Kershaw Iridium Review: A Solid EDC Knife at an Affordable Price

The Kershaw Iridium offers a great balance of design, functionality, and affordability. With its smooth DuraLock mechanism, D2 blade, and sleek aluminum handle, it’s a standout in the budget EDC knife category. Let’s take a closer look at what makes this knife a solid choice for everyday carry.

In This Article

1. Knife Overview
   • Specs
   • Pros & Cons
   • Blade HQ Score: 81/100
2. Knife Character
   • Cool Factor
   • Origin Story
3. Price & Quality
   • Affordability
   • Fit & Finish
   • Ease of Operation
4. Blade & Handle
   • Blade Steel
   • Blade Shape
   • Handle Ergonomics
   • Handle Material
   • Carry
5. Compare & Contrast
6. Conclusion
7. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Knife Overview

Kershaw Iridium Specs

Blade HQ Score: 81/100

The Kershaw Iridium is a well-built folder that can squeeze into just about any cutting role you need, and it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. Its materials and build quality are all respectable. At around $70, it does have some cheaper crossbar lock competition out there, but it’s a solid knife nonetheless. All in all, I could carry the Iridium forever and be happy, but there are definitely better knives out there if you’re willing to spend a bit more. 

Knife Character

Cool Factor: 8/10 

Since I first saw it, I’ve thought the Iridium was a bit of a looker. Its design looks cutting-edge and strikes a good balance of unique and familiar. But with that said, it’s been so popular for the last two years that, if you get one, you won’t be the only one with an Iridium. But it’s still pretty cool! 

Origin Story: 10/10

The Iridium is from batch one of Kershaw DuraLock knives, and was easily the most popular. The DuraLock is Kershaw’s take on the crossbar lock, and I love the direction they took it. Instead of following the crowd and making super high-end knives to follow the tradition of crossbar lock knives, they did what Kershaw does best – make it really good, and really affordable. As you can imagine, it took the knife world by storm and is here to stay. I’d go so far as saying that no knife in the last five years has had that kind of effect on the entire industry.

Price & Quality

Affordability: 8/10 

At the time of writing, you can get a Kershaw Iridium for $64.95. When I started at Blade HQ five years ago, you could only dream of getting a crossbar lock knife for that price. And while the Iridium is a great price, it’s not without competition. Several other knives, like the CJRB Hectare and the QSP Canary, offer similar features for a fair bit less money. The Iridium does have a solid metal handle, but I have a hard time seeing $20 more value in it. It’s much cheaper than most crossbar lock knives, but maybe not quite the best deal in the space for a crossbar lock. 

Fit & Finish: 7/10 

The Iridium has good enough build quality to get the job done. Personally, mine had some blade play and a teensy bit of lock rock, but nothing to worry about. The spacer sits flush, the screws are nicely recessed, there are no sharp corners, and the knife feels solid. For its price, the Iridium has a respectable fit and finish, but it’s not quite in the league of many higher-priced competitors. Standard stuff. 

Ease of Operation: 10/10 

The Iridium has a nice, smooth action, and I frequently found myself fidgeting with it. The whole knife can be operated with one hand, and the way its handle and thumb stud are laid out makes it easy and comfortable. The big winning feature, in my opinion, is the ball bearing pivot; it makes the knife almost frictionless during operation. 

Blade & Handle

Blade Steel: 5/10 

The Iridium uses D2 tool steel for its blade. D2 has been the go-to blade steel for budget knives for the last decade or so. It offers great edge retention but is not a true stainless steel—if you’re not careful, D2 can rust on you. 

I’ve only ever had D2 rust on me in the pivot of knives with bearings. Bearings don’t repel water as well as washers. And keep in mind, the Iridium has bearings. 

I know it’s a weird nitpick, but in my perfect world, bearings should only be used with true stainless blade steels. I would have preferred to see the Iridium use 14C28N or N690, which offer greater stainlessness. But the D2 is fine if you keep it clean and oiled.  

It wouldn’t be fair to give D2 a higher ranking than the 5 I gave it when I also have to review knives with S90V, MagnaCut, and 3V blades. They’re a world apart in performance—and price. 

If you’d like to learn more about D2 compares to other blade steels, check out our Knife Steel Guide, and use our nifty Comparing Steels tool to see how things stack up! 

Blade Shape: 10/10 

I think the blade shape is my favorite part of the Iridium. The tip is indexed perfectly down the handle, so piercing is easy and intuitive, and the broad blade slices like a dream. I especially enjoyed the large swedge near the spine, which lightens up the tip and looks super cool. Top marks on the blade shape! 

Handle Ergonomics: 7/10 

Because it adopted a bit of a post-modern angular vibe, the Iridium’s handle design has a few harder corners, but not terribly sharp. Because they’re chamfered, they’re not a dealbreaker. But when I attempted to carve a pile of feather sticks, I found myself wishing for a bit more rounding and a shallower finger groove. It wasn’t giving me blisters or anything, but it was something I noticed. So, keep that in mind. 

Handle Material: 6/10 

The aluminum handle on the Iridium is well-made and finished nicely, but I could have used a little more texture. The smooth finish glides in and out of the pocket with ease, but it’s a bit hard to grab on to when the knife gets wet. It’s also quite a bit heavier than laminates. I kind of wish they had opted for G-10 or Micarta, as they have a bit more texture by their nature, but the aluminum is fine. Lucky for me, Blade HQ has an exclusive Iridium with micarta scales. If I were to buy another one, it will be that one.  

Carry: 10/10 

The Iridium is one of the easiest carrying knives I’ve ever used. Its handle design makes it fill out the hand just right, but it’s small and slim enough to vanish into your pocket. The pocket clip is short and wide, making it ride securely in the pocket.  

If you pull your knife in and out of your pocket a lot, the smooth handle will make sure the clip doesn’t chew up your pants. And for you lefties out there, it’s got a reversible clip, and the lock and opener are both ambidextrous! 

Compare & Contrast

The Iridium is outfitted in such a way that it draws comparison from both above and below its price point. Its design and mechanism remind the hand of the more expensive Benchmade Bugout, although it’s not a perfect comparison. The Iridium is a bit larger, and thanks to its full-metal construction, it’s noticeably heavier. The Bugout also benefits from a CPM S30V blade which provides a lot more edge retention. 

On the less expensive side, the Iridium and the Ontario RAT-1 have a lot in common. They both rely on a simple design for versatile utility and have D2 blade steel to keep an edge for longer. The RAT-1 is just a hair larger, and it trades the full metal handle for an textured FRN handle over steel liners. But the biggest difference, and the reason I prefer the Iridium, is the lock. The DuraLock on the Iridium is much stronger and easier to operate than the liner lock on the RAT-1. 

But with all of that said, the Iridium might be the most versatile of the knives mentioned here. It’s big enough for some hard work, small enough for EDC, and its design works for just about anything.  

If you’re looking for more great budget knife options, look no further than our Very Best Budget Pocket Knives article! 

Conclusion

The Kershaw Iridium is a great knife. Its simple design lends itself to just about anything. I could see someone using it as a self-defense knife, a hunting knife, a simple EDC knife, and everything in between. And while it may not be the cheapest crossbar lock knife out there, it certainly delivers an excellent value. 

My only caveat is that this knife does need a bit of TLC to stay in perfect running order. Its blade is not truly stainless, so you’ll want to keep it clean, dry, and oiled as often as possible. But if you take good care of your Iridium, it will serve you well for life! 

Is the Iridium for you? Get your own from Blade HQ today! 

Want to see more great knives from Kershaw? Check out our Best Kershaw Knives article to learn more! 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Where is the Kershaw Iridium made?

The Kershaw Iridium is currently manufactured in China, but its design, prototyping, and quality control takes place in the United States.

2. Are there any common issues with the Kershaw Iridium?

The Iridium has been out for about two years now, there have been no known recalls or common issues with it. Kershaw has a reputation for making knives that have all the kinks ironed out upon release, and the Iridium is no exception. It’s great.

3. Is the Kershaw Iridium left-hand friendly?

Yes. The DuraLock, like other crossbar-style locks, is fully ambidextrous, and the Iridium’s pocket clip is reversible too. If you’re a lefty, you can’t go wrong with the Iridium.

4. Is the Kershaw Iridium hard to maintain?

The Iridium can be maintained at home with simple tools, but it will take some skill. Crossbar locks, like the DuraLock on the Iridium, are a bit tricky to work on. There are little springs that need to be placed in the proper channels, and the entire knife needs to be assembled in the proper order. But aside from that lock, everything else about the Iridium is standard knife fare and will be easy to disassemble, clean, tune, and assemble properly.