Ball Bearing Lock
Using a weaker spring is perfectly fine. The main problem with a weaker spring is weaker in-handle retention. How much retention is perfect is a bit of a personal thing (see, eg, the Axis lock). That's why I reposted yablanowitz's post: 1) to show that BBLs have used weaker springs in the past without compromising the lock's integrity, and 2) that the ideal spring tension will vary person to person. Clipping the spring has nothing to do with dj moonbat's question, and I was trying (poorly) to explain why.
Yab was comparing the BBL to the CBL - they're different. In theory, in some specific cases, it's probably true that the amount of force applied by the spring to the ball doesn't matter, but in real life people do a lot of different things with knives and "stronger" is safer overall.shimage wrote:Using a weaker spring is perfectly fine. The main problem with a weaker spring is weaker in-handle retention. How much retention is perfect is a bit of a personal thing (see, eg, the Axis lock). That's why I reposted yablanowitz's post: 1) to show that BBLs have used weaker springs in the past without compromising the lock's integrity, and 2) that the ideal spring tension will vary person to person. Clipping the spring has nothing to do with dj moonbat's question, and I was trying (poorly) to explain why.
I don't really think the BBL and CBBL are that different, particularly with respect to the proper stiffness of the coil spring. If anything, I would think the BBL with its larger ball bearing and full steel construction would need a stiffer spring to maintain reliable lockup. I don't want to put words in yablanowitz's mouth, but my reading is that the spring tension was increased specifically to improve in-handle retention. I agree that the stiffer "self-close" is safer, and while I prefer it that way, I am sure there are people that prefer the relatively loose springs in axis locks. I wouldn't call their preference "wrong".JNewell wrote:Yab was comparing the BBL to the CBL - they're different. In theory, in some specific cases, it's probably true that the amount of force applied by the spring to the ball doesn't matter, but in real life people do a lot of different things with knives and "stronger" is safer overall.