Cold steel new models with new steels vs Spyderco ,Bunchmade and kershaw (PRICES)

I was excited about the upcoming new CS stuff. But then I saw the new ZT stuff and it is clear I will have to save significant funds for whenever those hit the market. The new BM stuff is not that exciting, especially considering the price point.

If they come out with the Recon 1 in Spear point with the better steel I will need to pick one up!

As for CS marketing, it is just that: marketing. I don't let it influence me one way or the other. Look at the specs/particulars of the knife and not at some guy chopping a 2X4 in half.

While the "Made in US is better quality" thing may not be true in every case it is still true much of the time and I wouldn't characterize it as BS. What Spyderco has done is shown that a knife made overseas can be made that competes or beats the American standards. Some of the higher end stuff coming out of China is also showing this as well. So it is not a matter of a quality knife can't be made overseas, it depends if a company WANTS to make a high quality knife overseas. Nothing has really changed though, no matter where a high quality knife is made, you will still need to pay more for that high quality.
 
Unfortunately, the "USA Made=Highest Quality" doesn't hold water. It should, but it doesn't:(
 
craytab said:
While the "Made in US is better quality" thing may not be true in every case it is still true much of the time and I wouldn't characterize it as BS. What Spyderco has done is shown that a knife made overseas can be made that competes or beats the American standards. Some of the higher end stuff coming out of China is also showing this as well. So it is not a matter of a quality knife can't be made overseas, it depends if a company WANTS to make a high quality knife overseas. Nothing has really changed though, no matter where a high quality knife is made, you will still need to pay more for that high quality.
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Exactly. If anything, the high end Taiwan Spyderco and high end Chinese independant knives show that high quality knives made with top notch materials are always going to be pricey regardless of country of origin.
 
jdk1 said:
Unfortunately, the "USA Made=Highest Quality" doesn't hold water. It should, but it doesn't:(
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Well when you spend decades sending production overseas enabling those countries to outfit their manufacturing base with the latest and greatest equipment while your plant in America stagnates, what do you expect.
 
Cold steel seems to be pretty much on par with price and quality with the equivalent knives of other major manufacturers in my experience. It doesnt matter that its made in taiwan, the QC is the way it should be (better than bm sometimes too), so I dont have a problem with that, or taiwan spydies for example, they are exquisite. I dont think a recon 1 in xhp for $100 is a better deal than an s30v blur at $70 for example, even though I like the recon better. Im very excited for the new steels, its a much improved step forward, I know i'll be buying another recon 1 in xhp when they come out with the clip point version, and many others with the the new steels.
 
jdk1 said:
Unfortunately, the "USA Made=Highest Quality" doesn't hold water. It should, but it doesn't:(
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If you compare US produced Kershaws and Spydercos to similarly priced overseas produced SOGs or CRKTs or other US companies it does hold true! It is less about the country of origin and more about the company and their commitment to well thought out and quality manufacturing including quality control. If a company really wants to do it right overseas they can but it will either mean they will make less profit as control to higher standards raises costs or the will need to raise the price of their product.

And really, like what Scurvy said, cost will be a major factor. You are always going to need to pay more for higher quality, no matter where it is made.
 
Cold Steel produces good products so I am sure that they will continue to do so along with the new additions to the steel line up.

It's a big step for them in the right direction. :thumbup:
 
PURPLEDC said:
A knife isnt simply the blade. Its the sum of ALL of its parts. In most cases cold steel knives only use synthetics and steel in its handles. You really cant compare two knives in different price brackets just because they share the same blades steel. All of the offerings with high grade steel from Kai as well as many from spyderco include titanium and carbon fiber. And many of the spyderco offerings utilizing FRN handles with decent steel are priced closer to the new cold steel offerings. Also most cold steel knives dont have satin finishes which is costlier to do as they require better attention to the finish quality.
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This is also very true. I'm much more drawn to Cold Steel offerings because carbon fiber, titanium and bearing pivots don't matter much to me, but it's hard to say CS represents an objectively better value when they either only dabble in those, or don't use them at all.
 
I don't think it fair to compare comparable blade steels to value because as others have stated, handles and designs come into play to. Most of cold steel's offerings don't speak to me but the new hunters in cpm3v really interest me. Always loved the master hunter and the new mini in 3v seems like an awesome hard use backpacking blade. I guess what I'm trying to say is that the new steels are not going to win over fanboys from spyderco or benchmade, which is fine. Buy what you like and what will work best for you.
 
Scurvy092 said:
Well when you spend decades sending production overseas enabling those countries to outfit their manufacturing base with the latest and greatest equipment while your plant in America stagnates, what do you expect.
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I agree, but have been on the receiving end of crappy US made products for decades. I recall several big ticket examples, but won't bore everyone with the details. It required many people to not care at all for those to hit the market. And some of those folks were making good money.

On the other hand, I've had many Rowen (USA) made ESEE knives which were perfect. There are businessmen in every country who place profit above all else and there are those who strive to make a great product. I lay more blame on ineffective and/or greedy management (notice I didn't say leadership) than outsourcing. Country of origin is something into which I don't put much thought. I would rather help a US business, but I won't pay extra for shoddy products.
 
willythekid said:
I don't think it fair to compare comparable blade steels to value because as others have stated, handles and designs come into play to. Most of cold steel's offerings don't speak to me but the new hunters in cpm3v really interest me. Always loved the master hunter and the new mini in 3v seems like an awesome hard use backpacking blade. I guess what I'm trying to say is that the new steels are not going to win over fanboys from spyderco or benchmade, which is fine. Buy what you like and what will work best for you.
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Have to wait and see what happens once the knives hit the market.
 
I've been harping on CS to upgrade steels for awhile now but I was hoping that they kept AUS8 and offered the higher end steel as an upgrade option, not a complete replacement. Can't have it all I guess, but a $50 AUS8 model and a $100 XHP model would have hit perfect pricepoints and keep more people happy.

...And they are still not doing it right... Example, CTS-XHP is one of the most stainless new steels out there and they offer it on the Recon DLC coated. Might as well use plain old D2.

As far as value, CS has always offered great leading value. For what they offer, they had BM beat price-wise before AND after the upgrade. BM's obviously not out there to compete on value with their MAP plan so the point is moot. With Spyderco, they offer alot of different knives at different pricepoints. What exactly competes directly with say, the $100 XHP Recon??? A S30v USA made PM2 is still just over a hundred bucks...
 
Does anybody pay attention to the prices advertised on the company's official website? Come on now. I read somewhere today that one of the online retailers were taking pre-orders, somewhere between $300 & $350 IIRC.
edit, it's $360, for what is essentially a Demko mid-tech made in USA. Out of my buying league but not over-priced IMO either.
 
crom said:
Does anybody pay attention to the prices advertised on the company's official website? Come on now. I read somewhere today that one of the online retailers were taking pre-orders, somewhere between $300 & $350 IIRC.
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No ****! So back to what I said... $600 on their website or MSRP is in-line with the other two brand's $500 MSRP knives also. The Spyderco Rubicon and Slysz Bowie are $250-$280 street price. That was also the case with BM until MAP enforcement but at the 4MAX preorder of $300-$350, you can get a BM 761... I was just teasing since the OP and the thread was about value at $100-$150, AND CS offering better value NOW. 4MAX does not appear to be the best example.

I have no problem with the price and assumed that street value will be much lower.
 
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