Cold steel "master hunter" question.

Troutfisher, it's 1 3/8". Happened to have one sitting right in front of me. ;) Just curious, may I ask why you want to know? This is one of my favorite knives.
 
The master hunter is a nice looking blade. I have always wanted to try one out. the blade shape, width, thickness, looks like it would cut superbly.
what is you experience with this blades cutting performance coldwood? also does yours have a nice patina to it?
 
It is a superb cutting blade. I'm on my second one, lost my first, which I had for 8 years, last year on a cross country road trip. I liked it enough to buy another.

My blade is Carbon-V steel, but they also have it in SanMai stainless, which you probably know; 3/16 at the guard with a distal taper to the point; flat grind. My old one was taking on patina colors, which I personally like, because I used it for everything, cutting food in the kitchen and cutting green wood outdoors. My new one is still shiny. Never saw any evidence of rust on my old one and I never oiled it, just washed it and wiped it clean.

I also really like the handle, it's well shaped and it's long enough for a large hand. I particularly like the Kraton handle material, it's comfortable and it lives up to it's promise of being slip-proof even when wet.

The sheath it comes with is good, it's almost like Kydex, with a substantial nylon web belt loop and handle snap.

I would definitely recommend it. You can get them cheaper shopping around on the internet, $60 or less, than you can buying directly from Cold Steel which is $90 right now. I got mine from the Knife Center, they currently list it at $59.
 
I agree with ColdWood, the CS MH is a great knife. Even greater when you consider I got mine (CarbonV blade) for $45 new off Ebay. I hand-rubbed the logo's off the blade just because I think they're ugly. Other than that, no mods necessary.

The blade was not as sharp as I'd like, out-of-the-box. That's sad, but common, and easily remedied with a few minute's time and a decent stone. It does stay sharp and when it does go dull, it does so gradually... not like the edge suddenly just chips out or folds over on itself. Easily touched up with an Arkansas stone.

I'm not a big fan of rubber handles, but after using this one for awhile, I've decided it's staying on there. The handle is comfy and never feels like it's going to slip out of my grip. Whether splitting kindling or idly whittling for a couple hours, my hand didn't get cramped, and it "tells" you right where the edge is in relation to your hand.

I have yet to shake the blade loose from its Kydex/Concealex (?) sheath. (I mean without the snap-strap that goes around the handle.) Using the tie-down grommets, I zip-stripped a small nylon pouch to the front of the sheath for a small diamond stone. I'm thinking of putting a bigger pouch on there for a container of matches, compass, a few band-aids etc. My only bitch is that the belt loop is a bit long/high up on the sheath... I would prefer the center-of-gravity of the knife to be right up on my belt. I find this reduces the need to pull one's pants up every 20 minutes when walking around.

The CarbonV will patina and stain about as much as you want it to. Meaning, if wiped clean after use and stored dry, you can keep the satin finish looking just about new. Onions, tomatoes and red meat will leave grey stains on the blade right before your eyes, but they can be cleaned off with a rag or some 0000 steel wool if it's sat on there a while.

When I first got it in the mail, I thought it might be a bit too big. After several camping trips I've decided it's just fine. I've used it for everything but throwing and prying, and never felt like the blade was too big or clumsy. Be advised, when slicing onions or tomatoes you have to be careful or the thickness of the blade will make them come out like wedges :) Bottom line, worth every penny and my must-have camping/outdoors knife. Add a small hatchet or 'hawk for chopping/splitting firewood and driving tent pegs, and you won't "NEED" another knife. (With a little shopping around, you can find a MH and a hatchet for under $100 for both of them, no problem.)

Look at the Ontario TAK-1, too. Very similar in steel, size, design and price, and well-regarded by users here on the forums. The major differences are that it has hard micarta handle slabs and a cordura nylon sheath, and the black finish. It was kind of a toin-coss between the Ontario and Cold Steel when I got mine, and I think I would have been happy with either.
 
P.S. trout, I saw in another thread where the GamesKeeper was recommended to you...
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=413263
That looks like a gorgeous, quality, sturdy knife along the same lines. Just remember you're going to pay more than *twice* as much for that pretty nickel guard... I can't say anything about the A2 steel used in that one, I haven't used it. But I doubt it's *twice* as sharp, or *twice* as easy to sharpen :)

I sometimes wonder if the folks who tout "razor-sharp out-of-the-box" so highly just stop using their knife and buy a new one when it gets dull...

A lot of people automatically pass on a good knife if they hear it's not perfectly sharp from the factory. This is a shame. Sure, it takes a bit of skill and time to properly hone a knife, but it's well-spent. It takes time and skill to sight-in a rifle or properly intonate and tune a guitar, too. Just not worth it to me to pay $50 or $100 more for a knife to be sharpened for me, all other factors being essentially the same.

Please note, that GamesKeeper does have a nice nickel (or steel?) guard, and is available with stag handles. These materials and the skill needed to utilize them add *legitimate* cost to the knife, which you may feel is well worth it. I'm not slagging Bark River in any way... you just have to decide where your priorities are and how much you're willing to pay. The deer/firewood/vegetables you cut up aren't going to know the difference.
 
Ok as quite the lover of hunting knives, especially smaller blade ones this knife will be in my collection by Chrimas, for sure. It is beautiul.

However .... i have never used one. I am debating between the SanMai III or the Carbon V. Can someone post a picture or two of one versus the other and especially of the so called "patina" .... i have absolutely no idea what that looks like on this knife and does it occur only on the Carbon V ... due to the fact it's not stainless ????

I looked for some photos online that outline the difference between the two types, but all i find is generic type photos of online-stores ,,, which as you know aren't very accurate/detailed.

Thanks so much :D
 
Thanks guys. www.knivesplus.com has the best prices i've found anywhere. And they always have great customer service. I will have to check out their webite in a few minutes right now I have a steak to pull off the grill.:D
 
GibsonFan said:
I sometimes wonder if the folks who tout "razor-sharp out-of-the-box" so highly just stop using their knife and buy a new one when it gets dull...
Click to expand...

Thats when those of us who understand the qualities of a knife and how to sharpen get a great deal from those who feel the knife is a piece of junk. I bought my CS master hunter from ebay because the owner said the blade material stained (patina'ed) and he could not sharpen it. I paid $15 for it! Five minutes with a stone and some 2000 grit paper and I had myself a perfectly good Master hunter.:D It is one of the best knives I have ever owned and i recommend it to anyone who is looking for a good user knife.
 
fish4life, I can't give you any pictures of patina...my old one just started taking on stains that were light blue or grey. Eventually the whole blade would have turned a light uniform bluish grey. That's not a problem for me, I deliberately let my carbon blades go that way...it's an old traditional look. I'm not a fan of bright and shiny...but to each his own. As GibsonFan said, patina is easily cleaned off.

As far as sharpness, my new one came sharp enough out of the box to shave a few hairs off my arm. I guess CS lets them out the door in different, or indifferent, degrees of sharpness. I haven't sharpened my new one yet but I haven't subjected it to any heavy work in the past three months. My old one, I recall was very easy to sharpen on an Arkansas stone.

Here's a better picture from the manufacturer's site:

http://www.coldsteel.com/fixed-blades-master-hunter.html
 
I also see there's a $35 price difference between the Carbon V and the SanMai stainless. Shop around, you can find them much cheaper.
 
so the patina that shows up .... is that after the coating of the Carbon V blade wears of , or does it show up right through it?

I owned a SOG Seal Pup once, and before it got stolen the coating, which seems to be the same quality as on hte master hunter didn't last all that long before being scratched off.

what's the deal on the Carbon V of the master hunter .... does it scratch off very easy? (i don't even like the coating, if possible i'd sand it off actually.)
 
sevenedges said:
Thanks guys. www.knivesplus.com has the best prices i've found anywhere. And they always have great customer service. I will have to check out their webite in a few minutes right now I have a steak to pull off the grill.:D
Click to expand...

They are good people, but you should phone them to check their stock situation before buying from them online.

(They told me this when I bought a knife from them last week.)
 
fish4life said:
so the patina that shows up .... is that after the coating of the Carbon V blade wears of , or does it show up right through it?

I owned a SOG Seal Pup once, and before it got stolen the coating, which seems to be the same quality as on hte master hunter didn't last all that long before being scratched off.

what's the deal on the Carbon V of the master hunter .... does it scratch off very easy? (i don't even like the coating, if possible i'd sand it off actually.)
Click to expand...

There is no coating on the Master Hunter.
 
That's right, no coating. The SOG Seal Pup, of course, has a black finish and I imagine that would wear through after awhile.

Man, I've been looking at some of the other outlets mentioned above and there is a radical spread in prices from what Cold Steel is asking! Regardless, it's still a good knife, well worth it at half the price ;)

fish4life, I don't think you understand what we mean by "patina". It's just the natural coloration a knife will get from age and use, turning from a high polish to a steel gray. Sort of like watching a shiny copper penny slowly turn brown. I personally like it, I know others like to keep their blades pristine and new looking and that's fine.
 
I just checked the CS site for "Factory Seconds" and they are out of stock on the MH right now. If you can wait & are willing to keep checking, I think it's one of the best knife deals out there.

The prices seem to have gone up a bit - I seem to remember paying about $25 for a MH second. Of course that was about 1992 :D Still have it - great knife.
 
But if there is no coating on the master hunter then why does the blade look gray and the sharpened part of the blade is shiny ?
I have yet to see one in person, but i'm just comparing it to my SOG Seal Pup, which of course has a coating on it (similar in color to the blade of the MH) and it's blade is shiny where it is sharpened, as there is no coating there naturally.

The reason i'm confused is because if you look at this photo ... it doesn't look like a coating

csstoreonline_1916_1670563


but if you look at this photo .... it looks clearly like a coating. What am i missing???? :confused:

a1470l.jpg


Maybe i just can't see that the edge of the blade on the MH is not in fact "shiny" LOL .... sorry noob :D

Coldwood said:
That's right, no coating. The SOG Seal Pup, of course, has a black finish and I imagine that would wear through after awhile.

Man, I've been looking at some of the other outlets mentioned above and there is a radical spread in prices from what Cold Steel is asking! Regardless, it's still a good knife, well worth it at half the price ;)

fish4life, I don't think you understand what we mean by "patina". It's just the natural coloration a knife will get from age and use, turning from a high polish to a steel gray. Sort of like watching a shiny copper penny slowly turn brown. I personally like it, I know others like to keep their blades pristine and new looking and that's fine.
Click to expand...
 
I think it's just the angle of light reflection. The Cold Steel photo was probably taken by a professional photographer who knew how to set up his lights to best advantage; and the photo may even have been digitally enhanced to further show the product at its best.

The second photo is a picture of a used knife, IMHO, and it shows what I'm referring to as patina, a light steel gray tarnish. Look at the uneven coloration on the blade and what appears to be a scratch under the makers mark. (that patina could be easily removed with fine steel wool, very fine wet-n-dry sandpaper, or a buffing wheel, but you'll take the makers mark off in the process)

And if you look at both pictures, you can see from the shadow that the angle of lighting was different, and that will give a different look to the blade.

Having owned two Master Hunters, I can assure you that there is no coating ;)

By the way, the first that I owned was a factory second, with a 2 stamped on the butt end of the handle. Since I bought it from a friend, I had a chance to closely examine it before I handed over my money. It was in like-new condition. I could not see any flaws that would have made it a factory second, (he told me it was slight difference in the angle of grind at the choil) so you're probably safe in buying one of those if you can find one. I paid him $30 for the knife and two Kydex sheaths, a hi-ride and a Bianchi clip pattern, what a deal! :)
 
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