Cold Steel Leatherneck Bowie

[DangerZone98]

I stumbled across one of these locally at a gun and knife shop. To be honest, I never heard about or cared that there was an LT version. I just remembered seeing several CS knives under the glass when I bought a knife from them a couple of months ago. I had some cash in my pocket and I remembered seeing the the Leatherneck bowie at the front of the case, and I was close by so I stopped in to check it out. When I got there, I noticed that the blade was facing with the sticker down and that it had a green handle. The guy behind the register was helping a customer, so I just googled "Cold Steel Leatherneck Bowie Green Handle" and up popped the Big River site and the price of $179 or so and that it was the LT version. I didn't care. I buy everything I can locally if it is available, and this place always seems to be in line with the price where they might be a few bucks higher. No biggie.

The guy behind the counter wraps up his chat and I ask the price of the knife as the sticker side is down.
He pulls it out and says, "looks like it's $78.95"
I say, "178.95? That's cool. I'll take it. That's a better than fair deal."
"No, it says 78.95."
"Dude, that can't be right. I know y'all don't sell knock offs."
He scans it with his register, "My system says 'Cold Steel Leatherneck' $78.95, so that's what it is."
"You might wanna let your boss know, that's like 100 bucks off what this is showing for online."
He clicky-clicks to check google. "Yeah, I'm seeing it come up about double...I dunno. Maybe he got a deal at a show or something, but it rings up $78 bucks."
I shrug and pay the asking price. I was willing to pay the $178 or so. I think when they were entering what the price should be, someone missed typing a "1" or that it was supposed to be for the regular size Leatherneck. I kinda feel bad. However, I informed the guy at the front that it was undervalued and he just rang it up as it was...then I remember the SEVERAL times that I have purchased a gun from that store, sold said gun back to that store in near LNIB condition, was hosed and told that they were going to have to sell it pretty cheap and sit on it for awhile, and then saw it sitting under the glass with a price $50 under what I paid for it only to see it gone in a week or two meaning they made their margins on that gun TWICE. I know business is business, but I also know that when the Universe decides to throw you a Karma bone, you take it

Now for the knife itself. Pretty dang solid. The blade is sharp and the edges ground even. The guard seems tight, but the buttcap has a slight wobble. It doesn't really bother me any. My 25 year old Kabar has had a bit of wiggle to the the cap since I bought it back in high school and it's totally fine. The grip I am mixed on. I would have much rather had a harder plastic grip like you find on a Kabar, and the LKB does feel a bit like a bicycle handle. Time will tell if that is going to matter in use or durability. That said, the blade itself is wonderful. The pin on the buttcap is recessed so if it walks, its going to be a bit before it impacts how it fits on the knife. Part of me wants to just dab a bit high strength epoxy in there to keep it in place. Part of me envisions taking the handle off and finding a nice piece of antler or stag at some point and making it into a pretty formidable looking bowie knife. The sheath is well done. I'm not sure if I will experience any dulling, but it seems to be doing OK. Well formed with a nice audible click and little to no rattle. It feels about on par with the one that came with my Marauder bowie, and it hasn't managed to dull any of the serrations.

For the briefest of moments I was torn if I should use the knife or not. It's supposedly limited edition and "signed" by LT, but do I really care? Could it go up in value? Well it already has. I got it for a hundred bucks off Whether it is of any extra value because of a green handle and a laser etched signature once LT (hopefully many, many moons from now) shuffles off to chop pig carcasses with the angels is anyone's guess. I've never bought a knife and not intended to use it or carry it. Nothing I own that is sharp and pointy is for investment. The LKB is a solid knife that feels very much like an old school CS throwback. It's robust, sharp, well thought out in design, and...ridiculous.

Here's a size comparison between some fixed blades I had laying around my office at work. A well carried and used Gerber Mkii, a CS Hand and a Half Dagger that was supposed to go on the wall next to a Claymore about 3 years ago, and the new LKB serial number 2030.

You’re a man of better character than me, mister. If I saw that being sold for 78 bucks, I would’ve bought it and ran. No further clarifications.

Dunno about practically, but that’s a beautiful blade. Practically a mini Kriegsmesser riding on your belt. I love that they didn’t ruin it with serrations.