Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

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SpyderLine
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Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#1

Post by SpyderLine »

Hi everyone! I just installed a silver titanium flytanium ball cage. I believe I installed everything properly. It functions fine until I torque down the backspacer screws and then the ball binds up. Although the cage definitely doesn't feel near as smooth as the stock plastic cage. What should I do to remedy this?
Thanks
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#2

Post by razehound »

Oh man, I had this same problem back with my old Manix cage swap...
I can't remember for sure, but I believe I remedied the situation by just playing with the tolerances, and reassembling a couple times. I know that you shouldn't torque the backspacer screws hard anyway, just for the regular action anyway. I also cut my spring down one coil to help the action, although I don't remember if that is what solved the binding problem.

Sorry, it was a long time ago, hopefully someone can get you better information!
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SpyderLine
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#3

Post by SpyderLine »

I ended up loosening the backspacer screws and putting down pressure on the blade and then tightening the screws down. It worked good for a couple of openings and closings and then it stuck again. A healthy dose of WD-40 to the spring, ball, and pivot has it buttery smooth again!
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#4

Post by Toucan »

As a person that like's to tinker, I don't always agree with the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" ethos, and I totally get that the cage isn't the most aesthetically pleasing thing on the Manix. But also, ya gotta wonder, why pay more to make something worse? Titanium isn't always better than plastic, especially if the plastic has self-lubricating properties.

The aftermarket for knives is like cars or any other mechanical hobby. Generally, OEM parts function with little fuss and do it for longer maintenance intervals. Sometimes it's cool and worth it to add the cost and headache of aftermarket parts, but it is not inherently a better call. With all that in mind, I skipped the titanium cage for my Manix and used the $40 I saved to buy an Astute.
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#5

Post by Rinzler »

I had a flytanium cage and I wouldn’t recommend it. It had issues. How did I fix it you might ask… I took it out and put the factory part back in. Problems resolved.
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#6

Post by nerdlock »

I think the only worthwhile part of the Manix for aftermarket or for self-modding is the spring. Any others are just not worth the time and cost.
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#7

Post by JRinFL »

I have the brass cage in my Cruwear Manix 2 and it is fine and it looks great with my burlap micarta scales. For me it was worth the cost and time. It did not bother putting in a wimpy spring as the factory one is fine.
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#8

Post by bearfacedkiller »

I have a copper one in my Manix and it works great. It is totally unnecessary and is really just an expensive Chinese trinket. Sure looks cool though.

My guess is that you got a bad one. I bought a set of brass scales for that Manix that were defective and they took them back without a fuss. CS was good.
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#9

Post by BAX229 »

I swapped the brown G10 for Putnam Micarta scales on my M390 Manix 2 and immediately the ball cage would bind and jam in the lock position. I changed the bearing to a silicone nitride ball, replaced the spring, and added a titanium cage...like butter now. This knife went from a nightmare to my new favorite. These upgrades are not for everyone, but they do make a difference for those who care.
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SpyderLine
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#10

Post by SpyderLine »

It was purely an anesthetic upgrade for me! I thought the silver ball cage would match the silver hardware and blade nicely! Otherwise I had no problems with the OEM plastic ball cage. I did think about getting the copper or brass cage simply because I figured they'd offer a smoother action.
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#11

Post by SpyderLine »

20210916_204029_compress4.jpg
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#12

Post by Dusty Cliff »

I have done two now and the first one bound up and I was worried. What worked was I oiled it up and played with it until my thumb hurt (about an hour). This allowed the new surface to eroded a little. It is fast and quiet now.
I agree with the others. But the plastic looks **** on a $200 knife.
Thanks,
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#13

Post by Dusty Cliff »

SpyderLine wrote:
Fri Sep 17, 2021 11:47 am
20210916_204029_compress4.jpg
I managed to order a m390 early this week. I have the brass ball cage to change it to when it arrives. Did spyderco do a re-release?
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#14

Post by Dazen »

Mine has been butter smooth since I put it in, but maybe the ceramic ball had something to do with it.

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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#15

Post by Chuck James »

I put a flytanium cage in my Manix2 and had no problems what so ever. I kept the factory ball bearing and spring. All of the back spacer screws are tight and set with orange loctite, pivot screws were set to my prefered tension and set with orange loctite as well. The action is super smooth.

Well worth the up grade for me.

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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#16

Post by salimoneus »

+1 if it ain't broke, don't fix it
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Re: Manix 2 Flytanium Ball Cage Trouble

#17

Post by Senfkarte »

Out of three cages, one made the knife smother than the stock one (but to be honest, this probably was more due to the assembly than the cage), one did not fit. The hole for the ball just was not deep enough.
There was no way to reassemble the knife with this cage. But I had it for too long, to send it back the easy way. So I took a ball end mill with a radius of 2.5 mm and tried to fix it.
I know, I should have taken the cage on a milling machine, but the drill press was there and the milling machine not. So I took it on the drill press in the basement. It is tricky, because the hole is not closed all the way around, so the edge of the mill always tries to catch and tear the cage out of the vice. So I tried to take it slowly. The first two tries were quite ok. No major damage done and the cage fitted after the second round of drilling. But the cage was still too far back in the opened blade position for my taste, so I gave it another round. I knew, it had to happen, and yes, the mill caught the cage and ripped it out of the vice.
Mill a bit broken, the hole was wider, than before and the rips of the cage had been deformed and decolored (it was a blue titan cage). The deformation of the cage was fixed with some sanding paper and a small file. Tried to fix the color with a sharpie, but I do not have to tell you, that the color would not last. At least the cage now fitted nicely and was not so far back anymore. But the color still bit me. Yes, I am a slow thinker, so the idea of anodization took its time, before it struck. So I bought everything I needed to anodize the cage (all in all I paid something around 5-10 € and could anodize hundreds of other cages with the leftovers) and anodized it back to a uniform blue. Luckily, blue does not need a relative high voltage.

In summary: yes, I had my problems with these cages, too. If thats your thing, you can fix it. If you still can send it back, just send it back, the next one might fit.
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