Something I do not understand about the Chaparral

[Sharp Guy]

^ I may not be remembering correctly but I don't think I moved the spring quite as far as you did. Regardless, hope it works out ok for you!

[Daveho]

I play a lot of guitar, work on cars and so on and thus haven’t found there to be an issue with the lock bar-
That said my sample size is my one knife so not the most exhaustive testing but I found a little bit of lubrication at the back locks pivot and some where the spring rides on the lock bar helps in the initial little while as the knife breaks in- but I would have been perfectly happy to just leave it be

[GarageBoy]

I guess the titanium version solves the clip problem :p

[Sharp Guy]

...That said my sample size is my one knife so not the most exhaustive testing but I found a little bit of lubrication at the back locks pivot and some where the spring rides on the lock bar helps in the initial little while as the knife breaks in- but I would have been perfectly happy to just leave it be

^ That's assuming the spring will actually break in. My CF Chap didn't seem to get any better over time. I finally became tired of it and decided to take it apart and see what was up. I cleaned everything and accidentally put it back together with the spring in a little different position. It was much improved. I took it apart again a few weeks later for some reason and realized why it worked better.

I'm no Hulk but I am athletic and have fairly strong hands. The CF Chap was difficult to the point that I was going to get rid of the knife. I really like the Chap so I'm glad I figured out a way to make it work for me. The Chap LW I had wasn't much better. So correcting that one was a no brainer.

[Jazz]

I wouldn’t want the spring any weaker. It’s good. The problem was the narrow sharp lock bar. Sal fixed it on the FRN one.

[zhyla]

Mine was stiff initially and now I don’t really notice it. I doubt the spring loses tension quickly. I think you just get used to it.

Are Dragonfly’s like this? I haven’t had any for a while. Just wonder if it’s part of making a tiny backlock to have the spring that stiff.

[knivesandbooks]

My frn chap broke in just fine. And I got used to it. Wonder if a boyd regent would solve some issues? But that would thow off the lines

[Sharp Guy]

Are Dragonfly’s like this? I haven’t had any for a while. Just wonder if it’s part of making a tiny backlock to have the spring that stiff.

The springs on my Dragonflies seem pretty stiff yet I don't have any issue depressing the lock bar. Judging by the tension on the lock bar and how strong the self close feels my FRN/HAP40 is a little lighter than my Pakkawood and G10 DFs. The DF lock bar is about .020" thicker than the lock bar on the Chap. The extra thickness combined with the Boye dent seem to make a difference compared to the Chap.

Wonder if a boyd regent would solve some issues? But that would thow off the lines

Below isfFrom 2011 when the Chaparral was first being introduced...

Hey Sal, why no boye dent on the Chapparal?

We shortened the well to eliminate the need. It's a small knife and not likely to be white knuckled. Also I decided to listen to the Deacon on the lines and the dent.

sal

http://www.spyderco.com/forumII/posting ... &p=1253471

It's kind of neat to read through that Chaparral thread! There's discussion in there about the Sage 4 too. I wish would've grabbed one of those a couple years ago when I had the opportunity to get one at a reasonable price.

[Doc Dan]

I am sorry to hear a few of you have had issues. I have two Chaparrals and have looked at several more over the years and I have never encountered the issue of the spring being too strong. I wonder if it was put in upside down at the factory? That would change the tension. The only, and I mean only, issue I have had was my original early Chaparral was too sharp on all metal edges (spine, lock bar, liners, etc.) and had to be dehorned. But this was fixed with later Chaparrals. (That knife is fine now after I dehorned it). The FRN I got as soon as they became available. It was flawless. It drops free as well as my PM2 when I depress the lock bar and locks up like a vault. The Chaps are wonderful knives.

[Jazz]

The only, and I mean only, issue I have had was my original early Chaparral was too sharp on all metal edges (spine, lock bar, liners, etc.) and had to be dehorned.

That's my only complaint too. I think the spring tensions are just right. Which one did you have to smooth out?

[Doc Dan]

The only, and I mean only, issue I have had was my original early Chaparral was too sharp on all metal edges (spine, lock bar, liners, etc.) and had to be dehorned.

That's my only complaint too. I think the spring tensions are just right. Which one did you have to smooth out?

It was an early run of the Carbon Fiber model. The edges were sharp enough to cut some hands. I had to dehorn it and I complained loudly about it here on this forum saying that my Cat had better fit and finish in that regard. I dehorned it in just a few minutes and it was fine. I have never seen another later version that was like that. All have been very good. My FRN is super nice. I am a happy camper. If only I could afford one of those nice Ti models!

I was about to get a RN but then the FRN came out. Then, as I started thinking about it Sal announced some new scale materials (Buffalo horn!) and colors perhaps. Since I was not sold on the RN, I am going to wait for the new iterations.

[pagant]

Having only just bought my Chaparral frn earlier this week i have been reading some of the on line posts about them when i came upon your post regarding the lock , i got my torx bits and driver out and stripped it down, i am not sure how much of a difference i made to the positioning of the spring or if it was just cleaning out the innards and applying a fresh drop of oil but it now seems to function smoother than before, so i am calling it a win. Ta very muchly.

[sal]

Hi Pagant,

Welcome to our forum.

sal

[samdasnake]

My chap FRN has been smooth as silk since the day I bought it. Although I own many spydercos it's the one I find myself carrying nearly everyday. Beautiful design. I've never had any issues at all.

[BornIn1500]

Is this some troll fad that everyone jumped on so they could sound up to date with the latest views?

I think some of the views in the knife community are definitely fads, especially when it comes to YouTube reviewers. Things are very exaggerated.
Every little bump is now a "hot spot". Every knife that isn't perfectly centered and every pivot that doesn't let the blade freefall is now poor quality or defective. Flipper tabs that stick out will eat everything in your pocket like a starving hyena. Liner locks will take off your fingers faster than the French took the melon off Marie Antoinette. And good lord, don't buy a knife with 8cr unless you enjoy chopping through things with a raw sausage. :D Sometimes it just seems silly.

[TkoK83Spy]

^^ completely agree with both!

[anagarika]

Get a Cara Cara 2 in stainless to practice unlocking. I like how hard it is. Very safe with strong closure bias and make the finger stronger! :p

[carrot]

Now that I've owned three of these I feel qualified to say: the spring starts out pretty tough but does break in.

Easily one of my favorite EDCs of all time, small enough for easy carry, large enough for most cutting tasks, locks up like a bank vault, and awesome high-performance blade geometry.

[RobDigi]

I have a Chap Ti one my all time favorites and have no problem with the lock...painful!?...I don't get that.

The clip I took off within in the first hour I had it,
on impulse because the blue Ti looks so good, I didn't want it to be covered with a clip.
I usually never mess with clips I like to leave the knife the way it came its part of the ergos,
but the Chaparral is the only knife in my collection I took the clip off and it just feels so right like that.

If I want a clip I move up in size to the Native Ti much heavier more robust.
I really like these Spyderco titaniums with back locks.
Snap!!!

[rwasham]

I really enjoy fidgeting with my Raffir Noble version, but I'm sure the FRN version is much thinner. Spyderco makes so many different models though, why would anyone actively complain that a specific model isn't comfortable? Just switch to something with a different lock or spring or whatever....