Rough axis lock??

The same thing happened to me with a used Bugout I bought about a year ago. The axis lock bar was gritty, and it never got better no matter how many times I opened and closed it. I compared it to another Bugout I had. The difference I saw was that, with the gritty one, the lock bar would rotate as I opened and closed the knife. With my other perfectly smooth Bugout, the lock bar didn't rotate. Try putting a torx wrench in your lock bar, open and close it, and see if the wrench rotates.

My used, gritty Bugout came with aftermarket scales. I contacted Benchmade about the problem, and they told me to send it in for a lock bar replacement. They didn't care that it had aftermarket scales. I sent it in, and it came back working perfectly two weeks later. I just had to pay to ship it to them.
 
That’s really good to know, thank you. Yes, mine is doing the same thing. Opening and closing causes the lock bar to rotate.
Now I’m just really curious, why does it happen in some but not others?
 
That’s really good to know, thank you. Yes, mine is doing the same thing. Opening and closing causes the lock bar to rotate.
Now I’m just really curious, why does it happen in some but not others?
I don't know why it happens. I thought maybe the guy I bought mine from put an aftermarket lock bar on it, but I can't confirm that. He had switched out all the other hardware.
 
Yup, that definitely seems defective, give them a call to ask about the aftermarket scales. It should be fine, since they were installed by a dealer (and they're very lenient about aftermarket modifications).

One piece of advice about the warranty, check the box that says "Do not sharpen" on the warranty form, maybe even put a piece of tape on the blade that says the same. I've recently had a bad experience with lifesharp over-sharpening a blade that didn't need it.
 
I was considering buying a Mini Bugout as my 1st Benchmade. But after reading this and numerous similar complaints on the web, I'm going to pass. A $100+ knife should not have this problem.
 
I was considering buying a Mini Bugout as my 1st Benchmade. But after reading this and numerous similar complaints on the web, I'm going to pass. A $100+ knife should not have this problem.

They aren't all like that, since I posted I've had a mini and full size bugout and both were smooth as anything. Don't let a few stories prevent you from getting one. And my bad one was fixed by Benchmade so if you do get a bad one just send it in
 
They aren't all like that, since I posted I've had a mini and full size bugout and both were smooth as anything. Don't let a few stories prevent you from getting one. And my bad one was fixed by Benchmade so if you do get a bad one just send it in
That's really weird... PugPower made that comment but it shows up as me for some reason
 
Very weird, I have no idea what I did. I was using my phone and had low service.
 
Hey All -- just reading this thread and wanted to add my two cents: most if not all my Bugouts (I've had 4-5) and my one Mini Bugout have been smooth from the factory. But I've heavily modified all of them with different hardware, scales, etc., and the only one that has lock stick is the Mini Bugout after putting on copper scales and a raw titanium axis bar from xxxadrenalinxxx. Glow Rhino has come out with titanium axis bars in which they insert a tritium dot and yesterday I put them on two of my full-sized Bugouts (with aftermarket scales -- one frag pattern from Reylight, and the other from Unlocked Composites). I will let everyone know if the Glow Rhino axis bar suffers from the same issues as the stock Benchmade titanium axis bar.
 
The action on my new Blade HQ Bugout was very rough and gritty feeling at first but loosened up nicely after repeated openings and closings. Now it's almost as smooth as my 940.
 
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