Design wise, it looks very simple. I love that Kershaw kept the front of the blade clean with no logos. I wish more companies would start to do that. Apparently this knife is modeled after the success of another one of Kershaw's spring assisted knives, the Link. The Dividend is much slimmer than the Link, which I think is better for EDC. It's a great looking and functioning design for sure. I haven't had any quality issues with it either. This knife is getting up there in popularity, so Kershaw's done a lot of new variations. There's a Damascus blade version going for $90 on Blade HQ currently. House of Blade also has a lot of various color combos with M390 steel I believe for $90ish. Personally, I don't see this as a $90 knife, but if you like the design and need a nicer steel, those two options might be more up your alley.
This knife has been a great cutter. I love the pointy tip and simple blade shape. It's a 3" 420HC blade. That's the perfect size for an EDC knife. I haven't had much luck with 420 or 420HC in the past, so I'll admit I wasn't expecting much from it. Boy was I wrong. This has been one of my sharper knives. I've broken down some packages with it, and it's still as sharp as it came. Is 420HC the best steel in the world? Probably not. But for those of us that don't care about the high end steel race, it's going to be perfectly fine for EDC stuff. I've had a positive experience with it. Kershaw knows how to put an edge on their knives. The stonewashed blade looks nice and hasn't had any problems with rust yet.
I've been pleasantly surprised with the SpeedSafe. Normally, I've always thought spring assisted knives were insanely obnoxious and over-the-top. The Dividend's action is great though. The blade comes out quickly and quietly. Sure I still prefer my manual folders, but there's something nice about knowing your blade will always fire out quickly when you need it. The torsion bars do tend to wear down over time, so that's something extra you have to worry about. The flipper tab is a good size and has a bit of jimping to it. It's an easy knife to open and close one-handed too. I've got no complaints when it comes to the blade. It's going to perform exactly as it should.
The handle is more than big enough for me, coming in at 4.25". The scales are made of aluminum, which I've loved. I'm normally not a fan of metal handles due to slickness mostly. I've had a lot of luck with Kershaw's aluminum handled knives, like the Launch 4. Maybe I prefer aluminum over stainless steel/titanium. There's also a slightly cheaper version with plastic scales if that's more your thing. I'd rather pay the couple bucks more to get the alumninum version. That's coming from someone that typically prefers FRN and other plastic scales. The scales are that nice! I love the color and how they have more of a matte finish. This isn't a very flashy knife, and I think the matte finish helps subdue it a bit. I wish more companies would do gray scales instead of black ones. You all know I love my colorful knives, yet I've come to appreciate gray stuff. There's no jimping anywhere on the knife, though I'm fine with that. It's never felt too slick in my hands.
The lock is is a simple liner lock that works as it should. There's a bit of side-to-side play on mine, but I could probably adjust the pivot to get rid of some of it. It's not a big deal to me. Despite a lack of a cutout to access the liner lock, I've never had any problems disengaging the lock. The backspacer has cool looking cutouts in it. I missed getting a photo of it, but you should be able to see it in my video. It's a neat detail considering this is a budget knife. I like that's a plastic backspacer so it saves a little bit of weight compared to an all metal one like on the CRKT Pilar.
The ergos are awesome! This is one of my better feeling knives in the hand. I can fit a full-four finger grip and imagine some of you dudes with bigger hands could as well. There's no hotspots anywhere along the handle. All the curves of the handle fill out your hand nicely. The edges of the handles are perfectly rounded so they'll never jab you uncomfortably. It's cool that the flipper tab acts like a finger guard.
The Dividend carries very well. The weight, a little under 3 ounces, seems pretty light for an all metal knife with full stainless steel liners. It has always disappeared in the waistband when I've carried it. Knives that are slimmer in profile like this one always carry extremely well for EDC. It's not going to take up a ton of space in your pocket. The clip doesn't ride the absolute deepest in the pocket. I'd personally rather that be the case so you have a bit to grab on to. You can carry this knife however you like thanks to the 4-way reversible clip. It's the same clip that's on the Launch 4, which I've really come to like.
These go for about $40 which is such a great value for what you're getting. It's made here in America if you like to support USA made knives. I like that Kershaw put the American flag on the handle. It's a budget knife, so you're obviously not going to get the absolute best materials. For an EDC user, 420HC and aluminum handles are going to be perfectly adequate. As I mentioned earlier, there's a few $90 versions of this knife with higher end steels. It's a definitely a nice knife, but I'm not sure if it's that nice.
I don't believe I have any major complaints about the Dividend. It's as great as everyone's said it is. For a mid-sized EDC knife, you could do much worse for $40. It cuts well, is the perfect size, and has some of the best ergos I've felt. I do still love my Ontario Rat 2 more as a mid-sized option, but if you're into SpeedSafe and the design, this is an awesome knife for the price. I always worry that knives with a lot of popularity won't live up to hype, yet this one definitely did. I've been impressed with it even if it isn't my favorite carry option. I'd highly recommend it! Thanks for looking!
No comments:
Post a Comment