Big wobble in the blade.

[Blitz]

Hi,

I just received my AGA Campolin Sicilian 12''.

Although the knife and scales looks very nice, after further inspection I discovered that the blade has huge sideway wobble. This is not the first time i have received an aga campolin from the dealer with big flaws in it. There is a serious lack of quality control on their knives. I don't understand why they don't do a quality check before sending to the customer.

Anyway, is there a way to decrease the sideway play in the blade?

I can use an anvil and round hammer head to slightly tap on both sides of pivot pin but not sure how hard i should tap on it. Because if i am not mistaken, the pivot pins in the front bolsters are from stainless steel correct? These are usally harder than brass pivot pins.

[Erik131065]

I think its better to ask Bill. It should be an easy fix. But don't start tapping on the pin without any knowledge. If you will do that to the center of the pin you will probebly bend it.

[Bill DeShivs]

I'm pretty sure the blades are installed in the US.
Often times, the pivot pins are just too long and you would have to peen them excessively to tighten the blade. In this case, some of the length would need to be filed down before peening.
Regardless, place the reverse side of the pin on the anvil and lightly peen the top with the flat head of a small hammer. Check the blade, if it's not tight enough, turn the knife over and peen the other head. Keep doing this until the blade has the proper tension.

[Blitz]

I'm pretty sure the blades are installed in the US.
Often times, the pivot pins are just too long and you would have to peen them excessively to tighten the blade. In this case, some of the length would need to be filed down before peening.
Regardless, place the reverse side of the pin on the anvil and lightly peen the top with the flat head of a small hammer. Check the blade, if it's not tight enough, turn the knife over and peen the other head. Keep doing this until the blade has the proper tension.

No, i ordered directly from 3knives Villach, official distributor of Campolin.

The pivot pin seems not too long. Only one side of the pivot pin there is a space like 0,1mm. I will try it, thank you.

[Twobit]

My dad taught me that, when peening (he called it "bradding") small pins or rivets using a nail set punch with a cupped tip offers more finesse and accuracy than hitting the head directly with a hammer, no matter how small. Every nail set kit comes with usually four punches of ascending sizes and the larger two of the four will have cupped ends that work very well for this purpose. He actually showed me on my first switchblade, an otf NATO Military from TheEdgeCo. He demonstrated on the first pin, then let me do the remaining three. Turned out good.

[Killgar]

I had the same problem with this AGA Campolin (Il Cacciatore/Hunter). The pivot pin was too long, and the blade was so loose it bounced back and forth between the liners.

Peening pins is not in my skill-set, and I never bothered to make it so, instead I replaced the pin with a threaded barrel/screw pivot (1/8th" diameter). This required that I drill all of the pivot holes slightly larger (carbide bit, drill press). I also added .005" thick bronze phosphor pivot washers. The result is a snug pivot with reduced friction (thanks to the washers).

I also replaced the original ring-pull lock release with a stainless steel fulcrum release that I made. The ring pull was terrible.

Anyway, any excuse to post pics of a switchblade .




It's a big knife. 5" long blade.

[Bill DeShivs]

Nice job!

[Killgar]

Nice job!

Thank you Bill. A compliment from a master craftsman like you definitely means a lot.

[Tom19176]

Nice work !

[Killgar]

Nice work !

Thanks Tom. A compliment from you means a lot to me as well.

Here's a pic of the knife in it's original condition (though not the best quality pic). The ring is still installed (as is the pivot pin). It was just a piece of brass rod bent round into a ring, with the ends cut with side-cutters. You can see the gap between the cut ends.

The first time I fired the knife and went to unlock it, I stuck my finger through the ring and pulled. I unlocked the blade, and started to lower the lock, not realizing the ends of the ring had separated from me pulling it, and some of the flesh of my finger had pressed into the gap. When I released the lock completely, the two sharp ends of the ring closed on my finger . It was like being pinched by a crab. And I vowed at that moment to replace the ring with something else.

What can't be seen in the previous pics is the little bushing I made to go inside the hole of the lock nub. The bushing compensates for the difference in size between the fulcrum pin and the hole in the nub.

And if the knife were actually used, the fulcrum can be flipped forward to prevent accidental unlocking during use.

[Twobit]

Nice!

[Blitz]

Wow, very nice job on that Killgar. Looks solid and beautiful.

[Killgar]

Nice!

Wow, very nice job on that Killgar. Looks solid and beautiful.

Thanks guys .

Funny thing is, I originally bought the knife as a source of spare parts for another AGA Campolin Hunter that I rebuilt, but when I received the knife I thought it just looked too good to take it apart and use it as a parts knife. Even with the issues it had, I just couldn't do it. In particular, I really like the stag, and I'm not even really into stag.

I particularly like the back scale.

[LGustin]

Very cool looking. Good on you for saving it from the parts bin.

[Killgar]

Very cool looking. Good on you saving it from the parts bin.

Thanks. At the time I bought it I didn't know how rare they were (only one year/production run I believe, 2009). I'm glad I didn't "chop" it up. Aside from being an unusual switchblade, it's makes a nice conversation piece.