Leek alternative/copy?

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tarosean

tarosean

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The Kershaw Leek has remained one of my favorite knifes for a few years now. I love the slimness of it, etc. However, I cannot stand the barely harder than chilled butter steel used and have gone through a number of them. I have tried the Damascus version and Composite, yet they are still lacking.


So anyone know of a higher quality knife that comes close to the leek or possibly a blatant copy using superior steel?
 
Well, a blatant copy would be an infringement on Ken Onion's intellectual property and should earn the copier an elbow to the eyesocket.
The steel in a standard Leek is Sankvik 14C28N. A really superb cutlery steel.

If you are in the market for a slim wharncliffe pocket knife there are a great many options out there but the price/performance ratio of the Leek is going to be nearly unbeatable.
 
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Perhaps blatant copy was the incorrect term to use. :banghead:

Something extremely thin and around the same size blade.
 
Watching the Kershaw limited editions that are released from time to time should net you a really nice steel.

Better to consider what is getting cut that damages the normal one, tho. I agree better steels are a lot tougher and take a noticeable amount of abuse in comparision to the "standard" steels we see -S30V and 154CM are great in that regard, the newer Chinese steels and a lot of 420's not so much. But it also goes to what is getting cut - I can dull the lesser steels in a few weeks cutting up antifreeze boxes at work, but dragging the blade on formica countertops will do it in one session.

Just saying, it's not always the steel, it's what and where it's cutting. If those conditions simply can't be changed, it's definitely time for an upgrade. But consider - those abrasion resistant steels that don't seem to ever go dull are equally harder to sharpen up. They don't respond to a few quick swipes on a crockstick, it's takes units of time measured in hours. When they do dull, they seem to stay dull without a lot of work to get them back.

Be careful what you ask for, my working knives tend to go softer because I do know I will drag them across metal staples, work on hard surfaces, etc. It's a lot easier to sharpen out the blade after than struggle to restore what was once a great edge.
 
Just saying, it's not always the steel, it's what and where it's cutting.
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Im a business professional.. so the majority of my cutting is packaging, etc. occasionally some rope at home or fruits/snacks...

Guess Im just tired of always having to sharpen them under light duty use...
 
Sam Cade said:
The OP said that the D2/Composite leek was inadequate.
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I don't know then. I thought D2 was supposed to hold an edge very well, but was harder to sharpen... At least hard enough to withstand cutting rope, boxes, and packaging without having to be sharpened soon after. All the similarly and sized s30v blades I found were in the $100-$200+ price range.

You can get a s30v Blur for under $70. It's a little larger in size, but still a nice American made assisted opening knife that can do the job...
 
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If the majority of your cutting is packaging?
That right there is your problem.

Cutting paper & cardboard will take the edge off the finest blade in short order.

What you need is a box cutter with disposable blades!

rc
 
I've never noticed Sandvik 14c28n steel being that soft. Could it more an issue about the Leek's blade size and shape that makes it harder to put on a good edge?
 
I have a D2 combo edge Leek.
The D2 is harder then woodpecker lips and a real bear to sharpen.

But it stays sharp a long time too.

It wouldn't cutting cardboard boxes & packing tape all day though.

I use a sheet of cardboard to finish honing it on when I sharpen it!

rc
 
The OP said that the D2/Composite leek was inadequate.
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To be fair that one only got sharpened one time before taking a trip through my washer and drier, ending up with a half inch shorter blade.. It now resides in my tool box under hard use.
 
As tarosean notes, the lacking part was it was lacking the tip after being broken. :evil:

There's no way that the D2 version of the Leek is "lacking" in edge holding.
 
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ZDP-189 can be heat treated to very high hardness levels and can be ground to very acute edge angles. However, it's not very tough. Composition starts with the very high 3% carbon content. the 20% Cr content is needed to leave enough Cr free in the Fe matrix to keep it corrosion resistant after the 3% C sucks up a bunch of that Cr in the form of Chromium Carbides. The high Cr content also makes it quite wear resistant. The down side is that high Cr content reduces toughness. The 1.4% Mo is just enough in proportion to the C and Cr to keep it from being brittle as ceramic. The .6% Tungsten also helps toughness and keeps more Cr free because it's a stronger carbide former than Cr. I'm not convinced the .1% Vanadium is enough to have any significant effect on toughness or wear resistance in proportion the extremely high C and Cr percentages.

In other words, ZDP-189 is somewhere between a high end cutlery steel, and cutlery ceramic in terms of edge holding to toughness ratio. I don't own any ZDP 189 blades for this reason.
 
To be fair that one only got sharpened one time before taking a trip through my washer and drier, ending up with a half inch shorter blade..
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I think I'd send that one back to Kershaw along with a check or MO for $30 to get the blade replaced. Or pony up the $65 for a new one and give the D2 blade another go.
 
The other knife I like in that size is the Mini Griptilian, but for nearly double the price and a little thicker handle, you might actually be taking a step back over the D2 Leek when it comes to edge durability.
 
Or pony up the $65 for a new one and give the D2 blade another go.
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I'll order a couple more once I get stateside in a couple weeks.

Anything else out there similar? Cost not too much of an issue.
 
Anything else out there similar? Cost not too much of an issue.
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The Leek has a 3" blade and weighs 3 oz. By removing price restrictions you've really opened things up.

Chris Reeve Sebenza (Small) 2.94" S35VN Blade, 3 oz. The "Insingo" semi sheep's foot blade may interest you. Base models run about $350 online.

LionSteel TiSpine. 3.35" Elmax blade, 3.53 oz. Monolithic frame machined from a single bar of titanium. $375 online. Perhaps the ultimate gentleman's knife.

Zero Tolerance 0770 CF. 3.25" Elmax blade, 3 oz. Carbon fiber scales with an inset titanium liner lock. This is the gentleman's knife from Kershaw's tactical bruiser brother company. Can be found for $180 online.

Spyderco Air by Gayle Bradley. No pocket clip, and only 2.56" blade. But the blade is CPM-M4, and the knife only weighs 1.27 oz thanks to the thin glass fiber scales over titanium liners. About $160 from online retailers.

Benchmade 940-1 Osborne (Knife Center has better pics and info than Benchmade's site that lumps it in with the standard 940). 3.4" CPM-S90V blade, 3D machined solid carbon fiber handles that are internally inletted for the axis lock and supporting steel sub frame, and it only weighs 2.44 oz. hso and I got to handle a Going Gear employee's personal 940-1 at Blade and it was simply amazing. It's long and thin, and the balance when closed makes it feel like it weighs almost nothing. Thanks to Benchmade's strictly enforced minimum price structure you'll pay no less than $263.50 where ever you choose to buy it from.

Brous Blades Bionic. The machining on the aluminum handles make it look to me like it should be in an Alien movie. Redeeming factors are that it's made in the USA, it has a ball bearing pivot system, it weighs 2.5 oz even with a 3" D2 blade, it comes in your choice of several colors, and it only cost $159.
 
I'm assuming the OP wants very pointy as opposed to the broader tips.

I should have included the Mnandi from Chris Reeves, though!
 
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