Lanyard, Ok WTF do I do now?

A

Allan DeGroot

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Jun 15, 2019
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Last week I bought my most expensive NEW folding knife to date, a Kershaw/Emerson CQC4KXL-D2 and not wanting it to go the way of many smallish things I've owned over the years, this week I bought a "Monkey fist" lanyard for it.

Silly me I figured it would be partially tied with instructions for completing it so I could route the paracord through the lanyard hole in the scale and frame, but this thing is completely tied and not wanting to untie it to install it to the knife, I ask WTF do I do now?
 
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does it have a loop on one end? if so you put the loop thru the hole and then tuck the ball thru the part sticking past the hole. this should then synch up to hold it on. hopefully someone can post a pic for you.
 
Sadly the doubled cord is too thick to force through the available hole. And for the record that was the first thing I tried!

I'm happy to have this annoyance to deal with as it takes my mind off of others, like the fact that I DESTROYED each and every T6 Torx Bit I own (all three) trying to remove the pocket clip from my new Kershaw #1555G10D2 Cryo, because it arrived with the clip mounted at the pivot end and I prefer the clip at the "butt end" or "tip down" if it hadn't just cost me $45 or have a G10 "show scale", I'd try taking a propane torch to the SOB. as it is I intend to call Kershaw and Bitch at them as that frigging clip is supposed to be relocatable by the customer! (ME!) and I think they can bloody well buy me a new torx bit or three!

As for the Lanyard, using a 10" length of "Nano cord" and a handy 30-06 rifle casing (to use as a T-handle) I tied the Nano cord around the loop in the lanyard and tied a Bowline knot at the other end and managed to drag the loop through, then after managing to get the monkey fist through toe loop I used the pliers in my Leatherman-PST-II to drag the loop back so I could position it correctly.

All of a sudden I have a dawning understanding why the premade lanyards for the Chris Reeve folders come pre-tied on a Pin and the cost of the knife and Lanyard and pin are very likely worth their respective prices!:)
 
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For the lanyard, buy some paracord and learn how to tie them yourself. There is a boatload of threads (usually without any replies) in the "Outdoor Gear, Survival Equipment & More" subforum by ASEMERY that will help you out. He basically posts know tutorials. Here is the first one I saw related to lanyards: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/pocket-knife-lanyard.1687669/

For the clip screws, get a new set of quality bits (WIHA seems to be well praised) AND find a cheapo soldering iron with a pencil tip. Chances are those screws have some threadlock on it. The procedure to loosen them is to apply heat to the screw head with the soldering iron so it spreads through the whole screw lengh and softens/destroys the threadlock (adhesive). Take your time, the soldering iron is not a cutting torch. Then you should be able to remove them easily.

I hope this helps.

Mikel
 
For the cost of that fob, you could have bought a hunk of paracord and made 10 of your own. Plus, you would learn the ins and outs of how lanyards and fobs work, including how to attach them to things. There is lots of information all over the internet of cool things you can do with paracord.
 
About your problem with the stripped screw, I have no good advice for you, but...

I agree with the others above about tying your own lanyards. If you intend to be a lanyard/fob guy, you need to get into tying your own. They’re wildly overpriced when you buy them pre-tied. Search “How to tie a knife lanyard” in YouTube and that’ll get you started into a wide variety of lanyard-tying tutorial videos. Also read through “The Official Lanyard Thread” here at BF. Once you figure it out, tying lanyards isn’t much more difficult than tying your shoes. For supplies, I ended up using Paracord Galaxy for cord and Jig Pro Shop for equipment (needles, fids, etc). Good prices, large inventory, good customer service, prompt shipping, etc.

Good luck with tying your own if you decide to give it a try.
 
Stumpy72 said:
About your problem with the stripped screw, I have no good advice for you, but...

I agree with the others above about tying your own lanyards. If you intend to be a lanyard/fob guy, you need to get into tying your own. They’re wildly overpriced when you buy them pre-tied. Search “How to tie a knife lanyard” in YouTube and that’ll get you started into a wide variety of lanyard-tying tutorial videos. Also read through “The Official Lanyard Thread” here at BF. Once you figure it out, tying lanyards isn’t much more difficult than tying your shoes. For supplies, I ended up using Paracord Galaxy for cord and Jig Pro Shop for equipment (needles, fids, etc). Good prices, large inventory, good customer service, prompt shipping, etc.

Good luck with tying your own if you decide to give it a try.
Click to expand...

I have already decided to go that route, as I desire using paracord in a "neon" color, as when you drop something with Neon-colored bits, waiting until late at night and going searching with a UV-LED light makes them ridiculously easy to find, it is the next best thing to attaching a tritium light to them!
 
Planterz said:
You bought a fob, not a lanyard.
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I only call it by the name they called it by when they sold it to me, and yes, I have issues with their nomenclature too.

Tying a monkey fist is at best tedious, and at the moment I'm a bit short on larger diameter lead balls.

The largest I have on hand are 0.490 and for a fob 0.690 works better, but I don't have a round ball mold that size
 
I just stick a piece of paracord through and tie the ends. There are quite a few books available like The Ashley Book of Knots if you want to get fancy.
 
Mikel_24 said:
For the lanyard, buy some paracord and learn how to tie them yourself. There is a boatload of threads (usually without any replies) in the "Outdoor Gear, Survival Equipment & More" subforum by ASEMERY that will help you out. He basically posts know tutorials. Here is the first one I saw related to lanyards: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/pocket-knife-lanyard.1687669/

For the clip screws, get a new set of quality bits (WIHA seems to be well praised) AND find a cheapo soldering iron with a pencil tip. Chances are those screws have some threadlock on it. The procedure to loosen them is to apply heat to the screw head with the soldering iron so it spreads through the whole screw lengh and softens/destroys the threadlock (adhesive). Take your time, the soldering iron is not a cutting torch. Then you should be able to remove them easily.

I hope this helps.

Mikel
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As a former Aerospace worker and auto mechanic I know Loctite "goes away" at 350F-400degrees F with a puff of white smoke. Some "Special" grades go to 450F or so but those are not in common use.

As solder melts at 620F (for the most common alloy 60Sn/40Pb 637F for Sn63/Pb37) and don't blow hot gasses around like a torch....

That was my next step.

those destroyed bits were the more common 1/4" hex bits
If they had been my NEW 4mm hex bits...
 
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Hey look, more helpful advice from the internet! Monkey fists are a total pain in the neck to make without a jig. But if you have a small piece of flat wood, a drill, and 4 dowels or pencils you can make your own, and it really does reduce the tying time by an amazing amount. For cores I like steel ball bearings instead of lead weights, and they are much cheaper to buy everywhere but on a paracord website. SuperBall cores also hold up well, are lighter than metal, and won't break stuff if you drop them like an inch ball bearing core will. I get mine from the CVS toy aisle in a multi size pack, that way I have decoys for my kids to play with while I actually get one or two of the correct size for myself.
 
Well, I'll admit to wanting a RB mold for.69balls and I have a couple of tons of pure lead, I've been gathering it for decades. but I've mainly cast .319 & .451 for my percussion Revolvers and .440 for my single shots.
 
I gave up on fancy knots and beads, if i do put a lanyard on its a simple paracord one with two knots, looks lame but it works, and cheap.
 
Well, I have a roll of Neon Orange 550 cord on the way, because I want to make a wrist loop for my Estwing Tomahawk! I also want to do a short "cord wrap" lanyard mount for my Estwing Double-bit Black Eagle axe.
 
Allan DeGroot said:
Well, I have a roll of Neon Orange 550 cord on the way, because I want to make a wrist loop for my Estwing Tomahawk! I also want to do a short "cord wrap" lanyard mount for my Estwing Double-bit Black Eagle axe.
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Hey Allan,

As many have mentioned, Youtube is your friend, as are a couple cheesy camp craft websites I've found but have forgotten. Most of them show how to do it using that plastic type cord, but I pull the guts from 550 paracord and use that.

Sorry the pics are crap, but the Busse has a cord wrap on the handle and a sliding lanyard for retention when chopping.

lanyard.jpg

The folder is a TR-3 and the other is a Swamp Rat Rat Shaker, but both have fobs that were easy enough to do. Two pieces are needed and I wish I could remember what the knot is called, but it's easy to figure out with a little help from the intraweb. You can make it square or round, just google fobs and such if you haven't already.

fob.jpg

Have fun, it's kinda habit forming ;-)

Winston
 
If I were re-handling an Estwing hatchet that originally had a leather handle, I'd do a "cord-wrap" type grip but saturate the entire thing in epoxy resin,
but I wouldn't use paracord, but rather the 5mm Kevlar core from a retired climbing
fixed rope, thus a sort of Kevlar Micarta!
 
Well after several false starts I finally have 100' feet of parachute-cord that is actually Fluorescent and reactive to UV light (the stuff from Blade HQ is good once they actually had it back in stock)

Plus BladeHQ put the monkey fist "Lanyard"s on sale CHEAP so I can untie the hangman's knot that forms the loop and pass the loop through the lanyard thimble and re-tie it

Yay! I don't need to tie my own monkey fists!
 
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A long time ago, I was on a paracord website and I saw some heat sensitive tubes that were used to join two pieces of paracord together. You stick the paracord in each end, use the recommended heat source, and the tube shrinks and melts a bit to seal the ends together into one piece. I haven't been able to find them again and I have no idea how strong a bond they formed. Might work on a lightweight knife lanyard or fob.

Here are a couple of other things to consider. 550 is too thick for some lanyard holes. Paracord is also available in 275 in various colors and patterns, or you can remove the center cord from 550 and just use the outer cord. It'll fold over a bit without the center cord in it, but it'll fit in smaller holes if you really want to use 550.
 
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