Tightening wobbly tools on SAK?

[ReamerPunch]

I've got a Wenger Highlander, and it's got some wobbly tools.

Awl, Philips, Cap lifter, and nail-file. They're wobbly only when opened. When closed, they are tight.
When the awl is opened, the cap lifter becomes wobbly when closed.

Could I/Should I just bang the pins with a hammer? Is that going to help?

The blade and can opener are not wobbly, so that pin is ok.
I fear it's the backspring though. So hammering the pins won't fix that.

Is there any hope for this?

Any thoughts, suggestions, or directions would be appreciated. Thanks. 

[ReamerPunch]

Clicked quote instead of modify. 

[tattoosteve99]

Side to side motion indicates a loose pin. The way you describe it, I fear the pin is bent or the spring is bad :/

[Syph007]

Ya get the scales off and have a look.  One time I had loose tools on one end, and I took the scales off, and that pin had no bushing at all.  Factory goof but it sure explained the wobble.

[Psych]

What about if the tools are too tight? How could I correct that (it's not rust/corrosion)?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[cody6268]

Bent liners more than likely--my old Fieldmaster has this problem, as about two years ago, I used a little too much force on the awl using it to slit thick clam pack, and it bent the liners.  The awl and the whole openers layer is looser than on my other (non abused) SAKs.

[tattoosteve99]

What about if the tools are too tight? How could I correct that (it's not rust/corrosion)?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Remove the scales and support the bushing on the opposite side. Just the bushing not the pin. Then tap the other side lightly. This will cause a little extra room for them to move. Kinda hard to explain.

[Psych]

What about if the tools are too tight? How could I correct that (it's not rust/corrosion)?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Remove the scales and support the bushing on the opposite side. Just the bushing not the pin. Then tap the other side lightly. This will cause a little extra room for them to move. Kinda hard to explain.

What about on Alox knives without bushings?

[ReamerPunch]

Ok, here's the deal.

I pinch grip the scales on the bottle opener side.
This makes the bottle opener open with no wiggle. So hammering the pin will most likely solve the problem.

Pinch gripping the middle pin solves wiggle side-to-side for awl and philips, so the liners could use some tightening.
However, there is still movement up and down, the backspring does not provide 100% retention for open awl and philips. So, while improving things, it will not solve the problem completely.

Still, solving the bottle opener side and half of the problem for awl and philips is still a major improvement. 
I'm going to go through with it. If anything else, it will be some kind of practice for working with pins, which I will inevitably do, to make some mods.

[tattoosteve99]

What about if the tools are too tight? How could I correct that (it's not rust/corrosion)?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Remove the scales and support the bushing on the opposite side. Just the bushing not the pin. Then tap the other side lightly. This will cause a little extra room for them to move. Kinda hard to explain.

What about on Alox knives without bushings?

Same way. Just protect the scales and make sure the pin is not supported