Cold Steel Trailmaster or Recon Scout?

I have both and like both, the Recon Scout feels better balanced to me.
 
the Trailmaster San Mai is $250. In what way is that expensive for that size and quality of a blade when a Busse runs $400 on the low end. Someone please explain. $250 is pocket change for all encompassing SHTF knife IMO. I’d even call it a “budget” knife.

Stoogemeister said:
Hey,

Recon Scout has good thickness and still has potential for skinning game, it can still process wood but cant baton through the really big logs. Also the sheath is awesome and does not retain water.
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i have pictures of a bear skinned with a Trailmaster (not by me). I'd rather have the 9" blade and not have to give it a second thought. Especially if you're only carying one knife. Also the difference in weight on your person between a 6" blade and a 9" is so negligible, that if you even feel it, you really need to hit a gym and FAST
 
Recon scout will be one of my next buys.... My friend swears bybthem I have heard of one RS breaking at the hilt during freazing weather while battoning. Watch the nutn'fancy video on u tube for that..... Not indorsing him I like some of his stuff but ehhh. The Rat/ESEE Junglas Machete is .188 inch thick and I would prefer a little thicker in the rocky mountains I go there during the summer and you don't want your knife breaking.
 
Devilito said:
the Trailmaster San Mai is $250. In what way is that expensive for that size and quality of a blade when a Busse runs $400 on the low end. Someone please explain. $250 is pocket change for all encompassing SHTF knife IMO. I’d even call it a “budget” knife.
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Busses don't run $400 on the low end. :rolleyes:

They are cheaper than that.

They have the Bush Whacker Mistress right now that is avaiable with a 10 1/4" blade for $347 that you can get directly from Busse.


Between the TM and RS I would always go for the TM. :)
 
I wonder how that one RS gets blamed for so many breakages? If you have ever seen the blade on either Recon Scout or Trail Master you would understand how preposterous the beating would have to be to make it fail. Great knife, one of my absolute favorite bowies.

Here it is chopping down a standing tree earlier this winter for no apparent reason, since the OP is long gone.

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i have had both the scout & t.m. in carbon5. knives came from 1990 period & quality was great. the scout was so sharp i showed it to friends. my scout would be the one to pack since it is more handy . the scout was actually sharper than any of my folders. these days since weight is more a factor & i can afford it i would probably go with a ferhman in 7 in.
 
I have both and my leather sheath has withstood some abuse, unless you are wading with it on your belt don't worry about it.
An option is to ask the shop where you are buying your sk-5 TM to swap sheaths with a san mai. The cordura one is weather proof and you can order them as well(they should there is lots of good shops)
For one ounce difference go with the TM, the extra 2 inches really increases the chopping power and helps when drawkniving.
If you do not do a lot of shelter building. fires and woodcraft when hiking the recon will be all you need.
 
What about checking out some of the RAT cutlery knives the RC-6 would work very well i have a RC 4 which would be a bit on the small size but really easy to carry and tough as hell. plus they are nicely coated 1095 which iv heard is tough as hell and easy to maintain.

my 2 cents

-Alex
 
Through the last four years a had a few CS pieces ..Two CarbonV ReconScouts, satin CarbonV Trailmaster and the last one I bought was SanMai ReconScout. When I started to using it I sold all the others... does that tell you something ...at least that I would suggest the smaller version over trailmaster due to it's size and weight

scoutchopping03.jpg

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I do not consider myself some kind of ColdSteel fan but those pieces that I have used were certainly very good in price/performance balance. Since we all saw that broken ReconScout years ago(just a few weeks before I ordered one) I have intensively used mine and it didn't fail.

Ohh ...mine laminateed ReconScout was 190$, second-hand, unused, delivered to my door (EU) which was quite a deal. I really did't need one just had to try it.
 
what is the difference between the VG-1 and SK-5 blades? is the VG-1 steel more rust resistant the SK-5 steel? any other difference?
 
Stoogemeister said:
Hey,

I basically have the options of choosing a Cold Steel recon scout or a trailmaster. Now i have heard nothing but good news about both but in my mind there are pros and cons to each.

Recon Scout has good thickness and still has potential for skinning game, it can still process wood but cant baton through the really big logs. Also the sheath is awesome and does not retain water.


Trailmaster has a nice reach with i think a 9 inch blade that is also very thick. Excellent for chopping wood, batoning through huge logs, you can pretty much expect it to never break. But the sheath is leather and retains water which can rust the blade, and the san mai version with a better sheath is soooo expensive.

I just dont know what to do, obviously i want to save money as much as possible. Basically in a few months i am going to be traversing the Rocky Mountains and I need an excellent survival knife i can depend on no matter what. I am also bringing a fillet knife and a multi tool.

Which one would you guys choose in my shoes and semi limited on cash
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I have both and many more like them and I can help you out with the price as well to save you some cash. I offer a 30% discount to all forum members. contact me if I can help.

Trail Master

Recon Scout
 
I had a trailmaster and a recon scout, they were close enough i didn't need both. the RS felt better balanced in my hand, so i traded the TM to a friend who needed a reliable big knife.
weight between the 2 is not an issue for me, but the RS is less "in the way" due to being 2" shorter.
the new version of the knife which is in pre-order is a satin finish. the old style w/black blade is getting hard to find, but when you can find it it's a chunk cheaper than the new model.
You should be able to find either one new for less than $150 in the SK5 steel. Carbon V and SM3 will cost more.
good luck!
 
I was in the exact same predicament... I ended up getting the trail master, which I'm happy with, but If I had it to do over again I might go with the recon scout. Just because the sheath is SO much nicer and I think its enough knife to get the job done. The only advantage of the 2" longer blade that I can think of is that it might be easier to split thicker logs with, but whatever.
 
If you plan on carrying it on your belt, I would say the Recon Scout. If you're going to carry it on or in your pack, then the TM.

But the cordura sheath is an improvement over the leather IMO.
 
iyn said:
what is the difference between the VG-1 and SK-5 blades? is the VG-1 steel more rust resistant the SK-5 steel? any other difference?
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VG-1 is stainless, SK-5 is a carbon steel. VG-1 holds an edge better, but I have experienced minor chipping (in smaller, thinner blades, not the TM).
The SM3 TM is a complete convex zero-edge blade, which is a thing of rare beauty and function. It's worth its price and while mine is not a beater, it's certainly a user. ;)
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