Yojimbo 2.. gritty, suggestions?

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Nov 12, 2007
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Hi everyone. Love my Yojimbo 2, but am continuously curious about the opening action. Detent is strong, no problem with that. But even after that, the motion is gritty. When opened slowly you can feel slight drag and some grit.. like grains of sand through the entire opening range. Only other spyderco I own is the Pkal, and that opens buttery smooth.

I have tried running some fishing line through it, and warm water in the pivot, and of course good lube. Pretty much the same. Is this normal?

Should I disassemble it, or will that void my warranty?

Any tips appreciated. Thanks!
 
If you feel comfortable taking it apart, examining it, cleaning it, and putting it back together correctly, that is what I would do...
Seeing as you have already tried to wash it out there's not much you can do beyond that.

The other option is to send it to Spyderco to have it looked at, they should be able to help you out !
 
Wash the knife in warm soapy water,
Open it and close it several times while submerged
Rinse with clean water and use keyboard duster canned air to remove excess water fom the pivot and handle.
Oil as needed
This should resolve any grittiness.
 
Awesome. Thank you both! Will give that a shot. I love the knife, and feel like its a little petty to send it back for this. I am not even sure if my knife is irregular or not. Maybe being unused since new is the issue, and I just need to break it in with a few hundred openings? OK, off to try it. Thanks!
 
Let the knife break in over time. There really is no need to create any premature wear on it, let it happen naturally. That to me is part of the fun in owning a knife. As a side note, I've received a lot of knives from several companies that may feel gritty. The thing to remember is that they are built and assembled in workshops, ot in sterile environments. ;)

The washing of the knife should be done with caution, it's worked for me 9/10 times. One thing I forgot to mention, loosen the pivot screw just a bit to allow the soap to wash out any junk. :)
 
I wasn't experiencing a "grittiness", but I wasn't happy with the action on my Yojimbo 2. I opened it up and cleaned the extra factory oil off the inner part of the blade. I also lubricated the washers with Mobil 10W30 synthetic motor oil. Screwed it back together and now the action is beautiful. Flicks out smooth and closes smooth. Much better than before. I would recommend this if you're comfortable disassembling and reassembling your knives, as it worked wonders for mine. (I'm not too worried about voiding the warranty, but some people may be.)
 
RevDevil said:
Let the knife break in over time. There really is no need to create any premature wear on it, let it happen naturally. That to me is part of the fun in owning a knife. As a side note, I've received a lot of knives from several companies that may feel gritty. The thing to remember is that they are built and assembled in workshops, ot in sterile environments. ;)

The washing of the knife should be done with caution, it's worked for me 9/10 times. One thing I forgot to mention, loosen the pivot screw just a bit to allow the soap to wash out any junk. :)
Click to expand...
Thanks RevDevil! Just washing it like you said before, and lubing it.. seems to have helped. It feels smoother for sure.

lol. Yeah, I guess I was expecting the knife to be made with men in hazmat suits.
 
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PaytonB said:
I wasn't experiencing a "grittiness", but I wasn't happy with the action on my Yojimbo 2. I opened it up and cleaned the extra factory oil off the inner part of the blade. I also lubricated the washers with Mobil 10W30 synthetic motor oil. Screwed it back together and now the action is beautiful. Flicks out smooth and closes smooth. Much better than before. I would recommend this if you're comfortable disassembling and reassembling your knives, as it worked wonders for mine. (I'm not too worried about voiding the warranty, but some people may be.)
Click to expand...

I am thinking it might be some grit + factory oil that is causing my issue as well. I have broken down several of my knives in the past, but for some reason I want to keep this guy intact. I never use knife warranty's so I don't know why I care about it! lol.
 
OK! Update! RevDevil, did like you said.. loosened the pivot, submerged in warm soapy water and open and closed a few times. I think the issue was perhaps the oil from the factory got cruddy perhaps... cause after it is feeling smoother, and with oil... now buttery smooth!!! OMG! LOVE IT!

I noticed that with the pivot loosened a good amount there is still zero bladeplay! Amazing! Before, when I tried to close the blade, I would disengage the lock, and I needed a good amount of wrist flick to get the blade to start closing. Now, it just falls closed half way!
 
Is pivot tightness a matter of just preference? I think its a good amount tight, but retains an awesome sweet spot of smooooooth!

I don't need to throw on any loctite do I?
 
I had a similar problem when I first received mine, but after cleaning, relubing, and working it back and forth A LOT it became smooth. I also had a problem with the detent being too strong and rough, requiring nearly 4 lb force to open it, but after honing/polishing the edge of the detent hole, it became very easy to open (approx 2 lb opening force)
 
minimize said:
Thanks RevDevil! Just washing it like you said before, and lubing it.. seems to have helped. It feels smoother for sure.

lol. Yeah, I guess I was expecting the knife to be made with men in hazmat suits.
Click to expand...

Glad it helped. The hazmat suit comment was funny. ;)

Ou should be able to tighten the pivot on the Yo2 all the way without really impacting the ability to open and close it. If you do use Threadlocker, make sure it's the blue one and follow the instructions on the package. It works wonders.
 
DoctaD said:
I had a similar problem when I first received mine, but after cleaning, relubing, and working it back and forth A LOT it became smooth. I also had a problem with the detent being too strong and rough, requiring nearly 4 lb force to open it, but after honing/polishing the edge of the detent hole, it became very easy to open (approx 2 lb opening force)
Click to expand...

The detent on mine is really strong too. Stronger than I've ever had on a knife. But I think its great! The idea that it won't ever open in pocket is an assuring one.
 
RevDevil said:
Glad it helped. The hazmat suit comment was funny. ;)

Ou should be able to tighten the pivot on the Yo2 all the way without really impacting the ability to open and close it. If you do use Threadlocker, make sure it's the blue one and follow the instructions on the package. It works wonders.
Click to expand...
Hmm, when I torqued it down a decent amount.. not even trying that hard.. using a screwdriver it was too tight to open. So I loosened them, then took the bit and torqued it as tight as I could get it by hand without the handle of the bit holder. Its smooth now, no play, and the screws are still flush! I hope its OK, and doesn't need to be tighter or need the use of threadlocker.

Thanks for letting me know it should be blue... I have the red stuff. Guess I'll just hold off on doing anything for now if you think its OK.

Thanks again for all the help. This knife went from one that I loved to being the last knife I will buy... well, at least for now. I LOVE it even more!
 
You sound to be all set and ready to go. Congrats on a fine choice for a folder. It will serve you well...until you discover the Mlitary... :foot:
 
Thanks RevDevil! I can't believe how much more I am loving this knife. I can't stop playing with it. When I press the compression lock all the way, the blade just glides back into the handle. Amazing! Many thanks, seriously.
 
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