Yo Mama
Gold Member
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2011
- Messages
- 6,214
First, a HUGE thanks to RedLynx for his gaw of the Cold Steel Kudu. I asked for one, and he sent me 3! After using these a bunch already, I'm amazed at the quality for such a cheap blade where they are going for about 10 bucks. I'm usually against China made blades, and these were my first experience with Cold Steel.
First thing I noticed, what a big knife! They carry great in a jeans pocket because they are so lite. I can't imagine having the Elan, the bigger brother the the Kudu. Using the Kudu I cut a lot of paper, cardboard, foam boxes, and stabbed a few pieces of wood. The edge held for a while, but the surgical steel did fade. I had a hard time figuring out how to get the blade sharp with the sharpmaker, it liked between 15-20 degrees so I freehanded it and got it shaving sharp again. I'm guessing right at 17 degrees each side did the trick. Rinse and repeat!
I immediately took 2 of the rings off, and replaced with gutted paracord. It makes it quieter and easier to use.
You can see the bottom one has been used the most!
The lock up is great, using the ring lock you won't accidently close this one. It takes getting used to because of the strength, but using two hands is kinda a must to close safely. The Buck Marksman (using their Strong Lock) is the only other knife that I have that is similar, different action in opening and closing, but same lock type.
Compared to the Marksman:
The ratcheting sound is also cool, definitely helps having it when closing the knife. The tang is utilized for this:
Thanks again Redlynx, I didn't think I'd like these so much. I plan on using the snot out of them, and if anyone comes along asking about what the best 10 dollar knife is I'd recommend these as a great choice.
First thing I noticed, what a big knife! They carry great in a jeans pocket because they are so lite. I can't imagine having the Elan, the bigger brother the the Kudu. Using the Kudu I cut a lot of paper, cardboard, foam boxes, and stabbed a few pieces of wood. The edge held for a while, but the surgical steel did fade. I had a hard time figuring out how to get the blade sharp with the sharpmaker, it liked between 15-20 degrees so I freehanded it and got it shaving sharp again. I'm guessing right at 17 degrees each side did the trick. Rinse and repeat!
I immediately took 2 of the rings off, and replaced with gutted paracord. It makes it quieter and easier to use.
You can see the bottom one has been used the most!
The lock up is great, using the ring lock you won't accidently close this one. It takes getting used to because of the strength, but using two hands is kinda a must to close safely. The Buck Marksman (using their Strong Lock) is the only other knife that I have that is similar, different action in opening and closing, but same lock type.
Compared to the Marksman:
The ratcheting sound is also cool, definitely helps having it when closing the knife. The tang is utilized for this:
Thanks again Redlynx, I didn't think I'd like these so much. I plan on using the snot out of them, and if anyone comes along asking about what the best 10 dollar knife is I'd recommend these as a great choice.