All About Pocket Knives

I was invited to visit a knife repairman at his shop near Lexington, KY and spent a Saturday afternoon there. He was a really nice guy and showed me a lot of the things he had picked up in his years of experience. One tool he used to put in the final blade or blades on pocket knives was a pc of aluminum channel that had been ground down to fit. He had these for both 1-2 blade knives. Very simple to use - you just insert them below the round end on the knife blades and then put it into a vice and tighten gently until the back springs loosen, you can actually see this happen. Well smart me thinks this is a great idea and when I get back home I will make some. The problem is I forget the details on this and what they looked like. I think it should be long enough to go to the rocker pin and should have an angle.

Here are some pics of the prototype just so it can be seen how it works. This was a broken knife before I used this on it and I just picked it up and staged the pictures with a nail as a pin so the process could be shown. This knife will either be fixed, thrown in the neighbor's yard, or given to Goodwill. Right now I'm leaning towards Goodwill. I also know I should have the vice lined with rubber.

There are some very helpful people that use this web site. Why doesn't someone take this idea and post a good working model with dimensions so the rest of us dummies can make one. I think it maybe took 5 minutes to make the one in the pics, so this isn't rocket science. By the way he also said you could use this to restore snap on a knife blade if it wasn't too far gone. just reverse the process and leave the knife and device in the vise overnight and it would increase tension on the backsprings. We'll see if I ever get one made.

I am always up for a new tool; especially ones that I can make myself.
I just can’t figure out how that one works. I could see it pushing back (out) on the springs, but with the jaw of the vise in the way you can’t get the springs farther back than the edge of the frame because of the vise jaws.

It appears you are trying to accomplish the same thing as the Camillus knife vise i.e.,
loosening the springs (by pushing in on the springs) so you can remove or replace the pin.??
http://www.allaboutpocketknives.com/kni ... 38&t=10069

Is your tool doing basically the same thing as the Camillus knife vise, or have I misunderstood what you are doing here?

PS- I like the concept though……I will be playing with it.

My fault, I did a very poor job of explaining this. You use it after you've put a knife back together and have the last blade (s) to put in. You depress the backsprings with this devise so you can put the final blade and the pin in. What he had was longer than the one I created. It came down past the rocker pin and was also at an angle.Enough of the knife was sticking out of the vice so that when you tightened the vice the teeth went against the backspring and you could actually see the tension on the blade lessen and you could pull the blade and the pin right out. If you put a junk knife in a vice and create something just like what I have shown it will work. I can pull the blade and the pin right out of this knife and put it back in. This is a perplexing operation for a newbie and this device makes it easy. I only wish I had brought one home. He had a couple of other really good ideas I will try and post.

Thanks Bob, I think I got the idea.
This device takes tension off the blade so you can slide a pivot pin into place, right?

The device I posted is for compressing the back spring to slide/tap a rocker pin into place.

I will have to make one of those and experiment with it.

I've looked at this device and read the description of the ones it was modeled after enough to make one, I think. I also checked out the knife vise Dale posted the link to. My method has always been closer to Dale's in that I remove the center or "rocker" pin first and it's the last pin I put in when reassembling a knife. There have been times when I just wanted to replace a blade without taking the knife completely apart and that little gizmo looks like it just might do the job. Thanks for posting the idea Bob! The fellow you visited wouldn't live in Union City, KY would he? If that's him, tell Bill I said howdy. We're over due for a BS session. If it isn't him, I might have another guy in your neck of the woods I can hook you up with.

You're right he lives in Union City. I would post his name and info but he might not like it. I told him what he was missing by not being on the Internet and he told me he was "computer stupid" and intended on dying that way. Too bad, he would be a big asset to this site. He had a lot of tips and bone dying and knife repair in general. I'll post a few other ideas he gave me as I get to them.

Bob, we use a tool just as you described at work, it's especially useful on multi bladed knives such as stockmans where the springs aren't always equal length and width. If I can remember I'll snap a picture. I like your version, it's a darned close match and should work fine

Eric

Bob,
I made one of your spring compressors and it works quite nicely!

I riveted a piece of aluminum 1-1/2” angle to a piece of steel flat bar.
I glued a piece of rubber (like) shelf lining to the front side so the knife won’t slip on the bar. I used it and it works very well!
Thanks for the idea, it is a great tool!!

Great Dale thank you for posting that. If you have a minute show this in a vice on a knife. I'd like to see how it all fits together.

I've got some rubber magnetic strips that I'll contact cement to the face of mine. Now where did I put that aluminum channel I had?

Yeah Bob, Bill is a great guy and I've got an invite to stop by his place just as he has an open invite here. The internet is losing a great source of knowledge by his not getting "connected".

Great tool, Bob! I knew exactly how it worked when I saw it!

I use a small piece of metal that I stick between the liners then clamp it in the vice.
That is to say, I've been doing things the hard way when it comes to replacing blades.

When it comes to swapping out blades on shell handles, you only need to remove the henge pin.
Squeezing the spring down can be a challenge at times.

Nice version or revision, Dale! What about leaving a rubber "tail" at the end, so it can be wrapped around the
perimeter of the knife, to add protection on the bottom of the knife?
(it won't get lost and you wold be able to use it with hard jaws in the vice)

Things to do:

Make a pivot pin spring compressor.... one single, one double blade

..... Joe

Joe Dirt wrote: Nice version or revision, Dale! What about leaving a rubber "tail" at the end, so it can be wrapped around the
perimeter of the knife, to add protection on the bottom of the knife?
(it won't get lost and you wold be able to use it with hard jaws in the vice)

..... Joe

I wrap the knife tightly with a rubber band to prevent it from spreading. That keeps it from sliding against the micarta vise face.

Geez, almost forgot to post the pics!
Now normally you wouldn't have that bolster pin in place and peened when you use the tool. The idea is to compress the springs enough that you can hold the blade in place and slide a pin through the bolsters and tang.

Eric,
What is the purpose of the brass in the middle of the tool?

Now that's a good one, Eric!
Gotta give you two thumbs up on it!
Is that your own conception?

Dale, I can't speak for Eric, but I believe the "liner" in the tool
is there so it can be used on 2 or more spring knives.
(it straddles the knife liner so both springs can be compressed)

..... Joe

I got it now.

I made one of Eric's tools.
It is pretty neat!
Thanks for sharing Eric!

Any more cool tools we can make for knife repair?

orvet wrote:I made one of Eric's tools.
It is pretty neat!
Thanks for sharing Eric!

Any more cool tools we can make for knife repair?

How about a picture Dale?

Ya know, I've looked this post over a couple times during the past year and it just hit me this morning who the "Bill in Union City" is. I worked with "Bill" for about 4 1/2 years in the mid 90's. He is the stamping manager at the tool & die shop I got my start at. I've been seeing him quite a bit at local shows and a flea market or two.

This thread has been brought back to the top and I know putting the blades back in is a reoccuring subject. I bugged Bill enough that he got tired of listening to me and made a set for me. He has at least 10 of these on his work bench for various sizes of knives. I'm just doing some basic stuff and the 3 he made for me seem to work fine for what I'm doing. I'll post these so others can see what they are supposed to look like and how they are made.

those are interesting. there is a good many knives that I do where i end up putting the pivot pin in last, I think I'll have to make a few of these up and give them a try. Are those aluminum?

Yes these are aluminum and have held up well. I have to hit the tips with a file from time to time but that's it. I'm going to try and
make a set like Eric posted from some old backsprings and see how that works.

MM, isn't it a pain putting the pivot pin in last? Unless the holes are lined up just right you get instant pin shear (or a cracked cover). Still do a lot of knives that way. a strip of leather along the backspring definitely helps, as does something soft on the front edge to keep the liners and covers from being marred. Cool tools Bob!!

Eric

ea42 wrote:MM, isn't it a pain putting the pivot pin in last? Unless the holes are lined up just right you get instant pin shear (or a cracked cover). Still do a lot of knives that way. a strip of leather along the backspring definitely helps, as does something soft on the front edge to keep the liners and covers from being marred. Cool tools Bob!!

Eric

no, actually I have never cracked a cover (knock on wood) putting the pivot pin in last. taper the end and it usually slips right in. Did you mean the rocker pin? those can be a pain to put in last and it's nerve wracking with fragile materials like ivory.

Oops! Yes the rocker pin, had "pivot" on the brain and transferred it righ tio the post

Eric