Why Toolless Disassembly Should Be The Future of Knife Design

[Sharp & Fiery]

Snecx Vision...tool less cleaning, caged lubrication points and never having to disassemble. Mike drop. Haha.
You are welcome OP.

 

[000Robert]

As a former Watch Maker I can see both sides of the argument.
I have had plenty of OCD customers that because thier watch was loosing a extra 2 sec a day instead what ever was advertised on the website. They would feel the need to open it and "adjust" it often mangling the hair spring and destroying any water resistance. Then expecting it to be covered under warranty.
But I have also seen just how much dirt can get inside a watch and the effects of not oiling it can do.

A knife is no where near as complex as a watch but I think that the same type of personalities overlap in collecting.

If you have the manual dexterity and you want to do the extra step of dissembly then why not? I think people feel a sense of accomplishment when they get something "just right" to how they like it.

If you don't even know what a philps screw driver is. Then maybe you should avoid messing with it.

LOL! You got that right. My three year old granddaughter knows what a Philips screwdriver is.
Edit: Well, 3 1/2 years old.

 

[marthinus]

Back in 2014 we spent months in the field looking for old gas wells.

Had my first IKBS prototype with me for the entire trip.

Warm water and soap and nothing else for the entire trip.

To date never has the knife been taken apart and still functions.

Changed my perspective on disassembly requirements.

 

[Chronovore]

I take apart every knife that I can as soon as I get it. Part of it is inspection. Part of it is getting to know the knife. Part of it is cleaning out whatever mystery goo it had from the factory and replacing it with quality non-toxic lube. No, that doesn't mean some over-priced "unicorn lube". I wipe down surfaces with mineral oil and put a little FMO 350-AW on the moving parts. Then I know what I'm carrying and I know what's in it.

For "toolless disassembly" to be the future of knife design, it would require good working disassembly mechanisms that will be cost effective and work reliably with a variety of designs. Even then, would everyone want it? I don't know. I'd be happy to just see a few small changes go standard. For instance, I'd like to see T6 replaced by T8 for most screws. I'd also like to see pivots and spacers captured so that nothing spins freely.

 

[Eli Chaps]

I take apart every knife that I can as soon as I get it. Part of it is inspection. Part of it is getting to know the knife. Part of it is cleaning out whatever mystery goo it had from the factory and replacing it with quality non-toxic lube. No, that doesn't mean some over-priced "unicorn lube". I wipe down surfaces with mineral oil and put a little FMO 350-AW on the moving parts. Then I know what I'm carrying and I know what's in it.

For "toolless disassembly" to be the future of knife design, it would require good working disassembly mechanisms that will be cost effective and work reliably with a variety of designs. Even then, would everyone want it? I don't know. I'd be happy to just see a few small changes go standard. For instance, I'd like to see T6 replaced by T8 for most screws. I'd also like to see pivots and spacers captured so that nothing spins freely.

I think this thread pretty definitively shows that no, not everyone would want it.

 

[skyhorse]

Carry it in the desert for a couple of weeks and you won't think it's a gimmick any more.

Having lived the past 45 years in the desert and most of it outdoors, I've never had the need .

 

[Billy The Hungry]

If I was stuck in the desert with no water, or a brush, or a rag, I'd be a lot more worried about other things. No need to OCD out about grit in your knife if you've got those problems.

.

Here's something interesting, ffwd to 4:10 in or so, and look at how much actual grit and grim is in the mechanism with the guy trying his hardest to cake the knife up. It's nothing, a minuscule amount that could be washed out of even a pinned together folder with no trouble.

It's a gimmick. If it was a huge thing that everyone wanted, you'd see other manufacturers rushing to have their own ez-strip models/lines.

In the end, mechanically, the modern knife buyer usually wants - 1) Improved lock strength, 2) Simple fast opening, 3) Smoothness. That's where the "arms race" has been in terms of construction the last 50 years or so mainly. Being able to pull apart your knife without tools is way down the list.

He didn't say stranded. I think we all know what Smaug meant by "stuck".
Personally, if I was operating or living in the sandbox long term, I'd opt for a fixed blade, if allowed. Short of a fixed blade, I might indeed look into something like the "Homefront".

I can get behind toolless disassembly as long as the knife is acceptably tight when put back together.

 

[Danke42]

What are you guys cutting in the desert? Nothing there but sand.

 

[Smaug]

What are you guys cutting in the desert? Nothing there but sand.

How about kindling for a fire? It gets cold at night in the desert. There's more in a desert than sand, as you can see by the pic above.

 

[Smaug]

Having lived the past 45 years in the desert and most of it outdoors, I've never had the need .

Do you get sandstorms?

 

[Danke42]

How about kindling for a fire? It gets cold at night in the desert. There's more in a desert than sand, as you can see by the pic above.

Your desert has trees still? Lucky!

I was expecting to hear about getting water out of a cactus.

 

[Eli Chaps]

Do you get sandstorms?

We got sandstorms in Saudi that would reduce visibility to feet.

We'd also get some substantial ones down the Snake River Valley.

Never took a knife apart.

 

[Lesknife]

Have you ever heard of the Dust Bowl during the 1930s ? That’s where I’ve lived most of my life in the high plains of Oklahoma and Kansas. Yes we have dust, dirt, sand and every conceivable element that wind can pickup. It gets everywhere and it sometimes takes a magnetic kind of stick to it that’s frustrating to clean. That’s where soap and warm water helps to knock the magnetic stick and get it off.

I’ve carried some kind of pocket knife for 50 years and never had a thot about needing a tool less take apart knife. If it can’t take a bit of dirt or sand without failing then I’ll use a fixed blade knife. But I’ve not had any folder fail me yet in all kinds of foul weather and environment.

 

[skyhorse]

Do you get sandstorms?

Every Spring, winds up to 80 mph.

 

[herisson]

Fancy solutions for fancy needs...

 

[Chronovore]

I think this thread pretty definitively shows that no, not everyone would want it.

I see that the dismissive tone of my "I don't know" didn't translate well to text. The point was that even if perfected across a diverse variety of mechanisms, toolless disassembly would still not be right for every knife or every person.

I suggested a few other things that I'd rather see standardized for those of us who like to take apart our knives. Even for those who usually don't take apart their knives, I think it's good to be able to if you wanted to. I think there is value both in having that process made relatively easy and in minimizing the potential for damage in doing so. For instance, I'd like to see the industry move away from soft T6 screws where applicable and continue the trend away from permanent thread-locker.

BTW, what kind of folder did you use in Saudi Arabia? Was sand or grit an issue at all for that knife? What kinds of gear were most affected?

 

[Eli Chaps]

I see that the dismissive tone of my "I don't know" didn't translate well to text. The point was that even if perfected across a diverse variety of mechanisms, toolless disassembly would still not be right for every knife or every person.

I suggested a few other things that I'd rather see standardized for those of us who like to take apart our knives. Even for those who usually don't take apart their knives, I think it's good to be able to if you wanted to. I think there is value both in having that process made relatively easy and in minimizing the potential for damage in doing so. For instance, I'd like to see the industry move away from soft T6 screws where applicable and continue the trend away from permanent thread-locker.

BTW, what kind of folder did you use in Saudi Arabia? Was sand or grit an issue at all for that knife? What kinds of gear were most affected?

My folders were a Buck 425 and a Leatherman. I used the crap out of them all the time. It may surprise folks to know just how useful the diminutive little 425 is. Super simple and super effective. To one extent or another, sand was an issue with everything. My 425 stayed in pocket and only came to make a cut and then back. No big deal. The Leatherman got used a ton, to include cutting open and draining crap sandbags (something I did in a lot of places). You'd try to blow it out and if that didn't work you poured some water into it, shook it out, blew into it and called it good.

I wouldn't carry a knife in that environment that was overly finicky. Period. And that doesn't mean you have to be poorly equipped by any stretch.

Back when I was damned dirty biker, someone said to me, things that look super cool are rarely very practical.

 

[Billy The Hungry]

Do you get sandstorms?

Maybe some of this comes down to personal levels of knife care. I'm OCD about keeping my knives in good shape. Perhaps a grity action doesn't bother some people, haha.

Edit: Nobody get offended please, it's all in good nature. Have a great weekend all

 

[Eli Chaps]

Maybe some of this comes down to personal levels of knife care. I'm OCD about keeping my knives in good shape. Perhaps a grity action doesn't bother some people, haha.

Edit: Nobody get offended please, it's all in good nature. Have a great weekend all

No. That's not it.

 

[pvicenzi]

Grandpa carried the same folding knife for many years. He just rinsed it out and put some oil on the hinges. Me, I enjoy taking apart a knife, cleaning it up, lubing it and putting it back together. None of this is necessary though. Tools or not, we really do not need to disassemble our knives.