Cold Steel Voyager: Initial Impression

[jayharley]

I just received my first CS knife (a 5" Voyager 29XTH). I ordered it thru www.midsouthshootherssupply.com. This company has GREAT prices.

I have never owned a CS knife before as they seemed too inexpensive. The Voyager does seem to be a lot of knife for the money. My first impressions are as follows:
a) The knife and lock seem very strong and secure. But not easy to open with one hand! A very tight spring.
b) The blade is very very very sharp. It is sharpened to a very thin razor edge, so most likely will not hold the edge in hard use.
c) The serrations do seem to be very fragile and look like they will snap off under hard use.
d) The overall finish of the knife is very good, for the money.
e) The handle is an odd thing. It seems very strong and stable, yet it feels very cheap and very plastic at the same time. Not my favorite, but again, I only paid $50 for the knife!
f) Here is the kicker to me: The blade, when opened is very very sturdy. Much more sturdy than I would have imagined. There is absolutely no blade wobble at all. My $200 Emerson Commander blade wiggles and wobbles and constantly needs to be adjusted to keep it in place.
g) I also own a REKAT Sifu. The Sifu is a much nicer, stronger knife, but costs twice as much.

My initial impressions make me want to say that if you are looking for a $50 folder which is a great, impressive, intimidating knife, you will not go wrong with CS Voyager. Will I buy another CS? Not unless I am intentionally in need of another inexpensive knife.

 

[glockman99]

Jay,

A couple of "mistakes" that you made with your 1st purchase of a Cold Steel knife:

1. You should have bought the Large (4 inch version), as it feels a little "better" in the hand than the monster 5 inch one. (I have Voyagers in Medium, Large, and Extra-LARGE.). (The 5 inch Clip-Point IS an AWESOME knife, 'tho.

.)

2. You should have bought the plain-edge version. I don't care much for Cold Steels' serrations, either. Also, the plain-edge is alot simpler to sharpen well.

Also, I believe that the one hand opening
"problem" that you experience is due more from the (long-reach) placement of the thumb-stud on this large knife, rather than the spring strength. (I know that I almost "run out of finger" just before the blade snaps open.).

Over-all, I really like MY Cold Steel folders (Voyagers, in both "Tanto" and "Clip-Point" and Gunsites).

.

------------------
Dann Fassnacht
Aberdeen, WA
glockman99@hotmail.com
ICQ# 53675663

 

[Alberta Ed]

I have two Voyagers, both 4" (large), non-serrated, one clip, one tanto. They don't hold an edge like Carbon V but compare pretty well to other stainless steels. AUS8 is easy to sharpen, takes and holds an excellent edge, and I have had no pitting or staining problems despite using them around salt water, getting them sweaty when jogging, hiking, etc. The locks are very strong IMHO. I have no problems with Zytel at all. Mine open like a well broken in Zippo, almost effortlessly, and despite several years of use don't exhibit any wobble at all. Darned good using knives.

 

[jayharley]

Thanks for the input. I tried to buy the non serrated version, but the company was out of stock.

Quite often, when I buy a new knife, I find parts about it I don't like. After using it for a while, and breaking it in, many times it ends up being one of my favorites! The one main aspect I like about mixing in less expensive, yet good quality knives in with my more expensive ones is that I use the less expensive ones most. You don't worry about loosing them or damaging them. Most likely the Voyager will spend a lot of time in my Jeans pocket instead of joining the pretty ones in the cabnet!

One more question: Can anyone explain the difference between the Voyagers and the Gunsites? They look the same in catalogs. Also Cold Steel does not even list the Gunsites in their new 2001 web site.

[This message has been edited by jayharley (edited 01-18-2001).]