Microtech fired 8,000+ times

M

Megawatt308

Joined
Dec 15, 2013
Messages
300
I have a microtech ultratech, bayonet style blade in elmax steel with a build date of 7/2015. It has the old style tri grip texture instead of the smooth body found today.

This knife is on a small table by the front door and it is my companion every time I go check the mail. I use it to open letters, cut open packages etc and will open and close the OTF blade approx 7 times while walking back to the house with the mail. So I figure 7 open/close x 5 days a week x 52 weeks a year x 4.5 years of ownership for approx 8,000 firings. It is now on a rare occasion starting to misfire. Sometime on the deploy, sometimes on the retraction the blade doesn’t fire to completion. All I have to do is whip the knife point downward and the blade will lock into the open position. Then I simply retract the blade with the trigger and all is well.

I would guess once every 50 firings it might fail. I will look into sending it back to the mothership for sharpening and repair/replace of worn parts. Overall I have been happy with the build quality and performance. Hope the turnaround is not too long. The Microtech home page does list possible delays due reduced COVID staffing.
 
The Aflac Duck said:
Sharpen it yourself, spray it out with some WD40, and fire it 8,000 more times :cool:
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Negatory on the wd40. It might work but when it starts to get gummy, it’ll lock up.

turn it open slot up. Fill it with naphtha. Zippo lighter fluid. Or Robson brand, don’t matter. Let it sit awhile. Turn over and drain. If yucky, repeat. Once done, turn slot down and fire a few times. Get the excess out. A drop of thin oil, like rem oil, on the choil and THEN fire it another 8000 times. Should clean that occasional misfire right up.
 
SVTFreak said:
Negatory on the wd40. It might work but when it starts to get gummy, it’ll lock up.

turn it open slot up. Fill it with naphtha. Zippo lighter fluid. Or Robson brand, don’t matter. Let it sit awhile. Turn over and drain. If yucky, repeat. Once done, turn slot down and fire a few times. Get the excess out. A drop of thin oil, like rem oil, on the choil and THEN fire it another 8000 times. Should clean that occasional misfire right up.
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Naptha, WD40, Remoil... I’ve used all with success ;)
 
SVTFreak said:
Negatory on the wd40. It might work but when it starts to get gummy, it’ll lock up.

turn it open slot up. Fill it with naphtha. Zippo lighter fluid. Or Robson brand, don’t matter. Let it sit awhile. Turn over and drain. If yucky, repeat. Once done, turn slot down and fire a few times. Get the excess out. A drop of thin oil, like rem oil, on the choil and THEN fire it another 8000 times. Should clean that occasional misfire right up.
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Agree 100%.
 
2% failure rate seems pretty sorry for a brand that touts it’s manufacturing quality. Was it always that bad, or did it get worse over time.
 
OrangeBlueOrangeBlue said:
2% failure rate seems pretty sorry for a brand that touts it’s manufacturing quality. Was it always that bad, or did it get worse over time.
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2% today, after 4.5 years of everyday firing. I have only sprayed it down once (about 3 years ago) in that time in over 8000 firings. I wanted to see how long it would go and now I have an idea. I will spray it down and see how things work out. Quality is still there, action is still tight, trigger is not loose, fires very hard, tri screws have never loosen up, body still sealed, pocket clip still strong.
 
They are pretty dang solid knives. Every issue I have had with mine has had to do with over/under oiling them. They run on the dry side of wet, if that makes sense.

I put a big ol' gash in my "trigger thumb" playing with a balisong two days ago. I have had to leave the Microtechs at home until it heals up in a couple days. When you get used to the rapid opening and closing of a DA OTF, even a small fixed blade is a burden;)
 
Steely_Gunz said:
They are pretty dang solid knives. Every issue I have had with mine has had to do with over/under oiling them. They run on the dry side of wet, if that makes sense.

I put a big ol' gash in my "trigger thumb" playing with a balisong two days ago. I have had to leave the Microtechs at home until it heals up in a couple days. When you get used to the rapid opening and closing of a DA OTF, even a small fixed blade is a burden;)
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Hey brother,

I gave up the Microtech this week for my PM2, just to force myself to take a break from it. I didn't realize how quickly my Ultratech spoiled me for speed, and ease of use, until I began using my folder again.

I was balanced precariously on the sides of my truck's bed, securing a load, and needed to make a quick cut to some nylon webbing preventing me from getting a solid tie down.
Shnick, cut, Schnick! Back in the pocket, fast as lightning. Went about my business.

I'm not saying a folder is any less useful, but the DA OTF is another animal to me. It really is more than just a novelty to me. It's a fast, useful, pocket friendly knife in my uses.

By the way, how hard are these things to resharpen?
 
Billy The Hungry said:
By the way, how hard are these things to resharpen?
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Depends on the steel and edge type, IMHO.
Most of there steel is of "super steel" quality and requires a bit more oomph and harder/diamond stones.

My method is to be very "stitch in time". I strop my knives a lot. Also, my Combat Troodon is a DE so it doesn't get pressed on like my other knives. I did ding the edge and had to spend some time with a diamond stone and a lot of time with a loaded strop to get it back to where it needs to be.

That's my one dislike is that they use such hard steels. Im a soft steel/sharpen a lot kind of guy;)
 
Steely_Gunz said:
Depends on the steel and edge type, IMHO.
Most of there steel is of "super steel" quality and requires a bit more oomph and harder/diamond stones.

That's my one dislike is that they use such hard steels. Im a soft steel/sharpen a lot kind of guy;)
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Same here bro! I've never bought a knife for the super steel in it. I prefer steels that I can get back to razor sharp in 10 minutes of effort.

Knives that I own that have hard steel, were bought because I liked the design.

Edit: I can't type
 
Billy The Hungry said:
Same here bro! I've never bought a knife for the super steel in it. I prefer steels that I can get back to razor sharp in 10 minutes of effort.

Knives that I own that have hard steel, were bought because I liked the design.

Edit: I can't type
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Worksharp makes a reasonably priced sharpener with diamond and ceramic plates/rods. Not sure where you live, but Menards stores have them on the shelf for like $30.

Also, if your OTF is a double edge, the edge is probably obtuse if it’s one of the standard models. They do a shallow flat grind on those, and usually are a pain to reprofile and cut like a wedge.

Microtech does offer hollow ground double edges, but that’s reserved for the Marfione Custom line. Those cut very nicely:cool:
 
The Aflac Duck said:
Worksharp makes a reasonably priced sharpener with diamond and ceramic plates/rods. Not sure where you live, but Menards stores have them on the shelf for like $30.

Also, if your OTF is a double edge, the edge is probably obtuse if it’s one of the standard models. They do a shallow flat grind on those, and usually are a pain to reprofile and cut like a wedge.

Microtech does offer hollow ground double edges, but that’s reserved for the Marfione Custom line. Those cut very nicely:cool:
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I have the worksharp you're talking about. Haven't used it on anything hard yet. The hardest steel I've used on it is my 14C28N flipper. Big difference from my old hardware store stone.

I have a single edge Ultratech. It's partially serrated. It's the only serrated knife that I own, I usually stay away from partials.

20201130-080257.jpg
 
Just bought a microtech and the glass breaker loosened up after only about a week and one screw fell out. I put the screw back in and noticed only one doesn’t seem stripped. I do own a ludt and it’s a good knife but I won’t buy another. I should have bought the spyderco I was looking at.
 
jelegere7313 said:
Just bought a microtech and the glass breaker loosened up after only about a week and one screw fell out. I put the screw back in and noticed only one doesn’t seem stripped. I do own a ludt and it’s a good knife but I won’t buy another. I should have bought the spyderco I was looking at.
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should have bought a cold steel
 
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