Production Knife Tolerances

[gldfshkpr]

Just recieved my two Caly3 knives in the mail yesterday. :D Upon inspection, one knife blade tip is not centered between the liners and is shorter by about 1/8th (guessing) of an inch. Also there is an ever so slight play in the blade. The other knife has none of these issues and is near perfect.

Are these acceptable tolerances from a production knife?

[wescobts]

Sounds like the first one is a little off maybe a phone call would be prudent.

[gldfshkpr]

Sounds like the first one is a little off maybe a phone call would be prudent.

Well, unfortunately this is a gift for a friend in 3 days. Fortunately, (I guess) he's not a big knife person (I'm working on this) and will probably not notice.

For future reference, I'm wondering if anyone else has received a knife that wasn't straight; just to know what to expect.

[bdws1975]

Well, unfortunately this is a gift for a friend in 3 days. Fortunately, (I guess) he's not a big knife person (I'm working on this) and will probably not notice.

For future reference, I'm wondering if anyone else has received a knife that wasn't straight; just to know what to expect.

I think it would be best to give him the perfect one and then send the imperfect one back for replacement. There's no reason to start him off with a crappy example of a great knife.... :)

Good luck,
brett

[gldfshkpr]

I think it would be best to give him the perfect one and then send the imperfect one back for replacement. There's no reason to start him off with a crappy example of a great knife.... :)

Good luck,
brett

I wouldn't say it's a "crappy" example. I'm just wondering how tight the tolerances are on Spyderco production knives.

The tip of the knife is also a bit thin compared to the other one. Maybe the grinder just got a bit over zealous. I'm trying to take photos of all this. It's hard with the auto focus camera and the lighting. Will post pics when I do.

[Ozy]

I would say its a less desirable example...

[gldfshkpr]

Can you see how the bottom knife blade is a tad shorter and seems twisted and bent a bit? It's really hard to get a fair photo of this, but this is the idea.

[gldfshkpr]

Here are a couple more photos to show the different lengths. I realize the knives aren't 100% inline, but you can still see a difference. Am I being too picky?

[Shenmue728]

I can see the difference and I would notice it. That difference can make it hard to stay straight in a long cut. Did you buy them from a dealer online or the Great Factory itself? In either case sending it back to the Factory isn't a bad idea

[gldfshkpr]

I can see the difference and I would notice it. That difference can make it hard to stay straight in a long cut. Did you buy them from a dealer online or the Great Factory itself? In either case sending it back to the Factory isn't a bad idea

I bought them from Knifeworks.com - They didn't have them in stock, so I'm not sure where they got them. Do you really think Spyderco would reject it?

[gldfshkpr]

One more thing I noticed. Inside the box, the bag of the knife in question has a hole punched in it. Does that mean anything?

[Doc Pyres]

It's interesting because my Orange UKPK from the same place has exactly the same issue + didn't even come with a bag inside the box. The knife was just loose inside. Also, the lock up seems weaker than others here have stated. If I didn't live so far away, I'd probably have returned it. However, I feel these are fairly minor issues and don't really affect the performance of the knife. I just have to be extra careful when cutting not to let the blade close on my fingers.

[gldfshkpr]

It's interesting because my Orange UKPK from the same place has exactly the same issue + didn't even come with a bag inside the box. The knife was just loose inside. Also, the lock up seems weaker than others here have stated. If I didn't live so far away, I'd probably have returned it. However, I feel these are fairly minor issues and don't really affect the performance of the knife. I just have to be extra careful when cutting not to let the blade close on my fingers.

The lockup is slightly less tight on this as well. Nothing is perfect. I'm leaning towards letting it be.

[spydutch]

That bugs me big time as well :mad:

I've had 2 Para's this way and a Caly jr.

I would sent it back.

Let's face it, the Caly is not the cheapest knife so I guess you might expect a knife that's better for that amount of money :confused:

This bring me on another topic: IMO Spyderco's quality control is a bit slacking these days. Of all the old school Spydies I have( G10 Rookie, all my D1's, G10 Navigator) the fit and finish are way better than the current knives.

Just a pity I think

[cwt]

does the tip placement matter, at least within a certain tolerance? My FG Manix tip is noticeably (to me) off from center, but otherwise the knife's a rock and I wouldn't trade it in for anything.

[Franco G]

T

This bring me on another topic: IMO Spyderco's quality control is a bit slacking these days. Of all the old school Spydies I have( G10 Rookie, all my D1's, G10 Navigator) the fit and finish are way better than the current knives.

Just a pity I think

Also my opinion.


Franco

[Fred Sanford]

I just got a Harpy that was made in June of this year (also from Knifeworks.com) and I just sent it back to them. The blade was touching the handle when closed and the tip was not really even a piece of paper away from smashing into the backspacer when closed.

I too have noticed that the QC (at least on non US) knives is lacking.

Every Military and Paramilitary I have had in the last 2 years have been almost flawless. Even the Tenacious I got from Kristi is flawless and it's China made.

I should also add that I sent my Centofante 4 into Spyderco recently because I wanted that "super duper factory edge" again. That knife came back sharper than it ever was from the Seki factory. The folks in Golden have mad sharpening skills.

___________

To answer the original question, I would not accept the shorter blade. The off center part doesn't bother me unless the blade is touching the inner handle. I would send the one with the short blade back, and give the other one to your buddy.

[cobrajoe]

Here's a crazy question, how tight is the pivot on the loose one? Could it be that the one got sent out without being as tight in the pivot?

[Simple Man]

that's kinds what I was wondering. Can you fidget with the pivot a bit to get it in adjustment?

[gldfshkpr]

Here's a crazy question, how tight is the pivot on the loose one? Could it be that the one got sent out without being as tight in the pivot?

The pivot is tight. Thanks for the suggestion. Maybe I'm being hypersensitive. It's still a good knife. If I had nothing to compare it to, I'm sure I wouldn't mind so much. The other knife is just about perfect.

If it were an issue of performance, I'd send it back.