All About Pocket Knives

Hello, I picked up this Imperial Switchblade, the knife operates but is there any way to make it flip faster and lock down tighter while folded? i guess the spring is weak?

Best regards,
Bob

I haven't seen enough of these to know what problems are created over time. I'm not an expert but I think the spring probably pinned in place.

Does the handle slabs have "tabs" on the tip of each bolster holding them in place? Some Imperials that I've seen do, though they weren't switchblades. If those tabs exist, the handle slabs would need to be popped off without breaking them and the pin removed to access the spring. The pin is likely peened in place. A new spring could then be added. Of course, it would need to be made first.

You could try to bend the spring to give it more oopmph, but I personally would not risk snapping the spring.

For holding the blade in place, it sounds like the button lever could be worn but that's a guess. I have one that is like that except the wear is on the bottom causing the blade to droop when open. If it's a worn lever, it'd need to be rebuilt.

For the record, I work on my own knives only.

Personally, I think old switchblades, especially old made in the USA switchblades, are best kept original and just looked at. But, that's just me...