Kershaw Leek.

hey guys. i just killed my cheap chinesse S&W knock off knife. im thinking of getting a Kershaw Leek ( dont laugh, but maybe the rainbow one). iv handled the kershaw chive and was really impressed with the speed safe one handed opening. anyone have a leek? any opinions?

I have the all stainless steel version. Great knife and Kershaw's customer service is top notch. Are looking for knives that assisted openers or just a replacement for your last knife. Check out the Camillus Heat, one of my favorite AO knives.

Got a rainbow Leek myself and it's a good little knife.

I carried the early version with the black plastic scales for a couple years. I liked it. Perfect pocket size and didn't tend to open in my pocket even with the "safety" off.

My wife, my son and I, carry them with the safety off.
Great little knife.

Part of my EDC

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v111/blackbear11784/edclights.jpg

black bear

I've got a Leek that I carry every day.

It's been an okay knife for me. It cuts. But there has been some bad.

First, the good. I can sharpen it easily on my Spyderco Sharpmaker. I've cut everything with it, and resharpened it.

Now, the bad. The "AO" workings turned out to be rather fragile, in my experience. Mine won't flick open any more.

First, all the little hex screws on the frame kept coming loose, and I kept retightening them. If you over-tighten the little hex screws, the AO thing won't work very well at all. So you have to find the perfect level of tightness...tight enough to hold everything together, but not so tight as to prevent the "flick" from happening.

Second, my AO parts aren't in my knife any more.

The reason? I pulled my keys out of my pocket once, and the knife came out with them and fell onto a hard tile floor. The fall from my pocket to the hard tile floor broke one of the little fragile springs inside the knife, and thus no more AO flick opening.

I just undid all the little hex screws, took out the broken parts, tightened all the little hex screws as tight as I could after an application of loctite, and now just use the thumb stud to open it.

To be perfectly honest, the AO flick feature was why I bought the knife. But it's been so long since the parts broke, and I'm so used to opening it with the thumb stud that I just don't notice it any more.

Looking back on it, if I had to choose all over again, I'd probably just skip the Leek with its "neato-frito" AO feature, and just get a good Spyderco Delica or something else that's just thumb-opened and that has a thicker blade than the Leek.

Also, I will never ever again buy a compromise blade that's half straight edge, half serrated edge. That is basically a useless marketing feature, I've found out the hard way. Just plain straight edges for me from now on.

hillbilly

im looking to replace my old knife and i figure an assisted opener would be a good step up. any opinions on the Heat?

Hillbilly,

Send it back to Kershaw with a note. They'll fix it or send a new one. They had some QC problems with some of them and they've been cleaning up that mess for while.

Heat - One of my favorite assists.

I've had a couple Leeks and Chives but replaced them with a Blur and have never carried the smaller Kershaws again.One of the better usages of $50 at Wal Mart I've made.I've found that I like the heavier blade and the increase in grip size makes it more useful but not any more difficult to carry.

I bought one about a year and a half ago, and it is my every day knife. Mine is the stainless steel with the combination straight/serrated blade. I often have to cut a lot of rope or zip-ties at work, so the serrated part of the blade is a must for any knife I carry.

I work on submarines, and being careless, several times my knife has taken a multiple deck fall. The safety doesn't always stay on after falling 15-20 feet, and sometime it can be scary to see the knife fall at someones feet an pop open. I keep telling myself to just tighten up the set screw of the safety a bit, but...did I mention I'm lazy?

The steel takes an edge very easily, but since mine lives a hard life, it seems to need sharpening fairly often. It could just be I like a really sharp knife.

With the increased security on base where I work, I learned fast to not use the open-assist feature when proving the blade was less than 3" to our gate guards. There is some pucker factor involved.

Don't feel bad about wanting a Rainbow one...about 2 weeks after I bought my Leek, I bought a Titanium Oxide Chive for my wife. While she doesn't use it quite as hard as I use my leek, she does carry it about 75% of the time, as the knife finish is still flawless.

greg

Hoppy,
The Heat is great. Built solid, good steel, reasonable price. Nice knife

I have a Kershaw Rainbow leek and proud of it.

Great knive!

I think we should start a kershaw fanclub

Like hso said, if there are any problems just send it back to Kershaw with a note. I had a Chive for a year or two as my EDC knife, worked great. about a month ago, the AO suddenly died on me. I finally sent it in to Kershaw to be fixed (they'll replace the Torsion Bar for free whenever it wears out) last wednsday. Check the mail today (monday) and there it was! I was amazed, considering it went from the east coast all the way to Oregon and back in four business days. Turns out they sent me a brand-new knife, it's sitting in my pocket now:D

And no worries about the knife springing open in your pocket, it's never happened to me. I've actually considered removing the safety, as it just gets in the way.

Kershaw definately will get more business from me in the future, you won't be disapointed if you buy from them.

Welcome to THR!

How'd you find us?

I've had two Leeks...The tips of both of them broke off and I sent them back to Kershaw, which does a terrific job of replacing them with brand new knives. The liner lock sometimes catches and you have to release it with your other hand--not good. You can't beat the super-fast index-finger opening, and it feels good in your hand....For my edc, though, I prefer the Gerber Mini-Covert...a tougher little knife that feels solid and cuts beautifully. (It was supposedly designed by a former OSS colonel, which adds a little cache to it!)

I have the version of the Leek with polished G10 scales and S30V blade. It's a fantastic little knife. The G10 is attractive (and smooth, doesn't tear up my pants) and the S30V really holds an edge.

I don't use the safety; I've never had a problem with a Kershaw assisted-opener opening when I didn't want it to open.

Welcome to THR!

How'd you find us?

Thanks for the welcome! I found this place through BladeForums over a year ago, but I've only lurked. I'm not a gunny, so there's not much for me to contribute here. Great forum though:)

To try make my post actually relevant, BladeForums.com (www.bladeforums.com) is a good place to ask questions when it comes to all the different knives out there. Careful you don't get bitten by the knife bug though, it can get just as expensive as guns;)

I have the blue-smoke black Kershaw Leek that is my daily carry knife.

I don't know the model name, but mine's less than 3in. I've had the safety slide and the blade open in my pocket several times. I still have five fingers, but it gives me a start each time it happens.

Now using a leek as an EDC.

Plain stainless steel brushed looks great. Combo edge, kinda wish I'd gotten a straight-blade, but it's fine.

Opening is awesome, and you can reverse the clip for pocket carry/draw with a TORX tool (I actually requested a catalog so I could buy a TORX tool from Kai/Kershaw, and they sent me a tool AND catalog via first class mail!).

One thing though, if you plan on EDCing and want to be able to draw fast, PRACTICE...it's a little bit slickish, and to get it open properly you wanna grab it with the middle finger and thumb, leaving the index for flicking. I practice drawing and opening mine when I'm bored.

Warranty covers, well, everything. Unless you say "I hit it with a hammer" it should cover the knife!

Safety seems unnecessary and is plastic.

All in all a great knife. Actually saw it on Amazon for $40, shipped.

Also, RWC, you probably wouldn't get that problem with the Leek...it's bigger and wouldn't fully open except maybe in a cargo pocket. Maybe there's more tension on the index-finger flick thing, I can't imagine it opening accidentally unless it was dropped.

have both a leek and a chive (ok, a few chives), both great knives. love the trigger release. removed the safeties from both. no probs.

I have a leek and a tanto blur. They're both really nice knives, especially for $50 at walmart.

I originally bought the blur for social work - the tanto point isn't really as good (imho) for everyday cutting activities. As such, I know usually keep it shelved unless I'm going somewhere I'd like to have a little extra 'oomph' handy.

So I bought the leek, for EDC, and it has not failed me. The safety can be a little annoying, as it's an extra step to fumble through. Though I've found that with practice, you can slide it down with your pinkie. Handy little knife - though like hillbilly, if I was using it a lot I'd opt for the plain blade.

If you want fast draw, especially if you've got fat fingers like myself, go with the blur. It's got a bigger handle and textured scales. Plus, no safety, plus accessible and well-designed ambi thumb studs. In fact, the only downside of the blur, besides the tanto point being lousy for box opening etc, is that the two I've had were so grippy they'd started eating holes in my pockets.

ive used onion speedsafes for years starting with a blackout.

currently i carry a cyclone i bought at a gunshow in january,it does a gr8 job for me cutting various materials both at work and home.

not a fan of combo edges either,i do use a full serrated on my sailboat though and would love to see a onion with a sheepsfoot serrated blade and marlinspike,,,

I gave my older son, who was in his mid-thirties at the time, a rainbow Leek. His initial complaint was that it would accidently lock on him, making him need both hands to deploy it. Also, if left unlocked, it would self-deploy - in his pocket. I next gave hime a Blur - and he complained that it would self deploy. Next knife gift? A cheap fixed blade for camping!

I have had Blurs and Leeks for some four years. I EDC-ed a Blur for years - and that sandpaper grip material does eventually wear down. The Leek is a more handy size, but the Blur fits my hand better. Either is a poor choice as a defensive tool against a bg. I carry a 642 for that. My latest Leek arrived two weeks ago - and cost $84 delivered - a SS handled Damascus bladed version! Great for opening packages, cutting food, and show and tell.

Stainz

I had a Rainbow Leek, loved it. Unfortunately lost it, so I replaced it with a stainless steel Leek. Both plain edge. The Leek is often my daily carry knife for workdays.

I think the Leek is a fairly graceful medium sized knife - most days I wear a suit and I find a full size folder feels a bit heavy in the pocket of suit pants, while the Leek is just right.

I have used the polished G-10 Leek as EDC for over a year and love it still. I've only had to replace the torsion bar once so far. Just remember to call Kershaw when - not if, when - you break one; they'll send you replacements for free. That little spring takes a lot of punishment, you know. Replacing it is not hard, and the only part of the reassembly that people don't like is having to find the correct torque for the pivot screw. It just takes a little trial and error. You do want to replace it when it breaks, because it not only gives you AO, but acts as detent when the blade is closed.

The G-10 Leeks have some of the best linerlocks out there, and even more people swear by the framelocks. The latest production Leeks have 13C26 Sandvik blades, making them one of the best deals going in pocket knives.

I've owned three Leeks so far and have lost all but one (which I gave to my dad). I loved the knife except that it fell out of my pocket quite often. It's just something to look out for if you ride bikes or play sports much. Good luck with it!

My Damascus blades. Top is a Bear MGC Bowie - made here in AL; middle is a Buck 110 'Custom Shop' with flaming Koa wood scales, Ni bolsters, and fisheye Damascus, and bottom is the Kershaw Leek. Alabama Damascus, up near Jacksonville, AL, reportedly the largest maker of Damascus steel in the USA, made the blades for the top and bottom examples.

http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u307/Stainz_2007/IMG_0263.jpg

Stainz

Thanks for the info on the Damascus Leek, Stainz; I've got 3 Leeks and a Chive now, and my last Leek is a Damascus like yours. That Damascus figure is so nice on a knife that I'd like to find some more.

I have had my Leek for nearly a year now and it has performed quite well. So much so, that I bought some for my sons in law. I too considered the rainbow but could not muster sufficient courage to do that settling, instead, for the "fish".
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v736/dairycreek/KERSHAWLEEK-be.jpg

I have not treated this Leek particularly kindly. Use it on my farm, as a fishing knife on occasion, and as a general EDC carry tool. So far, so good. I'd get another - perhaps even the rainbow one.

You all probably know that Kershaw now makes the Leeks (and some other knives) in Sandvik 13C26 steel instead of 440A...

I just contacted the warranty dept and you can send in your 440A (they say they switched to Sandvik sometime around July 07) and have it replaced with the Sandvik for free!

I'm doing it today.

...Awesome service.