A very sad rescue of a Cuda Maxx

Hairlesstwinkie

Hairlesstwinkie

Joined
Feb 4, 2013
Messages
1,562
I was at the flea market yesterday, and I stumbled upon this beauty. My initial thought was "Oh cool, a fake Mad Maxx." I picked it up and looked at it. The blade was marked Cuda Maxx 5.5, USA, D. Ralph design etc. The blade had a lot of play and lock rock so I thought "yup, definitely a fake." I have run into fakes with the marking USA and all kind of stamps before. Then I thought, maybe the pivot needs some tightening, so I pulled out my Leatherman and tightened the pivot. The action was excellent. It was definitely a good flipper. That's when I had second guessed myself "this could be real..." I figured the handle was titanium and the blade is legit D2 since it's chipped at different places and has some light rust spots. It's one of those moments where you had wished you had brought a magnet... I walked away then typed in everything into my iPhone to do some quick research. Everything checked out, and I decided that why not take a leap of faith and buy it. I bought it and found a magnet. Well, that's when I almost leaped for joy. It didn't stick.

Here's the sad news. The previous owner or the owner before him had absolutely no idea how to treat a titanium frame lock. He was using it with a loose pivot so the lockbar was worn down so much that even at full extension there is still blade play and lock rock. There is also a missing screw and the blade is slightly discolored.

I guess the million dollar question is if anyone knows how to restore this piece. I don't think Camillus will fix it when I looked on their Warranty page. I'm thinking that maybe if a lockbar insert is inserted it should get rid of the lock rock and the blade play. I would like to restore this if it doesn't break the bank, otherwise I may have to let it go.


Untitled by Hairlesstwinkie, on Flickr

Untitled by Hairlesstwinkie, on Flickr

Untitled by Hairlesstwinkie, on Flickr

Untitled by Hairlesstwinkie, on Flickr

Untitled by Hairlesstwinkie, on Flickr
This thing is a monster compared to my 0801, and the 0801 is not a small folder by any means.
 
Surprisingly, this knife is now in Russia and he was in my hands :).
One of my friends asked me to help with the sale of CUDA MAXX knife. I said, "No problem!"
But when I saw this knife, it was really sad.
I completely disassemble the knife, cleaned, slightly bent frame, oiled axle assembly.
To clear anodized titanium I used alcohol free screen cleaner. For all the screws I used a thread lock (Loctite 243).
After all this, lost all the clearances and the knife went to work perfectly.
Restore the blade I could not. Stains can be removed only with the etching. So the blade was left as is, and I did not leave this knife for my collection.

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Have you tried peening the lockface. Bladeforums member STR has a website with a video that will show you how to peen the lock.
 
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