Trailmaster kraton handle

B

Buckshot

Joined
Mar 10, 1999
Messages
38
I still cant figure out what ol Lynn T was
thinking when he disigned the handle for
the trailmaster. The knife in carbon v is
big, stout, and extermely tough. And then
cold steel puts this joke wimpy handle on
it with no palm swell. I think cold steel
knives are great but ol Lynn needs to wake
up and smell the black coffee. I hear he is
stubborn as a bull ox!!
Buckshot
 
Buckshot,

Welcome to the forums.

I don't know whats Lynn's personality is like, but if he really is "stubborn as a bull," we should be grateful. He was stubborn enough to be the first to market a $100+ production knife back in the early 80s, which is a key reason why we are fortunate to have a variety of very high quality production knives available today. Personality and hype aside, this gentleman was a real pioneer who has created a very good set of products.

The Kraton handle was and remains today a sort of trademark of the cold steel line. The tacky feel was considered a novel and innovative solution when it was first used on the CS tanto. Unfortunately, it is not the best handle material for a full size bowie.

There is a stag version available which would probably be a better choice.
 
Lynn is actually a really nice person. My wife and I talked to him for over an hour once at a gun show in CA. I was the one that had made the original deal to get Cliff the Trailmaster and Recon Scout for testing and Lynn remembered that. He firmly believes that his products are the best in their class, handles and all. It would be very hard to change his mind. He also goes off on safari's and takes knives with him, so he is a heavy user.
 
Its not the rubber that bothers me to much
its the straight handle configuration. Theres
no swell to the grip and I have small hands.
The bottom line is its called time to update.
Its that simple. At least he could make a better version of the knife and put a diffrent style handle on it and if it costs
a little more so be it. Im sure Lynn is a very good guy but he should listen to customer feedback a little more because
we are the ones buying the products.
Buckshot
 
When we were doing the knife tests, the only knife handle I *really* had a problem with was the Trailmaster's - it was just really uncomfortable to use and especially uncomfortable when chopping... I agree, it's time for a redesign.

Spark

------------------
Kevin Jon Schlossberg
SysOp and Administrator for BladeForums.com

Insert witty quip here
 
According to numerous postings, many fixed blade production knives deliver all of the performance that their purchasers require. One of the stated problems with many production (and custom) knives is that there is a limited availability of handle choices both in style and material. Because "feel" is so important to most knife buyers/users, replacement of a factory handle with a custom handle can produce something that is unique and feels right to the most important authority----you. Several knifemaking books have sections in them on handle modification/replacement. For those unwilling/unable to do the work themselves, gun shows and art shows can sometimes turn up people willing to do this type of work. I personally rehandled more than 150 production knives prior to my getting out of the custom knife business three years ago. It was a great learning experience and it allowed me to assist dozens of my fellow knife nuts. Too bad that BF was not around when I was doing this type of work.
Bubba
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top