The Xl range: Recon 1 & Voyagers. I have a question.

I

Iblametheparents

Joined
Mar 13, 2015
Messages
86
Hello all.

I bought a few bits & pieces for throwing fun here in the UK last week. A Norse hawk & a true flight thrower.

& because I have always wanted one, I picked up the Vaquerro XL.

It is FAB! I have absolutely no idea what I am going to do with it but I love the bloody thing. Like a kukri/bowie/yatagan hybrid.

When I travel internationally I usually take a Spyderco resilience as a food/camp/utility/back pocket SP knife (along with a SAK), this might be coming with, next trip. :-)

Anyway, I now fancy another of the XLs for the collection. I already have a Recon 1 bowie, 4" blade but I am intrigued if the blades (Bowie/Tanto) on the recon XL's are the same blades that are on the Voyager Xl's?

They look the same apart from the coating.

If they are, is the price difference & materials worth one over the others?

Any help/knowledge much appreciated.

Cheers.

Matt
 
Yes the blade shapes are generally the same, just 1.5-inch bigger and a bit thicker.

They are still fairly easy to carry, just make sure you have deep enough pockets.

The easiest way to open them up is by snapping them open via gravity or inertial force.

Edited to add:

I wasn't trying to be rude, just was in too much of a hurry.

Here is a great, short video that compares six of the XL Cold Steels:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3k7oBSDhp5k
 
Last edited:
Yes. Thank you . I know they are bigger.

And that inertial opening is fast. Both the standard Recon 1 and vaquerro xl fly out. Does affect lock up though. I often get play. So tend to use the thumb studs.

What I am asking is, the tanto and the Bowie blade on the recon xl and the voyager xl look like EXACTLY THE SAME BLADE except teflon coated for the recon.

Is my perception correct?

If so of those who own both recon and voyager XL models, which do they prefer?
 
They're similar, but not the same blade. With the clip points, the Recon XL is a broader blade.
 
On the Recon 1 XL Tanto, the top of the blade slopes down slightly towards the tip. (All sizes of the Recon 1 Tantos are like this.)

Most Tanto styles, from most knife companies, tend to be like this too.

On the Voyager XL Tanto, the top of the blade is straight all the way to the tip, instead of sloping down. (The 4-inch Voyager Tanto is like that also.)

If you have seen an Emerson Roadhouse Tanto, it is like that too.
 
Last edited:
Recon Tanto and Recon Bowie (clip point) XL have broader blades than their Voyager Counterparts.
They're coated, and the handle material is G10. The pre 2015 Recons have a cheap tuff-ex coating that easily wears off, but the new ones have a DLC coating that seems to be much tougher and wear resistant,
They weigh more, and their steel is different (in the 2015 models the Recons feature CTS-XHP steel whereas the Voyagers sport CTS-BD1 steel) since last year. On the pre 2015 models, both the Recons and the Voyagers used AUS-8 steel on their blades.

Hence the price difference (tougher handle material, coated blade, better steel) between them. Many see the Voyagers as "poor man's Recons", so to speak.
Hope it helps!
 
I have the Recon 1 XL plain edge clip point in CTS-XHP and I've been beating the hell out of it. Made tent pegs, fuzz sticks, broke down several cardboard boxes, carried night-and-day for a couple weeks now. Still amazingly sharp. Superb knife all around. I've sanded down the G10 a bit and put on a stubby lanyard/fob, but otherwise no mods. For what it's worth, the closing on mine became easier in shorter time than my other knives with Tri-Ad locks. This may vary in others of the same type. Conceals well and carries easily in appendix-carry-mode, wearing either cargo shorts or Levi 501s. I've owned and used many Cold Steel blades over the last 30 years, and this one is worth every penny, in my opinion.
 
I can only speak of the 4-inch Recon 1s for 2015 so far.

But, they seem to open and close much easier than the previous versions did.

I don't know for sure. I think that they have redesigned the tangs of the blades to be more of a circle than an oval shape to explain this.

The quality control is really good for these newer 2015 models.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top