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awk
1600
Oct 20, 2017
Disassembly: (Note the handle is made of buttery soft aluminum... don't force anything and be careful not to scratch it. The washers are somewhat soft and delicate too.)
The captive pivot unscrews from the presentation side (not the side with the stop pin screw). There is threadlocker ... you may need to heat the screws (but not so hot that it softens the washers). I heated to a surface temperature of 150°F
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The easiest way to remove the blade is to remove the stop pin, rotate the blade so it's pointing all the way up, then insert something between the scales to wedge them apart a tiny bit wider than the blade+washers. I used a stack of blank ID cards (they are handy for various wedging/spudging/scraping tasks). Don't use any sharp tools to poke around.
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Now you can clean everything. You could measure the washers at this point if you want to swap them. But I'm not sure it's a good idea to put metal washers next to soft aluminum, and the design of the handle puts the blade under constant pressure so it probably wouldn't be much smoother.
Reassembly:
Procure a plastic, teflon, or wooden rod about 5mm in diameter and cut it so it is just slightly taller (0.2mm-0.5mm) than than the washer/blade "sandwich". I used part of an old pinwheel toy.
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Lube the washers if you want (I have no idea what lube, if any, is best for Teflon washers, I went with a little silicone lube). Also lube the detent track if you like. Assemble the sandwich on the rod and just slide everything into the knife until the rod falls out of the pivot hole. It'll be pretty snug going in, but that's okay, all the friction should be on the rod and not the washers.
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Reassemble with new threadlocker. Put the little rod somewhere (maybe in the knife's box) so you can use it again later.
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My knife was full of gunky lube and metal shavings (pieces of metal were even embedded in the washers). I was not able to flick open the knife open until I cleaned it.
PNWNative
448
Oct 20, 2017
awkThere is a Teflon based lubricant available in a spray or as a grease.
awk
1600
Oct 20, 2017
PNWNativeYeah, hindsight I probably should've went with Teflon lube. I have some SuperLube products which are safe to use on pretty much everything.