I’ve stripped flathead screws. What I’m saying is that in this particular application, you’re less likely to strip an Emerson pivot than, say, a Spyderco torx pivot. There’s more material reinforcing the geometry. Aside from that, his implication seems to be that a slotted screw is somehow weaker than a torx screw and that’s not accurate remotely. The screw head has nothing to do with the capability of the threads to hold. I’ve owned a total of 10 or so Emerson knives and have had less pivot back out with any of them than I’ve had with Spydercos, Benchmades, Hinderers, and ZTs.
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Your most disappointing knife purchase
- Thread starter SuzukiGS750EZ
- Start date
Just to contribute:
My biggest disappointment was a ZT 0560. It had lock failure so bad after a few months of regular use that I could close the blade like a slip joint. I sent it back to ZT for warranty. They “fixed it”. After I received it back the detent ball had been flattened at the factory somehow, then the incredibly lock rock came back. You could shake it when it was open and it would rattle. So, I sent it back again. They claimed it was fixed and sent it back. The thing developed lock rock again. This was prior to the steel insert. So, annoyed as I was, I threw it in a box and left it. They discontinued the knife eventually. I sent it back in for warranty work after the discontinuation hoping that maybe they’d just mill it and throw an insert in. They said they couldn’t do anything for the knife. They scrapped it and sent me a ZT 0640.
My biggest disappointment was a ZT 0560. It had lock failure so bad after a few months of regular use that I could close the blade like a slip joint. I sent it back to ZT for warranty. They “fixed it”. After I received it back the detent ball had been flattened at the factory somehow, then the incredibly lock rock came back. You could shake it when it was open and it would rattle. So, I sent it back again. They claimed it was fixed and sent it back. The thing developed lock rock again. This was prior to the steel insert. So, annoyed as I was, I threw it in a box and left it. They discontinued the knife eventually. I sent it back in for warranty work after the discontinuation hoping that maybe they’d just mill it and throw an insert in. They said they couldn’t do anything for the knife. They scrapped it and sent me a ZT 0640.
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I genuinely don't understand how you read any implications of them being weaker into his comment, as he explicitly said that he dislikes them because they strip more easily and don't center the driver. As for pivot back out, maybe I'm just particularly unlucky, but it's something I've never had happen to that absurd degree on any other knife, much less two from the same brand. To me, that speaks of using subpar hardware.
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Ontario pilots survival knife. It was cheap but even so, the grind was a train wreck. Sold it at a gun show.
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Has to have been my BF 2015 knife by Canal Street Cutlery. It looked incredible, the blade combo was incredible, the wood slabs as you can see were great but the QC was so bad that I sold it on at a significant loss. Horrific and ugly blade crink, blades rubbing both each other and the liners, bent liner causing a significant gap, bad recurve, etc. It bugged me that badly. If they'd taken the time to make it properly I doubt I would have bought many more pocket knives since. On paper it was 'the one'. Oh well. On reflection perhaps I should have sent it away to be fixed by someone who specialises in that kind of thing but water under the bridge now. Even if I were to find a better one the prices are probably stratospheric these days. Big regret still though, it could have been all that I've ever wanted. Perhaps one day when I'm rich I'll commission a perfectly made lookalike in CPM 154 as a birthday present to myself. 
Lee D
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What a shame, that thing sure is easy on the eyes.Has to have been my BF 2015 knife by Canal Street Cutlery. It looked incredible, the blade combo was incredible, the wood slabs as you can see were great but the QC was so bad that I sold it on at a significant loss. Horrific and ugly blade crink, blades rubbing both each other and the liners, bent liner causing a significant gap, bad recurve, etc. It bugged me that badly. If they'd taken the time to make it properly I doubt I would have bought many more pocket knives since. On paper it was 'the one'. Oh well. On reflection perhaps I should have sent it away to be fixed by someone who specialises in that kind of thing but water under the bridge now. Even if I were to find a better one the prices are probably stratospheric these days. Big regret still though, it could have been all that I've ever wanted. Perhaps one day when I'm rich I'll commission a perfectly made lookalike in CPM 154 as a birthday present to myself.
The context of his original comment “all held together with just a flathead screw” implied that a flathead screw has less holding power than a torx, which isn’t the case.
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Pretty sure that's you inferring something that wasn't there, as when you asked for clarification he stated his actual complaints about them quite clearly.
Exactly.
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Every Bark River knife I've bought has had major, obvious flaws clearly visible on first inspeciton. Wildly uneven grinds. One was so bent out of the box that when I went to put it in it's sheath it cut throug the side. Never again.
Here’s a weird thought: most of my knife disappointments have been with knives I made, perhaps because I don’t buy many new knives.
I remember when I first tried piercing a blade, it went well. Then I heat treated it (very crudely). That went well too, but there was a bow of about .010” over the 3” length of the blade. I thought I’d just tap it straight on the anvil. Tap. Tink- the last inch broke off and clattered to the floor. Profanity followed.
Recently, I forged a small stick tang skinner from a broken 5/8” threading tap, probly M2 tool steel. I really like the blade, but I’ve cracked 2 wooden handles trying to fit the tapered stick tang. Next time will be the charm, no doubt, but I should be able to accomplish such a simple task without screwing it up. Maybe I’ll grind a taper on a twist bit to cheat a little.
Parker
I remember when I first tried piercing a blade, it went well. Then I heat treated it (very crudely). That went well too, but there was a bow of about .010” over the 3” length of the blade. I thought I’d just tap it straight on the anvil. Tap. Tink- the last inch broke off and clattered to the floor. Profanity followed.
Recently, I forged a small stick tang skinner from a broken 5/8” threading tap, probly M2 tool steel. I really like the blade, but I’ve cracked 2 wooden handles trying to fit the tapered stick tang. Next time will be the charm, no doubt, but I should be able to accomplish such a simple task without screwing it up. Maybe I’ll grind a taper on a twist bit to cheat a little.
Parker
cbach8tw
Gold Member
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I bought an inexpensive Old Forge folder with ram horn scales, I knew it was inexpensive, I figured it would be decent enough for a bug out bag, but I was disappointed in the fit and finish, or that it would even be sold by a well known store in Sevierville. The pins pushed the horn scales out of place, the blade locked up at an angle, looked like an old file for looks, but should have realized it was stainless from China.
Yeah, this doesn’t follow. He followed up with a clarification, so clearly his initial post was open to at least a moderate amount of interpretation, otherwise he wouldn’t have bothered to reply with a clarifying remark to begin with. He then called the screws generally crappy, which I requested further clarification on, as a company using a screw type that you don’t prefer doesn’t imply the fastener is crappy. Regardless, my ultimate point was that complaining about fastener type (rivets and pins aside) is silly. The other gripes, whatever. As I said, your mileage may very in regard to that point. But complaining about slotted screws on a pivot point that doesn’t require much muscle to tighten or loosen is just a guy with an axe to grind looking for extra crap to criticize.
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It absolutely does follow. To be perfectly frank, it seems pretty obvious that you're allowing your affection for the brand to provoke you into making assumptions and stating your own opinions as facts. He followed up with a clarification because you asked for one and he's certainly not responsible for the conclusion you drew that's simply not something present in his statements. Then, AFTER he clarified his statement you STILL attacked him for a position that he never actually held. To be blunt, I think you're having a difficult time disengaging your emotional attachment to Emerson knives from the discussion at hand.
This is spot on.