SOLD

[youtu.be]

Note the stainless liners are file cut, polished to a smooth rope edging. The interior of the stainless liners are “Engine Turned”.



Note the leaf spring lock up is perfect. If the leaf width is barely engaged behind the blade - that’s called “Early”. If the leaf spring thickness is swept way across to the other side of the tang, that’s called “Late”. You note this shows the exact thickness of the leaf spring tucked behind the tang. Perfect.

The blade seats very well. Safely

There are many pics to study.

THE KNIFE IS $785us. It’s a lot of work for that price. Round off the shipping to $15us. We will clean up any remainder.

This is what some of you have suggested for years. I hope you like it. Let me send it HOME!

Drop Marker Here for a time Stamp!

Many Thanks,
Gary



Edited 4 time(s). Last edit at 08/23/2019 02:39AM by barnespneumatic.

Photo of some of the work you never see. It would be easy to assume that the pivot area of the blade is just that ... a pin thru a hole. But it’s pretty involved to make a really solid pivot area.



Note the Tool Steel Pivot Bushing. That’s lathe turned and heat treated.

Note that the bushing ends set in machined sockets. That gives lateral support against the action of the knife. The depths of each socket, the thickness of the tang. The thickness of the two lateral support washers. The proper clearance. These all determine the length of the Tool Steel bushing, which must be accurately turned to that spec.

The blade tang must be flat, parallel, and polished.

The thru “draw bar” hardened machine screw holds the lateral tension, and the sockets provide stationary support. It’s a lot to figure out and build. Not just an old pin in a hole.

You also note the crescent milled slot for the blade stop track of this design. Plus the “Engine Turned” finish.

None of this is ever seen. But it’s a great deal of detail, built with great care.

Thanks
Gary



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/19/2019 12:38PM by barnespneumatic.

Gary
I’ll bet you can feel all the xtra interior work when you flick that blade open. I also believe there’s a detent bearing on the liner lock . You didn’t mention it but is that for easy operation when opening and closing?
When I watched the video..... on the oh maybe 10th time I was thinking it has to be spring assisted .
Just a few more things to note from my perspective, I’ve been watching the point you made on the bottom of the handle since the very first pics you showed . I really like that design character AND the slanted end up by the blade pivot. Those few extra touches really make it stand out for me in the closed position. It would have been way easier just to square off the ends but the fact that you saw it that way from the beginning is great . I wondered if you were going to leave the point out past the wood scales and make a lanyard hole or something else .
Very well done

Thanks
Kurt

Thanks Kurt,

The knife is very smooth.

There is a ball detent. It’s a huge component in the flipper system. Mostly, they are 1/16” steel ball. They are “jewel set” in the spring leaf. That’s a fairly complex technique in itself. The ball is pressed into a slightly undersized hole. Or into a “at size” hole which has had the bottom “staked” at even points around the perimeter. This keeps the ball from passing all the way thru. Now, it’s tuned to have the ball slightly below its equator. At which time the leaf spring material is staked (forced closed) around the ball’s equator. This has to be perfectly accomplished because each cycle of the flip open or closed sees the ball flicked over the edge of the tang and then jarred either to an abrupt stop as the leaf spring seats, or as the ball seats in a specially aligned hole in the blade tang.

The alignment and engagement of the ball in its tang hole is also critical. Now; to complicate farther, the leaf spring must work with the ball detent to perform its purposes: 1). To hold the blade shut when closed. 2). Provide the exact resistance in the closed position, until pressure on the opening lever has “preloaded” enough that ... when the ball and leaf spring slip from closed position ... there is enough energy preloaded to be instantly transferred to the blade. It’s this preloaded energy that carries the blade thru it’s cycle to the locked open position. Tuning all of the components of this system (and properly designing them) is key to proper and smooth action.

Thanks for reading and commenting!
Gary

The “staking” process can either be a series of individual punches casting metal up over the equator if the ball OR ...

It can be as I’ve done here ... a continuous lip of the base metal that is maneuvered up and over the equator of the ball. That’s the neatest application and permanent.

Who'd have thunk all that engineering goes on a Flipper !!
Thanks for explaining the intricacies of tuning a flipper to operate flawlessly. Very interesting reading.
You really can't appreciate all the craftsmanship that goes into one of your knifes with out some of the story of how its made (as long as its not proprietary info!)
Great looking and functioning knife!

Thanks, Bob

Thank you Bob,

I really appreciate your comments. It is, indeed; very difficult to portray all the complexities of the items I show for sale. The smallest things make such a difference. And I endlessly find myself working in a detail ... deep inside some component ... and I realize I’m going to close this up and nobody on earth will ever see it again. Or perhaps some craftsman will come upon it while servicing the item decades away. But it’s never going to help me sell the item. And it might not even add to the function, but it seems to be required by the mind that has designed the total that I’m completing.

Bob, once I set upon building what I saw in my mind, I’m compelled to follow that entire class of workmanship throughout the project. Otherwise I’d end up with a mess of components - some crude, others highly finished, many average, or just good enough. So; I don’t build in any “just good enough” parts where they won’t be seen. It costs me money, but I have self respect for the cost.

All the best
Gary.

Speaking of cost. Readers believe me or not, so; I’ll just tell those who know my character... this knife would have been about $1,600 in 1986. That Walrus Mosaic ... about $2,300. Readers are living thru a current period of time where the opportunity I know I’m offering, is a 45 year high. I know it has to suit buyers, but personally, I’m doing everything in my power to offer amazing value. Thank you all for reading. I would appreciate your feedback

Best
Gary