What is your definition of smooth?

Smooth:
1) A CRK, similar to a 300# Mercedes door opening & closing. So satisfying.
2) A nicely engineered knife with bearings or PB washers; see PM2, BM Grip, Shiro, CKF
3)
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whitty said:
Smooth? "There is never any consistency in the use of the word from what we have seen."
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Not surprising to me at all. Just as there is no consistency in the favored models, scale materials, blade-steels or locking systems among our members...
 
This knife is smooth to me! Buttery smooth almost and locks up with an audibly satisfying engagement of steel on steel!
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RBid said:
I see that this is a mild thread resurrection, but the topic is obviously relevant. I’ll chime in.

As evidenced by the variety of replies, and the frequently evident disconnect from the actual definition of smoothness, “smooth” as used by knife people is often worthless. More often than not, I receive “the action is smooth” as “I like this knife”. It seems to simply be another piece of language hijacked for the purpose of assigning subjective value in a way that tries to sound objective.

The span of time between breaking a detent and lock up is virtually instantaneous. While I recognize that there are differences in feeling during opening or closing, that stuff is grossly overplayed. For example, “my Shiro is smoother than my Arius.” Really? What did you feel in the 1/1000th of a second between defeating the detent and lock up that told you it was smoother? Did you feel sticking points at 7/16 and 12/16 rotation, indicating that the Arius was less smooth?

/sigh
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Disagree.

There are knives where at a certain point of the blade rotation you can feel the action get gritty or tighten up.

I just think smoothness often gets conflated with “freeness” of action when really they are two different things. There are very free actions where you can feel the bearings rolling against the surfaces. A free but not smooth action.

Then there are actions like a crk out of the box or a broken in Emerson which are ultra smooth but not free. (If you leave the stock grease on that Emerson it will never be smooth though)

Also it seems people often don’t realize that alot of the feeling of an action has to do with the detent ball riding on the tang as much as it does the pivot and washer/bearings.
 
"Smooth" = Worked and worn in , mods as needed , comfortably seamless in function . Like an old pair of leather boots . Nor just the lock , everything : Handle , clip , lanyard . When all the bugs have been worked out and there's nothing remaining to annoy or distract you . Some knives probably start out almost smooth . Others take work and some never make the cut . :)
 
I welcome disagreement. It would be all kinds of fun to flip-check people at Blade Show. Hand them a knife, have them fire it, leave it open, describe the action, then close it to feel the action slowed down. May provide a little insight into how much people really discern, in relation to what they say.
 
The topic of discussion here is "what is your definition of smooth?" Answers are going to vary greatly in what members think is smooth to them. There isn't a right or wrong answer here.
 
RBid said:
I see that this is a mild thread resurrection, but the topic is obviously relevant. I’ll chime in.

As evidenced by the variety of replies, and the frequently evident disconnect from the actual definition of smoothness, “smooth” as used by knife people is often worthless. More often than not, I receive “the action is smooth” as “I like this knife”. It seems to simply be another piece of language hijacked for the purpose of assigning subjective value in a way that tries to sound objective.

The span of time between breaking a detent and lock up is virtually instantaneous. While I recognize that there are differences in feeling during opening or closing, that stuff is grossly overplayed. For example, “my Shiro is smoother than my Arius.” Really? What did you feel in the 1/1000th of a second between defeating the detent and lock up that told you it was smoother? Did you feel sticking points at 7/16 and 12/16 rotation, indicating that the Arius was less smooth?

/sigh
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Oh, right!
I did not notice that it is a half a year old thread!

One thing I would like to say is not to underestimate human tactile sensation and cognition.
You can probably get a lot of texture information during a fraction of a second.
 
miso2 said:
Oh, right!
I did not notice that it is a half a year old thread!

One thing I would like to say is not to underestimate human tactile sensation and cognition.
You can probably get a lot of texture information during a fraction of a second.
Click to expand...

I don’t disagree with that. People can detect a reasonable amount in a short span through touch. My position isn’t that some variance isn’t notable. Rather, it’s that variance is less evident than it is discussed.
 
I feel in most ways, it's the least resistance but also, controlled if that makes sense.
I would defer to my buddy on the Sals site.
He says a Koening Arius is the very definition.
He also has Shirogorov, CKF, and many more.
I reckon when ya get to the CKF, Shiro, Koening level, then smooth come into play :D
CRK as well.
P.S., I will say the new Hinderer Gen 6 XM models are very nice :thumbsup:
 
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