Folders : washers, relief milling, and bearing)s ... oh, my!

A

Absinthe

Well-Known Member
Once again, I am getting myself confused by inputting too much information from divers sources.

In some circumstances I am seeing people milling some relief on folders around where the tang would be. In others I see a bigger hole put in the pivot and a bushing put in it. And in yet some others, I am seeing 0.005 washers put in on either side of the blade. Yet others may even suggest combining these things. And even others suggesting that these things make no difference.

Is it just adding specific specific value to the final product? I saw something that suggested it prevented scratches from appearing on the ricasso or some such thing.

So the question is, is this necessary? If so, which is the best bang for the buck?

Any claritfication or suggestions.
 
Washers, bearings and bushings and relief milling are all different ways to make folders. Their primary function is to reduce surface area/drag/friction to have a smooth action.

There are high quality knives made using all the methods, though I'm not sure many people are combining any of them on the same knife and don't know why you would want to.
 
If you don’t have a milling machine, then washers are the solution. If you do have a milling machine then relieving the liners (leaving a contact pad) is the route to go on a slipjoint. On a liner lock or fancier design, some makers opt for bearings and will mill a recess pocket to hide the bearing thickness.
 
John Wilson said:
If you don’t have a milling machine, then washers are the solution. If you do have a milling machine then relieving the liners (leaving a contact pad) is the route to go on a slipjoint. On a liner lock or fancier design, some makers opt for bearings and will mill a recess pocket to hide the bearing thickness.
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John, do slip joint makers use washers instead of milling a pocket out? Or do any (besides cheap slipjoints) do none of the above?
 
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