Probably a crap HT and/or just not really the advertised steel at all .Look up reviews on Amazon and see/read about all of the broken blades. I’m not so sure going the knockoff route is worth it.
Probably a crap HT and/or just not really the advertised steel at all .Look up reviews on Amazon and see/read about all of the broken blades. I’m not so sure going the knockoff route is worth it.
There have also been a lot of good reviews. We‘ll see if the latest 4034 knives do as well, and at 10x the price, they better do significantly better. That is hard to do when you are starting out with the lowest possible grade of cutlery steel and a poorly designed sheath that is known for quickly dulling much higher grades of steel.Probably a crap HT and/or just not really the advertised steel at all .
I really like the description of the 4034 Natchez Bowie:Here's a golden opportunity for some guinea pig to become the experimental sacrifice to really proof test the big new CS 4034 choppers !
On sale for ~50% off list , at Knife Center : https://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/...ld+steel+4034&steel=4034&s=1&sortType=priceDe
Still ridiculously overpriced , IMO , but I could be completely wrong .
Fun with Find & Replace!I really like the description of the 4034 Natchez Bowie:
"The very best in materials and workmanship is what makes performance like this possible. The blade is made of 4034 stainless steel. It’s costly and difficult to fashion, but the resulting blade it yields is virtually indestructible."
This was the exact text they used for the San Mai version:
"The very best in materials and workmanship is what makes performance like this possible. The blade is made of vacuum heat-treated VG-1 San Mai III blade construction. It’s costly and difficult to fashion, but the resulting blade it yields is virtually indestructible."
Welp , if you're gonna steal ad copy , you could do worse than the old CS stuff . Lot of it probably written by LCT , himself ?I really like the description of the 4034 Natchez Bowie:
"The very best in materials and workmanship is what makes performance like this possible. The blade is made of 4034 stainless steel. It’s costly and difficult to fashion, but the resulting blade it yields is virtually indestructible."
This was the exact text they used for the San Mai version:
"The very best in materials and workmanship is what makes performance like this possible. The blade is made of vacuum heat-treated VG-1 San Mai III blade construction. It’s costly and difficult to fashion, but the resulting blade it yields is virtually indestructible."
My opinion concerning this matter is this... If you're going to use low end/budget friendly stainless steel, make sure you price the product at a low end/budget friendly price.
Since they seem to have royally failed at achieving that, I personally won't even consider buying any of these.
Hit it on the head right there. This is like the equivalent of Spyderco releasing the Paramilitary 2 in 5Cr steel and selling that for $130.My opinion concerning this matter is this... If you're going to use low end/budget friendly stainless steel, make sure you price the product at a low end/budget friendly price.
Since they seem to have royally failed at achieving that, I personally won't even consider buying any of these.
That’s the crux of the matter right there. Why get a 4034 big blade for premium prices and with lackluster customer service? These knives would have been decent at the $60-$80 range. Would have been tempting just for playing around or decorating the wall.
It’s difficult to pick a $180+ 4034 kukri over a $120 BK9. Heck, you can get a decent big blade from Kailash for less then 180 bucks.
The problem is not that they are making their flagship knives in flea market steel -- though that is bad enough -- but that they are charging premium prices for those same knives while lying to uninformed buyers (people who trust the Cold Steel name) about what they are paying their top dollar for. From my perspective it is deceptive and bordering on fraudulent.
I wouldn't even pay $30 for a Taiwanese 4034 blade. 4034 is the lowest grade knife steel out there judging by it's composition. 420HC, 4116 and Sandvik are superior, and they are considered at the bottom end of the knife steel scale. This has to be worst thing I've ever seen a knife company do. Are they trying to destroy the Cold Steel name? This is nutty squared
Good point there. Not everyone is intimately familiar with knife steels. A beginner camper might take a 4034 knife to the woods expecting good performance. Well, hopefully the knife serves them well rather than suffering a catastrophic failure.This-- yes it is fraudulent. Outright fraud on less informed Cold Steel customers.
I knew GSM was up to no good when their first move was to immediately cancel Cold Steel's lifetime warranty. It was only because of the massive backlash that they brought it back. Of course, there really is no customer service at GSM for Cold Steel anymore. Lose a clip on your folder? Too bad
I was gaining respect for GSM before all of this. Now, I'm done. Been a Cold Steel fan since the 80s when I was a kid. No more.
The Lynn Thompson I knew bad-mouthed REKAT because they refused to license their Rolling Lock design to Cold Steel over 20 years ago. Without Andrew Demko contributing his knife and lock designs Lynn Thompson didn't really have that much to offer. Cold Steel (without Demko) makes a lot of fantasy warrior stuff that looks like they were inspired by United Cutlery.After reading this thread, my first thought was boycott GSM...
It's just behaving like a corporation, not the CS and Lynn we all grew up, grew old with.
The Lynn Thompson I knew bad-mouthed REKAT because they refused to license their Rolling Lock design to Cold Steel over 20 years ago. Without Andrew Demko contributing his knife and lock designs Lynn Thompson didn't really have that much to offer. Cold Steel (without Demko) makes a lot of fantasy warrior stuff that looks like they were inspired by United Cutlery.
Your words are accurate, Sir... And, they needed to be shared, thank youLet the flame wars begin, lol......
Here's what I have to say to Lynn only creating "United Cutlery" like stuff.....- The Cold Steel Voyager Folding Knives, The SRK, used by the Navy Seals BUDS Section, the Recon Tanto, carried all over the world by military forces, the Recon Scout and Trail Master, knives which inspired most of the modern woodsman bowie designs, the Cold Steel Bushman, The Master Hunter, the Outdoorsman Lite, the Recon 1, etc etc. I can go on and on, but I think you get the point. Yes, Andrew Demko was an awesome addition to Cold Steel and helped push Cold Steel folders to the next level with the Triad lock, but Cold Steel was not founded as a folder company. It was based primarily on the Tanto design, which Lynn/Cold Steel popularized in America beginning in 1981. Since then, Lynn has come up with countless unique designs as well as designs he has done with Demko. You are certainly free to feel however you want about Lynn, but comparing him to United Cutlery which was founded after he started Cold Steel, sounds like sour grapes to me.
I don't dispute what you are saying. And even before their Tri Ad Demko design folders. Their lockbacks were suspending grown men on monkey bars and pull up videos on their Pre Demko proof videos. If anything, United Cutlery were influenced by Cold Steel and are inferior products to Cold Steel pre GSM.Let the flame wars begin, lol......
Here's what I have to say to Lynn only creating "United Cutlery" like stuff.....- The Cold Steel Voyager Folding Knives, The SRK, used by the Navy Seals BUDS Section, the Recon Tanto, carried all over the world by military forces, the Recon Scout and Trail Master, knives which inspired most of the modern woodsman bowie designs, the Cold Steel Bushman, The Master Hunter, the Outdoorsman Lite, the Recon 1, etc etc. I can go on and on, but I think you get the point. Yes, Andrew Demko was an awesome addition to Cold Steel and helped push Cold Steel folders to the next level with the Triad lock, but Cold Steel was not founded as a folder company. It was based primarily on the Tanto design, which Lynn/Cold Steel popularized in America beginning in 1981. Since then, Lynn has come up with countless unique designs as well as designs he has done with Demko. You are certainly free to feel however you want about Lynn, but comparing him to United Cutlery which was founded after he started Cold Steel, sounds like sour grapes to me.