San Mai Laredo Bowie Question...

El_Toro

El_Toro

Joined
Oct 6, 2006
Messages
837
Does the San Mai Laredo Bowie have a full threaded stick tang, instead of the wire tang the carbon steel models have?
 
I think it may do.

I'm just cursing the price increase in shipping because I want an O-1 Natchez, and the shipping I've seen on eBay is about $40 now.
 
Yes, the San Mai III laredo bowie has a solid rod tang, instead of the cable tang in the carbon steel version. Both are great bowie knives. I wouldn't be afraid of the cable tang in the carbon steel version, as it's been proven that it's very strong. I have never heard of the cable tang failing. Many people have beaten the crap out of the carbon steel version to test it. I think the SMIII version is necessary only if you want corrosion resistance and zero maintenance.
 
GrReaper says solid rod, Murindo wire/cable, and Freman doesn't know. I think I'm going to shoot Cold Steel an e-mail to find out unless someone knows for sure, lol.
 
So what is it about these wire tangs that make them so strong that they can compete with a full tang?
 
I'm just a knife nut, not an engineer or knife maker, but the way I understand it, the carbon steel version has a short half tang + welded on cable tang + end nut. So this combination tang is partly flexible and absorbs shock, and at least theoretically, failure would be practically impossible from a hard chopping shock to the blade. While the tang may be strong, this does transfer a lot of stress to the handle material which supports the flexible tang, so under extreme abuse, it could be the handle material that fails on you, not the tang itself. Like I said, I've never heard of any failures, despite a lot people testing it to the limits. But CS reps will recommend the full tang trailmaster for hard use wood processing, not the laredo. So I don't know if you could say that it competes with full tang. I wouldn't use the laredo to chop down 3-4 inch thick trees or thick branches or baton with it. It's a fighting knife and a light use camp knife.
 
Pretty much what Reaper says. The Laredo and Natchez are not utility or camp knives. They're fighting knives and CS believe the way they've designed the tangs makes them better for that purpose. That said, edge on edge combat doesn't occur much these days, so that particular function will probably never be tested.

I'm just going to keep saving and get an O-1 Natchez.

Till then I'm going to have to be satisfied with my modified GI Tanto.

For the record it is an awesome budget knife.

17637683104_97c52ce779_b.jpg
 
@ Freman Bloodgraive Yeah, man, I like it! The prices on the Natchez are pretty high right now because of the change over to O-1 steel and the new black micarta handles, with correspondingly high demand. I think a fair retail price would be around $140-160 shipped, which might happen towards the end of the year, around November maybe. Keep checking those prices every few weeks and get it when it bottoms.
 
I been hard using my SM Laredo, and been chopping with it for the last four years without a care in the world.....still as good as the day it came out the box.
 
Both the Laredo (either version) and the Trail Master will camp and fight well. The main differences is the weight distribution, which gives the nod to the Laredo for fighting, and the Trail Master to camping. The Trail Master's weight is slightly more forward for chopping, and the Laredo's closer to the guard for quickness. Though both knives work well for both uses, the Laredo also has an extra inch of blade length which adds to its usefulness in fighting.
 
... the Laredo also has an extra inch of blade length which adds to its usefulness in fighting.


Whew...don't know what I'd do without that extra inch of blade length during my monthly duels. ;')
 
ichor said:
... the Laredo also has an extra inch of blade length which adds to its usefulness in fighting.


Whew...don't know what I'd do without that extra inch of blade length during my monthly duels. ;')
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Snicker as much as you want, but I know many, many people who will carry these for self defense and have no desire or intent on dueling. They conceal much easier than most people believe.
 
Look, I collect Bowies I have about 2 dozen, including all the CS Bowies being discussed here, and MANY other combat knives. I Love'em. But, in this day and age, the idea of worrying about whether I'm carrying a 9" or 12" blade I find amusing. Where's your sense of humor? Folks take themselves too seriously.
 
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Yeah, it was amusing, thx for the joke, I liked it. But I myself greatly prefer the 10 1/2 inch blade over a 9 incher. As a matter of fact, I think anything under 9 1/2 is not a real bowie knife! The extra inch and a half does make a big difference in power and reach. The limit seems to be about 11 1/2 to 12 inches. Any bigger and it starts getting too awkward and cumbersome. Of course, a much bigger man might be able to handle one even bigger, but usually a bowie in that range seems to be just right for most everybody.
 
Mike Sastre said:
Snicker as much as you want, but I know many, many people who will carry these for self defense and have no desire or intent on dueling. They conceal much easier than most people believe.
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It's only gotta happen once to be warranted.
 
GrReaper said:
Here is the link to discussion on Cold Steel's forum:
Specifically, check out message number 21 on 3/20/2009 by CS Super Moderator. http://coldsteelforums.com/tm.aspx?m=224&high=san+mai+laredo+tang
He said "The SK-5 Laredo bowie is made using cable full tang, but as for the San Mai III Laredo bowie, it follows the same construction, but instead of cable a solid rod is used."
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Thanks for that information, I ordered an San Mai III version over the weekend! To be honest though, the answer to my quesiton about the San Mai III is still up in the air. That post from 2009 says that the San Mai version uses a solid rod. I e-mailed Cold Steel customer service on Saturday and received this response today...

Thank you for your inquiry.

The Laredo Bowie and the Natchez Bowie feature a cable tang San Mai III and High Carbon Steel models. A heavy-duty cable is attached to the tang, which goes ½ way through the handle, and the cable is then attached to the pommel by a screw/nut assembly.

This is done intentionally, as the cable tang is very good at distributing shock and impact to the pommel rather than through the entire handle. This helps prevent vibration that will wear out the hand quicker, and extends the life of the handle as well.

We have been using the cable tangs for these models since their inception with tremendous success.
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Either the customer service representative is misinformed or perhaps Cold Steel has changed the tang design on the San Mai version since 2009. Either way, I'm sure I'll be happy with the knife. I ordered the San Mai version because I wanted the corrosion resistance, with a solid tang as an added benefit in my view. That being said, if it does have a cable tang, I don't see myself abusing it in any way to warrant the handle breaking.

It would be nice though to get a definitive answer regarding the tang construction of the two different versions!:confused::confused::confused:
 
Hi
The San Mai model features the same construction process, but it utilizes a heat treated steel rod instead of a cable.
It serves essentially the same purpose, reducing weight and distributing shock
Thanks
 
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