What the HELL is a slipjoint?

A folding knife that doesn't lock. The blade is held in place open or closed via pressure from the spring.

Your basic pre-lockback folder. Think Victorinox, Barlow, Boy Scout knife etc.

I am sure someone that is more informed than me can add something. Not a big slipjoint guy.
 
The same as a multiblade.
Try searching for slipjoint and you will see a bunch of pics and a definition that we started.


Something like this.

Taking some of the above knives as an example you will notice 3 pins going through the handle material. Note that the pin in the middle of the knife is located close to the bottom. That middle pin close to the bottom passes all the way through the knife securing the "back-spring(s) so that the ends of the springs will apply tension to the tang of each blade as it is opened and closed.

The quality of that tension and tang fit to the spring is known as the knife's "walk and talk". Ideally the blade snaps to an open or closed position so the "walk" is the distance that the blade seemingly travels on its own to the open, closed or half-stop (in some cases) position and the talk is the sound or thunk of the blade when it reaches one of those points.

Aside from the regular fit and finish (pins, handle material to frame and bolsters an additional art of the "slipjoint" or multiblade is the the tension of the back-spring against the geometry of the tang. When done right the blade snaps to it's intended position for a significant part of it's travel distance with a distinct sound.

In other words you can open the knife 3/4's of the way and the blade will travel the rest of the way on it's own due to the tension of the spring and the angle of contact of the spring on the tang of the blade. It is a very subtle thing to appreciate, but be careful if this type of thing is something you could get into, slipjoints are addicting . (Of course what knife is not to most of us.)
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Failed the spine whack test??? I sure hope so!!!!! If they
didn't the back spring would be so darn tight that Godzilla
couldnt open that knife!!!!!!!!

Slip joints seperate a real knife from the toys!!!!!!!!!!!
 
Originally posted by Tightwad
If they
didn't the back spring would be so darn tight that Godzilla
couldnt open that knife!!!!!!!!
Click to expand...
The only knife I can ever remember deliberately throwing away was a Pakistani folder with multicolored handles that I got as a "free gift" (for buying a real knife).

The only way to get it to close was to hammer the back of the blade on a hard surface, preferably metal, until the backspring released the blade. Since this seemed unduly hazardous to the structural integrity of any finger that happened to be holding the knife, I gave up and trashed it.
 
LOL..., yeah don't ya love those "Free Gifts" that injure you. A few years back I got some sort of little slip-joint along with a nicer item that I purchased. I think it must have been the twin of the knife Esav got...:)


"Hunters seek what they [WANT].., Seekers hunt what they [NEED]"
 
Now, do you know the difference between a slipjoint folder and a friction folder? ;)
 
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