Editing Pivot System (section)

=====Used-Up Washer=====

This mostly affects phosphor bronze or brass washers, as stainless steel washers are too hard to get deformed significantly.

Phosphor bronze or brass Washers will wear down with time and they will develop a groove in the center due to the pressure from the bushing. When you reassemble your balisong, it's pretty much impossible to align the bushing perfectly with that groove again. As a result, one side of the washer will press harder against the blade than the other, which can lead to binding.

To fix this issue, you can lightly sand both sides of the washer with a high grit [[#Lapping_Surface]] until the wear marks are completely gone. This usually only takes a couple of circles or figure-eights per side, as phosphor bronze and brass is a lot softer than stainless steel. After that, you can [[Strop]] the surface of the washer. Do about 100 circles or figure-eights per side. Stropping removes almost no, if any material, but helps to refine the surface further. After stropping, your washers should have a reflective finish, though not quite necessarily a full mirror polish.

You can also try applying pressure to the pivot area as if you were trying to snap the handles off the blade. For a visual demonstration, watch this video: [https://youtu.be/tcGMmcxFaQM?feature=shared&t=1316 https://youtu.be/tcGMmcxFaQM?feature=shared&t=1316] and jump to the 21:56 mark.

At this point, reassemble your balisong and check the tune by [[#Feel]]. If the binding is still present, but reduced, you can repeat the process. Just be careful to not remove too much material, or you may end up with new problems which are described in [[#Uneven_Washers]].