Kershaw Ener-G

Reviewed 10/09/2010 by Kevin

-Price Paid: $35.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

The Ener-G has got to be one of my favorite knives offered by Kershaw.

I love the green G-10 and think it goes perfect with the satin blade. The color combo, along with the very nice drop point blade make for a very elegant design. The blade is perfectly centered and lockup is solid. The flipper is very innovative because it's not part of the blade like most. Mine came a bit tight but smoothed out with use and now opens lightening fast. The steel is not stamped on the blade but it came razor sharp and held an edge well.

One of the criticisms I have is the funny looking pocket clip. I personally don't like the way it looks. It's right hand carry only; tip up or down. It carries pretty high out of the pocket when carried tip up, which might be a negative for some. Carries great tip down though. Another is the rubber inserts in the G-10. I thought they might fall out over time but they've held up really well. I just think they're unnecessary. This is a light to medium duty EDC blade and if Kershaw wanted the knife more grippy they should have textured the G-10 more aggressively.

Overall, I think this is a GREAT knife for EDC and light duty use. It's held up great and out of my many folders this is probably the best looking one and one of my favorites. This knife is a steal, ESPECIALLY if you catch it on sale. Pick one up and you won't be disappointed.

Reviewed 04/16/2010 by jthomas

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Less than 1 Month

Comments:

Well, I thought I'd post a few thoughts on my other knife purchase from last week... a Kershaw Ener-G II. I know there has been a review on here in the recent past, but I won't let that deter me.

The knife is a G10 linerlock flipper with a 3.5" blade of 13C26. The flipper is not part of the blade, but rather a mechanical thing somewhat akin to the OD1 and OD2 knives. This is perhaps my first Kershaw that came, IMHO, too stiff. It took considerable wrist flick to get the blade open with the flipper... but a slight adjustment to the pivot and the action was as smooth as the OD knives... and just as fast. Even with the pivot tweak, the blade has no play, open or closed. The lockup is perfect with the liner lock engaging the blade a tad more than it's own width, but with plenty of room for wear. The blade is perfectly centered. The fit and finish, except as noted below, is very good.

This is the first blem I've purchased where I immediately spotted the problem (i think). I am not a fan of serrations, except for the Kershaw half-moon serrations. I don't mind them at all. Well, on this knife the serrations are cut too far into the blade. The cutting edge of the serrations is somewhat North of the rest of the edge. I don't know if it makes any practical difference really, but it bugs my sense of asthetics. Otherwise, the grind is good and the blade, as always, shaving sharp, even the serrations.

The handle has a full swell to it where it sits in the palm of your hand, which I like. Other than a little jimping on the spine of the blade for your thumb, there is nothing else to assist your grip. There is a little jimping on the liner lock, but it doesn't engage my finger in any meaningful way. I've become a fan of jimping, and flippers that act as guards, and this knife has neither... maybe my only gripe.

It is a biggish knife, the clip mounts TU or TD, with the TD option resulting in a lower ride in the pocket. No thumbstuds or other adornment, very small lanyard hole in the tail.

I carried this one around a quite a bit and like it. It is 4.9 ounces, and sports a 3.5" blade, but carries like a lighter, smaller knife. Not necessarily hard use IMHO, but a good EDC. I'm going to purchase another PE and give the blem to my daughter... thumbs up on this one.

Reviewed 04/03/2010 by freedoom

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Less than 1 Month

Comments:

I bought the ener-g simply because it was on sale and i wanted a knife with a flipper. The flipper is an exceptionally fun way to open a folder.

fit and finish is excellent. The polish on the blade is fantastic, the g-10 is nice and grippy. the traction inserts are a little too aggressive for the pocket clip making it difficult to remove from the pocket.

blade shape is perfect for general EDC use as is the overall size of the knife.

Reviewed 02/22/2010 by SteelSnob

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Less than 1 Month

Comments:

Hello all. I just recieved my Kershaw Ener-G which costed around $30 shipped and I must say I'm blown away. This knife is incredible! Even at $50 bucks I would consider it a great buy. The handle feels great in the hand, Screaming sharp out of the box, USA made,I love the blade profile, the g10 is great and I love the color, I like the steel and with maintence on extra extra fine stones or a strop I imagine it will stat sharp indefinitely given my experience with AEB-L steel which is supposed to be the same as 13c26, it flips open well, the blade is centered, it's very light which I really like in my knives, has early lockup, dirt cheap so I'm not the least bit concerned about using it, all in all this is hands down the best $30 dollar knife I've seem and as of now I like it better than the persistence even.

Now for the cons... The blade had some wobble out of the box and when I tightened it the pivot screw stripped a little but the wobble is mostly gone. It only wobbles when pushed side to side from the tip of the blade using a good amount of force. Second the track tech inserts I could do without and the G10 itself provides a better grip. I think over time the Trackteck inserts could wear out a pocket, given the placement in relation to the pocket clip. The good news is they can be removed and I did now this is my most carried knife right now.

All in all this is a incredible knife and I would reccomend it to anyone whether they're new to knives or a seasoned knifenut.