cold steel

G

gsxr1997

Joined
Jan 20, 2002
Messages
7
i have noticed there is not much discussion about cold steel knives
is there something i am missing ? are they not up to par with the spydercos and such?
im not flaming ,just curious and would like some opinions
 
I have never owned a Cold Steel product, i would be more likely to if it weren't for the following;

Warranty- Cold Steel's warranty on their folders lasts one year, on their fixed blades five. I own Spyderco, Benchmade and Kershaw (amongst other)folders which offer a limited lifetime warranty. On the very page that they announce this (poor) warranty, they claim to stand by their knives 100% :rolleyes:

Performance- I'm inclined to believe that Spyderco's locks are stronger, i'm sure i've read information to that effect somewhere.

Lack of Choice- Almost every folder they produce comes equipped with a zytel handle and AUS-8, zytel is strong stuff but looks ugly IMO, i don't think it would hurt them to put some stuff out in G10.

Serrations and Sharpening Policy- Their serrations are likely to break if used on wood or plastic, anything other than fibrous material like rope, Spyderco's serrations aren't, also Spyderco are willing to sharpen their plain or serrated (Spyderedge) blades for free, you can't get Cold Steel to sharpen their own serrations free or otherwise. Cold steel's serrations are probably the hardest to sharpen.

Maybe you should take what i have said with a pinch of salt because i don't own anything by Cold Steel, it could be that they put out a very good product that makes the above hassles redundant. Also i'm not really into fixed blades because of my environment, i've heard a lot of good things about their fixed blades.
 
I like Cold Steel, Their fixed blades anyways. I have a SRK and a Recon Tanto. They have stood up well to use/abuse and arnt that expensive either. IMO they offer good Blades at a decent price. I cant comment on their folders as i dont own any.
 
For hard use fixed blades, there are few companies that can offer the kind of performance Cold Steel does for the price. There is a lot of junk in their lineup, but there are several stellar knives, appreciated by most people who have used them:

SRK
Recon Tanto
Recon Scout
Trailmaster
Bushman and Mini Bushman
Bird and Trout
Tanto series
Mini Khukuri
 
You ever tried to sharpen the serrations? I used files trhe first time, then decided if I wreck the design so be it, and used the 204 after.

I've had my ReadyEdge for just over a yr, still in great shape, but the sheath is starting to loosen up. Makes you wonder...
 
I've got a bunch of their blades, FB and folders in Carbon V and AUS8. I think they are decent blades for their price range. I carried a Voyageur for a number of years as a lightweight "won't feel too bad if I lose it" EDC and liked it fine for the price I paid. Their factory seconds get good marks for delivering high Bang For The Buck, especially if you're on a tight outfitting budget.
 
I have a Recon Tanto and a couple of Voyagers. Nice knives for the money.

The special projects catalog has some neat stuff.
 
Never take advice from someone who doesn't own one :)

I've got a lot of CS knives, mostly folders. I don't like the way the serrations look but I like the way they work. If you have trouble sharpening them, you're doing it wrong. Just steel the blade on the back, away from the serrations. This will straighten them up. I use a Vaquero Grande hard in the woods, chopping off small branches and vines, and clearing thorns off the trail.

I just got an X2 Voyager, which is a plain edge clippoint with a 6" blade. The zytel handle is exactly the same as the Vaquero Grande's, and does not feel cheap. The blade is massive and sharp.

They use cheaper materials to keep their prices down, they use hype to keep sales up, They don't actually make any knives themselves, but contract other companies to do that, mostly Japanese factories, but I've heard that Camillus does their Carbon V knives.

One reason they don't get much discussion around here is that they are just pretty good knives, generally not exciting, but serviceable. Bladeforums attracts discussions about the hot stuff, new and exciting designs.

Another reason is that they are not very customer-contact oriented. They opened a forum here, and closed it almost immediately, when they found it was going to take hours a day, responding to our questions and suggestions.

Their Spec Pro catalog is a lot of fun. Order one. Check out the other stuff, sticks and axes and spears. I got a City Stick recently; I usually walk with a CS rattan crook top cane. You won't find so much unabashed weaponry coming from most knife companies today!
 
well i have an original tanto with brass hardware and a voyager tanto serrated . the voyager i have had for 8-10 years .the pocket clip broke and i called cold steel to see how much it would cost to replace the handle and they told me to send it in and they would replace it for free. i was impressed to say the least.
 
I think the most telling thing I can say is that many, many Cold Steel products have been in the lineup for many, many years. In other words, the designs and value inherent in many of these products continue to be successful over time. Some Cold Steel knives are genuine classics like the tantos and Trailmasters. I can't say that for many other knife companies. Most of them design and make knives that sell well for a year or two and then are replaced by the next fashion. I find Cold Steel's performance in this regard to be truly impressive. It's pretty hard to argue with success. Take care.
 
Select CS knives that I have used and/or carried have all been good knives. Factory edge is good and the "bang for the buck" factor is 1st rate.

Jason
 
I have a SRK and a clip point Paraedge. The SRK looks like it wouldn't cut very well because of the thick edge but it cuts as well as most knive with considerably thinner edges I've used. The Paraedge is made of AUS-6 and holds an edge better than most knives I've used made out of 440C or AUS-8.
 
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