Naturally, these things don’t last forever, but before you throw them away, try these quick fixes. One of them just might prolong the life of your prop.
First, keep in mind that the handle is where the blade lives, so is of necessity hollow. It is also made of very thin soft aluminum, so each time that you press the release button, or even stick it in your pocket, or even when we wrap them up to ship to you, it compresses slightly. Not enough so that you would notice, but every time it’s used the handle gets just a little bit squished.
The first clue that something is going wrong is that the blade won’t pop out, or if it does, it seems that the spring seems weak. It’s never the spring. Each time that the blade pops open, it should do with a satisfying smack. If it doesn’t, you’ll need to open up the handle.
In order to do that, you need to have the knife open, so you may need to hold the release button down and give the blade a good strong pull to release it. It might need a stronger tug than you think, so be a little assertive with it. Then stick a wide bladed tool into the handle just above where the release button is (as shown). Twist it back and forth a couple of times until the handle opens a bit. You don’t need to open the entire handle – just the area above the release button. That should do the trick. Nine times out of ten, this is the fix that fixes. This is also good periodic maintenance, and should be done about once a week or any time the blade feels slightly sluggish.
[Sometimes the handle doesn’t get squished, but the release button itself will sink down and not rise up again. It’s actually a variation of the same problem, and the fix is the same as well.]
It didn’t work? It could be that the blade itself is slightly twisted or bent and is rubbing against some part of the inside of the handle. The blade is made of soft aluminum too, so if you can spot the bend, you should be able to twist it back using a pair of pliers or even just your hands.
On rare occasion there is a little bit of resistance at the pivot point. One drop of WD-40 will allow for smooth going. It certainly can’t hurt and might be all you need to bring it back to life.
Lastly, there is that silly safety button that slides up and down. What a nuisance. Just bring it down to the open position and either tape it in place or put in one drop of glue to keep it from moving.
After that, you’re on your own. But seriously, most times these will get the prop working again in only a few minutes.
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