- Kershaw Cryo · Drop Point2.75″ blade · 0.118″ spine · 4.2 oz · ~1.03″ tall
Kershaw Cryo
The Kershaw Cryo is a 2.75" drop point folder in 8Cr13MoV, hollow ground. The handle is Stainless, secured by a frame lock. At 4.2 oz it sits 48th-lightest of the 61 EDC folders here, where the median is 3.2 oz.
- Blade
- 2.75″
- Weight
- 4.2 oz
- Steel
- 8Cr13MoV
- Price band
- Mid
Everyday carry in pocket-knife-restricted areas
We don’t have a verified retailer link for this knife yet. We only link products we have confirmed resolve to the right item — here’s why.
Specifications
Manufacturer-published figures, cross-checked against knifecenter, knifeworks.
- Blade length
- 2.75″
- Spine thickness
- 0.118″
- Blade shape
- Drop Point
- Grind
- Hollow
- Steel
- 8Cr13MoV
- Overall length
- 6.5″
- Closed length
- 3.75″
- Weight
- 4.2 oz
- Lock
- Frame Lock
- Deployment
- Assisted
- Handle material
- Stainless
- Country of origin
- China
Why a drop point
The default hunting and EDC shape, and the safest general answer. The spine curves down to the tip in a convex line, which keeps the point low and strong and leaves plenty of belly for skinning. It is hard to make a drop point bad at anything.
Every drop point here →About 8Cr13MoV
The Chinese value workhorse, roughly comparable to AUS-8. Fine on a $30 knife, unremarkable anywhere else.
1-5 is a relative ranking drawn from published composition and hardness, not a lab measurement. Higher is better on every axis, and no steel is a 5 across the board — edge retention and toughness pull against each other. All 8Cr13MoV knives
What owners say
Drawn from 87 owner discussions of the Kershaw Cryo since 2024. The opinions are theirs. The specifications above come from the maker.
What owners like
- Lasts for years of pocket carry: one owner's Cryo is over 15 years old with quite a patina from pocket carry, another has carried a black one for close to ten years and sharpened the blade visibly smaller, and a third says the one they bought at a Walmart in 2012, while working for the forest service, has been an awesome carry since
- The assisted flipper fires reliably: one owner disappointed by a lazy Vosteed Raccoon says the Cryo they came from always snapped open immediately, and another who later switched to a Civivi Elementum says the action was always smooth
- Feels overbuilt: one owner calls theirs heavy, tank-like, well made and super reliable, and another calls it a great sturdy knife they still carry
- A proven work knife: about ten years ago one owner's coworkers asked for a cheap knife that was easy to sharpen and held an edge, and liked the Cryo so much they had to order 25 more; a skilled tradesman used theirs daily until losing it, and another preferred it to the CRKT Pilar that replaced it
- The knife that starts collections: three owners name the Cryo as the one that pulled them into knives, and one who carried it first on a friend's suggestion singles out its deep pocket clip and action
What owners flag
- Heavy for its size: one owner hated carrying it because of the weight and moved to a lightweight Benchmade, and another calls it heavy for what it is
- Short in the hand: one owner found it too short and moved to the larger Cryo II, and another never liked how small it was and rarely used it
- Hard to get truly sharp in 8Cr13MoV for some: one owner has never got it very sharp, and another says they would love it if they could work out how to sharpen it
- Edge retention: one owner who lost their 1555BW liked the knife but wants better edge retention from the replacement
- Possible QC slip: one 2025 buyer's Cryo from a dealer felt awful, and on disassembly the spring bar had a burr grinding metal off the inside of the frame; it also came duller than they expected, and they asked whether it was even genuine
- Hard to reassemble cleanly: one owner who took an old Cryo apart ended up with a small gap at the frame lock and some up-and-down blade play
- Getting harder to find: one owner saw the Cryo II and the blackwash versions listed as discontinued on Kershaw's store in 2024 with only a few original Cryos left, and two later owners describe the 1555BW as no longer available
Fifteen years of patina, a blade sharpened noticeably smaller over ten years, a 2012 Walmart purchase that has been an awesome carry ever since: the Cryo's owners measure it in years. The 2.75-inch 8Cr13MoV blade in an all-steel frame lock body is carried as a cheap work knife by a skilled tradesman and by one crew of coworkers, and three owners name it as the knife that got them into knives or into daily carry.
Weight and size split opinion. At 4.2 oz the steel frame is what makes one owner call it a tank and another call it heavy for what it is, and two owners found it too small in the hand. Two owners praise the assisted action, one saying it always snapped open immediately. Sharpening the 8Cr13MoV divides people: one owner ordered 25 for coworkers who wanted a knife that was easy to sharpen, while two others struggle to get a good edge on it, and one 2025 buyer found a burr on the spring bar grinding inside the frame.
Owners who outgrew it moved to a Cryo II for a bigger handle, a Civivi Elementum, a Spyderco Delica 4, a Kershaw Mini Iridium or a lightweight Benchmade. Those who stayed describe it as sturdy and reliable, and one owner saw the blackwash versions and the Cryo II listed as discontinued in 2024, with few original Cryos left.
Should I get the Cryo or the Cryo II?
For two owners, size decided it. One found the Cryo too short in the hand and the Cryo II a good fit, and another who never liked how small the Cryo was bought a Cryo II after learning it is the same design made bigger.
Is the Kershaw Cryo discontinued?
One owner saw in 2024 that the Cryo II and the blackwash versions were discontinued on Kershaw's store, with only a few original Cryos left. One later owner describes the 1555BW as discontinued, while the 1555TI version was still being shopped for in 2025.
Is the 8Cr13MoV blade easy to sharpen?
Reports differ. One owner chose it for a crew of coworkers because it was easy to sharpen, and another has resharpened theirs so often over ten years that the blade is visibly smaller. Two other owners say they have never managed to get it very sharp.
Is the Cryo too heavy to carry?
It depends on taste. One owner hated it because of the weight and switched to a lightweight Benchmade, and another calls it heavy for its size. Others like the heft: one says it feels like a tank.
What do owners move to after the Cryo?
Owners have gone to a Civivi Elementum, a Spyderco Delica 4 for less weight, a Kershaw Mini Iridium and the bigger Cryo II. One worker whose foreman lost their Cryo bought a CRKT Pilar and says it never felt the same.
Features
- Assisted opening
- Frame Lock
- Hollow grind
- Made in China
- Stainless blade
