What about Cold Steel?

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May 23, 2005
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I'm thinking of buying a knife from Cold Steel. Probably the R1 Military Classic or the Tai PAN dagger (a dagger is still missing in my collection). Addicted as I am, I will end up with both I'm afraid...;)
A few questions though about Cold Steel. First of all, I live in the Netherlands, were there is NO knife-culture at all. Knife shops as you know them, simply don't exist here! (Yes, this is the sad truth....:() So I can't simply visit a shop and check out for myself.

My questions to you:

- How is the general quality of Cold Steel knives?
- What about the VG-1 San Mai III Steel? I saw a clip about the Tai Pan on YouTube, and it looks incredible strong to me... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cnUuom1HABI
- does San Mai Steel hold an edge and is it easy to resharp?
- what about Kraton Handles?
- I understood that Cold Steel knives are incredibly sharp right out of the box?
- are there any members who have experience with Cold Steel knive, preferably with the two I mentioned?

Thanks in advance...
 
Look carefully at the clip, you can see when he bent the knife, but they don't show the knife after. I have 2 knives in San Mai ( Spectre and Caledonian Edge ), I used and carried only one of them ( Spectre ) and I'm not impressed about the edge ( VG 10 is better ), it looks cool, but overall is to expensive, i'll never buy another VG 1 San Mai knife.
 
I have two Cold Steels, both in San Mai III. Don't know if that's VG-1 or not.

The one - Magnum Tanto II - is amazingly sharp, and it holds the edge. I've only had to touch it up once or twice in the 3 years I've had it.

The other - Trailmaster - has a convex edge. Its' not screamingly sharp, but given its intended application, I don't think it should be.

I have done a bit of chopping with the Trailmaster and it handled the job very well. Granted the wood was not hard or anything so it hasn't really been tested.

I don't have an issue with Kraton. Its grippy and comfortable to hold, but obviously is not as durable as micarta or G-10. If you drop the knife in the fire, it will melt. : )

If you keep an eye out on the exchange, you can get Cold Steel stuff for a good price. I would buy 'em used if you can. The R1 is a pretty good price new though, for what you get, if you don't want to wait. It has a micarta handle, not kraton.

Right now, the Tai-Pan is the only other CS knife I would want, its a pretty spectacular dagger and very fast in the hand. But I think the Magnum Tanto II is a stronger knife. Hell, its a brute.
 
Kraton handles....

* They do offer a lot of grip. That being said, it is so sot that it will start to show ware just from your hand after a few months of regular use.

* They ARE hygroscopic. They will absorb any liquids and chemicals they come into contact with.

* You can NOT pound on them. Even if the knife in question has a full tang, battoning one pass through a 2" diameter, 18" branch is enough to permanently loosen the molded grip from said full tang.

* In short, while it is easy to grip, its not very durrable at all. This goes for ALL kraton, not just Cold Steel. CS and SOG seem to use it on EVERYTHING, while nobody else uses it for anything.

Resharpening / sharpness

* My AUS 8 full serrated Kobun came very sharp. I haven't used it much at all because CS microscopic serrations would be impossible to sharpen if they ever got dull. Its a safe queen.

* My old 420 "sub zero quenched" Kobun came fairly sharp from the box. not as sharp as a Benchmade or a Spyderco, but still very sharp. When It got dull, I just couldn't get it that sharp ever again. I can get other knives much sharper, but for some reason the 420 SZQ just wont take its edge back.

* it should also be noted the the AUS 8 model has a chisel grind, while the older 420 SZQ model has a saber grind.
 
Hey everyone, the only cold steel product I own is the Gurkha kukri 39LGK and I have not had any of the above concerns or problems with this blade. I buy blades to be used and abused with no mercy and this product has done that and is ready for more. I threw my hatchet and camp axe in the shed and it is now my main chopper, spitter, etc etc. Go with your gut, and if u like the design, steel, etc then get it. I couldnt be happier with mine. Not to be a ____ (fill in blank), dont worry about the details if your gonna stare at it and sharpen it every once in while. As for a user, Ive yet to have any of the above concerns or problems with my blade. Regards, Tama
 
Tama43 said:
Hey everyone, the only cold steel product I own is the Gurkha kukri 39LGK and I have not had any of the above concerns or problems with this blade. I buy blades to be used and abused with no mercy and this product has done that and is ready for more. I threw my hatchet and camp axe in the shed and it is now my main chopper, spitter, etc etc. Go with your gut, and if u like the design, steel, etc then get it. I couldnt be happier with mine. Not to be a ____ (fill in blank), dont worry about the details if your gonna stare at it and sharpen it every once in while. As for a user, Ive yet to have any of the above concerns or problems with my blade. Regards, Tama
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With all due respect, you have not "abused it without mercy", because if you had the kraton handle would be worn out. They ware from normal use. i know first hand that they can fail from routine camp chores.

Kukris with traditional wooden handles will crack and need to be replaced a few times within the life of the blade itself. With that in mind i would never buy one with a kraton rubber handle. Im sure it will hold up for some time, but you can be sure it will fail long before the blade does. Problem with that is kraton handled knives are difficult to re handle once they fail.
 
Cold Steel makes good users in my opinion. Their fit and finish isn't quite as high as more expensive knives, but it doesn't seem too important on an affordable user. From my experience with their AUS-8 (which they used in their older San Mai and some of the newer ones) is that it comes very sharp, has decent wear resistance, and is very easy to sharpen.

I have not really abused my Kraton handled knives that much, but it doesn't seem as flimsy and weak as mr.trooper makes it seem. I do have a heavily used 2nd hand Ontario Spec Plus Tanto and the Kraton handle is in great condition. And I mean heavily used as in the coating was so worn out from chopping that the blade was repainted. I'm sure it'll wear and loosen with very hard use over time, so if you regularly use knives incredibly hard you may want to consider something else. CS, SOG, Ontario Knives, Ka-Bar, Benchmade, and numerous other companies use Kraton or similar materials in their handles, btw. It's not that uncommon a material.
 
Ok ill put it like this, ''I use the blade regularly without babying it'' hope that is more acceptable. I dont wanna argue with anybody but for me the handle is the least of my concerns. Yes I agree any handle will wear with time and usage even the bullet proof micarta, but who cares, it comes with the territory. Thats where 550 paracord comes into play. Im just saying Ive yet to see a problem with mine and its a regular user. Blade failure on a working knife is the no. 1 concern not the wearability of a rubber handle.(exuse me Kraton) Fallkniven is another one not mentioned who uses kraton. Regards, Tama
 
Only Cold Steel I have is the large Zytel Ti-Lite stiletto, which I bought in a moment of extreme nostalgia... *I had an Italian friend who had a rather stunning sister. I finally screwed up the courage to ask her out, but she ended up pulling a 9" Italian stiletto on me on our first date, explaining in no uncertain terms that I had better mind my manners or she would carve a hole around my navel. The relationship went know where, but I did fall in love with the look of that knife.*

Anyway, my Ti-Lite came very sharp, and I had no problems getting it sharper still...I can't fault the Aus8 steel on this particular example. Solid knife, overall fit and finish was great. *Real* strong blade lockup with zero play.
 
mr.trooper said:
* In short, while it is easy to grip, its not very durrable at all. This goes for ALL kraton, not just Cold Steel. CS and SOG seem to use it on EVERYTHING, while nobody else uses it for anything.
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What!?!:confused: You mean Fallkniven, Spyderco, Ontario and Ka Bar have been lying about some of the grip/inlay/handle material they've been using for all of these years?:rolleyes:

Regards,
3G
 
My CS mini-Kukri handle is all kraton and I've used that guy hard chopping down banana trees and the like - to the point of blistering up my hand. Last time I checked it was still OK.

I don't think its as soft as all that. Good, hard rubber is not a sissy material by any means. If people make watch straps out of it (rubber), it can't be that weak.
 
Buffalohump said:
I don't think its as soft as all that. Good, hard rubber is not a sissy material by any means. If people make watch straps out of it (rubber), it can't be that weak.
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Agreed! Don't forget, people make tires out of it, too.:thumbup:

Regards,
3G
 
You obviously haven't really used your tires or they would be loose and coming off the rims. I only buy micarta tires
 
I think Cold Steel offers a good to very good product for their folding and fixed blades under roughly $110 or so. Their San Mai products are priced way too high and you can get equally or better performing knives at lower prices IMHO. They do offer a lot of fun and weird items though.

Ultimately, if you like their high end stuff, go for it, you're the one who's gonna use it. If you're interested in suggestions for other brands, a lot of people would be glad to offer them.
 
I don,t think a person can do much better than cold steel they're hard to beat,short of a custom knife. I don't own the knives you are looking at but I own a cold steel SRK, Recon Scout, Bushman, and a Recon lockblade and all of them are excellent knives.
 
I've never used Kraton-handled knives a lot, but I don't see why they should be too different than the grips used on revolvers made by Pachmayr and others. The only significant enemy conventional rubber has is sunlight. My old diving gear would crack if exposed to too much sunlight. Then they came out with polychloroprene, which resisted air and light. Kraton similarly resists cracking, rotting, splitting, shrinking and fatigue, even at low temperatures, but is cheap (being found on Cold Steel's very inexpensive Night Shade series) and it tends to wear quickly, from what I've heard. My revolver grips don't see the same sort of wear a knife would, but I suspect Kraton's raised "prickles" would wear off fairly quickly, then stop, leaving a rubber covering.

It's unfortunate that it would be the weak link in otherwise good knives, but the knives should still be quite usable, even as the Kraton wears.
 
unreal i own 11 cs knives and luv um i test them all while pig hunting.try the new cheap ones for 20 bucks i skinned 2 pigs with the canadian belt knife the new krupp steel is mean i like -e. Now when we hunt i carry da 12 inch bowie mach. an the canadian belt knife..BIG BOAZ
 
kalama said:
unreal i own 11 cs knives and luv um i test them all while pig hunting.try the new cheap ones for 20 bucks i skinned 2 pigs with the canadian belt knife the new krupp steel is mean i like -e. Now when we hunt i carry da 12 inch bowie mach. an the canadian belt knife..BIG BOAZ
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2 cool 4 skool u be huntin dem big boarz an boaz wit da cold steelz

RegardZ,
3G
 
I own several CS knives. A few of the zytel folders which I think are better than the Spyderco version of zytel knives. Others will disagree I am sure but I have sold every Spyderco zytel I have had save for one and have kept my original versions of the Voyagers I own. I think blade design is better in the CS versions, lock up better and they are defintely ground thinner for better cutting imho.

I also own a couple of the Recon Scouts(older models from the early 90's) and one is beat to hell and back with just a slight loosening of the handle. The other I kept as a bed side buddy next to my .45 for years so all it really did was collect dust. I also have a Master Hunter from the first year they came out. It is 01 steel from what I was told by a fella CS and have used that as my main hunting knife for about 20 yrs if memory serves me. I know I am on my second sheath. Now I have owned more than a few custom hunting knives over the years and still rely on the Master Hunter as my main blade. It has done countless chores from digging out arrows, cutting shooting lanes, kindling up for fires, and skinning/cutting up/ and gutting many deer and one bear. Lots of small game and kitchen duties too.

Last but not least I also own the Hatamoto in San Mai steel. I like this knife so much I just ordered another one. My current user locks up solidly, for me has pretty good handle ergos, cosmetic build quality is very good with no unsightly gaps and the blade is sharp. Probably as sharp as any knife I have ever owned. I traded a CQC12 for this one and am happy I did. Now would I pay full retail for this knife? No way but trading for one and buying one off evil bay for about 180 bucks shipped is a good bargain in my opinion. I can't speak for the other CS high end folders but the Hatamoto will be the folder I carry the most, don't know why really but it has just caught my fancy so to speak. I have several handmade folders too and a few high end production folders but for some reason I just can't quite put my finger on I have decided the Hatamoto is the knife for me. Wierd but true. That's it, keepem sharp
 
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