Hey folks, it's your old pal 12-Gauge Chimp bringing you a new knife review.
I know it has been awhile since I last updated the site and I have a good reason for that. The reason of that is that I literally had nothing to review. So I just took a break for a bit, but now I'm back with some new things to review and a quick update for y'all.
As you all might remember, I've been giving knives and other stuff my 12-Gauge Chimp Seal of Approval rather easily over the years. Well, starting today, that all ends. Effective immediately, I will no longer be handing out my approval on a product without actually doing a lengthy test on said product. I got burned big time by my Ka-Bar Agama pocket knife and it had me rethinking my whole review system. So with that in mind, new products will now be used by me for a period of no less than six months. After the six months is up, I will then decide to either give the product my seal of approval or not.
Getting back to the topic of this review special, it's been awhile since I've purchased a new knife. The last knife I purchased was the Kershaw Nerve that I reviewed a couple months back. The new addition to my Kershaw collection is the recently released Kershaw Shuffle.
The Kershaw Shuffle sports a 2 3/8 inch blade with a total length of about 3 1/4" inches closed and about 5 5/8" inches when open. The blade is made of 3Cr13MOV steel with a bead blasted finish, which makes it a perfect little companion knife to the Kershaw Nerve. The handle is made from glass filled nylon with a "K" textured grip. Its other features include a bottle opener and a lanyard ring that doubles as a light duty prybar and a flat screwdriver (I have actually used it to tighten the grips on my 1911). It's got a pocket clip that's adjustable for right or left pocket carry with the tip up only.
Now, I've got gorilla sized hands which makes using smaller knives kind of a pain, but the Kershaw Shuffle's size isn't too bad. Yeah, it's a bit smaller than I'm used to, but this is not a knife I'm going to go all Johnny Tactical with. Come to think of it, I'm not going to do that with any of my knives for that matter. For me, the Kershaw Shuffle is purely a utility blade and it does a pretty good job at simple tasks. Its size makes it perfect for places where you can't carry a knife over a certain size (like some states here in the US). It's also perfect for those of us who don't want to carry a bulky knife everyday.
All in all, I'd say grab one of these while you can. For less than 20 bucks (in some places it's a lot cheaper), the Kershaw Shuffle is probably one of the best values of 2013.
Well, that'll do it for this review. Keep an eye open for my next review and an upcoming special review of a blade I am extremely happy to be able to review.
As always, this is 12-Gauge Chimp signing off.
Thursday, September 19, 2013
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Guns and Gear Review #14: Kershaw Nerve and Brawler
Hey folks, it's your old pal 12-Gauge Chimp here, bringing you another two for one review.
Now, I first want to apologize for not being more active with the site in the last couple months. I am struggling for things to review that I think would interest you all. So, with that in mind, I bring you my review of the Kershaw Brawler and Nerve.
First up, the Brawler.
I purchased this knife for 20 dollars US just before Christmas last year at a local big box chain store and it came in a special "tactical" combo pack with an LED flashlight and a tactical pen. The light and pen were basically extras and they are fairly good for the money, but they aren't the focus of this review. The knife is what I was more interested in. So, let's get to it.
The Brawler (or the 1990 Brawler, as it's called on Kershaw's website) features a 3 inch modified tanto style blade, Kershaw's patented 'SpeedSafe' assisted opening feature, and a black glass-filled nylon handle. The steel used in the blade is 8Cr13MoV with a black oxide coating to protect it. It also features a four position pocket or belt clip.
My first thought upon buying the knife was "Did I make a good purchase ?" because I have made some boneheaded purchases in the past (See my purchase of the M-Tech/Maxam kukri). Well, my fear was unfounded because the Kershaw Brawler is a well made knife. It's part of Kershaw's budget line of knives sold at various sporting goods stores and big box stores along with some of Kershaw's more expensive choices.
I've done some cutting tests with the Brawler and have even carried it around as part of my EDC. Still, while it's a good knife in its own right, it didn't replace my CRKT Hammond Cruiser as my main EDC knife. That's mostly because I'm kind of stubborn when it comes to swapping out things that I feel work for me. I may just have to rotate my EDC knives, though.
Would I recommend getting a Kershaw Brawler ? Yes, I would. Even if you can't find the tactical pack I bought, the knife alone is well worth the 25 dollars you can find it going for. And if you look around, you can get the knife for less than that.
Now, onto the second part of this Two for One special.
The Kershaw Nerve.
This knife was actually the most recent purchase and it was also an impulse buy, one of which I'm actually happy with. I paid around 21 dollars US for it at a local sporting goods store.
Yet another part of Kershaw's budget line of knives, the Nerve features a 3 1/8 inch half serrated/ half plain edge blade with a bead blasted finish and CNC machined G-10 handle scales. The G-10 scales have a rough texture and almost a ripple type look to them. I'm actually kind of wondering why Kershaw didn't call the Nerve "The Ripple" because of the way the scales look. Of course, they probably already produce a knife called the Ripple, so that could be why. I should mention that both the Brawler and Nerve are liner lock style knives. The Nerve, unlike the Brawler, only has a two position pocket clip. Meaning you can only configure it for right hand blade tip up or blade tip down carry. It's not a problem for me since I carry my knives in my right jeans pocket. My left jeans pocket is reserved for other parts of my EDC, like my wallet. The 8Cr13MoV blade steel is the same used in the Brawler, but on the Nerve it's sharpened to a very scary degree. I'm not saying the Brawler isn't sharp (it is very sharp), but the Nerve's blade is scary sharp. Case in point, I did the same thing most guys do when testing a blades sharpness. I ran the blade over my arm and shaved off a good sized patch of hair with zero trouble. In that regards, I have no problem saying the Kershaw Nerve is the sharpest knife I have ever owned and this is a factory edge which makes it even more surprising. Most knives I get have decent factory edges, but the factory edge on the Nerve blows them all out of the water. Not even the Brawler had this sharp of a blade. Heck, not even my Kershaw Crown is as sharp as the Nerve and it's got a really sharp blade.
I've done more cutting tests with the Nerve aside from the arm hair shaving thing (which we've all done at one point in our lives, right guys ?) and it's awesome at every one of them. So, I'd definitely recommend getting a Kershaw Nerve while you can because I've been reading that Kershaw is actually discontinuing the Nerve along with a few other knives. So, I'll probably be picking another one up here in the next few weeks, assuming I still can.
Both the Kershaw Nerve and Brawler get the 12-Gauge Chimp Seal of Approval.
That will do it for this Two for One review special and be sure to check back often. Even though I may not have anything to write about, I still check the site from time to time and enjoy reading the comments you all leave. So thank you for stopping by and reading my posts and if you like what you read, become a Friend of the Chimp. Also, recommend the site to your friends, family and whoever you'd think would be interested in it.
As always, this is 12-Gauge Chimp signing off.
Now, I first want to apologize for not being more active with the site in the last couple months. I am struggling for things to review that I think would interest you all. So, with that in mind, I bring you my review of the Kershaw Brawler and Nerve.
First up, the Brawler.
I purchased this knife for 20 dollars US just before Christmas last year at a local big box chain store and it came in a special "tactical" combo pack with an LED flashlight and a tactical pen. The light and pen were basically extras and they are fairly good for the money, but they aren't the focus of this review. The knife is what I was more interested in. So, let's get to it.
The Brawler (or the 1990 Brawler, as it's called on Kershaw's website) features a 3 inch modified tanto style blade, Kershaw's patented 'SpeedSafe' assisted opening feature, and a black glass-filled nylon handle. The steel used in the blade is 8Cr13MoV with a black oxide coating to protect it. It also features a four position pocket or belt clip.
My first thought upon buying the knife was "Did I make a good purchase ?" because I have made some boneheaded purchases in the past (See my purchase of the M-Tech/Maxam kukri). Well, my fear was unfounded because the Kershaw Brawler is a well made knife. It's part of Kershaw's budget line of knives sold at various sporting goods stores and big box stores along with some of Kershaw's more expensive choices.
I've done some cutting tests with the Brawler and have even carried it around as part of my EDC. Still, while it's a good knife in its own right, it didn't replace my CRKT Hammond Cruiser as my main EDC knife. That's mostly because I'm kind of stubborn when it comes to swapping out things that I feel work for me. I may just have to rotate my EDC knives, though.
Would I recommend getting a Kershaw Brawler ? Yes, I would. Even if you can't find the tactical pack I bought, the knife alone is well worth the 25 dollars you can find it going for. And if you look around, you can get the knife for less than that.
Now, onto the second part of this Two for One special.
The Kershaw Nerve.
This knife was actually the most recent purchase and it was also an impulse buy, one of which I'm actually happy with. I paid around 21 dollars US for it at a local sporting goods store.
Yet another part of Kershaw's budget line of knives, the Nerve features a 3 1/8 inch half serrated/ half plain edge blade with a bead blasted finish and CNC machined G-10 handle scales. The G-10 scales have a rough texture and almost a ripple type look to them. I'm actually kind of wondering why Kershaw didn't call the Nerve "The Ripple" because of the way the scales look. Of course, they probably already produce a knife called the Ripple, so that could be why. I should mention that both the Brawler and Nerve are liner lock style knives. The Nerve, unlike the Brawler, only has a two position pocket clip. Meaning you can only configure it for right hand blade tip up or blade tip down carry. It's not a problem for me since I carry my knives in my right jeans pocket. My left jeans pocket is reserved for other parts of my EDC, like my wallet. The 8Cr13MoV blade steel is the same used in the Brawler, but on the Nerve it's sharpened to a very scary degree. I'm not saying the Brawler isn't sharp (it is very sharp), but the Nerve's blade is scary sharp. Case in point, I did the same thing most guys do when testing a blades sharpness. I ran the blade over my arm and shaved off a good sized patch of hair with zero trouble. In that regards, I have no problem saying the Kershaw Nerve is the sharpest knife I have ever owned and this is a factory edge which makes it even more surprising. Most knives I get have decent factory edges, but the factory edge on the Nerve blows them all out of the water. Not even the Brawler had this sharp of a blade. Heck, not even my Kershaw Crown is as sharp as the Nerve and it's got a really sharp blade.
I've done more cutting tests with the Nerve aside from the arm hair shaving thing (which we've all done at one point in our lives, right guys ?) and it's awesome at every one of them. So, I'd definitely recommend getting a Kershaw Nerve while you can because I've been reading that Kershaw is actually discontinuing the Nerve along with a few other knives. So, I'll probably be picking another one up here in the next few weeks, assuming I still can.
Both the Kershaw Nerve and Brawler get the 12-Gauge Chimp Seal of Approval.
That will do it for this Two for One review special and be sure to check back often. Even though I may not have anything to write about, I still check the site from time to time and enjoy reading the comments you all leave. So thank you for stopping by and reading my posts and if you like what you read, become a Friend of the Chimp. Also, recommend the site to your friends, family and whoever you'd think would be interested in it.
As always, this is 12-Gauge Chimp signing off.
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