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Pros: Blade Material, Blade Sharpness, Ease of Opening, Handle Feel, Handle Material, Lock Ease of Use, Lock Type, Overall Quality, Pocket Clip, Weight
Cons: None
Great EDC Auto
On paper this looked like a solid, reasonably sized auto for everyday carry. I’ve had good experiences with Kershaw in the past, so I was willing to give it a try. WOW- I am not disappointed. The design, build and quality of materials punch far above the KnifeCenter asking price. The knife arrived well packaged in 2 days time. The blade was sharp and centered in a well designed handle. The release/lock button is accessible, yet not easily triggered. Since receiving it I’ve been pleased, really very pleased, with how well it performs prepping food, opening packages and doing basic maintenance. It fits my hand well and all but disappears clipped to my pocket. I spent a fair amount of time deciding whether to buy the Launch 18 or 2-3 similar size automatics from other manufacturers with good reputations. I was willing to pay twice as much to get an EDC auto that would work for me. I prefer to buy US made products, but would have gone another direction for better quality. In the end I chose the Launch 18 because of good experiences with Kershaw. Finding a knife of this quality for this price seems too good to be true - it isn’t. If I was going to find issue with anything, I the handle is a bit small (3 1/2 finger grip) for my medium large hands. Though, I knew the specs beforehand, (thank you KnifeCenter) and was more the satisfied with the balance between carry ability and ergonomics.