Oiling and loctite

[Soju]

Hi,
I'm really, really new to the balisong(in fact, new to blades in general).
I'm planning on getting the BM51, but after watching a few reviews, most of them recommended that I also buy additional products such as loctite.
These are nooby questions, but how do you oil your balisong and how do you add loctite-- and why do I have to do it?

[Kefir96]

You have to loctite it, because the screws are getting loose in that cracking of handles, they can fly out and do alot of nasty things. You need only torxdriver and glue to it, on BMs mostly T8 for main screws and T6 for latch, its getting loose too. Loctite 242, 243 is ideal, it holds 1 year, and you can unscrew the screws easily. You simply unscrew the screws, put a little bit of loctite on them and screw them back up.
Oiling... It's to smoother twirling and not squeezing, just put oil between (liners and) handles and the pivots, i can recommend WD-40, that would be best bet, but all kinds of oil are catching dirt, so i clean it sometime.
These things am I using and all works fine.
PS: Sorry for too much "screw" words.

[knifezoid]

Mineral oil is a good lube. It may not last as long as some other oils, but
it's very cheap. Two bucks would buy you a life time supply pretty much.

[Bubbles]

Kefir had it fairly right.

Just a few more tips though. I use 3 in 1 oil for my BM42, but i havnt oiled my 51 yet, as i havnt seen a need. It is very smooth right out of the box and having flipped it for a while now it hasnt seemed to gunk up or show any sign of needing lubrication. The 42 however definetly should be lubricated. The WD 40 will work, but i dont think its your best bet as it wont last as long and is meant more for freeing frozen objects.

As far as the loctite goes, the blue loctite is best from what ive heard. Make SURE that you dont use to much or you will be pulling your knife apart and putting solvent on it to free it up again. Put a SMALL drop near the bottom to middle of your threads and screw them in till you reach your desired play. Then let sit overnight, i believe loctite recommends 24 hours to set fully.

Yes, torx wrenches are a must for BM knives.

(also i find if you ever decide to get a 42, oiling your spring latch is a good idea as well)

[FaultyPly]

You have to loctite it, because the screws are getting loose in that cracking of handles, they can fly out and do alot of nasty things. You need only torxdriver and glue to it, on BMs mostly T8 for main screws and T6 for latch, its getting loose too. Loctite 242, 243 is ideal, it holds 1 year, and you can unscrew the screws easily. You simply unscrew the screws, put a little bit of loctite on them and screw them back up.
Oiling... It's to smoother twirling and not squeezing, just put oil between (liners and) handles and the pivots, i can recommend WD-40, that would be best bet, but all kinds of oil are catching dirt, so i clean it sometime.
These things am I using and all works fine.
PS: Sorry for too much "screw" words.

WOAH!!!!
Do not use WD-40. WD-40 belongs on pancakes, not knives.

Try to find a cheap price on some militec-1. I got two 16oz. bottles of fleBay for 16 bucks. You probably won't find it that cheap, but it beats the hell out of any lube I've used.

And I think I remember Spyderguy saying something about plumbers tape as a loctite alternative.

[tornado9015]

I got some tuf-glide. Never tried militec for comparison, but tuf-glide works great. And the bottle with the needle sticking out the top makes a great applicator.

[Kefir96]

Another great replacement for Loctite is Pacer Z-42, it's used alot in aeromodeling, and people are praising it, because it doesn't stick&glue plastic material.
Here it is: http://www.hobbypeople.net/gallery/339162.asp
I didn't tried WD-40 on pancakes, but on sandwich it tastes great.

[droopdog666]

im glad someone brought up the wd-40 thing. WD-40 is a penetrating fluid, its not meant as a true lubricant. especially not as a long term lube on a very nice knife.

[MoreBeef]

im glad someone brought up the wd-40 thing. WD-40 is a penetrating fluid, its not meant as a true lubricant. especially not as a long term lube on a very nice knife.

Agreed. That said, it's not a bad idea to give high carbon (non stainless) knives a light wipe-down with something like WD-40 every once in a while. The penetrating action is good for the anti rust cause. As far as knife lubricants go, I'm a fan of the old school Break Free brand. I bought a bottle in 1992 for use on my firearms, and I still have it. Works pretty well on knives, doesn't attract too much dirt. Also have used some of the Graphite "dry" lubricants with decent results.

[baliFlip17]

WD-40 in my experiances tends to attract a lot of dirt too so it will just eventually lead to things being worse then before you put it on. i use some old 3 in 1 my dad had in the garage.

[Psiber_Syn]

ok now dont laugh but i hit mine with a little bit of olive oil and it works great LOL very smooth and havent had to oil again and its an pocket edc

[spyderguy]

WD-40 is okay if you plan on cleaning your knife 3 or 4 times a week. It attracts lint and gunk like crazy. The WD stand for water displacement, so unless you have a problem with water hiding out in your pivots it's not what you need. There are already a bunch of good alternatives mentioned, but any gun oil will do the trick in a pinch.
I am totally off loctite, the teflon tape just works so much better for me. No mess, easy clean up if you need to re-apply, and it won't stiffen up the action like loctite if you put too much of it on. It holds tight, but won't seize and give you a big pain in the ass the next time you want to take your knife apart.

[droopdog666]

yeah, im kind of with steph on the loctite thing lately.....i was using the teflon tape, but i have since gone to super glue. holds tight, breaks loose with just enough effort, and its nice and quick. just dont get too much in there, or it will fuck up the action of your knife, then you have to take it apart again, clean it, and start all over.

[danrew]

Just got a 51 myself and decided to lube it up.
Like others mentioned, WD-40's good for "cleaning" the knife but not really a good long-term lubricant.
I use DuPont Multi-Use Teflon spray on my knives.
It's a "dry" lube that dries into a silky smooth white "wax". It doesn't make a mess and you only need a little to make it work. I usually use this stuff on my motorcycle chain, cause it has great lubricating and sealing properties. Also, because it's a dry lube it doesn't attract dirt, grime or lint.
You can usually get this stuff for $5 at pretty much any Lowes.
I highly recommend it.

danrew

[Kefir96]

Now I use 2 part epoxy for threadlocking, because that Loctite 242 is just a water. >:(