Kershaw Vapor

F

fazan

Joined
Apr 10, 2007
Messages
5
Hi to all
I have a simple question regarding Kershaw Vapor that is made in China. Does any of people here have one of those? I have read here something about knives made in China and some posts of Ken Onion where these things have been mentioned, but i would like to hear if someone had any experience with these knives?
It is not cheap, around 40e here in Europe.
Thanks in advance
(sorry for any mistakes in typing)
 
I have one. It's o.k.- not great. Mine wasn't especially sharp out of the box and I haven't made it really sharp (I'll get it eventually). A Kershaw Leek or Chive would be better. I'd definately take a Spyderco or Benchmade over it (A Spyderco Delica or Native or BM Mini Grip would be a huge upgrade for you). On the other hand, I'd take it over almost any Gerber I have or have tried.

Hope it helps.
David
 
As David said, the Vapor is an okay knife. Early models were made in Japan, but the ones made now are made in China. Vapors sell cheap here in the States, about $17 or $18 (if I'm not mistaken) at Walmarts for the small version. The Vapors are far better than the Gerber Paraframe, so be thankful you got it instead of the Gerber.
 
I think it's GREAT, considering where it was made. The Vapors are probably the best knives i've seen to come out of China. Keep in mind that Kershaw's warranty service is excellent and they will sharpen repair or replace the knife for you. Hopefully you can buy it somewhere cheaper, perhaps through an online retailer! 40 Euros is very expensive for a knife in that price range.
 
Thanks for replies. I'll think about it. If I have to order it online there is always possibility of it being lost or stolen by some customs employee. Anyway last night I read some more about spyderco and they seem like pretty nice knives. Black Kara Kara and Meadowlark Black especially. If I get to online purchase I'll pick probably some of these.
Best regards
 
i have one. its a good knife for the money. excellent quality and construction (for a china made knife). locks up solid. holds a good / great edge. thin and light. i just wish it had dual thumb studs.,,,VWB.
 
vwb563 said:
i have one. its a good knife for the money. excellent quality and construction (for a china made knife). locks up solid. holds a good / great edge. thin and light. i just wish it had dual thumb studs.,,,VWB.
Click to expand...

I have a made-in-China Vapor II. It's really sturdy, and has a good locking mechanism. The blade is AUS-6 steel. The only problem is that it came really dull out of the box. I tried to sharpen it, but I'm not good at it. It's still dull.
I thought it would be sharp, because the Chive that I bought a few years ago came "scary sharp", as they say. It's marked "Ken Onion USA" on the blade and was advertised as being AUS-8. It cost almost twice as much as my Vapor II, but is a much better knife.

Edit: I've been told that it's very unusual for any Kershaw not to be sharp out of the box. Customer Service at Kershaw is terrific, and they said they'll take care of it. Kershaw has a lifetime warranty, so if you contact them, I'm confident that they will correct any problems you have.
 
vwb563 said:
i just wish it had dual thumb studs.,,,VWB.
Click to expand...

I have one of the made in China Vapors and it has dual thumb studs...
I actually really like the knife. It locks up good, its smooth and it actually stays clipped in my pocket, unlike some knives that you have to keep checking to make sure they are still there.
 
I got a used Vapor in a trade a couple of years ago. I didn't fall in love with it so I just kept it around as a beater or test knife. I play around with different sharpening methods and usually dull the Vapor and test with it. Well.....I used it to try my hand at convex sharpening. I started with 320 grit paper up to 800 and then to a strop loaded with Flitz. Sharp doesn't describe it......scalpel. I gave to my 13 year old son to beat up, which he did, and it was still pretty sharp when he brought it back. A couple of swipes on the strop and it was back to silly sharp again. Nothing about this knife stands out to me...but it's certainly much more capable than the price indicates.
 
my vapor II wansnt sharp either when i bought new but it sharpened to "scary sharp" level rather quickly on a spyderco "double stuff" sharpening stone. once dull it usually only takes a few licks on a leather strop to bring it back to hair shaving sharp. the aus-6 stays sharp for a good long time and seems to be rather tough since i havent been able to bend the point of the vapor II after doing a fair amount of prying with it.
 
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