Kershaw Shallot

Reviewed 02/27/2013 by Mike H

-Price Paid: $37.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

Let me start out by saying that this is, by far, the best knife I have ever carried. For me. I have other knives with better quality knife steel or have more attention to detail or were more expensive, but this is the knife I carry ever single day and I will not replace it with another model.

Ergonomics:
Subjective, but to me, they are superb. The handle, to me, is flawless in both saber and reverse grip. There are no hot spots. The finger grove fits my index finger perfectly and the back of the knife nicely fits in my palm in either grip. Some complain about how slick the knife is because it's aluminum scaled. Personally, I prefer this. I hate the damn annoying "Trac-Tek" inserts on knives like the Blur and Ener-G. And because the knife has uninterrupted aluminum scales, you can easily add grip tape to the entire scale if you so desire. And, thank god, the pocket clip is just nice and sturdy and straight. There's no nonsense like those terrible "question mark" of "spoon" pocket clips that some Kershaw models have. This clip is sturdy, small, and slight. Yet it does the job well of securing the knife without too much pressure. I've been carrying my Shallot every day since 2010 and it has never fallen out of my pocket.

Build Quality:
My Shallot is the 13C26N steel variant. I do like Sandvik series steel. I think it's quite adequate and while there are certainly much better steels out there, Kershaw gives one of the best heat treatments to their knife blades in the production knife industry. The good? This knife is ridiculously easy to sharpen. And if you're sharpening knives, you should be using rods to begin with so the VERY slight recurve in this blade will not be an issue. The bad? I have chipped my Shallot's edge and quite severely before. I was actually using it to cut some food and accidentally went through a tendon and hit the glass plate I was using. It chipped the living hell out of the blade by about 1-2 millimeters. I was not using the knife that hard, either. So, my recommendation would be to get one of the better knife steel options. There are damascus, S110V, and other options out there. Unfortunately, Kershaw has seen fit to produce these models and variants in very small batches so if you can somehow find them, be prepared to pay handsomely for them. I do think they're likely worth it, however, because the design on the knife is nearly flawless.

The recurve on the blade is what drew me to the knife. Recurves are immensely useful in an EDC piece because the recurve on the edge actually helps make slicing easier and quicker by acting as a "catch." It's the same reason why karambits can slice through a ridiculous amount of material with ease. Also, the recurve helps with edge retention by allowing the knife to use less required edge to do the slicing. Meaning smaller amounts of real estate is used and therefore letting you keep an edge longer. As I said before, if you're sharpening you should be using rods (ceramic, diamond, doesn't matter) to begin with so the recurve shouldn't be an issue. That said, you can even sharpen this knife with its recurve on a sharpening stone if you know what you're doing.

Now... the best part of the knife and what turns this from a good knife into an excellent and amazing knife design... The width. I don't care about weight for the most part. I'm not nutnfancy, I have carried 6 ounce knives before. That doesn't bother me. But I've had enough of and given up on carrying wide body or "thick" knives. They are annoying as hell to carry and take up far too much space in pockets. And when you sit, you can feel them constantly. Not with the Shallot. This knife is so incredibly thin that when I first got it I was actually concerned that it would break. Which is ridiculous, I've been carrying this same knife going on almost three years now and ANYTHING that will break this knife will also break nearly any other folding knife on the market. Oh, and it's still light, too. A mere 4.2 ounces, which isn't a lot for an aluminum scaled knife at all.

Value:
Isn't even up for debate. You get a knife design that is top-notch with excellent attention to detail. There isn't and has not been anything wrong with my Shallot. And even if there was, Kershaw would fix it because they have an excellent warranty.

In summary:
I've handled many knives. And I still think that, as far as the design goes, the Shallot is nearly flawless. The only thing I would like is to see a slightly larger flipper and perhaps 4-way carry. Other than that? The design is perfect - for me. It's slim, it's thin, it's light and it's non-threatening. It's a gentleman's folder that can kick ass and take punishment and ask for me. As a sub $100 knife, you will have difficulty finding a knife that measures up. I intend to take my Shallot with me to the grave, and I have no indication otherwise that it won't last that long - or longer.

Reviewed 04/03/2011 by Totenkopf

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

Comments:

This is a really great knife. Build quality is great. The aluminum scales feel very solid and comfortable in hand and despite lacking any texture for improved grip, the shape and ergonomics of the scales actually lock into your hand surprisingly well. The way your index finger fits the choil area really helps your grip and combined with the slight relief on the spine of the blade, it really is easy and comfortable to choke up on the blade with your thumb. the balance and weight together make this knife feel good in the hand.

By far my favorite thing about this knife is it's ease of carry. It really is significantly slimmer than many of my other knives, especially those with a similar blade length. Combined with kershaws standard, but still good, pocket clip, the knife rides pretty discretely in your pocket, very comfortably, and does not interfere with getting your hand into your pocket like some knives. This goes back to the untextured aluminum scales... some people don't like the lack of grip, but what they don't mention is how smoothly and easily it slips in and out of your pocket. I'm not worried about it falling out thanks to Kershaws relatively long, sturdy, and low profile clip. This knife is very well suited for EDC if you're like me and prefer more than 3" on your EDC blades.

Deployment on this knife is really nice. The lack of thumb stud is not a problem at all. Even if you aren't used to flipper designs, this one is super easy to get used to. When activated, the deployment is fast, and satisfying. Lock up is tight on my knife without any blade play. it's a liner lock, which is fine by me. It seems like a sturdy lock and has never given me reason to question it's strength, but one concern is that it doesn't look like it engages completely (only about half the width of the lock gets behind the blade).

The one thing I really hate about this knife is the stupid reverse curve on the blade. All recurves do is make it harder to sharpen. If you already use rods to sharpen then this likely is not a concern for you, If your like me and have invested in nice DMT diamond stones... it sucks. Besides, from what I can tell its just designed to look cool. Also, this knife seems to make knife-phobes a little nervous because it looks like a murder weapon... that's their problem.

Great EDC blade. Great price. Steel is adequate.

Reviewed 12/13/2010 by Fits

-Price Paid: $75.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 1 year

Comments:

My version is the CPM 110V, and while I've yet to receive a knife with a factory edge "razor sharp", I make them so as soon as possible and the Shallot was no exception.

Terrific build quality, and the super-steel is unmatched in absolute keenness as well as edge retention. Sharpened down to approximately 22 degrees inclusive this is simply the sharpest, most durable stainless steel blade I've ever owned.

The one minor gripe are the slippery scales but that's easily remedied in any number of ways; just a shame Kershaw didn't think to send them out with a firmer grip purchase because then the thing would be a 10 all-around.

Reviewed 07/31/2010 by Greg

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 6 months

Comments:

I was given this knife as a gift from a good friend who always caries one. personally, i never caried a knife, but the pocket clip made it convenient and a gave it a shot- literally changed my life.

the blade is sharp and resilient, the handle is comfortable and the open action is easy to manipulate. the construction seems solid so far- it's being used every day. it also cleans easily, which is a big deal to me.

there really is only one detriment to this product, which is that the safety often gets stuck if i'm cutting tough material and it takes a moment or two of prying to get it out, and the blade back down.

other than that, this has been a great blade and i'd probably look to kershaw for any future knife purchases.

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Reviewed 07/13/2010 by Ubu Walker

-Price Paid: $70.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 1 year

Comments:

Overall, the Kershaw Shallot is an above average everyday carry knife that performs light cutting chores very well. The Shallot is a spring assisted modified drop point plain recurved blade design. The pocket clip is reversible and there is a lanyard hole.

It comes in a variety of different steels that will please hardcore knife enthusiasts. I own the 1840CBZDP model that has a 14C28N backbone and ZDP-189 edge. There is a very cool looking wavy line where the two metals have been bonded together. The ZDP steel sharpens easily on a diamond sharpener. Sadly, it also stains and discolors very easily...but can be corrected with polishing.

On the plus side, the Shallot is thin, slim, sharp, and will slip invisibly into your pocket. Great for desk monkeys who can't carry a full size knife.

I've used it to cut up salad at work, whittle wood, butcher a rack of lamb into chops, split raw chicken and duck into halves and quarters, gut trout. It cuts through rope, webbing, cardboard and plastic like butter, although thicker materials might require two swipes. I've taken very thin layers of skin off my palm and thumb accidentally, without noticing until hours later. This is one sharp knife.

The grip does not slip when wet since there is a groove which keeps your hand from slipping onto the blade.

However, heavier prying and cutting chores are beyond the scope of this knife. The knife tip is fragile. Mine bent/chipped slightly when doing some prying, but i was able to sharpen it back into shape. That makes this a decent camp knife, but it isn't a survival knife by any means.

Sadly, there is no tip safety on the spring assist portion of the knife like other Kershaws. I've had it open on me twice in my pocket, but since I carry it downwards, it only opened partially and without much force. You need to exercise caution while carrying.

I'd also recommend keeping a star screwdriver (torx) available to adjust the assisted opening spring tension. After moderate use, the knife blade becomes wobbly, which is easily fixed with a turn of a screwdriver.

A related issue is that the frame lock will not always engage if the tension screw is not tight enough. This flaw makes the knife dangerous to use on occasion. I've also had the reverse problem when gripping the knife tightly, where the frame lock will get stuck and require a lot of pressure to disengage.

Another annoying design flaw is that if you reverse the clip, a small black metal part of the spring assist device shows, ruining part of the knifes sleekness of appearance.

In conclusion, this is a great ergonomic EDC knife with some flaws.

Reviewed 01/02/2010 by MRP

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

The Kershaw Shallot is just a nice solid knife. It is the bigger brother to the scallion and the leek. It is very sleek, has a nicely sized blade, and operates smoothely. The assisted opening is very quick and one handed opening is a breeze. The knife has a small "lever" on top in place of a thumb stud or thumb hole that you pull towards the back of the handle with your pointer finger. My knife is the S110V version. S110V is a great blade steel, takes a wicked edge, and retains that edge for a considerable amount of time. The build quality on the knife is very good, which is standard for a Kershaw I have found. The frame lock is great. My favorite type of locking mechanism. The lockup is tight, no blade play noticable, and the lock itself is prettty beefy. My one complaint with this knife would be that in the wet it can get a bit slippery. I would love to see this knife with a g10 scale on one side. Also, although not a problem for me, the recurved blade does make this blade a little tricky to sharpen. Overall I don't think you can go wrong with this knife. Kershaw has done a great job.

Reviewed 09/29/2009 by Vinnie

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

A knife that deserves better that its quite "anonymous" status.
A good and solid design with steel handle and a strong framelock.
An original shape inspired by a Ken Onion custom knife.
Mine is the CMPS110V blade steel version and it came razor sharp out of the box.
I use it on a daily basis and only resharpen it from time to time.