Kershaw Asset

Reviewed 05/10/2016 by Rick Hutchins

-Price Paid: $20.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 1 year

Comments:

I bought this Kershaw knife to replace a Kershaw O SO Sweet that I had and lost. I bought it at Academy Sports on sale. At first I didn't like the appearance of the knife but the price was too good to pass up. After some use I really got to liking my new Kershaw knife. The blade is good and sharp right out of the box and holds an edge surprisingly well. The overall grip is quite comfortable to hold. After about a year the blade would no longer open unassisted. I took the knife apart and found the tortion bar had worn down and no longer engaged properly, it infact rattled in the handle with the blade open. I contacted Kershaw via the email link on their website explaining the issue and requesting a replacement tortion bar and handle screws. They never contacted me back, I tried on two more occasions to get them to respond to no avail. Though I like the knife and appreciate the fact that Kershaw still manufactures here in the United States I will need to replace the knife and probably won't consider Kershaw simply because of the discourtesy of not responding to my repeated attempts.

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Reviewed 04/09/2014 by Alphapod

-Price Paid: $18.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 6 months

Comments:

The ergonomics on the Asset are great; I have large hands that can make using some small knives tricky, but the Asset fits my hand perfectly. It's assisted action isn't as smooth as others I've used, but it works well enough. The ergonomics are a 9.

The build quality is good for a knife in this price range, but the steel leaves something to be desired; the edge has virtually no cutting power more than a millimeter or two from the point. It simply won't take an edge comparable to my Gerber in (I think) 420HC or my other Kershaw in 14C 28N. Even my old $5 Maxam in cheap 420 Stainless will take a significantly sharper edge. Given the knife was primarily acquired for slicing and cutting, this has been a disappointment. Its not that the Asset can't be used for slicing. Unfortunately, every other knife I own does it better. Given that, the build quality is a 6

The Asset was not expensive, and its a very solid knife for what you get. If the steel was better, you'd be looking at a 10. As it stands, the fact that I was moved to replace it for EDC after a few months because I was having difficulty cutting through cardboard despite several sharpenings says something about it. Value is a 7.

Overall, the Asset is a 7. While I like it in every other regard, the difficulties with the steel and the cutting edge persuaded me to replace it after a few months.

Reviewed 04/12/2012 by John

-Price Paid: $18.00
-Used for Light Duty/General
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

I picked up this knife on one of those "deal of the day" offers online. There was a choice of 5 Kershaw assited-openers and I chose the Asset base on it's 3.8 oz. weight and substantial size. I thought the design was also very unique.

The knife I always use is a 16 year-old Spyderco Delica. It has some scratches, a little rust (I guess I neglected it a bit), and the blade was dull. I was going to send it back for sharpening and wanted another knife as a stand-in.

The Kershaw Asset was cheap. Too cheap to pass up. The online deal was $12 plus $5 shipping. I saw it as an opportunity to get a little bigger knife than my small Delica. I wanted something with a blade over 3" and I really wanted the assisted opening ability. The Asset is 3 1/4", big enough, but not so big that it is scary, or heavy.

I was surprised when I received the knife. It was constructed much better than I thought it would be. It is well made. The 3.8 oz. weight is a little heavy. I am used to my old Delica, which is a FRN handle with no metal liner. That knife is like carrying a feather. The Asset is thick (thicker than I thought it would be) and has a liner. The blade is also fairly thick and flat ground. Adding the assited opening mechanism doesn't help the weight either. If you are looking for light weight, you can do better.

The knife came sharp, I was impressed. I was able to get it sharper with just a little work. Very nice. It's sharp enough for anything I need it for. The blade opens quick enough, but it is no switchblade. It kind of "flips" open. Lock up is perfect, with no wobble at all. I don't prefer liner locks, but it has one. Most people don't know how to close it. People that see it like it. It looks a little intimidating due to the blade shape, which is probably a bad thing in most cases.

The pocket clip is very tight. I cannot see this thing falling out of my pocket, but more so fraying the edges of my pocket. Probably not the worst thing. I am used to a plastic pocket clip on the old Delica. The best thing about the plastic is that it does not scratch things that I bump into (like my car) when I have the knife clipped to my pocket. This knife has a metal clip, which I think is the current standard.

If you are looking for a well-constructed knife, rock solid lockup, assisted opening, a 3 1/4" blade that is SHARP, and it has to be around $20, I'm pretty sure that won't be able to get better than the Kershaw Asset. It's alot of knife for the money. I'm thinking you could spend double the money without getting anything better. We'll see how it holds up...it is made in China, you know.

I intend on buying another Kershaw.

Reviewed 03/04/2012 by Jeff

-Price Paid: $25.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

EDC/self-defense knife

Fantastic balance, very sharp, holds edge better than knives that are double the cost. I'll be buying more of these Assets.