Appreciation for the pinned

dbcad · #1

I used to be leery of pinned knives, memories of the cheap stuff I was exposed to as a kid I guess. Initially I felt the same about pinned Spydercos. I was wrong :eek:

Pictured are the 2 pinned :spyder: that I own. Both terrific and possessing completely different personalities :) The Native is a staid and solid worker and it's construction does make it feel incredibly solid and strong. The Cento is a bit more spritely and has a lighter more rambunctious feel :D Both have no play in any direction, very sharp, and very much enjoyed :D

Does anyone still hold a pinned prejudice as I once did?

RanCoWeAla · #2

No I actually prefer pinned construction with nothing to work loose and I can't possibly see any reason for me to take a knife apart.

T-1000 · #3

I used to have the same sentiment, until I got my Native as well. That thing locks up tighter than almost any other knife I have, no play whatsoever after carrying every day at work for the past 8 or so months. Now I have no problem buying a pinned spyderco if I really want the knife. I would still rather screw together but its not a deal breaker. While we are talking about Natives..

All-R-Crazy · #4

I was a little wary of pins until I got my caly's. Now if it's good quality I don't care if it's pinned or not

gbelleh · #5

I've never really cared. I didn't even know what pinned was when I got my first Native.

Liquid Cobra · #6

My caly 3.5 superblue is dangerously off center and there isn't anything I can do about it due to the pinned construction. I don't mind pinned, but I would prefer it not be.

jackknifeh · #7

I never knew or thought about pinned or screwed knives until after I got my first Spyderco. It was a pinned Endura. After that I found out that some knives came with screws. Then I learned about being able to adjust the tension on the pivot. I liked that. Then I learned about the option to disassemble a knife. Cleaning or modding are the only reasons I can think of to do that.

Since a pinned knife doesn't allow adjusting or disassembly I have always considered that before a purchase. It has never made any difference in my decision because of performance though. I had a Native and the Endura and both of them had perfect tension on the pivot. I never used them HARD so I don't know if the knives would have developed blade play if they were used hard or not. I assume they would have developed a little bit but nothing too severe and nothing to mean the knife was even close to being unusable.

I have heard people who work on pinned knives say a pinned pivot can be tightened with a couple light taps with a small hammer. Also loosened by prying between the tang and liner. This is how it's done (as I understand it) when working on pinned knives such as traditional pocket knives.

So, I have different concerns about screw assembly vs pinned only based on what I can do with a knife. Mainly making new scales for one. But I wouldn't call it a predjudice I don't think. I would never not buy a knife just because it was assembled with only pins.

I would like to add the pinned Spyderco's I've had have had PERFECT assembly IMO. It has amazed me how accurate the pivot pin is smashed to create the perfect blade movement. Landing on the moon is no big deal. But a Spyderco pivot amazes me. :)

Jack

The Deacon · #8

I'm a total fan of pinned construction, mostly because I love bolstered knives and you can't have a decent looking bolstered knife without it.

dbcad · #9

Completely agreed with Deacon on the bolster point, concur with jack on the disassembly and modification point and that the construction of these pinned models is superb :D

Cobra, if your Caly is dangerously off center I would get in touch with W&R and see if they can help. You want to be able to use that Superblue.

Quite glad I'm over my pinned prejudice, it only took a couple of years

Both of the pictured models are appreciated and used without discrimination

Sweet Pic T-100:D

ChapmanPreferred · #10

I do not remember ever having that particular worry.

paladin · #11

Ok, I'll see your cts-XHP Native and raise, uh....what's that?...oh, wrong thread....sorry, sorry :o

My favorite pinned model is the Caly Jr. This one gets a lot of "waistband time" as the pocketclip testifies to... :)

Pin = Thin = Win!!! :D

See if you can spot the 2 different "Native" models :rolleyes:

Liquid Cobra · #12

dbcad wrote:Cobra, if your Caly is dangerously off center I would get in touch with W&R and see if they can help. You want to be able to use that Superblue.

I got in touch with them. They said that I should send it in and they will see what they can do. But it would take over a month. Since I'm in Canada it would have to travel across the border twice. I don't want to risk losing it. It's the way the blade was made, it looks like it's warped or something, there is nothing they can do to fix it. I swapped out the superblue blade for my vg10 one and the vg10 was perfectly centered. Just going to live with it.

RealKnifeUser · #13

I only have a Native as well, but can echo what has been said above about the very solid feel. I think that because the Native is such a minimalist design as far as number of parts goes, the pinned construction makes a lot of sense. Just makes it even more simple and reliable. Heck, even the pocket clip only requires a coin or similar object, no tools are EVER needed for it other than maybe a few taps with a hammer on the pivot pin after a lot of use.

Liquid Cobra · #14

The thinnest Spyderco I own is the Karahawk and it isn't pinned. Perhaps at some point pinned construction was necessary for a thin handle but that doesn't seem to be the case any longer.

RealKnifeUser · #15

I'm pretty sure pinned construction doesn't make any difference in thinness or thickness. You use whatever length pins or screws you need for the particular design. Someone correct me if I'm wrong here.

T-1000 · #16

paladin wrote:Ok, I'll see your cts-XHP Native and raise, uh....what's that?...oh, wrong thread....sorry, sorry :o

My favorite pinned model is the Caly Jr. This one gets a lot of "waistband time" as the pocketclip testifies to... :)

Pin = Thin = Win!!! :D

See if you can spot the 2 different "Native" models :rolleyes:

Yeah that arrowhead is the true Native 1, although I am quite sure a Spyderco would have been a hot little item back in the day :)

xceptnl · #17

I would say I "HAD" a pinned prejudice until the Caly. My first Spyderco was a pinned, but I wasn't convinced because tons of screw together knives were being offered by Spyderco (the Manix 2 sprints were coming out like crazy at the time). I wasn't a believer until I purchased, held, and used models like the Caly Jr., Caly 3/3.5, Manix 2 LTWT, and Catcherman. My conclusion.... I WAS SOOOOOO WRONG!

jalcon · #18

The only pinned knife I have is the cento 3. It has a ton of blade play, and being pinned there is nothing I can do about it. So....no, I do not like pinned construction ha.

Holland · #19

Id rather have screw construction, but pinned doesnt stop me from buying a model i like. However, i would be very weary if the pivot is pinned

paladin · #20

xceptnl wrote:I would say I "HAD" a pinned prejudice until the Caly. My first Spyderco was a pinned, but I wasn't convinced because tons of screw together knives were being offered by Spyderco (the Manix 2 sprints were coming out like crazy at the time). I wasn't a believer until I purchased, held, and used models like the Caly Jr., Caly 3/3.5, Manix 2 LTWT, and Catcherman. My conclusion.... I WAS SOOOOOO WRONG!

Yup, and I think a pinned body with a removable/partially adjustable blade is close to Nirvana...ala Caly 3.5