Counterfeit, anyone?

jlauffer · Dec 7, 2021

jux t said:
I was browsing the used market. Do you know of any ways to tell them apart? That is what this thread is about, after all.

They are so inexpensive I would just buy brand new from a reputable dealer. I used to see one on ebay that I swear didn't have the hollows in the scales, and I've seen others that are linerlocks instead of Triad.

The Whip · Jan 23, 2022

-Steve

DocJD · Jan 23, 2022

The Whip said:
-Steve

Those are refreshingly NOT even close to anything CS .

nephron · Jan 23, 2022

DocJD said:
Those are refreshingly NOT even close to anything CS .

I'm not so sure, I could easily see this as a leaked item, a new offering for 2022 coming out any day now!! I hope I can get a pre-order soon!!

Corn Knife · Jan 24, 2022

Wrong logo for the GSM variety, too bad I was hoping for a zombiefied version with a dull blade and non-functional lock.

Dwaffle · Jan 28, 2022

Awhile ago I bought a Carbon 5 double edge blackened subhilt fighter knife off ebay. It looks legit to me, but I've never been able to get a satisfactory edge on it. While trying, I probably did more harm than good. Im not good at sharpening and fear my attempts may make it harder to tell if its a counterfeit since the grinds all wonky now. I'll include some pics later to see if anyone has any thoughts. Any recommendations on how I could sharpen it better (angles, steps, etc.) or where to send it for a pro sharpening/reprofiling would be appreciated.

The Whip · Jan 29, 2022

Dwaffle said:
Awhile ago I bought a Carbon 5 double edge blackened subhilt fighter knife off ebay. It looks legit to me, but I've never been able to get a satisfactory edge on it. While trying, I probably did more harm than good. Im not good at sharpening and fear my attempts may make it harder to tell if its a counterfeit since the grinds all wonky now. I'll include some pics later to see if anyone has any thoughts. Any recommendations on how I could sharpen it better (angles, steps, etc.) or where to send it for a pro sharpening/reprofiling would be appreciated.

What you're describing is the Carbon V OSS. To my knowledge, that was never counterfeited.

-Steve

tess_lawrie_fan · Feb 2, 2022

It seems legit, but... it's legit?

nephron · Feb 3, 2022

tess_lawrie_fan said:
It seems legit, but... it's legit?

Yes its a real one.

tess_lawrie_fan · Feb 3, 2022

nephron said:
Yes its a real one.

Thank you!

The Whip · Feb 3, 2022

tess_lawrie_fan said:
It seems legit, but... it's legit?

I've never seen anyone successfully counterfeit that San Mai line. It's a telltale sign of the genuine article.

-Steve

tess_lawrie_fan · Feb 3, 2022

The Whip said:
I've never seen anyone successfully counterfeit that San Mai line. It's a telltale sign of the genuine article.
-Steve

Thank you!

nephron · Feb 4, 2022

The Whip said:
I've never seen anyone successfully counterfeit that San Mai line. It's a telltale sign of the genuine article.

-Steve

So true luckily because that is my main thing to look for. I did see one time someone put a groove there to mimic the SM Line, pretty lame/funny actually.

Hashishiin · Feb 13, 2022

I bought three CS knives, a GRIK, a Tanto Voyager XL and an Espada XL, for 350. The original deal was 300 for the Espada XL, and I said, "Hey, I may as well spend 150, what else you got?" and I feel like he hooked me up, but the price felt right and he has a ton of CS. Grind lines are parallel to blade and look perfect. New logo, old on clip for Espada XL. Who counterfeits a GRIK, but then again, who counterfeits a Tuff-Lite? I have seen TL fakes. Ha! Can you imagine?

I am thinking of buying some more CS off of the dude because it was awesome. Have there been any Black Talon fakes? I am thinking about a Black Talon, another Voyager, and I have heard great things about the Recon and it's strong tip for EDC. But that Grik I have, man, that is such a perfectly UGLY little knife, I love it, great for hard tasks.

The Whip · Feb 14, 2022

Hashishiin said:
I bought three CS knives, a GRIK, a Tanto Voyager XL and an Espada XL, for 350. The original deal was 300 for the Espada XL, and I said, "Hey, I may as well spend 150, what else you got?" and I feel like he hooked me up, but the price felt right and he has a ton of CS. Grind lines are parallel to blade and look perfect. New logo, old on clip for Espada XL. Who counterfeits a GRIK, but then again, who counterfeits a Tuff-Lite? I have seen TL fakes. Ha! Can you imagine?

I am thinking of buying some more CS off of the dude because it was awesome. Have there been any Black Talon fakes? I am thinking about a Black Talon, another Voyager, and I have heard great things about the Recon and it's strong tip for EDC. But that Grik I have, man, that is such a perfectly UGLY little knife, I love it, great for hard tasks.

Glad you've found a reliable source and are enjoying your knives! No Grik or Black Talon counterfeits that I've seen. I suspect that the Grik is too inexpensive and unique to bother counterfeiting. I wouldn't be surprised to learn of fake Black Talons, but it's a pretty specialized, hard-to-reproduce blade for a niche market. I can't see a lot of profit in knocking them off, though I thought the same thing about the Immortal and apparently I was wrong about that....

-Steve

RDog · Feb 25, 2022

I've been seeing two handle versions of the Warcraft Tanto, one the contoured, ergo, sloping one, the other being "straighter and more blocky" I looked for the second type on in the CS catalogs but have not seen it, but never have heard or seen anyone saying this is a fake? Anyone know anything?

Your Name Goes Here · Feb 25, 2022

I think the information you are looking for can be found on page 42 and 43 of the GSM / Cold Steel catalog

https://www.gsmoutdoors.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/COLD_STEEL_2022.pdf

Hashishiin · Feb 25, 2022

I am very sure that my knives are legitimate, but could someone confirm that the size of the font has gotten smaller in the newer iteration of the Espada XL? As I mention in a comment earlier in the thread, I have two Espada XLs, a fancy one, that may be from before the GSM sale. I bought it like new in January and it seems perfect. But, the thing that makes me ask if GSM changed the font size, is the regular G10 version I got on sale at BHQ after the new batch, presumably from GSM, came about. The font, where it says AUS10A and Taiwan, is smaller than on the fancy Espada.

I got that one from a reputable dealer, though, so that is sure to be real. Can anyone confirm this about the font sizes?

xingfan1227 · Mar 7, 2022

Hi all,

I recently purchased four Magnum tanto xii in CPM3V from Cold Steel's Amazon store (sold&shipped by Amazon).

Two of them have different patterns at the tip from the other two.

The length of the two "kinds" are also off by about 1/8", as you can see below:

Length comparison of different patterns:

Length of the same patterns are exactly the same.

Also, it's not easy to show it in the pictures, but one pair has a slightly wider cutting edge, and thus a deeper choil, than the other pair.

Does anyone know if this is a counterfeit issue? or possibly a different production period or something? I have contacted Cold Steel's support but haven't heard back.

Thanks in advance!

Your Name Goes Here · Mar 7, 2022

xingfan1227 said:
Hi all,

I recently purchased four Magnum tanto xii in CPM3V from Cold Steel's Amazon store (sold&shipped by Amazon).

Two of them have different patterns at the tip from the other two.

The length of the two "kinds" are also off by about 1/8", as you can see below:

Length comparison of different patterns:

Length of the same patterns are exactly the same.

Also, it's not easy to show it in the pictures, but one pair has a slightly wider cutting edge, and thus a deeper choil, than the other pair.

Does anyone know if this is a counterfeit issue? or possibly a different production period or something? I have contacted Cold Steel's support but haven't heard back.

Thanks in advance!

In your last picture, the two knives on the right - where the blade meets the handle - it looks like there are small gaps ?

From the real knives I have seen, the "fit and finish" of the Magnum Tanto XII is very exact. There should be no gaps. I am not saying your knives are real of fake. This is just what I have seen with knives I know to be real (seeing them at Cold Steel, Ventura, CA - when that existed ).

Counterfeit, anyone?

Tempt not the Blade