Stupendously stiff action from Taichung?

[DutchBlades]

So after debating whether or not to grab myself a Myrtle, I finally decided to do so.
The knife came in and I was really pleased with the look and feel of the knife (more so than I remeber with the prototype).
As expected from Taichung, the knife is top notch at first glance.
However, the action on this knife is just monstrous.
I'm used to spydies with a stiffer action like the Kris and old Persians have, but this is on a whole new level.
Besides those, there are a few models which need some break-in time like my Sage 4 did.

I'd say I've openend and closed this knife well over 400 times in the past days, and no change.
I'm a fan of the 90° hole on most Taichung models because of it's "biting" in the skin, which makes it easier to secure the blade when opening the knife,
but combined with the stiffness on this action, I just ended up turning the tip of my thumb into a chopping board...

Reluctantly I decided to loosen up the pivot (not a fan of doing this on new knives) and applied some Militec-1 (lubricant).
What changed? Nothing.
Is this a common issue on this model I just never read about or what?

[JonLeBlanc]

Wow, I’m sorry I have no input for you on this question, but that is a model I’ve never seen or even heard of before! Spyderco is PRODIGIOUS lol

[ZrowsN1s]

My Rhino was very very stiff. Loosened the pivot first day I had it, works better now.

[The Mastiff]

Hello Dutch Blades. The manufacturer there makes them like that on purpose. The reason is because they last longer. It takes them longer to break in but that is all you need to do. If you are getting blisters then sand the offending surface I suppose or just wait to develop blisters then tougher skin which will solve the process. I would rather have the extra lifespan on the knife but others wouldn't. It's personal preference. If you had a K2 you know what I mean about needing to break in. It was worth it for me.

Joe

[DutchBlades]

Hello Dutch Blades. The manufacturer there makes them like that on purpose. The reason is because they last longer. It takes them longer to break in but that is all you need to do. If you are getting blisters then sand the offending surface I suppose or just wait to develop blisters then tougher skin which will solve the process. I would rather have the extra lifespan on the knife but others wouldn't. It's personal preference. If you had a K2 you know what I mean about needing to break in. It was worth it for me.

Joe

Funny thing is, I do :p
Both the K2 and Slysz Bowie needed some break in time,
but started out nowhere near this amount of stiffness.

[Evil D]

I initially thought you might have some binding issues but isn't this knife titanium? I guess it could still be worth a shot...if you're comfortable doing so, loosen up all the screws throughout the whole knife, you don't need to remove them just loosen them up. Then starting with the pivot screws slowly start snagging them down moving from side to side going from the pivot back. Tighten them each down in small increments going over each screw a few times before they're snug. There really is no other reason a knife like this should be overly stiff unless there are binding issues with the screws being tightened down in a poor sequence, the pivot screws or stop pin screws being overly tightened, or perhaps the lock bar/detent strength is just super strong so it's pressing on the tang very hard during opening. You may also want to put a small dab of grease on the detent ball. If none of that works I'd send it to Spyderco. You should be able to loosen the screws and see an immediate change in how easy the blade is to move, if it's still stiff when the screws are loose then something is wrong, the stiffness is a result of friction and tight tolerances, so loosening the screws should open those tolerances and reduce friction.

If you're not familiar with the idea behind torque sequences, maybe look up how a car's cylinder head bolts are torqued down in a sequence, or for example the typical star pattern you'd use for tightening wheel lug nuts. I would assume the factory uses some kind of sequence like this, but if they don't then there is definitely a chance that the scales are binding up and working to pull the pivot section out if parallel which will create a stiff action. It seems less likely with stiff titanium slabs but the tolerances on something like this are so small that one screw tightened way too hard way out of sequence from the rest could cause binding.

[DutchBlades]

I've had this issue with a knife in the past (I believe it was the Captain) and it got a lot better after loosening everything up and incrementally tightening it. So I'll definitely give that a shot! :)

[Evil D]

As far as sequences go, there may actually be a proper sequence that's right for each knife, or maybe they don't put that much engineering into these things. All I know is I've managed to eliminate all but the most persistent blade play and I've smoothed out pivots doing this. I typically just barely tighten each pivot screw then move to the next set of screws and so on moving down the handle. I think this will differ from what you might do on a cylinder head because I wouldn't want to see a scale screw get torqued down before the pivot screw. I go left/right/left/right from the pivot back turning the screws in small increments before that final torquing. I am fairly certain they have a specific torque for each screw, I have seen them use what looks like a torque screwdriver in some factory videos. I don't know if it's specific to each model or just a general spec for each screw size but there's more to the construction of these knives than a dude twisting on bit drivers.

[SpyderNut]

As far as sequences go, there may actually be a proper sequence that's right for each knife, or maybe they don't put that much engineering into these things. All I know is I've managed to eliminate all but the most persistent blade play and I've smoothed out pivots doing this. I typically just barely tighten each pivot screw then move to the next set of screws and so on moving down the handle. I think this will differ from what you might do on a cylinder head because I wouldn't want to see a scale screw get torqued down before the pivot screw. I go left/right/left/right from the pivot back turning the screws in small increments before that final torquing. I am fairly certain they have a specific torque for each screw, I have seen them use what looks like a torque screwdriver in some factory videos. I don't know if it's specific to each model or just a general spec for each screw size but there's more to the construction of these knives than a dude twisting on bit drivers.

+1

I believe there is a lot of truth to this as I've noticed something similar when building folders. Some models seem to "prefer" to be assembled scale screws first, then pivot screw, while others seem to "prefer" the opposite pattern. It's amazing how even a 0.003" difference can negatively affect the opening/closing of a knife! Also agree with Joe; some of the initial "tightness" will improve over time, but some knives are slower to break in over others.

[Evil D]

Also agree with Joe; some of the initial "tightness" will improve over time, but some knives are slower to break in over others.

Yeah, it's like with a Sebenza, they're known for being pretty tight when new but it's pretty safe to assume it isn't because the scales aren't squared up with each other, considering how tight their tolerances and machining are. Sometimes parts just need to wear together for a while before smoothing out, especially when the tolerances really are that tight. When I'm adjusting pivot screws I literally only use my thumb and index finger to turn the driver because it's so easy to over tighten such a small screw. They also don't need to be ridiculously tight, they only need to be tight enough to eliminate play, and then they stay put via thread locker.

[SpyderNut]

Also agree with Joe; some of the initial "tightness" will improve over time, but some knives are slower to break in over others.

Yeah, it's like with a Sebenza, they're known for being pretty tight when new but it's pretty safe to assume it isn't because the scales aren't squared up with each other, considering how tight their tolerances and machining are. Sometimes parts just need to wear together for a while before smoothing out, especially when the tolerances really are that tight. When I'm adjusting pivot screws I literally only use my thumb and index finger to turn the driver because it's so easy to over tighten such a small screw. They also don't need to be ridiculously tight, they only need to be tight enough to eliminate play, and then they stay put via thread locker.

Exactly! Well said. ^

[kwakster]

Try a few drops of 5 weight Nano-Oil and report back.

[SF Native]

Is the blade dragging through the whole deployment?
My Myrtle has a fairly stiff detent, which is fine by me. And the hole is small and close to the pivot. It’s not the smoothest opening knife. But once the blade gets moving, it’s not a problem.