Cold Steel Secure-Ex nightmare! Sheath issues still not adressed! Beware!

8...10 years and CS is still using that P.O.S. sheath?!?

My G.I. Tanto, and (not a Bowie) Bushman came with a "secure-ex" sheath. I kept the knives, however, I put the sheaths in the dumpster.
An empty Cheerio's box and a bit of duct tape made fine non-dulling sheaths for my G.I. Tanto, and (not a Bowie) Bushman. :D

My only other CS belt knife is a older Finn Bear, that has the nylon cloth sheath. It don't dull the knife, so no need to make a new one.

I don't understand it. Two of my sub $15 Mora's have a "plastic" sheath that don't dull the knife. Why can't CS match that technology? Aside from lost sales, and a poor reputation, what have they gained by switching from leather, to nylon cloth, then to whatever glass re-enforced plastic the "secure-ex sheath is made of?

I "know" I'm not the only one who won't buy another CS belt knife, so long as they include that sheath.
Why should I spend what CS charges for a belt knife, then turn around and either buy an aftermarket sheath, or bum a empty cereal or shoe box and a roll of duct tape to make a sheath for it?
I can get a Buck 119, 120, or 124 with a leather sheath for less than most of the CS offerings.
 
I decided to test the heat treat on my day off.

I will sharpen both, my GoBag and Mini Pendleton on the same diamond stone and at the same angle. And then strop on the same belt with same diamond compound.

3V should have approximatley the same edge retention as D2. And especially considering Pendleton is full flat grind opposed to saber grind.

I will be cutting cardboard and rope with both until they can no longer shave. I'll test them after every 5 cuts to see if they still shave. I will tape entire blades except 3cm of lenght on each to make this as fair as possible. First one to stop shaving loses.

I also had idea to compare it to my 3V Warcraft Tanto but size, thickness and geometry are radically different there.
 
I've encountered the dulling issue on the SK5 versions of the SRK and Recon Tanto.
The sheath dulls the edge no matter how I draw the knives.
The factory edges were fairly sharp the first time I unsheathed them. One more draw began to dull the edges. Several more draws rendered them uselessly dull.
I sharpened the SRK and inserted it back in the sheath. When I removed it again it would no longer shave arm hair.
I didn't bother doing the same with the Recon Tanto.
On the other hand, I haven't had this problem with any of the Drop Forged models. Those sheaths seem to have more wriggle room than the SRK and RT so that may be the problem.
I wish they would address this issue but I've seen no signs yet.
 
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I've encountered the dulling issue on the SK5 versions of the SRK and Recon Tanto.
The sheath dulls the edge no matter how you draw the knives.
The factory edges were fairly sharp the first time I unsheathed them. One more draw began to dull the edges. Several more draws rendered them uselessly dull.
I sharpened the SRK and inserted it back in the sheath. When I removed it again it would no longer shave arm hair.
I didn't bother doing the same with the Recon Tanto.
On the other hand, I haven't had this problem with any of the Drop Forged models. Those sheaths seem to have more wriggle room than the SRK and RT so that may be the problem.
I wish they would address this issue but I've seen no signs yet.
I also had no issued with Drop Forged Hunter, but I do have issues with SK-5 Recon Tanto which is interesting to know.

Poor sheath materials, and now affinity for poor blade materials (4034 stainless), combined with obvious drop in QC (quality control) is telling me that Cold Steel is cheapening out with time...
 
I received my 3V Mini Pendleton Hunter yesterday, it also came dull, but there's a bigger issue I noticed today.

20200922-063924.jpg


There's gap between kraton handle and the tang, meaning water and other liquids will get inside and there will be major corrosion with time as there is no way for me to prevent that given the fact liquid is inside the non removable handle.


Given all this, Cold Steel is no longer a brand I can reccomend.
 
You can seal up that gap with epoxy if you want to keep fluids out. That may help prevent, or at least slow corrosion of the tang.
Yes, but it's very unfortunate that I as an end user have to do anything to have a knife that's ready to use. Even having to sharpen it was a bit odd given it's a brand new knife from a well known company. And now, not only you have to make your own sheath or find after market option, but you also need to do repairs on the handle?

What is this? DIY?

I would have nothing to complain about sheaths if I only I had an option to get a knife without one for cheaper price.
The same goes for the handle, sell me a knife without sheath or handle for cheap and I won't complain.
At the end of the story, poor material made sheath and sloppy executed handle are both included in the price. And I paid for it!

From a company that's touting about knives being weapons and their knives being used by millitary, law enfocement and all that tactical talk - you expect they'll give you a package ready to go!
But no, in this case I need to sharpen it, craft a sheath myself and fix the handle with epoxy?!?!
 
Yes, but it's very unfortunate that I as an end user have to do anything to have a knife that's ready to use. Even having to sharpen it was a bit odd given it's a brand new knife from a well known company. And now, not only you have to make your own sheath or find after market option, but you also need to do repairs on the handle?

What is this? DIY?

I would have nothing to complain about sheaths if I only I had an option to get a knife without one for cheaper price.
The same goes for the handle, sell me a knife without sheath or handle for cheap and I won't complain.
At the end of the story, poor material made sheath and sloppy executed handle are both included in the price. And I paid for it!

From a company that's touting about knives being weapons and their knives being used by millitary, law enfocement and all that tactical talk - you expect they'll give you a package ready to go!
But no, in this case I need to sharpen it, craft a sheath myself and fix the handle with epoxy?!?!

I hear you, and I agree with the gap and sheath being a disappointment.

I have the older, shorter handle version in VG1 and it has the same characteristics.

That said, it’s been a joy to use and carry. It pockets well, and performs well.

I have and use several knives that don’t seal at the tang/handle transition. So far they have all held up over time, with the exception of a Rapala filet knife, and a few kitchen knives that corroded and snapped.

The blade stock on these are very thin, and stainless. They failed after an average of 15-20 years of continuous use and neglect.

The thickness of the Pendleton may mean the knife will last for a lot longer than that before failure.

But, at the end of the day, I also would prefer the handle to be sealed or serviceable, and for a leather or Kydex option for a sheath.
 
We compared them earlier today.
His knife has less movement inside the sheath but it has that gap. And you can move that kraton too.

This is gross drop in QC, terrible choice of sheath material and overall shoddy craftsmanship.

I haven't yet get the time or materials to test edge retention of this 3V against D2, but from this experience I'm already scared of the results.
They failed 2/2 of the same knives, so that makes me wonder if heat treat is also botched up.
 
I received my 3V Mini Pendleton Hunter yesterday, it also came dull, but there's a bigger issue I noticed today.

20200922-063924.jpg


There's gap between kraton handle and the tang, meaning water and other liquids will get inside and there will be major corrosion with time as there is no way for me to prevent that given the fact liquid is inside the non removable handle.


Given all this, Cold Steel is no longer a brand I can reccomend.
This was my issue too. I sealed it with Bathroom silicon. It works but looks like ass. Shouldnt have to do this with a new knife...
 
This was my issue too. I sealed it with Bathroom silicon. It works but looks like ass. Shouldnt have to do this with a new knife...
OK so they really have a serious issues on Mini Pendletons...

I expected more out of Cold Steel.

We shouldn't really have to sharpen our knives right away either, or craft our own sheaths or pay someone to else to make them...

Buying Cold Steel knife is like a bad D.I.Y. project, just you're correcting their mistakes instead of doing it yourself completley. And you end up paying more at the end...

I thought someone put it together 5 minutes before end of their shift, but after so many people having that same issue with that same knife I just think CS doesn't care and people there either have no idea what they're doing or they really hate their job.
 
Also, I contacted the seller, they apologized for inconvenience and told me to send it back for a refund as they don't have another one on stock to replace it.

I decided to just dump ton of epoxy, silicone or super glue on it keep it as it is.
 
I have a Kobun, a Mini Tac and a big ol' Magnum Tanto IX in 3V. All have the Securex sheath.

I like all three knives just fine, but I hate all three sheaths.

You are correct that their sheaths will dull your edge, and that sucks. But being dulled in one pull from the sheath seems fictional to me.
I would expect that sort of hyperbole from someone that characterized the situation as a “nightmare”
 
You can seal up that gap with epoxy if you want to keep fluids out. That may help prevent, or at least slow corrosion of the tang.

I also have a few fixed-blade knives with small gaps at the handle/tang. I've thought about sealing this area, and did some research on it, but am still not sure what is the most effective, weatherproof, and long-term sealant. It would have to be a fairly thin consistency to get into the small gaps and not look too sloppy.

Would epoxy be your first choice? If so, what kind? Thanks...
 
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S Smiling , aren't you the guy that resurrected a thread a while back that turned into a Cold Steel bash fest predicting their demise due to a change in steel? Pardon me if my memory is incorrect...

I thought someone put it together 5 minutes before end of their shift, but after so many people having that same issue with that same knife I just think CS doesn't care and people there either have no idea what they're doing or they really hate their job.

Now there's a leap from reality. From this tiny little BF community, and a subset that owns Cold Steel knives you can deduce that CS doesn't care or their employees hate their job? I know we live in a "cancellation society" and I am hoping that these few bad experiences don't lead to a social media outcry to boycott CS.


Also, I contacted the seller, they apologized for inconvenience and told me to send it back for a refund as they don't have another one on stock to replace it.
I decided to just dump ton of epoxy, silicone or super glue on it keep it as it is.

IF you can get a ton of anything in a similar gap as shown on the example pic above that is between the spine of the blade and the synthetic handle on that little paring knife, I hope you post pics. A ton?

If you are unhappy, stand up for yourself, send it back to the vendor and F'em. Get your money back. You don't have to have that knife. And if you still have to have it, contact an approved BF vendor that has them in stock. A quick search showed 3 BF preferred vendors that have them in stock.

Many, many years ago I wanted an American Lawman, but was aware of the reports that the Demko lock was so sticky that it was nearly impossible to open. I called Knifeworks, which was (is?) an approved vendor and asked the to check out the knife they were going to send out to me. The told me they didn't look at every knife that went out, so the answer was no. They had the best price by far, so I told them that I would order it, but if it was unacceptable it would be going back to them. I was put on hold for a couple of minutes, they came back to me and told me they found one that wasn't too sticky. Good enough. Still have that knife.

You sound like you have had enough of CS. If I were you, I wouldn't buy any more CS products.

Robert
 
I also have a few fixed-blade knives with small gaps at the handle/tang. I've thought about sealing this area, and did some research on it, but am still not sure what is the most effective, weatherproof, and long-term sealant. It would have to be a fairly thin consistency to get into the small gaps and not look too sloppy.

Would epoxy be your first choice? If so, what kind? Thanks...

Superglue would be my first experiment. If it flakes off after use, then I would move up to a two part epoxy commonly found in hardware stores. I’ve even heard some people using nail polish in a color that is similar to the handle color.

To be honest, I’ve never personally needed to seal it up.
 
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If it were my knife and I didn’t want to send it back, I’d use black silicone sealant. I have an Ontario SP5 that I sent in for a new rubber handle, and that’s what they used to seal the new one. Looks fine and works well.

There is another recent thread about these handle gaps on the cold steel sub forum. Cold steel rep said to send it back, so maybe they view this as a defect. I asked them yesterday if they consider this a defect and am waiting for a response.

I have some new kobuns with small gaps that can pulled back a bit. One of the kobuns I use as a river knife, and it gets soaked often. I dripped some oil in the space and have not had any problems with corrosion yet. On a more expensive knife, I might return it if cold steel replies that the issue is a defect.
 
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