Budget bushcraft brute by Cold Steel

[RandomAyes]

I snagged a CS True Flight thrower a while back. I never did feel up to practicing throws for hours at a time, but I did use it as a comparison knife for some heavy duty bushcraft jobs. To my surprise it has done well. It handles batoning quite well, including some abuse in very sappy & knotty shrub wood, and point-first batoning into seasoned apple. It's hefty enough to do some chopping. I beat the heck out of it and it shows no sign of giving up. The edge is holding up 10 times better than I assumed it would. It takes careful technique to cut thin curls (angle the knife like a skew plane) but it is doable. As you'd expect with a thrower, the point is robust. There is a short 2" swedge but it doesn't really get narrow until the last .5" or so... a good thing IMO because a sharper swedge chews up a baton so quickly.

The True Flight is 5mm thick (almost .200") 1055 carbon, midway saber grind (and a fairly obtuse edge), full profile tang, 12" OAL with a 6" edge, and 9.7 oz. The handle is wrapped with what looks like paracord. I put a ranger band (bike tube) over the cord wrap to add a little thickness and a lot of grip. There are two holes in the tang for securing the cord - these holes could be used to secure micarta scales too, for anyone so inclined.

The stock photo above shows a much higher grind than mine has.

I can't think of another $20 knife that'll work half as well in high-impact chores. If you need a beater knife for the boat or camper, you could do a lot worse than this one.

 

[coaldigger]

Not a big CS fan but I gotta say they do have a few designs that are decent for the money spent ! I keep a CS Roachbelly in the tacklebox & I've got a CS TrailGuide Pocket knife thats a brute & I also have the GI Tanto & have had the Khuk Machete...all were good quality for the money.

 

[HornyToad]

Looks a little like a Landi Bush Shiv only stouter. The Landi is plenty stout and sharp, but costs 3-4 times more.

 

[dogstar]

I agree, this is a great value for a beater. I don't think you can break it unless you take a sledgehammer to it. I wish they sharpened the blade up to the round "guard." I find that is where it is easiest for making feather sticks. Like you said, the grind is good for chopping, but too blunt for carving. I think I will put a finer edge on 2 inches closest to the handle and see how it carves feather sticks. This blade will chop, too, about half as well as a hatchet. Paired with a nice folding saw I think you have a good combo for sub-boreal climates. Thanks for mentioning this great value. It's big brother, the Perfect Balance thrower, is also an interesting value blade.

 

[dogstar]

Here are some images of the mods I did to the True Flight Thrower. I put a more acute bevel on the tip and the last 2" of the blade. It makes nice feathers now. At the point of impact, the factory edge remains for chopping. Squared up the spine to throw sparks and re-did the handle for more oval cross section.