Pros: Ease of Opening, Blade Material
Cons: Sheath, Handle Feel
For years, this has been my EDC
While the Select Fire isn't perfect in design or execution, this knife/tool has been my EDC for the last couple of years because it's closer to what I actually need than any other multifunction knife I've ever owned. What I especially like about it is the fact it has holders for up to four bits -- which don't necessarily need to be the ones which came with the knife itself. I've even used the hex-bit holder a few times when it happened to be just the right size for a nut I was trying to drive. The blade is pretty good quality, and I've broken in mine enough so that a push on the thumb stud and a flick of the wrist is enough to open it fully and engage the liner-lock -- entirely one handed. When the bit-driver is opened, the place where it sits is also a bottle-opener, which is handy, too. An early iteration of this knife had serrations at the base of the blade, which I'm kind of sorry they removed. On the other hand, that earlier version -- one of which I do own but don't use much -- doesn't open as smoothly because its liner appears to be aluminum metal (vs nylon plastic) and it's noticeably heavier. My main complaints about this knife, such as they are, is the bits will likely rust for most folks who carry it around a lot and the holders are somewhat problematic. Supposedly Kershaw has been working on an updated version of this knife, the 1925 Payload which has integrated non-hinged holders in the handle itself, but despite being announced as coming in 2016, I'm not seeing any sign of it being released anytime soon. So the Select Fire one will remain my EDC for the foreseeable future. I use it for cutting open boxes, cutting ropes, just about anything a pocket knife is good for. Once when I was traveling, I even used it to cut slices of cheese. I've used the large flat screw bit in the bit driver for prying stuff open, including the really sticky and finger-pinching metal levers for changing our furnace filter, and of course the other bits for actual screws -- including working on computer PCs, where the extended reach of the bit-driver helps a lot to get inside cases. The blade steel itself is pretty decent and seems to hold an edge rather well. Downsides? A sheath might help, but then it might interfere with my commonly one-handed use. Like I said, I'm not crazy about the spring-loaded flip-out bit holders. And the handle itself is only barely ergonomic and not the kind of knife I'd want to have to use for hours on end. Put simply, in the absence of finding a better knife/tool someday or the release of the Kershaw Payload, if I lost the knife I carry now, I'd buy another almost immediately.