kershaw al mar am-4

J

JeremiahWeaver09

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Nov 13, 2009
Messages
1,632
i picked one of these up recently, and i have to say i like it a lot. i wasnt sure how the quality was going to be since it was a budget kershaw but its actually nicer than i expected. it feels solid and has a bit of heft. i find the slim design to make a very good edc and it doesnt take up much room in the pocket at all. hopefully it will hold up, cause i like it quite a bit. anyone else have one yet?

 
I purchased an AM-3 and it's a pretty nice little knife if you like assisted opening. I was hoping to de-assist the knife, but it has no detent hole.

I would absolutely love this knife without assisted opening and a slightly better steel like 154CM.

Overall the AM-3 and AM-4 seem like excellent value knives.
 
augustus88 said:
I purchased an AM-3 and it's a pretty nice little knife if you like assisted opening. I was hoping to de-assist the knife, but it has no detent hole.

I would absolutely love this knife without assisted opening and a slightly better steel like 154CM.

Overall the AM-3 and AM-4 seem like excellent value knives.
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just buy an actual al mar if you want a higher quality version that is not assisted, i have a couple al mar knives and they are very nice
 
I have to be honest, this is one collab I truly don't understand. The Eagle/Falcon series it emulates are great knives, but what makes them great is their excellent fit and finish, outstanding edge geometry and amazingly light weight.

I like that these knives mostly share the simple, classic design language of the originals, but it just strikes me that there's not much to make them stand out from the sea of other value knives. Maybe I'm way off, though.
 
These would have nicer if the handles were less thick in the real AlMar knives.
 
The Kershaw/Al Mar AM-3 & 4 are budget knives that cost about $110+ less than comparable Al Mar knife equivalents. I purchased the AM-3 as a budget beater knife for around $29. I would've paid up to around $50 for a slightly nicer steel like 154CM on the same knife. I like the simple, clean lines of the Al Mar designs but not the price. At $140 and up I think Al Mar knives are overpriced for what you get and will never buy one. For me that's simply too much money for an AUS 8 and Micarta knife that will be used as a beater.

Most of my EDC knives fall in the $150 - $425 range. I own four beater knives and refused to pay more than about $70 for them. Most were under $40. I believe the Kershaw AM series will be quite popular with consumers that like Al Mar designs, but don't like or can't afford the asking price.
 
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yep got one. much thinner and smaller feeling than the specs would make ya think it would be.

all in all i like it for the low dollars. prefer it be bigger in length and width a bit, but it is what it is.
 
augustus88 said:
I purchased an AM-3 and it's a pretty nice little knife if you like assisted opening. I was hoping to de-assist the knife, but it has no detent hole.

I would absolutely love this knife without assisted opening and a slightly better steel like 154CM.

Overall the AM-3 and AM-4 seem like excellent value knives.
Click to expand...

I have to say the Kershaw 8Cr13MoV isn't that bad, honestly. May not hold an edge great but damn, it's easy to sharpen up, I rolled the edge on one of my Kershaws the other day, just straightened it off against a ceramic counter top and used a rough bit to put back some edge and took off my belt and stropped it. Almost back to normal, back cutting in a few minutes. It's not 154CM which I am also growing to really like, but damn...for a folder, like 154CM, it's convenient that you're likely to find something around that you can use to sharpen it.

But I realise, YMMV.
 
I got the 4 out of curiousity. It's my first Kershaw and only assisted opener.

Surprised by how slow the assisted flipper action feels compared to thumb or finger-flicking some of my Spydies. I sort of dislike the handle space the flipper tab takes up when open. The jimping on it is also a bit more aggressive than I'd prefer.

Relatively minor, but it does set your grip back a little and isn't super comfortable. May be part of the reason I haven't been big into flippers in general, the only other one I've tried was the Buck Vantage back when I first started taking an interest in knives years ago.

I also found the lock bar to be pretty slick and not super easy to disengage without your thumb slipping off. There is some jimping there, but it appears to be rounded off and with the coating on top it doesn't add much purchase.

On the plus side, the blade shape is very nice, as is the contouring on the scales. No issues noted fit and finish-wise, lock-up is good, blade centered, no play out of the box. Nice aesthetics overall, I even like the red standoffs. Pretty solid budget option from my initial impressions.

Hard to see myself actually carrying it though. As a lefty I generally avoid righty frame/liner locks. More just wanted to see what it's about and plan to give it to my boy.
 
Looks like a nice design. Too bad it's assisted opening. There are some Chinese made folders with ball bearing pivots at the $30 price point. This would've been much nicer without the AO.
 
It's an interesting knife........
I really didn't get why Al Mar let Kai make a Kershaw version of an Al Mar design. The biggest gripe most folks have with the Al Mar brand is the steel they use for the price point. I was always intrigued by the Eagle & Falcon models, but the idea of spending well over $100 for AUS-8 to me was supremely ridiculous. 8CR13MOV is very similar to AUS-8. So really, what improvements can the originals boast to justify such a huge jump in price? At least Emerson Knives uses 154CM which is a much better steel than what is on the Kershaw Emersons.

If this were a $200 ZT with even S30V it would make much more sense.
I see the benefits for Kershaw, and consumers in this model, but how is Al Mar NOT shooting itself in the foot here?
 
augustus88 said:
The Kershaw/Al Mar AM-3 & 4 are budget knives that cost about $110+ less than comparable Al Mar knife equivalents. I purchased the AM-3 as a budget beater knife for around $29. I would've paid up to around $50 for a slightly nicer steel like 154CM on the same knife. I like the simple, clean lines of the Al Mar designs but not the price. At $140 and up I think Al Mar knives are overpriced for what you get and will never buy one. For me that's simply too much money for an AUS 8 and Micarta knife that will be used as a beater.

Most of my EDC knives fall in the $150 - $425 range. I own four beater knives and refused to pay more than about $70 for them. Most were under $40. I believe the Kershaw AM series will be quite popular with consumers that like Al Mar designs, but don't like or can't afford the asking price.
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I had a satin Al Mar mini Sere and if one comes up on the exchange, watch me jump on it as fast as my 62 year old bones will allow me to.
 
NorthernSouthPaw - I thought the same thing. For 20% of the cost you get a little bulkier less refined knife without a downgrade in steel. The KAI versions are nice enough. I was pretty pumped about them as I am in that crowd of "HOW MUCH FOR AUS8??? NO THANKS" crowd. I'd much rather get a super steel in that price range.
 
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