. You may be wet. You may be cold, or both. And if its an emergency, you may be in hurry. Wet cold hands and an emergency is an accident looking for a place to happen.

If you need a strong backspacing to feel safe, maybe you should not be handling a sharp object.
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Several years ago when I joined Bladeforums I was a sheriffs deputy. The last couple years I’ve been a truck driver. Specifically, milk tankers. Much MUCH more money, more time off, and I’d rather be around farmers and cows. I go to dairy farms in a tractor trailer and load their milk onto the tanker trailer. In the course of the loading-the-milk part, my hands are constantly wet and cold. By the time the farm tanks are empty I’m doing good to feel my hands when I’m rolling the hose up and leaving. Insulated gloves aren’t sanitary and rubber gloves make my hands colder somehow when they get filled with sweat, so I forego them altogether and wash my hands several times while handling the equipment.

I say all that because that’s exactly why I won’t carry a nail buster. Well. That and I simply have wimpy fingernails and can’t open the darn things! My hands are wet and cold every time I’m out of the truck. I take this into account very heavily when I’m looking in the dresser drawer to see what I’m going to carry. I usually go for a sodbuster junior, a case trapper, or a jumbo stockman. Usually I carry the sodbuster in addition to the other one just because I can pinch it open with either hand if things really go to crap.

In a sodbuster I like a strong spring for one reason and one reason alone; I can’t have them in any other knife so in one that I pinch open it can clack open and make me sound all manly with its snap sound 😄
 
Nexus-6 said:
This S&M was a complete nail ripper. It didn't seem so at first, and then a point came when I couldn't get either blade open. I was immensely frustrated. I started working the joints with mineral oil and flushing out any debris that could be found. In time, I just decided to leave it (as shown in the picture) half open, to see if I could get the spring to soften. I probably left it in a case like this for months, possibly a year. And, well, it worked. Still pitbull tight, but I can now get both blades open, comfortably.
AHSDTEO.jpg
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I tried that years ago but didn’t have any luck with the ones I tried it with. Specifically, a stag handled Jack knife that my deceased uncle gave me that I really wanted to carry. That, sir, is a very good looking knife you got there! And a very good tactic to loosen it up.
 
dsutton24 said:
Camillus Electrician's Knives are notorious nail busters. I'd guess it's by design since it's so common in these knives. Maybe to try to keep the blade from folding accidentally?
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I never knew this but it makes sense in that out of the 7 or so of them I’ve owned, I can only open one without using a quarter or something to pull it open with. I’ve since given up on the pattern
 
I’d rather a blade be too easy to open than too hard. A bear-trap means if your finger slips you could have an accident while opening, or just bend your nail and hurt your finger, making it even harder to open your knife when you need it. Hard pulls are manageable but they require a certain amount of premeditation. Not the best when you just need a knife to cut something, especially under less-than-ideal circumstances.
 
A few years ago some seem to encourage companies to make hard to open knives, as it was seen as more traditional or something similar.

There is a reason victorinox, who sells a few knives, has the pull they do, about a 5 on most people's scale.

Camillus electrician, I got the odd one and they are usually in pristine condition, as nobody can open them and use them :)

GEC 23s from a decade ago also come to mind...

I do not really sell any knives, but if I discuss them with someone that could be interested in them, I mention the pull, if it is unusually strong or weak.
 
SomebodySomewhere said:
I just got an oldish Camillus where I literally have to use pliers to open the screwdriver blade. I wouldn’t even be able to use one of those picks because of the semi-sharpened edge and the amount of force needed. I’ve convinced myself (with input from others) that somebody repinned it and maybe had something at an angle, because it definitely isn’t dirty.

It was cheap enough that I’m thinking of using it to learn on. Maybe go down to just main blade and try my hand at peening. Famous last words ...
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If that knife left the factory being that hard to open then somebody needed some remedial training or something! Surely your correct in that somebody messed with it and that’s the reason
 
afishhunter said:
to see if a little judicious use of a stone and/or file will cure the problem blade(s). (It is amazing how much difference a slight radius on a tang shoulder that WAS a sharp 90° angle makes, when you don't have to instantly flex the possibly/potentially over strong backspring all at once.)
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I'm going to get a needle file and try this on a couple of mine. I have a Schrade-made Buck 303 that's probably minty because the blades are so hard to get open. Cleaning and lubing made no difference.
 
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