🔪 Old Cold Steel Voyagers

S

Stargater

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Jan 1, 2015
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I was looking at eBay just now to see how much a Cold Steel Voyager XX2 would set me back. I was horrified to see one was for $480 and another was $400. And there were no Cold Steel Vaquero Grandes at all. Are the prices for the XX2 optimistic or are they what they're going for?

I've hoped CS would reissue the Vaquero Grande, but the present Vaqueros are bulkier, most likely due to the tri-ad locks. At first, I was happy with the tri-ad locks, but now I'd just rather have the old Voyagers back, but with the AUS10 (or better) blade steel.


Cold Steel Voyager (top) and Vaquero Grande

Does anyone besides me miss the old Voyagers? Used Vaquero Grande knives don't seem to be available anywhere at any price. I've got one somewhere; I just need to find it. I used to carry it to work, but now that I'm retired, I'm retired, and it's in a box somewhere.


The Old 4-Inch Pro-Lite w/440A Steel
 
Mitchell Knives said:
I really liked the handles on the old Voyagers. The new handles are fine, but the old design was a bit less bulky.

A Triad lock version of the old handle with steel liners would be nice.
Click to expand...
Word for word, exactly what he said.

This one is a Large Voyager Lockback with VG-1 blade steel.
Bmntkpv.jpg
 
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Years ago I bought a Cold Steel Night Force knife. It came with the sharpest blade of any knife I've ever bought, before or since. In fact, two people on a local forum left posts saying they accidently cut themselves within ten minutes of opening theirs.

I called Cold Steel on another matter, and during my conversation, I said I really enjoyed my Night Force and Pro-Lite knives. At that, the guy I was talking to turned up his proverbial nose. Apparently, CS bought a huge slab of 440A steel, and they used it to make the Night Force and Pro-Lite knives in both plain edge and serrated. And the latter wasn't the regular serrated pattern, but a more rugged design. It was toothier and much less apt to lose teeth in vigorous cutting.





The fellow I was speaking to clearly did not agree with Thompson's decision to buy the 440A stock, and the sooner they ran out of it, the better! Now I'd bought a few 440A knives from other companies, and they soon found their way into my junk box. I just couldn't get them sharp, no matter how I tried. The heat treat on them was dreadful. But CS has always paid a lot of attention to heat treat and my Night Force plain edge was one I used a lot. And about every two weeks I'd renew the edge with my Sharpmaker. I still have my serrated Night Force and have never sharpened it.



I agree with what many have said about the old Voyagers, only I wouldn't like the steel inserts. They add to the cost and weight, but they don't add much needed strength to the design. (I can't begin to break them!) But the present Voyagers not only are too bulky, I detest the stonewashed finish. My Vaquero Grande has vertical lines running through the blade, and I've never understood why, but it doesn't matter. I've seen many cheap knives that are polished, so I don't see why Voyagers can't have polished blades instead of the muddy finishes now being offered.


The Cold Steel OSS has a beautiful polished blade. Why can't Voyagers?
 
I used to have the old vaquero and I occasionally checked the new version but was put off by the handle. It looks out of place and not as ”elegant” as the old one.
I don’t really see why they could not do the old model with triad lock though.
 
What a cool knife!

For a loooong time my grail knife was a Cold Steel Voyager, non-serrated, from Japan. Paid very little for it, no box but unused condition. When I tried to sell it some years later, I could hardly give it away on the Exchange. My how times have changed.
 
The old ones have classic lines, particularly the XL and the Vaquero. They're essentially folding hunter clasp knives done in modern materials. The newer ones are far less elegant, but fall into Thompson's vision of making them folding fighting knives with the extra finger grooves for choking down on the handle, etc.... I wish they kept the old style around, but such is life.

One interesting thing that could've happened but didn't, would be a lengthening of the "Broken Skull" series of a few years back. A Vaquero blade or an XL flat ground clip in those frames would've been awesome.
 
I have a Vaquero Grande, circa early 2000s. I have not noticed that there are not many around.
 
I miss the Grande line. I was never able to afford one when they were available. While I am a huge fan of the Triad, the old Voyager models look a lot better.

Im hoping the XL Recon 1 sort of fills the void when they are released.
 
I have an older model Voyager that had a plastic clip. The clip broke within a week. I sanded it down, but it was too big to carry in the pocket. I called Cold Steel to inquire about getting a metal clip put on, but it was cost prohibitive. I still have it somewhere, but don't carry or use it.
 
The closest thing to the old Large Voyager that Cold Steel has in the current lineup is the Air Lite. Little shorter blade, thinner, G10 instead of FRN, and Triad lock instead of Lockback. Been carrying mine a lot.
rgpCx3l.jpg
 
The Voyagers are still one of the unsung heroes of the CS line up, but it’s true the old handles are much more svelte than the new ones. I carry a newer large Voyager on occasion and it gets the job done, just not much to look at. Well, the handle anyway, the blade has a nice profile. I must admit it does actually feel OK in-hand, so I guess that’s what matters most.

Old 5” Voyager next to my current edc.
 
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