Cold Steel

L

Livebythesword

Joined
Aug 1, 2008
Messages
76
Hi,
I'm a small time knife collector looking for some advice. I am searching for a machete and was attracted by the low cost of the Cold Steel range. I can't find much information about these knives. Could somebody tell me about the type of steel, edge retaining ability, sharpness and general quality of these Cold Steel machetes.(e.g.the bolo or panga machete)
 
They're good machetes, but I have heard that the quality control of their machete heat treats are a little spotty. I think its just a rumor, though. Politics and odd marketing tactics aside, Cold Steel is an excellant company as far as quality goes.

If you want a machete that is a step above in quality over the Cold Steel machetes, get one of the Ontario line up. Unless, of course, you won't buy Ontario, either. That's a whole 'nother can of worms...

Another good quality, low cost machete line-up is the Tramontina line.

All are good choices, just pick what you like best. Ontario would be my pick for quality, though.
 
i purchased a cold steel machete and i was pretty impressed. aside from the lack of OOB sharpness, i was very pleased with it. did a "milk jug" test and it still works smoothly to this day.
 
I have purchased two Cold Steel machetes and the edges on both of them out of the box were crap. Folded over in some places, etc. They have worked okay since I sharpened them. Not many companies can compare with the variety of Cold Steel's machete line.
 
I LOVE Cold Steel knives, and I hate their machetes. They come from the factory dull as a brick and they have a sticker attached to it that's pasted on, and which can't be removed. If it were just paper, it would eventually wear away, but there's some sort of Latex coating that makes the sticker water resistant. If you try to tear it off, you won't get very far. (Funny...they don't show the sticker in their catalog photos.)

The handles, balance and overall construction is good, but you have to remove the rust coating from the edge before it can be sharpened, and that's a pain.

If the sticker doesn't bother you, and you have one of those big carbide sharpeners, go for it. Otherwise, pick up a machete at your local hardware store. As long as the blade's not stainless steel you'll be okay.

LATIN%20MACHETE.JPG


Forget about removing the sticker!
 
ithink that just their expesive hit is a rip off

their cheap stuff i actually good quality for money
 
yeah maybe, i'm not caculating against ebay prices

coz ebay is such a drag

but cmpared to the crap you find in B&R shops, you got very decent quality from the cheap(!!!) CS products

like for example the "roach belly" or that thrower knife

tft 80

great stuff for it price

welll forget the tft80, i bought it as a "survival knife":cool:
 
They are good machetes and like every machete I have bought, Tramontina, CS, Ontario etc, they have to be sharpened.
 
You'll have to take a file to it and do a little work when you get it because the edge is coated and is dull as a turd.

do a little work to it and it should be fine.
 
Confederate said:
I LOVE Cold Steel knives, and I hate their machetes. They come from the factory dull as a brick and they have a sticker attached to it that's pasted on, and which can't be removed. If it were just paper, it would eventually wear away, but there's some sort of Latex coating that makes the sticker water resistant. If you try to tear it off, you won't get very far. (Funny...they don't show the sticker in their catalog photos.)

The handles, balance and overall construction is good, but you have to remove the rust coating from the edge before it can be sharpened, and that's a pain.

If the sticker doesn't bother you, and you have one of those big carbide sharpeners, go for it. Otherwise, pick up a machete at your local hardware store. As long as the blade's not stainless steel you'll be okay.

LATIN%20MACHETE.JPG


Forget about removing the sticker!
Click to expand...


removing the sticker is super ez, use a hair dryer!

lift a very small edge off the sticker, then put a hot hair dryer to it, and SLOWLY peel. it will come off with no residue at all.

thanks mom...
 
Tramontinas are prefered for light vegetation/palm fronds/vines/young saplings/etc. Ontarios more for heavier work, starting at vines and saplings and moving towards hardwood limbing.
 
Of course you could by a tool that will do the work of a machete and can even serve as a light ax. The Woodsman's Pal has served as a military survival tool through quite a few wars, it is heavy enough to chop, baton, hammer, even serves as a SD weapon in a pinch. They are far tougher than a machete. Yes they cost more but you get what you pay for.
 
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