Safe Keeper II : How can I tell what kind of steel do i have?

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_1634_

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Mar 27, 2005
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AUS-8 Safe Keeper II

After searching BF for a defense knife i settled on the Safekeeper II. Sadly, it seems that many members of BF do not like 420 Quenched steel for any of their knives so i tried to stear clear of this particular type; and while searching I stumbled upon the Safekeeper II in AUS-8 at the URL above.

Their return policy dictates that i can return the item if im dissastified but does cold steel have specs/material info on their boxes? Does AUS-8 have a different shade, color, texture etc. versus 420?

I would love to have this knife but if it is in 420 i can find it much cheeper somewhere else.

Thanks for your help!
 
From the pictures on the Cold Steel website the 420 Safekeepers look bead blasted rather than satin finished. That could just be how the pictures were taken. You might want to ask Cold Steel if this is the case.

While I don't really like the knife being in 420 it doesn't really matter in a pushdagger that is used mainly for self-defense. The Safekeeper III is a pretty good small utility knife so for that version getting it in AUS 8 would be more important than with the Safekeeper II.
 
It could just be old ad copy since the 420J version has been out for 2 years. The blade steel is not marked. CS might have changed the tang stamp to the newer version, but I've seen nothing to confirm this. It just looks like the newer ones have different writing.. If you buy it used and it comes with a leather sheath, it's definitely AUS8A.
 
Hmm, the finish is bead blasted ... :rolleyes:

Heres from the website:

-Steel: AUS 8-A Stainless Steel :confused:
-Overall Length: 6 3/8” Bead Blast Finish
-Sheath: Kydex Concealex boot/belt sheath included

Ive also heard that the AUS-8 ones were made in japan versus taiwan...if you have a safe keeper, does it say where it was made on the box/blade etc.?

Hopefully if i call cold steel there should be a way for them to figure out how...

:(
 
I have two CS catalogs, one from 2000 and one from 2003 with the 420 blades. In the 2000 catalog the Safekeepers are AUS 8 with a satin finish and a Concealex sheath and in the 2003 catalog they are 420 with a bead blasted finish and a "Secure-ex" sheath. The only difference in the markings of the knives in my catalogs is that the 420 blade has an "R" after the "Safekeeper II" logo.

The other problem is that the company selling the knife might not be really into knives so it is possible that they might be selling the newer Safekeepers without updating the page, leaving the old info and picture. A non-knife knut might not notice a difference between the two.
 
If the newer safekeepers are made in Taiwan, than country of origin is the way to tell the difference. The AUS8 were made in Japan. The ones I've seen had Japan on the tang and Cold Steel Ventura CA. on the handle.
 
I believe that most of the CS knives that are satin are going to be AUS-8. BB knives are 420, and black are Carbon V.
 
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