Cold Steel Ti Lite 4"

I agree with Confederate's post. I have the Titanium Ti-Lite and it is a delightful knife. The Ti-Lite is well made and well designed. Clearly it is not as utilitarian as other knives, but it has it's secure place in my collection.

Where the Military and Skyline are concerned, we are trying to compare apples to oranges. The Military is stronger, uses better blade steel, is easy to carry and is an overall great knife (I have six). I believe that of the knives you have mentioned, the Military is the best EDC.
 
Confederate said:
The Cold Steel 4-inch Ti-Lite is a beautiful, easy to carry knife with a decent blade steel. It excels in opening mail, packages and, when necessary, bad guys. You can debark wood with it and it penetrates almost anything. The blade's lack of belly will make some cutting chores difficult, but nothing I routinely do would be affected.

In short, it's a nice little knife that's easily carried and it appeals to some, me included. And if you ever need another blade configuration, you'll likely keep the Ti-Lite because it is a charming, handy tool. Having said that, there are knives that I find are better suited to everyday carry. The 4-inch (large) Voyagers are splendid EDCs, as is the Recon 1 (a little heavy). Spydercos are always good bets when you find one with a 4-inch blade, and the Byrd Cara Cara with a G10 handle or FRN also are good selections.

ColdSteelTi-Lite_2.jpg


ColdSteelTi-Lite_1.jpg



ColdSteelVoyagerPE.jpg


The CS Voyager.
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i agree 100%, i carried dagger style stuff for a while (ie a ralph maxx with the stilletto blade) and it will work just fine as an EDC, i never once thought when i was carrying them "gee i wish i had my <fill in the blank> vs my ralph", if ya like the looks of the ti-lite give one a try, it'll work just fine as an edc.

the ti-lites seem to be good knives too,
 
i dont know why people say its a poor edc, its actually pretty good. its long and thin so it makes a good letter/package opener. its also razor sharp so it cuts very well. its also light and easy to carry due to its slim profile. i can open mine like a switchblade by using just my thumb. its also only $43 dollars.


you might also want to look at the benchmade 530

benchmade530.jpg
 
3mptin3ss said:
i dont know why people say its a poor edc, its actually pretty good. its long and thin so it makes a good letter/package opener. its also razor sharp so it cuts very well. its also light and easy to carry due to its slim profile. i can open mine like a switchblade by using just my thumb. its also only $43 dollars.


you might also want to look at the benchmade 530

benchmade530.jpg
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The 530 has been my EDC for four years now. Great knife with a lot of utility. :thumbup:
 
I wholeheartedly recommend the Spyderco Military.

While the Ti Lite does have several uses, I found its downfalls to outweight the "pros" of carrying it. The quillions are sharp and virtually ineffective as guards, and as a Wave-style mechanism of opening, absolutely shred the lips of pants pockets. The blade lacks belly for utility chores that require it, and I don't like the edge geometry of such a short, hollow grind for some other chores. It will open letters, feed bags, and cut rope effectively, but compared with the fully flat ground, S30V Military, it's utilitarian (and defense) uses are limited.

The Ti Lite is also wider in the pocket than the Military. I feel that the Spyderco carries much better, and the handle ergonomics are better for hard use and self defense because of the choil to choke up on the blade and the curves and grippy G10 (compared to the Ti Lite's FRN or new aluminum/old titanium).

In regards to the blade, I feel that the VERY pointy tip of the flat-ground Military as well as the wicked sharp edge will penetrate equally or better than the Ti Lite, and also offers belly for utilitarian appeal and deep, hardcore slashing. The Military is also excellent at food prep and general slicing, something that the Ti Lite is not very proficient at.

In terms of locks, I do like Cold Steel's "leaf spring" which is essentially a liner lock, and is one of the best of its design at the Ti Lite's price point. I also really like Spyderco's liner lock, which is executed to excellent and very precise tolerances---I have had blade play in my Scimitar, and slight amounts with my 6-inch Ti Lite, while none of my linerlock Spydercos have suffered from the "Blade Play Plague."

I just think that the Spyderco would serve more uses for you as an EDC and as a self-defense tool should the need arise. It's a large knife, but I think it would gain less negative attention than something like the Ti Lite should a law enforcement officer decide to search you. I'm a big fan of Spyderco, but I've also been known to carry Cold Steel, so this is just my unbiased opinion. The Ti Lite has its uses and market niche, but the Spyderco Military is a superior knife in every way, even despite the price difference (and if you're looking at the aluminum Ti Lite, it's not much).

Happy hunting. :)

God bless.

KATN,

Wade
 
Imo tri lite is not ideal for edc because of its general blade profile. Its great if you plan letters. If you plan to open boxes all day long that tip will need to be redone the tip issue is on the same lines as american tanto. The knife has little to no belly, this makes it less efficient than ones that do.
 
i agree a millies a better knife than the ti-lite, of course it should be at 2X the price.
 
endura, delica easy to EDC, recon 1 , very strong, ti lite, good looking , strong, but a bit bulky
military , well...great slicer , almost perfect in every way
 
Blindeyes said:
If you get the ti-lite save for the titanium handle not the Zytel.
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It might be a bit of a search for a titanium model, as they're now discontinued as of the 2009 Special Projects/Cold Steel online catalogue lineup. They've been replaced with aluminum handled models, now with a metal-handled 6-inch version. That would be one hellacious kubaton! :D
 
The titanium has been discontinued, but there are still plenty in stock with online retailers.
 
How about the Kershaw line of flippers? Are they up to par as a EDC knife and if neccesary a somewhat heavy duty knife?
 
3mptin3ss said:
you might also want to look at the benchmade 530

benchmade530.jpg
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My wife owns and uses the Benchmade 530. She doesn't use it enough to tell how the steel will hold up, but hers is still razor sharp after a few months. I will add that that knife is one of the most efficient designs I've ever seen. It has a skeletonized steel liner inside of a plastic (or whatever it's made of) handle like the Spyderco Military, and the handle is the thinnest I've ever handled. It feels delicate in the hand but is built very well. If you want a small knife, the 530 is great. If I carried one, I'd tie on a lanyard because the knife is so light I'm afraid I'd loose it in my pocket.

I just recieved my first spydercos, a PE Military and an Endura IV trainer. The Military is my favorite knife, I like it more than my Emersons and Benchmades. The blade is very well designed, extremely broad at the base with a needle sharp tip. It's made out of good steel, the liner lock is perfect and strong and doesn't disengage in a variety of grips, and it's the lightest 4" bladed knife that I've handled. The handle is the only one, other than my Emerson Super CQC-7, that I could ever get a full grip on and still have wiggle room fore and aft of my hand. If you're into any knife related martial arts you might appreciate the finger choil ahead of the grip. You'd also appreciate that you can hold it in any grip. I do find it a bit large for daily chores. After I get a smaller Spyderco (they don't make many with G10 handles) my next will be another Military, just in case something happens to mine.
 
I chose 530. Or C11, do not know why, I just love the 530, it was said that he was too thin, but I do not feel used, I feel the 530 is very strong.
 
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