Does side to side blade play matter?

[RugerNurse]

My Salt 2 has some but very little up and down rock so I disassembled it and cleaned it and tighten the pivot and handle screw and added blue loctite. Seemed better for a bit but now is slightly loose side to side. Any problems that could arise from this? Mostly it’s a lake knife I use when swimming so it’s not used for hard work

[cabfrank]

Probably not, but it's annoying. You could try adjusting/tightening it again.

[RugerNurse]

One of the side screws that goes into a peg on the scales was hard to cram in there. Hope me jamming it in there didn’t do anything lol

[Wartstein]

My Salt 2 has some but very little up and down rock so I disassembled it and cleaned it and tighten the pivot and handle screw and added blue loctite. Seemed better for a bit but now is slightly loose side to side. Any problems that could arise from this? Mostly it’s a lake knife I use when swimming so it’s not used for hard work

Are you definitely sure that the side to side play was not already there before you disassembled the knife (but you did not notice it then?)?

The linerless scales of the Seki Salts can flex a bit, which then can look and feelsomehow like side to side play of the blade.

No functional problem though in my experience

[RugerNurse]

My Salt 2 has some but very little up and down rock so I disassembled it and cleaned it and tighten the pivot and handle screw and added blue loctite. Seemed better for a bit but now is slightly loose side to side. Any problems that could arise from this? Mostly it’s a lake knife I use when swimming so it’s not used for hard work

Are you definitely sure that the side to side play was not already there before you disassembled the knife (but you did not notice it then?)?

The linerless scales of the Seki Salts can flex a bit, which then can look and feelsomehow like side to side play of the blade.

No functional problem though in my experience

I can’t remember if it had some blade play before I took it apart. It might have. It’s not bad but other versions of that knife I’ve had didn’t do it

[vivi]

My LC200N Salt folders all have side to side and up and down play.

At the end of the day it doesn't seem to matter in use, but it does make the knife feel cheaper than knives without play.

I cannot adjust it out. The knives becomes increasingly difficult to open well before the pivot screw is tight enough to eliminate play. It's one of the reasons I never developed much enthusiasm for my LC200N Pacifics.

[RugerNurse]

It’s not terrible and I can live with it. My H2 pacific salt is like a fixed blade. Must have gotten a good one. I basically use the LC200N model for swimming and some summer edc. I can’t imagine doing something that would break it. Just curious if people have had issues because of the side play.

[cabfrank]

I agree that knives with blade play feel cheaper than knives without, and I wouldn't be thrilled with a LC200N Pacific that has blade play, when my H1 does not.

[ladybug93]

i lived with all kinds of play for a decade in my sog flash ii. i ultimately moved on to higher end knives for a better feel. ultimately, it was a perfectly adequate knife, even with the blade play.

[cabfrank]

Yeah, I dismantled one of those once to try to eliminate the blade play, and made it worse.

[cabfrank]

It was kind of funny, actually. I looked online for reassembly tips, and the advice was to not disassemble.

[weeping minora]

Side-to-side play only gets worse, IME. Back-lock lock-rock (up/down or back/forth) is present in some of my Seki models, though never seems to be unavoidable if it does occur. Ultimately, you and your preferences/comforts will tell you what you need to know about how you feel about it.

[RugerNurse]

I put blue locktite on all the screws and pivot. Hopefully it wouldn’t get worse

[Flash]

It only matters if it personally annoys you.
Sideways play generally is something that won’t go away or improve with age or use. Going by my own personal Seki experience; if anything it’ll get worse… and worse.

I would say get a refund but I assume that’s no longer an option.

Seki made knives do have a reputation to uphold in the blade play department as of late. I think the only way to make sure you don’t get blade play next time is to give folding Seki models a complete swerve. I’ve never had play on any Golden or Taichung models.
Even my few Maniago’s had no play in them! Wonky grinds and terrible jimping but no play.

[RugerNurse]

It’s funny because my pacific salt is so solid, maybe a hint of lock rock but very small. I almost wish they would use liner on these salts but I know it would cause more problems and add cost

[horzuff]

I also never had a Seki knife where You couldn't get rid of lateral play. They might become a bit stiff to open, but backlocks are never really smooth either way...

[SaltyCaribbeanDfly]

All of my H1/2 salts are rock solid and only a couple my LC200N salts have a slight bit of play but it doesn’t bother me…unless it gets really bad don’t worry about it…I’ve never disassembled any of my salts except the Native so who knows, just keep using it for now?

[Ferruginous]

It bothers me, mostly because it either indicates that I failed to adjust the pivot properly, or on the pivot-bushing knives it means that something is out of spec and needs to be repaired.

I find, consistently, that while a pivot might feel perfect after tightening just-right and loctiting in place, that it soon becomes loose. I think that the parts weren't 'settled' when adjusted. I redo it, making it a little bit too tight, then it settles in over the next few days and is perfect again.

I leave my swimming Salt looser, it gets sand in the pivot and is easier to clean out.

[vivi]

I also never had a Seki knife where You couldn't get rid of lateral play. They might become a bit stiff to open, but backlocks are never really smooth either way...

Backlocks aren't the smoothest lock, but if you tighten the pivot too much there is extra friction on the tang that is very noticeable.

Most my Spydercos I can eliminate side to side play before it gets to that point, but not my LC Pacifics. They need tightened to the point it takes twice the effort to open them to eliminate side to side play. That isn't the case on my H1 Pacific 1's, and typically isn't the case with H1 Pacific 2's either.

[horzuff]

I also never had a Seki knife where You couldn't get rid of lateral play. They might become a bit stiff to open, but backlocks are never really smooth either way...

Backlocks aren't the smoothest lock, but if you tighten the pivot too much there is extra friction on the tang that is very noticeable.

Most my Spydercos I can eliminate side to side play before it gets to that point, but not my LC Pacifics. They need tightened to the point it takes twice the effort to open them to eliminate side to side play. That isn't the case on my H1 Pacific 1's, and typically isn't the case with H1 Pacific 2's either.

I also have similar experiences, most knives I can get rid of side-to-side without stiffening the action noticably.

But luckily the self-closing tension is usually high enough for me that it allows loading enough force to open the knife in one go even when I need to tighten the pivot further.

And as long as I'm able to shake the blade slightly closed while depressing the lock bar (so that I can close the knife with one hand afterwards) then I'm usually fine :)