Kershaw Natrix 7007 Spring Assist Knife Review

Kershaw, and many knife enthusiasts, know that there is nothing like a Kershaw. From award-winning technologies and advanced materials to the solid sound of the blade lockup, when you’re carrying a Kershaw, you know you’re carrying the real thing. The real thing means value and plenty of it. With Kershaw, you get incredible ban for your hard-earned buck. Even their inexpensive models are impressive. In fact, everything about a Kershaw is solid, crafted, reliable. That’s why they can back each of their knives for the life of its original owner against any defects in materials and construction with their famous Limited Lifetime Warranty.

Kershaw was founded in 1974 to design and manufacture tools that knife users would be proud to own, carry, and use. This has meant that every Kershaw knife must be of the highest quality. Whether it’s a hardworking pocketknife, a hunting knife, or a special collectors’ edition, Kershaw always chooses appropriate, high-quality material and is dedicated to intensive craftsmanship. Along with extremely tight tolerances and state-of-the-art manufacturing techniques, this ensures that Kershaw knives provide a lifetime of performance.

Kershaw pioneered the use of many of the technologies and advanced materials that are today standard in the knife industry. Their SpeedSafe assisted opening knives were first-to-market. They introduced the concept of knives with interchangeable blade in their Blade Traders. Recently, their Composite Blade technology, which combines two steels into one blade, gives knife users the best of both worlds by enabling them to use steel known for edge retention on the edge and steel known for strength on the spine. And they will keep on innovating, bringing new and better technologies, and materials to today’s knife making industry and knife-using public.

Kershaw Knives is a brand of Kai USA Ltd, a member of the Kai Group. For over 100 years, Kai has been Japan’s premier blade producer. Kai takes an innovative approach to product development based on the close coordination of research and development, production, marketing, and distribution functions. While many of Kershaw’s quality products are made in their 55,000 sq. ft. facility in Tualatin, Oregon, they also draw on Kai’s resources to provide the very best for their customer.

Kershaw says, “If this is your first Kershaw, be prepared. You just may be back for more. If it’s not your first Kershaw, welcome back. We’ve got some cool new blades to show you—along with a wide selection of your favorites. For design, innovation, quality, and genuine pride of ownership, Kershaw is the one.”

Today we will be talking about the Kershaw Natrix spring assisted knife.

The Blade:

The blade on this knife is made out of 8Cr13MoV stainless steel. This is a very popular budget brand of knife steel made in China. In terms of composition, the steel is very similar to the Japanese steel of AUS-8 grade. 8Cr13MoV steel at its low cost demonstrates very worthy characteristics of cutting. The range of the steel hardness is 56-59 HRC. Knives that are made out of this steel keep sharpening well and at the same they are easy to sharpen. This steel is well balanced with regard to strength, cutting, and anti-corrosion properties. This steel is good enough to get the job done, but it is no super steel. The biggest advantage that this steel boasts is well inexpensive it is.

The blade has been finished with a stonewash finish. With this type of finish, the steel has literally been rolled with pebbles and then smoothed out. This creates a darker, rugged, look. Many people like this type of finish because it hides scratches better than other finishes. The biggest advantage to this finish is that it preserves the look of the blade overtime. Stonewash also hides fingerprints pretty well, so the blade might not need to be polished as often as others with different finishes.

The drop point blade shape is the most popular blade shape in the cutlery industry today. This style of blade is versatile, tough, and can take on almost any task that you throw at it. To from this blade shape, the unsharpened edge of the knife runs straight from the handle to the tip of the knife in a slow curved manner, which creates a lowered point. It is this lowered point that provides more control and adds strength to the tip. While the tip on a drop point is not as sharp as the tip on a clip point, it is much stronger. It is because of this tip strength and the ability to hold up to heavy use, drop point blades have become popular on tactical and survival knives. This lowered point also adds an element of control to the blade, which is why this blade shape works really well for fine detail work. Another characteristic that makes it such a versatile blade shape is because of the large belly that it boasts. Bellies are what makes slicing easy, and the majority of your everyday tasks will include some form of slicing. Drop point blades really only have one disadvantage and that is the broad tip. This broad tip will limit your piercing abilities, but you need to remember that it is also what provides you with so much strength. So while it is a drawback, it is not the biggest drawback that a blade style could have.

 

The Handle:

The handle is made out of black G-10. G-10 is a grade of Garolite that is a laminate composite made of fiberglass. It has very similar properties to carbon fiber yet it can be had for almost a fraction of the cost, because it is slightly inferior. The manufacturer takes layers of fiberglass cloth and soaks them in resin, then compresses them and bakes them under pressure. The material that results from that process is very strong, tough, lightweight, and hard. Everyday folding knives benefit from G-10 because it is durable and lightweight, non-porous, and can be easily textured. Unfortunately, because of how hard it is, it is very brittle. If this handle is subjected to a hard or sharp impact, it will probably crack or break. One of the other disadvantages is that it does lack elegance—it is known to look and feel very plastic-y, lacking personality.

The handle has an elongated finger groove, and the portion across on the spine of the handle, curves in ward as well. This will create a comfortable hold on the handle, even if you are using it for long periods of time. There is a finger guar, but when the knife is opened, the flipper turns into an extra-long finger guard to protect your fingers form getting sliced if you slip.

 

The Pocket Clip:

The pocket clips a deep carry clip, which means that it is going to stay more snug in your pocket—even if you are on the move for most of your day. The clip is only eligible for tip up carry, but it is reversible for either left or right handed carry, which makes this knife fully ambidextrous. Most of the hardware on this knife is black, but the pivot point is sliver.

 

The Mechanism:

The Natrix is a spring assisted knife. It features a flipper opening mechanism as well as Kershaw’s SpeedSafe Assisted Opening mechanism. This knife also boasts a sub-frame locking mechanism.

The flipper on this knife is a small and triangular protrusion that extends out of the spine of the handle when the knife is closed. The flipper helps to enable fast and easy one handed opening, while also making it ambidextrous. To open this knife, you hold the knife handle vertically in one hand and place your index finger on the top of the flipper. Then, you gently apply downward pressure on the flipper; the SpeedSafe opens the knife quickly and easily and the blade will easily lock into place. When you are closing this knife, keep your fingers away from the blade edge while closing.

The SpeedSafe was first brought to market by Kershaw. The SpeedSafe is a patented system that assists the user to smoothly open this knife with a pull back on the flipper. The heart of SpeedSafe is its torsion bar. When the knife is closed, the torsion bar helps prevent the knife from being opened by gravity; it creates a bias toward the closed position. To open the knife, the user applies manual pressure to the flipper to overcome the resistance of the torsion bar. This enables the torsion bar to move along a track in the handle and assist you to open the knife. And no, a SpeedSafe knife is not a switchblade. There are many unique features of SpeedSafe knives that make them quite different than knives that are considered switchblades. Unlike a switchblade, SpeedSafe blades DO NOT deploy with the push of a button in the handle or by gravity alone. Instead the user must overcome the torsion bar’s resistance in order to engage the SpeedSafe system. Because of this, SpeedSafe knives fall fully outside the Federal definition of a switchblade.

The Kershaw Sub-Frame Lock is a variation of the traditional frame lock. In this case, a piece of the lighter weight frame is machined out and a piece of steel is riveted into its place. This piece of steel acts just like a standard frame lock. It’s angled inward and biased toward the locked position. When the blade is open, it moves into position behind the blade tang, blocking it open. As with other frame locks, the user moves it to the side and out of the way in order to close the knife. The Sub-Frame Lock is Kershaw patented technology and enables us to make a knife with a slimmer profile, while still providing the strength and security of a frame lock.

The SpeedSafe was specifically designed for sporting, work, or everyday situations where one-handed opening is preferable and safer. It’s safe, efficient opening has made it a popular choice for hunters, fisherman, and those who require the one-hand opening function on the job site. The SpeedSafe mechanism is very safe, because once opened, a locking system that secures the blade in positon so that it does not close accidentally. New SpeedSafe users can ensure safe use of the technology by practicing to proficiency.

 

The Specs:

The blade on this Kershaw knife measures in at 3.25 inches long, with a handle that measures in at 4.25 inches long. When the Natrix is opened, it measures in at an overall length of 7.5 inches. This knife weighs in at 2.9 ounces.

 

Conclusion:

When Kershaw is talking about the Natrix, they say, “Where have I seen that profile before? That’s right. The new Kershaw Natrix is based on brother brand Zero Tolerance’s 0770, which itself was inspired by the award-winning ZT 0777. The design has—apparently—been the envy of certain other knife makers. And now we’re taking it back.

Kershaw’s new Natrix features a drop-point blade of 8Cr13MoV that offers solid performance with good edge-holding and easy resharpening. The stonewashed blade finish looks good and even helps hide use scratches. Accessed with the built-in flipper, SpeedSafe assisted opening makes it easy to open the Natrix one-handed so it’s always ready when you need it. The handle is lightweight G-10, 3D-machined and chamfered to fit comfortably in the hand. An oversized pivot provides an attention-grabbing detail on the front of the knife, while our patented Sub-Frame Lock secures the blade and provides a dramatic, contrasting line on the back. The Kershaw Sub-Frame Lock is covered under US Patent 9,120,234.

The Sub-Frame Lock design also enables us to lighten the weight of the Natrix, so that you get a big, useful blade in a knife that still weighs in at a mere 2.9 ounces. A decorative aluminum back spacer lightens the load even further and adds another embellishment. Finally, a custom-designed deep-carry pocket clip echoes the lines of a special recess machined into the handle to complete this good-looking knife.” Pick up this great everyday carry knife today at BladeOps.