The Kershaw Blur has long been a popular option for those looking to rock a blacked-out/black-on-black EDC. Its attractive design, affordable price, and broad feature set make it a strong contender for one of the best assisted opening EDC knives on the market. In this Kershaw Blur review, we dig into what makes the Blur tick and find out whether or not it truly has a place in your blacked-out EDC.
Kershaw BlurQuick Overview
The Kershaw Blur is a made-in-America EDC pocket knife that mixes affordability with reliability. It combines high-quality materials with in-demand features, including an excellent assisted opening system, to create a stylish all-black knife with utility and tactical benefits.
Functionality
9.2/10
Style
9.3/10
Dependability
9.5/10
Value
9.8/10
What We Like
SpeedSafe assisted opening works well
Good overall ergonimics
Firm grip without discomfort
High-quality construction
Excellent value for your money
What We Don’t Like
Thumb stud is smaller than we’d liken
Liner lock good, but not comparable to modern top-of-the-line blade locking systems
What is the Kershaw Blur?
The Kershaw Blur is a mid-tier assisted opening pocket knife designed to be an everyday EDC knife for a broad group of people. Assisted opening knives straddle the line between standard pocket folders and automatic knives, requiring you to physically push the blade open before the spring-action mechanism finishes the job.
After our Kershaw Blur review, we believe the Blur is a dependable jack-of-all-trades knife that does an excellent job fulfilling everyday needs while offering features and functions that give it serious tactical credibility, all in a reasonable price range.
Key features
- SpeedSafe assisted opening system allows you to deploy the blade with just a slight push of the thumb stud
- Trac-Tec handle insert gentler on the hand than many knives we’ve used without sacrificing grip
- Ken Onion designed drop point blade comes in a choice of 14C28N or S30V blade steel
Specifications
- Blade Length: 3.4 in | 8.6 cm
- Overall Length: 7.9 in | 20 cm
- Weight: 3.9 oz | 110.5 g
- Blade Steel: 14C28N | S30V
- Blade Coating: Cerakote
Kershaw Blur Style and Design
The first thing that comes to mind when you see the Kershaw Blur is low profile. It avoids the eye-catching design elements and fancy features many knifemakers use to woo new customers and focuses on a form-as-function design with a relatively muted range of color and blade finish options.
The most popular version is a black-on-black beauty with a black cerakote blade coating, black aluminum, and black handle inserts. The only splash of color is a bright white Kershaw logo that accentuates the blacked-out look. When taken together, the Blur has a decidedly tactical look to it.
Kershaw Blur Features and Functionality
The Kershaw Blur is a dependable pocket folder designed with EDC in mind. It’s a modern knife and a popular knife with a SpeedSafe opening, quality edge stability, strong gripping capabilities, and advanced materials. In our testing, we focused on four main areas: Ergonomics/grip, blade material/type, blade access/security, and pocketability/carry options.
Handle egonomics and grip
The Kershaw Blur offers excellent ergonomics and a comfortable grip, particularly for a knife at its price point. The handle is made from a mix of anodized aluminum with Kershaw’s black Trac-Tec inserts for added grip. We found it extremely comfortable to hold throughout our Kershaw Blur review.
The shape of the Blur’s handle matches the natural contours of your hand and sits comfortably in every grip we tried. It’s a good design for general utility and light tactical use if needed. Frankly, the quality grip is one of our favorite features in this Kershaw Blur review.
The Trac-Tec offers a high-traction non-slip grip that isn’t rough on your hands like the traction aid on many other tactical knives. It has a slight give to it, almost like a rubberized coating, that makes it exceptionally comfortable without sacrificing gripability.
Blade material and type
The Kershaw Blur comes standard with a 3.4 in smooth edge stainless steel blade made from 14C28N Sandvik steel with a hollow grind. 14C28N is a solid mid-level blade steel with good edge retention and corrosion resistance, an excellent starting point for the Blur.
You can also upgrade your blade edge steel to S30V if you’d like a more premium option, but for most purposes, the 14C28N will get the job done. Many Kershaw Knives offer this upgrade.
The standard blade has a gently recurved geometry designed by Kershaw Knives master knifemaker Ken Onion. We’ve had negative experiences in the past with recurves involving frustration while sharpening, but the profile on the Blur is gentle enough that it offers slicing benefits without hampering your ability to put a razor edge on it.
You can also choose versions of the Kershaw Blur with a more tactically focused tanto blade or a semi-serrated option either with or without a carbide glass breaker. For first responders or those with serious tactical needs the glass breaker can really come in handy. In our testing, we had no problem shattering standard window glass and tempered car panes.
Blade access and security
Blade access is one category where the Blur shines. The SpeedSafe assisted opening system works perfectly, keeping the blade firmly in place while in your pocket and then allowing it to spring out to full deployment at a gentle push of the thumb stud. One-handed blade deployment is always a concern of ours whenever we review a knife, and this Kershaw Blur review is no exception.
When closed, a torsion bar in the handle creates a bias toward the closed position. To open the knife, apply manual pressure to the thumb stud or flipper to overcome the torsion bar’s resistance and open the knife.
During our Kershaw Blur review, we found the thumb stud to be a good size, large enough to easily find when handling the knife but not so big that you risk snagging it on your pants. For securing the blade while in use and prevent premature closure, Kershaw went with an Inset Liner Lock to save on weight.
It’s not quite as rock-steady smooth as some more advanced (though decidedly more expensive) locking systems we’ve used before but so long as you aren’t abusing the blade while trying to baton wood or similar, we doubt you’ll have any issues with it. It only took a bit of thumb pressure to operate.
Pocketability and carry options
The Blur has a reversible pocket clip that allows tip-up or tip-down carry but, notably, isn’t available in an ambidextrous version. It sits comfortably in your pocket but isn’t quite as low-profile as some other deep-carry pocket everyday carry knives we’ve tested previously.
The pocket clip has very tight clearances, to the point where we were more concerned about it pulling on our pants than we were about it falling out. We expect it’ll loosen up after regular use, so we aren’t too concerned.
SpeedSafe Assisted Opening makes for easy, safe and ambidextrous one-handed opening. Reversible pocketclip with multiple positions makes storing the pocketknife a breeze. Sits deep in the pocket for discreet carry. Reinforced handle extras strength, durability and added safety. Trac-Tec gives quality grip and allows for easy carry in all conditions including freshwater, marine, snow, mud and messy skinning.
Kershaw Blur Durability
Kershaw is well known for making knives designed for real work in the real world. The Blur is no exception to this, made in the U.S.A. from high-quality materials with attention and care.
The handle of the Blur is made from 6061-T6 anodized aluminum with Trac-Tec inserts. The aluminum offers excellent impact resistance for long-term durability. We expect minor marks and scratches to appear in the finish over time but would have no hesitation in putting the Blur to work day in and day out.
Kershaw Blur warranty
Kershaw stands by every product they make with a limited lifetime warranty. The warranty covers the first owner for any manufacturing defects in material and construction for the life of the product.
Kershaw means every word they say, too. You can send off your Blur to Kershaw’s Tualatin, OR headquarters, and they’ll quickly repair or replace it as needed, with no questions asked.
Who Needs the Kershaw Blur?
The Kershaw Blur is a dependable assisted opening knife with solid build quality and common-sense design features. It’s backed up by one of the biggest names in the knife game and makes a compelling case for itself as a general EDC knife that provides value to just about anyone.
The assisted opening is practical basically across the board, while its 14C28N Sandvik steel gives you an easy-to-sharpen and corrosion-resistant blade. Past the purely functional features, the Blur is a great looking knife.
The primary version pairs a black anodized aluminum handle with a black cerakoted blade for a delightfully stealthy look. It’s tailor-made for those who like to rock a blacked-out/black-on-black EDC.
All in all, the Kershaw Blur is excellent for anyone looking for a reliable EDC standby but especially fantastic for those looking to go total stealth with their gear load.
Is the Kershaw Blur Worth It?
It’s hard to argue with the value offered by the Kershaw Blur. That’s particularly true at its middle-of-the-road price point.
The Blur hits a pricing sweet spot that allows it to offer features not available in the entry-level EDC knife field while still being a bargain compared to the next tier up of high-end pocket knives. It comes standard with dependable blade steel, an excellent assisted opening system, and good ergonomics for a total package that’s hard to argue with.
You’d need to spend significantly more to beat the full range of features the Blur provides, particularly the reliable assisted opening system. The Kershaw Blur isn’t the best knife on the market by any means, but there’s no question that it’s worth the price you pay.
Kershaw Blur Alternatives
The Kershaw Blur is a high-quality blacked-out EDC knife, but there are several other good options near its price point. We didn’t review these alternatives specifically in our Kershaw Blur review, but we know them to be great options.
Kershaw Leek
The Kershaw Leek is another Ken Onion designed assisted opening Kershaw Knife, just at a slightly lower price point. It swaps out aluminum and Trac-Tec for a stainless steel handle but uses the same SpeedSafe assisted opening system as the Blur.
The blade is a little under half an inch shorter than the one on the Blur and uses a more divisive drop point blade profile made from the same 14C28N blade steel. Not everyone will love the blade, but it’s perfectly serviceable for utility tasks.
Choosing between the Leek and the Blur depends mostly on your style and budget. Many will prefer the recurved blade on the Blur for its edge in slicing tasks or the increased comfort of its Trac-Tec handles, but others will prefer the added durability of a steel handle and the needle point blade on the Leek.
Civivi Button-Lock Elementum
While not an assisted opening knife, the Civivi Elementum is otherwise comparable to the Kershaw Blur. It’s roughly the same size and weight with a similarly blacked-out style.
Civivi went with a black micarta handle that offers reasonably good ergonomics. It has a deeply textured pattern that gives you a solid grip, though we felt the Trac-Tec on the Blur offers an overall more comfortable hold.
The Elementum is generally about 20-30% cheaper than the Blur, and it shows in some of the other design choices Civivi went with. It lacks an assisted opening device and went with AUS-8 blade steel.
If you’re looking to get a different stealthy all-black pocket knife at a more affordable price than the Kershaw Blur, the Civivi Button-Lock Elementum is a reasonable option.
Kershaw Blur Final Thoughts
The Kershaw Blur is a made-in-America EDC modern pocket knife that mixes an affordable entry price with reliability. After completing our Kershaw Blur review, we can condifently say it combines high-quality materials with in-demand features, including an excellent assisted opening system, to create a stylish all-black knife with utility and tactical benefits. It’s good for everyday tasks, common camping tasks, and more. It’s a strong contender for those looking to create the perfect all-black EDC loadout.
SpeedSafe Assisted Opening makes for easy, safe and ambidextrous one-handed opening. Reversible pocketclip with multiple positions makes storing the pocketknife a breeze. Sits deep in the pocket for discreet carry. Reinforced handle extras strength, durability and added safety. Trac-Tec gives quality grip and allows for easy carry in all conditions including freshwater, marine, snow, mud and messy skinning.
