Cold Steel Laredo blade steel?

D

das2

Joined
Feb 3, 2009
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New to the forum. Have a question about a CS Laredo I picked up a year or so ago. The blade is marked "Made in China", no other markings. Haven't gotten a response yet from CS about which steel may actually be in this blade. Anybody out there know? Thanks.
 
Welcome!! The Laredo Bowie from China is made in SK-5 steel, a carbon steel comparable to 1085 IIRC.
 
As mentioned above, the present (although now discontinued) version of Cold Steel's Laredo Bowie is made of SK5. It is quite a solid knife, although it is not of full tang construction. The SK5 is certainly not a bad steel, and I would unfailingly recommend it. It is an impressively large knife.

:thumbup:
 
If you do a search, you'll find many positive responses with regard to hard use. Considering that it's designed as a "fighter" (the trailmaster is CS's flagship hard-use bowie), it has stood up very well to chopping.

If you do a youtube search on the laredo, you'll find that it has impressive chopping ability.

To top it off, it moves EXTREMELY well as a "fighter", as it flows smoothly during backcut flows.

Very impressed with its durability, design, balance, and affordability.
 
As far as production Bowies go, I think the Cold Steel Laredo is the best all around use Bowie on the market. I've tested it as a utility Bowie as well as putting it through it's paces as a fighting Bowie. Bill Bagwell had the same conclusion with the Carbon V version in his "Battle Blades" column in SOF a long time ago (pre 9/11). Some, but not a whole lot, difference between the Carbon V and the SK-5.
 
Pretty sure Bagwell was speaking of the Trailmaster (just read the book that's a collection of his SOF articles), but I've been wrong several times today.
 
Nope, the Laredo. Still have the article somewhere plus Bill and I discussed it. Article has pictures of him splitting a 2x12 endwise in one cleaving cut with the Laredo. One of the last issues before 9/11.
 
The laredo in sk-5 rocks. Don't like the way the leather sheath scratched the polished blade after a half dozen sheathings but you can't have everything for the low price point.
 
Mike is right, Bagwell did test the Laredo in Carbon V.
It was during the short revival of the Battle Blades column in SOF.

One of the few factory Bowies that he has given high marks to if memory serves.

I need to dig up that issue.

Ten
 
Thank you to everybody who pitched in with answers. When CS did get back to me with an answer- they said it was SK5, too. Thanks again-
 
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