Which lock Really lasts longer....?

[JoHnYKwSt]

Generally when you hear of a Frame lock or Liner lock failing, it is because the lock bar develops the habit of slipping off the lock face, or if it is used hard, the lock bar deforms or breaks.
As it was originally designed by Michael Walker, the liner lock should stick and develop play like the other locks, but knives are almost never made that way now-days.

Joshua,
I think you are confusing lock longevity with lock reliability.

I was asking what you meant by a frame lock "going". If by "going" you mean the lock will start to fail due to slippage of the lock face, then are you saying that a knife will over its life eventually start to slip off the tang?

From my experience, as the liner or frame lock moves accross the tang due to wear it becomes more reliable, not less. Some poorly made liner locks slip because they do not engage far enough and by giving them a few good flicks the lock up usually improves by the liner moving over.

 

[dmonay]

Any time you have anything mechanical it has the potential to wear out or break. So if this possibility is not acceptable just carry a fixed blade. That said I alwys carry folders. But if one of my folders breaks I will grab another one as I have a few (doesn't everybody here at this forum) and send in the broken one for repair or fix it myself.
I do always buy quality brand knives (Benchmade, Kershaw, Spiderco) so I will have the best knife I can afford that wont be falling apart with use and a little abuse.

 

[cdf]

I have only had three locks fail on me . An early Spyderco dodo , fixed by a bit of emery cloth , fingers saved by the choil ( thats why Im a choil freak ) . An Emerson CQC7 would close with thumb pressure on the spine , not a spine whack . The other was an early buck 110 @1968 , it would close with pressure on the spine , trust me it was well maintained , twas my pride an joy .

I had another incident with a Manix , I would not call a failure , but rather a failure to clean debris out of the lock cutout .

I treat all locks as slipjoints with a retard mechanism .

Chris

 

[thedogpound2]

i got a buck 110 thats been passed down to me and old as dirt and the blade has been sharpen so much its really thin but the lock still works fine.

 

[Lycosa]

The absolutely best lock is the Fixed Blade lock.

 

[straitshot]

I make my choices mostly by how much of the tang is cut away for the lock. Some are cut so close to the pivot that I avoid them for that reason alone. Leverage, cutouts, steel type, thickness, stop pins, and a host of other factors must be considered for a true picture, not just generic design.

Some frame locks look very trustworthy until you consider how much of the frame is severed in the basic design- look at both sides, too. Actually, the lock doesn't matter as much to me as the overall strength of the whole assembly since I don't consider a lock to be a necessity anyway. Just my opinion...Regards, ss.

 

[batosai117]

Okay guys, so far so good. It seems that I might be able to list the locks in the Greatest to least preferred order. Now these lists are just from what I've read here and not showing favoritism.

1. Lockback
2. Frame lock
3. Liner lock
4. Axis lock
5. Arc lock

Of course this list is only on longevity of the locks life, not putting in strength tests and all of that. As for the ease of cleaning it seems that the order changes slightly.

1. Liner lock
2. Frame lock
3. Lockback
4. Axis lock
5. Arc lock

All in all, for length of life and ease of cleaning the frame lock and liner lock seem to take the cake.

 

[Joshua J.]

If by "going" you mean the lock will start to fail due to slippage of the lock face, then are you saying that a knife will over its life eventually start to slip off the tang?

Judging by what I read around here that doesn't seem to be an uncommon occurrence.
If you disagree that's fine, I just like to err on the side of caution.