Kershaw VS CRKT

T

Twank69

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Feb 25, 2014
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Hey guys, Ive heard a lot of dispute between the two company's and I wanted to know how their warranties, quality control and material quality compare. Also who has experience with them. Im currently deciding between the CRKT Drifter, Kershaw Oso Sweet and Kershaw Volt 2. Basically a light use EDC for under $35 on Amazon and other knife recommendations are welcome as long as you can support them!
 
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I have a Drifter (well, had, its the wifes edc now) and kissing cousins of the two Kershaws (a Chill and a Zing SS) and they all run kinda neck and neck. I like the open design of the Drifter better but the carry options of the Zing best, and the blade shape of the Chill. The Drifter seems stouter.
I have used the warranty from CRKT and they rock. Full retail price towards a new one if they dont make that model anymore, replacement if they do and not a single question to me how I broke it.
All this is wasted words if you dont know how to sharpen tho, in that case get a Kershaw hands down, they come way sharper.
 
Oso Sweet. Inexpensive, great size, extremely sharp and fantastic customer service. And if you have trouble putting an edge on a blade...you send it to Kershaw and they sharpen it and send it back. No charge. You only pay to get it to them!
 
Thanks WuGod, truth be told I cant sharpen a knife very well:(But that is a +1 for Kershaw. Thanks Jimmy, +1 for kershaw. Id like to know which one between the drifter and oso sweet feel the most solid?
 
I dont have the Oso, but the drifter feels stouter than my other kershaws and the Zing is all SS.
Buy the Kershaw you like best if you arent a good sharpener, you wont be happy with the factory crkt grind. And investing another $50 or so in sharpening stuff means you could buy a better knife (like the Kershaw JYD) and be done with it.
 
WuGod, Im going to invest some money in sharpening gear for Christmas and Ive got a JYD 2 in my sights ;)
 
Then buy the kershaw you like best and get a drifter after you learn to sharpen?
And Id pick the Volt2 personally but the Oso seems more popular here. Look at the Chill also, I really do like mine if you are a righty.
 
At 3.0 oz, I wouldn't consider the OSO Sweet as a 'light' EDC. ;)

You can get Kershaw Skylines for as low as $29 from some of our sponsoring dealers, like Kershawguy.
 
I much prefer Kershaw to CRKT. The only CRKT I've kept is the Ripple and that hardly gets carried.

ETA: for under $35 check out the Ontario Rat 2 or the Spyderco Tenacious/persistence. All very good knives in that price range.
 
The Volt II and OSO Sweet are pretty similar. Same materials, same size, and both assisted openers. The Volt II is a bit more stout (thicker liners) than the OSO Sweet, and the OSO sweet has a very slightly longer blade (maybe by 1/16th of an inch). Both are a bit larger than the Drifter.

I'd also toss the Cryo in there for consideration, if you want a stainless steel frame lock (or the G10 version, which has a G10 non-locking scale). The Cryo is closer in size to the Drifter. It too is a bit more stout (thicker handle slab and frame lock), and it offers more versatility in carrying and handling options. The Cryo has a quad-position deep carry clip and can be opened via flipper or thumb studs. It's also got a few nice extra touches as well, like the lockbar stabilizer, and a hollowed-out stand-off that doubles as a lanyard hole.

The Drifter is a nice, slim, and simple frame lock knife. It is right-side, tip-down only, so if that matters to you, it's worth keeping in mind. There is a G10 variation as well which has a G10 non-locking scale.

Kershaw's customer service and warranty are great. I've never dealt with CRKT's warranty service.

Here are a couple shots of those four...
Volt2_OSOSweet_Cryo_Drifter_open_800x496.jpg


Volt2_OSOSweet_Cryo_Drifter_closed_800x440.jpg


And one showing the difference in the liners between the Volt 2 (left) and OSO Sweet (right):
VoltII_OSOSweet_liner_800x469.jpg
 
I own products from both companies and getting replacement screws, clips, etc. is not a problem with Kershaw or CRKT. I would put them both on equal footing for that sort of thing. Quality control, IMHO, seems to be just a little better with Kershaw but I have to admit CRKT just sent me a letter offering me a new knife to replace one of mine that they don't have parts for any longer. Service like that is hard to ignore.

Buy the knife that fits your hand the best. Or better yet, just buy both knives. How does the saying go? Two knives are one and one knife is none?
 
Thanks guys for the input, SpydrMan I have considered the Ontario rat 1 and the Spyderco persistence but I find the spydie is a bit more expensive around $50 and the rat is a bit too big. The oso sweet also has a flipper with speed safe which is another thing I like for deployment. I do not mind the thinner liners on the oso sweet because it will only be used for light utility and it is also thinner than the volt 2 in width, so it can hide in the pocket better.
 
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I had bad experiences with all three CRKT's I owned. I had three Kershaws (gave away to relatives as I moved up into the more expensive knife world) but they were great, stayed sharp, easy to resharpen. I have 2 ZT's (same parent company as Kershaw) and they have been great. Also had a ZT0350TS Blem, got a replacement torsion bar from them free of charge even though blems are not supposed to have a warranty.
 
Twank69 said:
Thanks WuGod, truth be told I cant sharpen a knife very well:(But that is a +1 for Kershaw. Thanks Jimmy, +1 for kershaw. Id like to know which one between the drifter and oso sweet feel the most solid?
Click to expand...

As far as sharpening goes I use a Lansky sharpening system, stones from extra course to ceramic, depending on the shape of the blade will dictate how long it takes to get sharp as you like. It might be cheating but once you have an edge it takes no time at all to touch it up.
 
I like a lot of CRKT designs, but find the execution to be inconsistent, whether from one model to the next or even knives of the same model. I can't think of a single "iffy" Kershaw I've bought, and I have quite a few of them. That being said, I have a Drifter and bought the wife an Oso Sweet, and can't complain about either one. I'd actually be more likely to EDC the Drifter than the Oso, but the Drifter never worked its way into my EDC rotation.
 
I have all three Kershaw you mention. The Oso-Sweet is definitely the better. While all are
fine, the Oso is just a better EDC for me. I also have several CRKT, don't care for their
Out-Burst lock - makes it sometimes difficult to open IMHO. Both companies give good
service on their warranties.
Rich
 
Thanks Paul_B I am going to look at a lansky. Inazone, thats some good real world stuff(y). Rich S my buddy has a CRKT with the out-burst lock and he hates it too, thanks for the input.
 
I'm going to have to vote Kershaw for the win. I like RJ's designs so I would go for the Volt II, but it's your call. I've owned several Kershaws and ZT's over the years and none of them have let me down. Not even once.

I have to admit that some of CRKT's designs have really caught my eye. Lately I've been looking at the Fossil.
 
Grownstar, I just realized ive been calling it the Jolt 2 instead of the Volt 2 this whole time:p I think the volt 2 is thicker than the oso sweet and wouldnt conceal in the pocket as good. The fossil has also caught my eye but the price and size turned me, im a real < 3" kinda guy
 
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