How does GEC respond to quality control issues with their knives?

[Every Day LAN]

I have a handful of GEC knives and the fit, finish, walk and talk on them are excellent! I recently bought two new GEC knives - one from a distributor and one from a member of this forum.

The one from the distributor has centering that is slightly off - not as bad as my case knives, but surprising as all my other GECs are spot on. Also, there are some weird greenish-black speckles of dirt or dust on the bone scales. I was able to flick off many of these, but some are still stuck in grooves of the jigging. Lastly, the scales have rough spots that catch my skin as I rub them, whereas my other jigged bone knives do not have this issue. For the knife I got from a forum member, the pull seems a lot weaker than I am used to from GEC! The snap from half stop to close is very very unimpressive.

I do not have a ton of GEC knives, so I would like to ask you based on your experience - do you think my issues here are normal / not a big deal? Or is this something I should speak to the sellers about? I do not want to be unreasonable! Lastly, are these the sort of quality issues GEC would fix for me?

 

[screened porch]

Your faith is weak, brother. GEC does not have QC issues.
There's a thread about newer GECs having weaker pulls.
I'm no expert on GEC either; I have one that's just ok.

 

[Jsega51]

They could fix the centering if it bothers you that much. Just send it back and it’ll take a couple of weeks I’m guessing for turn around time.

The greenish specs are probably just bits of buffing compound and will wash away with some hot water and some dish soap, use an old toothbrush to get down into the jigging. As for the rough spots, they’ll smooth out pretty quick from carrying and using the knife. (If it’s a tube Queen, why care? This goes for the centering as well, but really, if the blade doesn’t hit the liner, why care?)

Lazy action or week pull? Try washing out the pivot really well and work the blade back and forth to flush out any gunk that may be in there. Oil it up good and see if it’ll improve.

 

[Every Day LAN]

Your faith is weak, brother. GEC does not have QC issues.
There's a thread about newer GECs having weaker pulls.
I'm no expert on GEC either; I have one that's just ok.

That thread helped a lot! The #43 is the knife I was referring to with the weak closing snap. Now I understand it is not a defect, but a "feature"

 

[Every Day LAN]

They could fix the centering if it bothers you that much. Just send it back and it’ll take a couple of weeks I’m guessing for turn around time.

The greenish specs are probably just bits of buffing compound and will wash away with some hot water and some dish soap, use an old toothbrush to get down into the jigging. As for the rough spots, they’ll smooth out pretty quick from carrying and using the knife. (If it’s a tube Queen, why care? This goes for the centering as well, but really, if the blade doesn’t hit the liner, why care?)

Lazy action or week pull? Try washing out the pivot really well and work the blade back and forth to flush out any gunk that may be in there. Oil it up good and see if it’ll improve.

Thanks for the suggestions! I cleaned off most of the green stuff with warm soapy water and a toothbrush as you suggested. I also tried to clean and oil the pivot of the other knife, as you suggested, but I have discovered the weak snap is a feature of newer GEC knives

 

[Jsega51]

I’ve only bought 3 new release GEC’s this year and they’ve all been nice pulls and much cleaner snap than I’ve seen in the last year or so. The 78 two blade that I got is as crisp and precise feeling as I’ve seen yet. Simply amazing.

Try some WD40 in the pivot to see if it frees and flushes something out. Wash it out good after and oil it up. Sometimes the snap improves from working the blades. It smooths and mates the contact parts of the tang and spring.

 

[Will Power]

Actually, I 'd like to use this thread to ask about others' experiences with regard to GEC's policy on fixing things.

Three years ago I bought one of the famed Beer Scout knives in Ivory Bone. I decided not to keep it unused in the tube but to put it to careful use. It's been in my kitchen hanging on a nail as my bottle opener and sometime slicer of citrus fruits, so it has seen use and developed patina. It's NEVER been dropped on banged down but the Mark side developed a big crack around the centre pin, a kind of splinter which if it breaks off will leave a large chunk. I put glue into this, but it's messy but I've cleaned it up. Last week the Pile side centre pin also exhibits a crack. Frankly, I'm VERY disappointed by this as it has not been abused, another one of my GEC's has developed centre pin cracks and this makes me question the durability of their bone. I suppose it's the stress of the bottle opener which is about a 7, but still.

I've had a number of Rough Rider knives develop cracks, especially their delrin, but RR are very inexpensive knives so you can't be too surprised. GEC knives are not cheap to buy though and I'd expect better quality bone. As it is, this knife is worthless second hand and can't be used for trade either. Well suck it up and use it to death I hear someone say, not good enough for a knife worth this money I'd reply.

So I ask abut their warranty. Some years back I damaged an Ivory Bone 73 and cracked the handle, this was totally my fault. I emailed GEC a few times before getting a reply, explained the situation and said I'd pay for the work and postage. Then I was told I'd have to 'wait' until there's another run of 73s as they keep no spare parts... 73 was then a common run and think about it, Smooth Ivory Bone is THE simplest of scales, no dyeing no jigging to match. The knife never did get fixed as my later e-mails got no response except WAIT. Now here I am again with a cracked Ivory Bone knife but this time I feel it's not my fault and not due to my damaging it either.

Do you think I am entitled to ask them to replace both handles?Or is three years(nearly) too long and if they won't fix stuff at my expense what's the prospect of getting it done at theirs? What's your experiences?

 

[Camillus]

I had a great experience with GEC when the main pin though the backspring worked loose on a GEC 72 - fixed and returned to me pronto.

I also recently received a GEC knife covered with green gunky stuff. I got most of it off, but some remained in the bone that I couldn't remove.

I have never viewed a centred blade as a feature. No wait, its the most essential feature. Send me your horrible non-centred blades that you can't stand to own!

 

[ccsavage]

All of my newer knives from them are well centered and have lighter pulls. They do need broken in abit and cleaned out usually. I started buying older ones first and none have been centered. In fact the blades are actually bent in the direction they favor and even rub the liners. That said I actually favor the older ones because they have harder pulls that remind me of the knives I used to get as a youngster. I've got a 23 that my wife couldn't get open to save her life. To me a strong spring spells quality. Also they have had a knife of mine for a couple months now but I'm not worried and confident that when I get it back it will be like getting a new knife in the mail.

 

[traumkommode]

I can say that GEC fixed an off center blade for me no questions asked and gladly. It took nearly two months to get the knife back, and this was two years ago now. So I don't know how quick that turnaround is anymore.

There's also a story from @arizonaranchman I think about dropping his 77 Barlow and getting cracked bone covers replaced while another run of 77s was happening. They weren't the originals, so now he has a unique knife with covers from the 2016 run on a 2015 knife or something like that

There's an upcoming run of 15s, Will, so it might be an option.

 

[Bartleby]

Three years ago I bought one of the famed Beer Scout knives in Ivory Bone. I decided not to keep it unused in the tube but to put it to careful use. It's been in my kitchen hanging on a nail as my bottle opener and sometime slicer of citrus fruits, so it has seen use and developed patina. It's NEVER been dropped on banged down but the Mark side developed a big crack around the centre pin, a kind of splinter which if it breaks off will leave a large chunk. I put glue into this, but it's messy but I've cleaned it up. Last week the Pile side centre pin also exhibits a crack.

Perhaps the best user bottle opener knife was the Camillus Dura-tool 326, which was released in 1996 in response the first wave of imports. It is like the earlier Camco 801 from back in the '40's, but with a bail and stamped stainless handles with a diamond pattern, resembling the MIL-K 818. I have had one on my keyring since '97. It has been the knife I carry when I don't have a knife. Dropped it, banged it, used it without a second thought. Never was pretty, but it still works like it did twenty years ago. You should be able to hunt one up NOS for not much money to use while you are getting the work done on your GEC.

If GEC were to make a stainless handled version of the Beer Scout, along the lines of the old Dura-tool Workhorse, it would certainly get my attention.

 

[AndreLinoge]

Perhaps the best user bottle opener knife was the Camillus Dura-tool 326, which was released in 1996 in response the first wave of imports. It is like the earlier Camco 801 from back in the '40's, but with a bail and stamped stainless handles with a diamond pattern, resembling the MIL-K 818. I have had one on my keyring since '97. It has been the knife I carry when I don't have a knife. Dropped it, banged it, used it without a second thought. Never was pretty, but it still works like it did twenty years ago. You should be able to hunt one up NOS for not much money to use while you are getting the work done on your GEC.

If GEC were to make a stainless handled version of the Beer Scout, along the lines of the old Dura-tool Workhorse, it would certainly get my attention.

But they wouldn't be able to sell a simple, functional knife like that for over a hundred dollars to people who dont use the knives they buy 90% of the time..

My first GEC experience was earlier this year, bought an 81. I love me some mooses.. Add long pulls? I'm there dude!

This 111 dollar knife is sure pretty, but all my 60 dollar Case knives actually walk their blades open and closed, and feel like they will hold the blade open while I use it. The Northfield? Not so much. Calling these pulls a 2 would give them unnecessary credit. Couple that with an assembly so damn tight the blades push up black berms off the liners as they scrape open and closed, and you have a knife that almost doesnt work. I bet it would hold its tube down just fine on a shelf, but i dont buy production knives for decoration. Maybe I'm not GEC's target buyer, but damn man. How much 'break in' can a knife need before its declared an 'issue'? 3 months of walking those blades in and out and flushing the brass out of the pivots hasnt changed much about it. Still have to push the blades down into the frame before the spring mushes them down. As noted by others GEC calls this a 'feature'. Not hamfisted, shimless assembly as I would lable it.

 

[Bartleby]

But they wouldn't be able to sell a simple, functional knife like that for over a hundred dollars

Very true, but they would be probably able to sell such a thing for a profit (practically no finishing work required) in the $40-$60 range to bring in new market share, and provide their already established customer base an absolutely reliable user second knife.

 

[AndreLinoge]

Very true, but they would be probably able to sell such a thing for a profit (practically no finishing work required) in the $40-$60 range to bring in new market share, and provide their already established customer base an absolutely reliable user second knife.

I mean, it sounds logical to me. Shoot, they could even pretty it up some with micarta and not get to pricey, still be very tough and utilitarian.

GEC has that exterior finish aspect down pat, I bet they could make an awesome looking metal body knife. Hats off, full credit to them for that. I dont think I've seen a prettier finish on a set of smooth bone scales like that 81 has. All of them I've seen pics of (Appaloosa bone 81s and the dog leg that had them.. 56?) are great looking finished knives.

 

[skyhorse]

I've been wondering if all GEC lock backs have a tiny bit of vertical play in the locked position or is this only common in the recent run of Cody Scout 72s ?

 

[traumkommode]

I've been wondering if all GEC lock backs have a tiny bit of vertical play in the locked position or is this only common in the recent run of Cody Scout 72s ?

More common on any GEC lockback than not, not just the 72s.

 

[Bartleby]

Shoot, they could even pretty it up some with micarta and not get to pricey, still be very tough and utilitarian.

That wouldn't be a bad choice at all, especially if they were going for pretty. I would prefer just stainless rattling around on my key ring (after all, the Camillus is still going strong over twenty years later!), but it would probably work just as well with brass or anodized aluminum handles. Best to save pretty for the hundred dollar knives (which they already do very well, as you rightly point out).

 

[brownshoe]

Per the original poster, I think your problems are not that big of a deal, unless the un-centered blade rubs the liner. It is kind of disappointing though to get a new knife and have "crud" on it or coming out.

Some of the other comments are interesting. I've been told by cutlers that cracked covers around pins is due to poor design or poor construction, usually poor construction. The cracks are not usually due to poor materials, unless the design called for the wrong material. Any knife with covers cracked around pins shouldn't need to wait until "the next run" to be fixed. It's a factory defect and handle material should be readily available to cut/fit/repair. Making someone wait until the next run for a scale replacement is bull. Case and Buck can repair knives w/o waiting for "the next run", they stock parts and fix cracked covers. Buck just remodeled their knife repair shop to make sure all their stored parts are accessible, improve the work done in the facility and keep the employees happy. Check out the thread in the Buck forum.

When it comes to lockbacks, people used to put down Queen for movement in their lockbacks, particularly their classic, the Mt. Man. Why would it be acceptable for GEC lockbacks to have play in similar designs? The Buck and Case lockbacks I've bought or played with don't have play unless they are well worn.

 

[Elgatodeacero]

I damaged a very nice 43 model by dropping several times into the concrete. It has blade wiggle and pretty bad damage to one bolster.

GEC said they could fix the blade wiggle and polish out bolster gouges for 20 bucks.
Pretty good deal for fixing concrete drop damage.

Also, GEC is not Buck knives, so it makes sense they don’t keep a lot of parts. I would think bolsters are available but not covers?

One option is to send to one of the gentlemen that does repairs/upgrades and they can upgrade your covers.

Maybe you need sambar stag or ironwood instead of bone?!

 

[B.F.U]

In my experience, the best thing to do is to call and talk to them. Once you've done that, they'll probably ask you to email pictures and/or send the knife in if necessary and appropriate. They're good people and have always given me great service (on non "Store" knives).