Cold Steel Laredo Carbon V!

[Hombre]

Is it a big difference between a Cold Steel Laredo carbon V made in U.S.A and the newly made ones in Taiwan, China or what ever the are made now?

Any opinions at all should be very much appreciated!

Best,
Stefan
Sweden

 

[jdk1]

I can't address that specifically, but can say I've been amazed with the quality of my older black blade "made in China" Gurkha Kukri. The SK5 is outstanding in every way. Hope that helps.

 

[Mike Sastre]

Carbon V has it's own well deserved mystique, and i've used Cold Steel just about since the company started making knives, so am well acquainted with Carbon V. Long story short (told it many times), when Carbon V was no longer available and the switch was made to SK-5, I did some testing of my own ('cause I'm a Bowie guy) and found that the Japanese SK-5 Bowies put together in China performed so close to Carbon V, that I coined the term "China Dolls" for them. Given a choice, I'll take the Carbon V, but there is only a very small difference in edge holding and susceptibility to rust between the two, and all carbon steel knives need to be maintained and cared for to prevent rust. Gun oil, mineral oil, forced patina, or car wax all work fairly well. Switching to 01 is an interesting upgrade that I have not tested, but have complete confidence in Cold Steel's commitment to quality after years of using their products. Just got some of the new 01s in, so they are shipping now.