Replacement bearings for the Southard or other flippers?

[flash900]

Does anyone have access to better replacement bearings for the Southard or other flippers?

I corresponded with someone on the forum about this months ago but, sadly, have lost track of the gentleman.

[Daveho]

Yeah.. good luck.

[Larry_Mott]

Best bet would be to send it to Spyderco..

[flash900]

No offense to Spydie, but I am hoping to find better replacement bearings than what I already have in the Southard and their other flippers.

[p_atrick]

Some guy on /r/knifeclub was selling washers and bearings for the Southard. No idea if they are any good, how much they cost, or if they are still offering them.

[Larry_Mott]

No offense to Spydie, but I am hoping to find better replacement bearings than what I already have in the Southard and their other flippers.

I just thought they might have improved parts. I threw the question out there re. the Mantra, if it has been upgraded, unfortunately i got no replies.

[PStone]

https://youtu.be/H969jf3CBBM



Not spyderco, but a good short vid about aftermarket upgrades and what it can mean for your knife. Found it using a link posted by setldown in the squeaky knife thread.

[flash900]

Thanks, folks.

I agree about the need for an improved replacement bearing -- I wish we could get an answer from Spydie.

[thewoodpecker]

Correct size needle barring would be ideal...that or someone who can do a bearing to PB Washer conversion. I prefer well done washers to bearing as they are more robust/lower maintenance.

[Daniel]

https://www.reddit.com/r/knifeclub/comm ... e_kit_now/

[The Mastiff]

From the above link:

Southard: Some purchasers have needed to open up the bearing cage inside diameter a bit with a piece of sandpaper wrapped around an allen key or other small item. This seems to be needed with all of the brand new Southards sold in the past few months. The washers fit these knives without an issue.

In other words they just need to break in.

needed with all of the brand new Southards sold in the past few months

How can this be based on any facts and be anything other than this guy talking out his a$$? Do people really believe this stuff? This guy is fortunate there aren't paper servers lurking around his house waiting for him to step out into the real world . Lawyers love that kind of person and bold and unprovable statement.


Joe

[norgman]

Possible Silver Bullet for Spyderco cupped washer/bearing race issue!

There are several threads on BF that address and discuss cupped washer/bearing race issues with Spyderco Southard and Domino knives. I plan to post my findings on multiple threads with the intent to help fellow forum members with what I have found to be a solution that has worked for me. I own 6 Southard C156GPBN knives and all of them had cupped washer/bearing races when I disassembled them brand new from Spyderco. Their "new condition" flipping action varied from good to average. As you can tell I really like the Southard model since I own 6 of them and my concern over time is the action was going to degrade as the very thin (.005") stainless flat washers continue to cup and eventually fail entirely.

What I have determined is that the plastic bearing washer works just fine and is not a concern for wearing out, the issue as we have all noted is the cupping of the thin (.005") flat stainless steel washer/bearing races the bearing washer rides on. My silver bullet is that I have found a replacement flat stainless steel washer that perfectly fits the Southard knife pivot and is .010" thick which is twice as thick as the factory .005" flat washer. The extra .005" thickness on each side of the pivot has not impacted the blade centering nor blade play and in my opinion improves the flipping action. Best of all, NO MORE CUPPING!!! I do not own a Domino but I bet a dollar to a doughnut this washer is the same size as the washers used in my Southard. It would be great if someone with a Domino could validate this for the team.

The replacement stainless steel washers can be found at Superior Washer & Gasket Corp. ( www.superiorwasher.com ), part number 300-1044-010. Their dimensions are, ID .219", OD .432", thickness .010". They cost $2.00 each. I have used them in a couple of my Southard knives and have flipped them 100's of times. It worked for me, I hope it works for you!

[SG89]

For context: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/is- ... 286/page-2

[MichaelScott]

For context: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/is- ... 286/page-2

From reading that BF thread it appears that one person is selling a $30 "kit" and another person found a $2 solution for the same "issue" (if, in fact there is an issue at all) and now they are fighting. I don't know why they are fighting here. :eek:

[Joe_Nun]

I know I’m new here, so first and foremost, hello to you all this morning. Just wanted to add my two cents here. I’m not sure how this will work on a regular southard. However, with that being said, I do have a Smock modified Mini Southard, and replaced the bearings with that of the Viper Odino. And they fit perfectly and work incredibly well. Tight fit and finishes, doesn’t mess with tolerances, etc. (I only know this as I’ve tried many many different bearings from all kinds of flipper-folders). Anyways, I hope this helps!

[Bodog]

They have some replacement bearing washers on aliexpress that do the trick for about $2 per bearing washer. $4 to fix most of spyderco's bearing knives since the older models all used the same setup. Stainless bearings in brass washers. They're smooth and fast and reliable and cheap.

I forget the dimensions. If you find some in the right size, order them. They work far better than the bearings trapped in plastic. There used to be a youtube video in russian that listed not only the correct sizes and how it worked after replacement, but a link to the aliexpress store.

[sal]

Hi Joe,

Welcome to our forum.

sal