My first Wharnie (Kershaw Leek)

[MacTech]

Yes, yes, i know, *another* thread on the Kershaw Leek (groan)

the thing is, what attracted me to the Leek was it's Wharncliff blade, i didn't realize it was a SpeedSafe knife until i folded the blade and felt the resistance of the torsion bar, even then, it didn't register... "hmm, this knife closes a little harder than expected"

then i pushed on the thumbstud and was slightly startled to see the blade *spring* open, cool!...

Thomas, Ken Onion, and the rest of the Kershaw gang, great work as always, this knife has a nice, solid feel, better than the Scallion i got bored with and traded back to the store, don't get me wrong, the Scallion was a nice knife too, but once the "gee whiz" factor of the AO technology wore off, i really didn't use it all that much, i chose it because it was an AO, the blade profile was a secondary factor

the Leek, OTOH, i purchased because i liked the *blade* profile, the fact that it's an AO was just a bonus, i *do* see this one seeing more pocket time, in addition to being a more useful blade shape, it's actually got a longer, more usable blade to boot

Bravo, Kershaw, you have a winner here, and coming from a guy who's knife collection consists of 95% Spyderco, that's saying a lot, the ergos on the Leek are just perfect

it's strange, the only folding knives that have felt "just right" to me have all been Spyderco and Kershaw knives, i've tried Bucks, Benchmades, SOG, Case, Victorinox, and the only knife brands i keep coming back to are Spyderco and Kershaw, they just fit my hand right, and to me, fit and performance are the *only* things that make me consider a knife for purchase, don't care what it *looks* like, it's got to *feel* right....

 

[Thomas W]

Thanks for the kind words Mac. Enjoy your Leek.

 

[Joe Dirt]

Technically it's not a Wharncliffe. It does have a small belly.

I'm glad you like the knife though as it is a kick butt piece.

 

[MacTech]

okay, so it's a *modified* Wharnie then... actually i did notice the slight belly on it, but it's so minor it may as well not be there....

i was also looking at the SpyKer while i was there (Kittery Trading Post, Kittery, Me.), it was a nice knife, but i'm still not willing to pay over $100 for a knife....yet, if anyone *else* is interested in the SpyKer though, they have 3 of them in stock, i think they're selling them for about $180, i was tempted at first, knowing it was a limited production run, but since i buy knives to *use* them, i couldn't rationalize spending that amount of cash on what would surely be a collectible model

anyway, back on track, i really like the fit and finish of the Leek, it was shaving-sharp out of the box, blade is perfectly centered, no vertical play, this one's a model of precision, i also really appreciate the ability to choose my tip positioning on the clip (i switched it to tip-up minutes after unboxing it), i'd assume if i'm going to carry this one in my RF pocket in tip-up, i should have the safety on to prevent accidental blade deployment, right?

Thomas, thank *you* (and Ken Onion) for making such a nice, affordable, well built knife, i've said it before and i'll say it again, Kershaw knives are definitely the "sleeper hits" of the knife industry

any chances of Kershaw getting a forum set up here on BFC?, i for one would love to see a Kershaw manufacturer's forum...

 

[Joe Dirt]

anyway, back on track, i really like the fit and finish of the Leek, it was shaving-sharp out of the box, blade is perfectly centered, no vertical play, this one's a model of precision, i also really appreciate the ability to choose my tip positioning on the clip (i switched it to tip-up minutes after unboxing it), i'd assume if i'm going to carry this one in my RF pocket in tip-up, i should have the safety on to prevent accidental blade deployment, right?

Thomas, thank *you* (and Ken Onion) for making such a nice, affordable, well built knife, i've said it before and i'll say it again, Kershaw knives are definitely the "sleeper hits" of the knife industry

any chances of Kershaw getting a forum set up here on BFC?, i for one would love to see a Kershaw manufacturer's forum...

I totally agree. The Leek is amazing and a lot of Kershaw knives are simply amazing and they have a great price to boot.

I would love to have Kershaw get a sub forum set up here in the Manufacturers area. That would be awesome.

The Leek is my favorite Kershaw, second would be the Spec Bump.

 

[Thomas W]

Mac, never can be too many Leek threads.

As far as the sub forum, we will see, no promises.

 

[Zuchus]

I really dig my Leek - I got the red and black handled version and it is not only a nice blade but is sweet-looking as well. I just ordered one of the new s30v version with the polished G10 scales. My only reservation about ordering it was that I am afraid that my regular Leek might get booted off the EDC rotation in favor of its fancier brother.

 

[Joe Dirt]

I'm starting to develop the mentality "You can never have enough Leeks".

 

[waynorth]

What is it about Leeks? It's getting on 2 years since I got my first one, and I've had one in my RF pocket ever since. And now I own 4, and have 2 on order!! My latest EDC is an S30V G10, which I modified slightly, with a notch for the thumbstud. Otherwise the ergonomics are near perfect for me, including blade style, deployment reliability, and on and on!!
And I used to be a die hard antique folder guy. I carried a Case greenbone Tested XX '47 model stockman for years, probably made in the late 1940's (when I was born): gotta love those Leeks.

 

[Vivi]

What about their lower-end knives, like the Vapor 1 and Storm series? I think the Storm 2 is the one I handled. I liked its heft but was larger than what I'd carry day to day. Vapor felt solid and was a nice, compact size.

 

[MacTech]

Thomas, you'll be glad to know that the knife clerk at Kittery Trading Post said the Leek was "the best selling knife we've ever seen, we sell more of it than any other knife", and this is a shop that sells knives from the most basic Bucks all the way up to the most expensive Randalls

i'd hazard a guess that their most popular brands would be Kershaw, Benchmade, and Spyderco

 

[KFLEISIG]

What about their lower-end knives, like the Vapor 1 and Storm series? I think the Storm 2 is the one I handled. I liked its heft but was larger than what I'd carry day to day. Vapor felt solid and was a nice, compact size.

Yeah, the Vapor II looks like a nice knife. It has a great design, but unfortunately the blade steel leaves a lot to be desired. AUS-6 just won't take or hold an edge.

 

[MacTech]

My first Kershaw was a V-II, it was a solidly constructed knife, but had a glaring fault, the thumbstuds were too sodding sharp, and the action was reasonably stiff, even after various lubrication attempts, slightly loosening the pivot only caused the blade to scrape against the front scale

i returned it for store credit, and got a used Spyderco Endura (which in hindsight was a bad idea, as it got me addicted to Spydies... ), my next Kershaw was a Scallion (basic FRN scaled model), once the newness wore off, returned that one too, as i didn't really care for the blade shape, and i saw assisted opening as a gimmick....

the Leek, OTOH, i purchased because i liked the modified Wharncliff blade profile, the fact that it's a SpeedSafe AO, like the Scallion, was simply a bonus, this one's a keeper, i'd still have purchased it even if it was a manual opener, as the blade profile is what attracted me to it

if it wasn't for the bloody sharp thumbstuds on the V-II, i'd still probably have it, it's a nice, well made knife, i just couldn't deal with the painful thumbstuds

 

[tristram]

The slight belly makes all the difference to me, without that it would be like the Mona Lisa without the smile. As it is, the blade makes knifeguys lose their heads
The only Wharnie I like is the Kiwi, and that I gave to me gal.
I love my old Rainbow Leek, but reading all this enthusiasm makes me wonder if I have to get the S30V/G10 as well.
I mean, there's still the Chives and the Bumps and now the Offsets and the KO Chef's knife I still need to get...
already more than half of my collection is Kershaw Onions!
Thomas, I hope you have a nice house somewhere - isn't it time to grant me a discount?

 

[Thomas W]

tristam, Kershaw always appreciates the support. We have some real sweet 2006 new products that will hopefully keep you all coming back.

 

[Kaizen1]

Hey Thomas,

What kind of knife is that in your picture?

 

[Chuck289]

i need to go get myself a leek

 

[Thomas W]

That is Tim Galyean's Junkyard Dog.He does really fine work both in his shop and in our R&D dept.

 

[allenC]

The Leek is definitely a modern classic.
And the Rainbow Leek and Black Leek are simply beautiful!

 

[wwells20]

My first Kershaw was a V-II, it was a solidly constructed knife, but had a glaring fault, the thumbstuds were too sodding sharp, and the action was reasonably stiff, even after various lubrication attempts, slightly loosening the pivot only caused the blade to scrape against the front scale

i returned it for store credit, and got a used Spyderco Endura (which in hindsight was a bad idea, as it got me addicted to Spydies... ), my next Kershaw was a Scallion (basic FRN scaled model), once the newness wore off, returned that one too, as i didn't really care for the blade shape, and i saw assisted opening as a gimmick....

the Leek, OTOH, i purchased because i liked the modified Wharncliff blade profile, the fact that it's a SpeedSafe AO, like the Scallion, was simply a bonus, this one's a keeper, i'd still have purchased it even if it was a manual opener, as the blade profile is what attracted me to it

if it wasn't for the bloody sharp thumbstuds on the V-II, i'd still probably have it, it's a nice, well made knife, i just couldn't deal with the painful thumbstuds

On the issue of tight pivot action, if you take off the clip and the pivot loosens up, what you can do is "slightly" twist the clip so the side that hits the lockbar sits just ~1mm off the lockbar. As STR has stated, the clip serves as a limiter for lockbar travel. What was happening on mine was the clip was "pushing down on the lockbar" and tightening the action. I tried everything to loosen the pivot, but this is what I ended up doing.