Why does my Super 8 moan and groan

L

longbow

Joined
Jan 9, 1999
Messages
4,346
Why is there such a loud squek, moan or groan upon opening? Any fix for this. Also has weak detent. keepem sharp
 
longbow said:
Why is there such a loud squek, moan or groan upon opening? Any fix for this. Also has weak detent. keepem sharp
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Strip it down, clean it up, inspect both detent balls to see if either has developed a flat spot. If so, carefully push it out with a punch (I press them into soft wood like a paint stir), rotate the flat in, and press it back in place.
 
My horseman did that brand new. Its the detent ball on the lockbar. It went away over time.
 
longbow said:
Why is there such a loud squek, moan or groan upon opening? Any fix for this. Also has weak detent. keepem sharp
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Have you taken the knife apart and completely cleaned out the stock copper flecked grease that it came with?

Any new Emerson should be disassembled once and the stock grease replaced with a better lube.

As for increasing detent strength when you have the knife apart look at the liner that doesn’t have the lockbar. You will see a little tab with a detent ball in it. This is Emerson’s second detent of their dual detent system. Use something to push the tab so it is sticking out a little bit further. This way you can change the detent on your Emerson without changing the lockbar.
 
A very light application of oil or grease on the detent balls will also take care of the squeaking. I'll need to try Officer's Match's decent ball removal and rotation trick. A few of my users have decent balls that have flat spots.
 
I just bent the tab out a bit on the non lock side. Still squeaks. Ain't gonna mess with the detent balls at all. Even if it ain't rocket science. keepem sharp
 
longbow said:
I just bent the tab out a bit on the non lock side. Still squeaks. Ain't gonna mess with the detent balls at all. Even if it ain't rocket science. keepem sharp
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Pushing the detent tab further in doesn’t affect squeak. It only increases detent strength.

Best way to get rid of squeak is to remove all old lube and reapply with high quality lube. Also put a drop of oil on each detent ball. If that doesn’t work then you’re likely stuck with it. Not a big deal.
 
harvey554 said:
A very light application of oil or grease on the detent balls will also take care of the squeaking. I'll need to try Officer's Match's decent ball removal and rotation trick. A few of my users have decent balls that have flat spots.
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It really isn't hard to do, you just need a small enough punch. I actually had to grind one just a bit smaller to make it work. I rotated the detent ball on my waveless 8 after it was good and broken in, and was rewarded with the smoothest best action of any of my dual-detent Emersons (my single detent 20th anniversary Commander is the all-time best action of more than 50 Emersons). The picture below is for demonstrative purposes (obviously) as the liner should be facing the opposite direction when removing the ball.

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I had that issue on my 7V. I took the knife apart and cleaned it well, then reassembled and put a tiny drop of motor oil on the detent ball and open/closed it over and over... 10 to 20 times or so... and problem solved. I assume it allowed the detent ball and track it made on the blade to polish and bed in.
 
I have resolved this issue in the past by taking the detents and running them across my strop a couple of times.
 
DerrickT said:
I have resolved this issue in the past by taking the detents and running them across my strop a couple of times.
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That would break the "square-ish" edge off the flat spot, which is the likely cause of noise. Rotating the ball will make for a smaller contact area, which IMHO improves the feel too (assuming there is a flat spot on the detent ball).
 
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Dude just oil where the detent contacts the blade. Haven't had any knife of any brand not respond to this!

Sorry if that has already been explained or it isn't the issue...

Read and posted in a hurry!
 
I've done all of the above except mess with the detent balls. My M50 doesn't do it, my AC 7a ltded. doesn't do it and my 13 doesn't do it, just my Super 8 and it gets louder with use so I'm not gonna mess with it anymore. Getting more into carrying small fixed blades now anyways. The Kershaw Skyline in S30v so far is the best I've found for edc'ing a fixed blade on the smaller side. keepem sharp
 
Officer's Match said:
Strip it down, clean it up, inspect both detent balls to see if either has developed a flat spot. If so, carefully push it out with a punch (I press them into soft wood like a paint stir), rotate the flat in, and press it back in place.
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Nice, tip, thank you. I have this problem with my Super CQC8. I was very upset when I found out, now I'm thinking to give it a try.
 
Allex said:
Nice, tip, thank you. I have this problem with my Super CQC8. I was very upset when I found out, now I'm thinking to give it a try.
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Just be sure to do it in a well lit area, one in which a itty bitty ball can't hide. Really not hard at all - very little force to dislodge and re-press the bearing in place. Just take a good look (and a picture if possible) at the depth of the ball, as well as the unsprung position of the detent tab, for use when putting it back together. It really isn't that hard.
 
I have a new commander that has this squeak when you open or close it. I’ve never carried it because it absolutely annoys me to no end. I will try the detent trick and see if it helps.
 
dbltap45acp said:
I have a new commander that has this squeak when you open or close it. I’ve never carried it because it absolutely annoys me to no end. I will try the detent trick and see if it helps.
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If it is new, it is unlikely the detent ball is worn. I'd take it apart and inspect the liners (including detent), washers and pivot tube. A good cleaning will likely solve it. SF or BT?
 
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