What has happened to Cold Steel?

I used to really dislike CS. I found the vids silly and ridiculous. But one day I found a Spartan at the pawnshop for cheap. It was a knife that I thought I would hate more then anything. But I kinda fell in love with it!

Been a CS convert ever since. I especially like my Recons. CS even once sent me a free clip and thumbstud on a USED knife! Talk about awesome customer service/appreciation.

Using a cheaper steel is sadly just a sign a knife might be at the end of its product life. People don't get upset when Spyderco goes from S35vn to CTS BD1. I think I have even seen Kershaw use 3cr13 and never seen anyone bashing the company.
 
I'm pretty knife snobby but I still own CS knives and will likely by more

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I'm a Cold Steel fan. I think they make a good knife for the money. My Ultimate Hunter and Recon 1 are great knives and good value imo.

CS and their marketing (stabbing at swinging meat on a hook, etc) is 70% dumb, 30% funny imo. I can get past the marketing.

Replacing A2 with 4034 or whatever it is is bothersome but unless they start making a ton of products in that steel, I'm not going to worry too much.
 
We all know that Cold Steel makes some very good knives. I personally really love mine and I really enjoy to use them.

Only thing I dislike about them are secure-ex sheaths, which forced me to make my own out of denim and duct tape. My home made sheath is less practical but it won't dull my knife the way securex does. But knives on their own are 5/5, especially for the price.

I also understand that we knife enthusiasts are a minority. And Cold Steel marketing is targeting younger audience which is known to live in fantasy world sometimes, hence all that knife fight marketing. That audience also cares less about steel composition. They are honestly more into it because of it's looks, videos and fantasies behind those plus Cold Steel's name and reputation.

As someone who owns Warcraft Tanto I'm not person to talk trash about tactical knives. But I don't care about knife fights and I also never want to be a part of one, I bought that knife as a knife enthusiast, 5mm thick full tang 3V tanto blade is a great deal for that price. And I really enjoyed the car lifting video. This is the knife I can trust, and I'd never trust 4034 knife as opposed to this.
 
I'm a little torn - I've been a fan ever since buying a Recon 1 in 2004. I like the fact their knives are designed to be used - not just be some pretty safe queen.
Their videos (haven't really watched more than the early 'Proof' videos) were pretty revelatory - I don't think other manufacturers torture tested their knives on film back then!
I can understand the shift to a lesser steel - they've done some odd things before like the 4116 steel they had with the Leatherneck for a while. But this is a bit too far in the wrong direction if it is going to be reality and enduring.
I agree with a few posters so far who've said that we as aficionados are in the minority - sadly this is probably the case - we can appreciate paying £100 - £200 for 4" folding knife because we appreciate the high quality of the steel, the cost of production etc. How many of your non-knife keen friends will pay much more than £30- £50 for a folder? They probably wouldn't know a sabre from a hollow grind, wouldn't have a clue how to sharpen etc.
But they are the majority. And that's where you really make your money. But again, a really rubbish steel is not a great idea...
I hope it is not true/won't be enduring. Even if they moved back to AUS8 or AUS6 it would be better!
 
midnight flyer said:
...This was 17 years ago... maybe the folks here don't know everything after all. Betcha CS makes it another 17. I won't be here to see it but I would take that bet if I would be.

Robert
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Back during the 80s and early 90s, cold steel was positioned as premium brand, like Busse is today. Now they are considered a reasonable bargain and tomorrow they will be around as an importer of cheap junk.

Their lack of commentary on the recent threads is all anyone needs to see to understand that they don't care about us. Their success and arrogance is leading them to failure.

n2s
 
not2sharp said:
Cold Steel never was anything more then a brand name. Their products are all made by other makers and it looks like those makers have decided to market their own brands of quality production knives. CS has probably had to go well down the food chain to obtain junk to market under their brand name. Their old Carbon V stuff (which I believe was all actually made by Camillus) was very good; but, the newer stuff I can largely do without.

n2s
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not2sharp said:
Back during the 80s and early 90s, cold steel was positioned as premium brand, like Busse is today. Now they are considered a reasonable bargain and tomorrow they will be around as an importer of cheap junk.

Their lack of commentary on the recent threads is all anyone needs to see to understand that they don't care about us. Their success and arrogance is leading them to failure.

n2s
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Maybe you will get your wish and Cold Steel will be out of business by 2037.
 
As i posted this in the Cold Steel forums,I think a few bladeforums members should chip in and buy one of these sardine cans when it comes out and do a passaround,just for the laughs.
 
@afishhunter, GREAT post. Your hands on commentary about steels and their uses and performance are the same as mine.

Probably 25 years ago I bought a Kershaw "whiskey river" or something similarly named with an AUS6 blade. At that point in my life I had been carrying all types of blades with all types of steels, with no problem sharpening them. The AUS 6 was so damn hard on that blade I went out and bought my Lansky so I could nail a good bevel and a sharp edge. The old Arkasas stones I used couldn't get it done, at least not in this lifetime. Done well, AUS6 can be great.

Likewise my Browning Folding Hunter. It came in 440C, was advertised as "handmade" which probably meant hand assembled and tuned. That steel is hard, hard, hard. Many a camp chore, animal carcass and job site task has been dispatched easily with that knife. It is the first knife I took hunting with only a small ceramic stone for touch ups.

I am remembering too, that another construction worker here advised me to get an American Lawman as a great work knife. At that time almost all CS folders were blades with their take on AUS8. It too has been a great work knife.

The old Kershaw, Browning and CS AL all hold an edge better than my Kershaw JD in D2 and my ZT in S35. (I do have to say though, that the ZT S35 is smooth and buttery soft. You can sharpen it on just about anything. Love the knife, but HT on this ZT stinks.)

I know it makes a lot of folks feel good to use an easy target as an entertaining point of derision. As noted here some people are feeling ignored or that their voice isn't being heard. So they wait like vultures in a tree waiting for something to die.

For all we know, this is a cost-cutting measure to help keep Cold Steel afloat. For many of us in this Covid-19 related environment. these are desperate times. Who knows, maybe they are saving money to stay in business. Maybe as pointed out earlier, these models have reached the end of their life expectancy and Cold Steel is just looking to keep them in their catalog.

I am sorry to see them downgrade their steel, but over the last few decades the market, not BF, has responded well to the overall direction of the company. With the GAO reporting that as many as 30% of small businesses will not survive the pandemic, I hope CS will be around.

I have my fingers crossed that this is part of a well thought out plan, kind of like Kershaw selling some of their hot sellers (think Blur) in a few different steels. Who knows... maybe we will see some of the old favorites back next year with different steels again.
Hope so. I don't want to see another USA based company be the punchline of a failure joke.

Robert
 
midnight flyer said:
@afishhunter, GREAT post. Your hands on commentary about steels and their uses and performance are the same as mine.

Probably 25 years ago I bought a Kershaw "whiskey river" or something similarly named with an AUS6 blade. At that point in my life I had been carrying all types of blades with all types of steels, with no problem sharpening them. The AUS 6 was so damn hard on that blade I went out and bought my Lansky so I could nail a good bevel and a sharp edge. The old Arkasas stones I used couldn't get it done, at least not in this lifetime. Done well, AUS6 can be great.

Likewise my Browning Folding Hunter. It came in 440C, was advertised as "handmade" which probably meant hand assembled and tuned. That steel is hard, hard, hard. Many a camp chore, animal carcass and job site task has been dispatched easily with that knife. It is the first knife I took hunting with only a small ceramic stone for touch ups.

I am remembering too, that another construction worker here advised me to get an American Lawman as a great work knife. At that time almost all CS folders were blades with their take on AUS8. It too has been a great work knife.

The old Kershaw, Browning and CS AL all hold an edge better than my Kershaw JD in D2 and my ZT in S35. (I do have to say though, that the ZT S35 is smooth and buttery soft. You can sharpen it on just about anything. Love the knife, but HT on this ZT stinks.)

I know it makes a lot of folks feel good to use an easy target as an entertaining point of derision. As noted here some people are feeling ignored or that their voice isn't being heard. So they wait like vultures in a tree waiting for something to die.

For all we know, this is a cost-cutting measure to help keep Cold Steel afloat. For many of us in this Covid-19 related environment. these are desperate times. Who knows, maybe they are saving money to stay in business. Maybe as pointed out earlier, these models have reached the end of their life expectancy and Cold Steel is just looking to keep them in their catalog.

I am sorry to see them downgrade their steel, but over the last few decades the market, not BF, has responded well to the overall direction of the company. With the GAO reporting that as many as 30% of small businesses will not survive the pandemic, I hope CS will be around.

I have my fingers crossed that this is part of a well thought out plan, kind of like Kershaw selling some of their hot sellers (think Blur) in a few different steels. Who knows... maybe we will see some of the old favorites back next year with different steels again.
Hope so. I don't want to see another USA based company be the punchline of a failure joke.

Robert
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The problem is that SK5 has PROVEN to be an excellent steel in many of these exact models. It's certainly cheap and it's properties are well suited to large, tough blades. The switch to a cheap SS really makes no sense. If they said they were expanding the use of this steel in folders, which they've obviously done already, it would be a reasonable, though regrettable, change. For large fixed blades, it just seems out of left field.

I hope they stay in business. I've bought a boatload of their knives, canes, blowguns, etc. over the last three decades. As I've said many times before, some of their items are best in class and it'll suck to lose those.
 
Cold Steel seems to get the most out of their blade steels.
And they make knives for user enthusiasts, not collector enthusiasts.
 
I was always turned off to the brand by the goofy commercials but have an open mind about knives and tried one, then another and today ... I'm a fan.
Cold Steel knives provide value for the money, perform very well for their price point which makes using them - as in really using them more enjoyable ... at least for me, anyway.

Their customer service, which I used for a clip and some screws, was excellent. With knives, customer service is important to me. Cold Steel didn't try to nickel and dime me on minor things like some companies do to their customers.
 
I’ve owned several Cold Steel products and they have all been solid performers. IMO Cold Steel is the high end version of Frost Cutlery. They make a lot of nice knives, but they also produce some of the goofiest products that particularly appeal to the mall ninja crowd.
 
insta9ves said:
Kept seeing people crap on CS on this forum over the last few years, now suddenly everyone is a CS fan. o_O
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Don't you worry.

The Secret Shinobi Society of East Park Plaza is paying attention to all the jesting and whatnot. I've already said too much most likely, but the vengeance of the Shadow Warrior is a terrible thing to behold!
 
Cold steel produces a wide range of products. Many of which have been excellent. But, if they fail to engage collectors they are not going to be selling many of their pricy knives. Most of the public out there thinks blowing more than $50 on a knife is an indication of insanity. Their failure to engage the collector market speaks volumes. Why not carry on the conversation on this and similar sites? There is no hard and fast rule that prohibits the making of quality products, even if it has to be made on a sprint run; so that cheaper products can be produced to generate the necessary sales volume. I don't understand why you would produce a Trailmaster in such a cheap steel. It seems destine to generate a constant stream of blade failures, ill will, and unflattering videos. But, if you are going to do that, at least offer upgraded versions in better steels, with improved handles and sheaths. It will give the new comers something to aim for and established collectors a reason to remain interested in the brand.

n2s
 
Not sure about cold steel because I have yet to own one.

however, the demko AD20 is my current favorite knife by a long shot!

I am now ready to delve into cold steel.
 
I have a bunch of CS knives and have been a fan since the late 90s when I was a teenager. I love most of the products that I have from them.

But their customer service sucks. I sent an SR1 in for mild repairs back in mid February of this year and have still not received it back. When I call them, a few times now, the cs rep says that he is going to check it out personally and call me back. Haven't gotten a single bit of response or help. Just more aggravation. I want my knife back!

No corona excuses either. I sent knives to both Benchmade and Leatherman the same day and had them both back by mid April.
 
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