Kershaw’s Injection 3820 is a small frame knife that comes with an incredibly sane price-tag of around 10 dollars. It contains a three-inch, bead blasted, 8Cr13MoV stainless steel blade that comes with a straight flat grind and razor-sharp scandi edge out of the box. It is the perfect length for an everyday carry folding knife in most states, but more importantly it comes in at such an affordable price, I’m not afraid to use and abuse the little blade. It is in my experience, the more I spend on a tool, the less likely I am to carry or really put it to use for fear of damaging or losing it and being out a particularly expensive item.
8Cr13MoV is great steel for the money, it sharpens easily and maintains its edge for a reasonable amount of time. The actual blade has refined design with sleek angles, both suitable for stabs or slashes. The body of the frame is stainless steel as well and is flanked by 3-D machined G10 scales with slots cut into their sides for added grip in wet conditions. The liner lock is fitted great and it matches up to the blade extremely closely for solid retention during use. The liner lock also has a small bead bearing that lets the blade fold open with ease against its ever-present pressure. The stainless steel pocket clip is fully ambidextrous and is supported by two hex screws that keep it securely in place during carry. The frame is held together by two pillars and a polymer spacer to negate flex on the panels. The pillar screws are held in retention via the G10 scales so having them back out is not possible unless the scales do first.
The Kershaw’s blade stud, the knob on the side for opening a knife with your thumb, is large and clean-looking. I was able to work the blade fairly easily with a push of the thumb and snap of the wrist straight out of the box. This is where the price-tag starts to show in the knife though. While the liner lock does have a small bearing, the blade itself is flanked by two washers where it rotates as opposed to the dual washers found on high-end folding knives. This however does not bother me because it is still fully functional and the blade retention screw/pin is sturdy with an appealing exterior at the ends.
All in all, the Kershaw Injection 3820 is a great value for the cost. It fits well in the hand in either reverse or forward grips and I would feel more than comfortable with it should I be forced into a self-defense scenario and had to employ it. But realistically speaking, it will be used for opening packaging and other small miscellaneous tasks on the regular but it will perform just as well in that regard. If you need a small quality knife or can’t afford some of the more expensive options, look no further because the Injection 3820 can probably suit your needs just fine.
*Originally published on SOFREP and written by
