Who would be in for Cold Steel OTF's?

Who would be in for a Cold Steel OTF.

  • Yes!

    Votes: 6 50.0%

  • No.

    Votes: 6 50.0%
  • Total voters
    12
Jack of All Blades

Jack of All Blades

Platinum Member
Joined
Nov 12, 2017
Messages
1,693
Over the past week or so I've been looking for an OTF knife on the web, but so far, nothing seemed to stick out or draw my attention.
Then Something occurred to me. All these knives are nearly the same. 2-4 inches blade length, Aluminum cnc handles, and same overall size. My mind sees all these OTFs from knife companies and goes "BORING!! Where can i find a 6 inch OTF fighter with a 3/16th thick blade, A hefty bastard with a steel shell instead of aluminum(or at least thicker aluminum)?
OTFs don't fold and are already one of the strongest knife concepts simply by design. Something is missing. Why isn't a company utilizing this 21st century design to make larger hard use OTF knives or even short swords."

And then I realized, I was looking for something that didn't exist. A Cold Steel OTF Line.

Hopefully this thread turns into a death chant for a Bomb proof Cold Steel OTF.
 
Don't hold your breath.

As I recall, when Lynn Thompson sold Cold Steel part of the deal was that he retained exclusive rights to produce and sell certain items, and one of the items is switchblades. I could be wrong, but I interpreted that to mean that GSM/Cold Steel cannot produce switchblades.

On a related note, OTF autos sometime require factory maintenance/repair/warranty work, and from what I've seen, GSM/Cold Steel isn't a company I would rely on for that. Cheap OTF's should be considered disposable (no warranty work), and expensive OTF's should come with a good warranty that is actually backed up by the maker.

As for Lynn Thompson, I waited for him to start producing autos. Glad I didn't hold my breath. Still no auto's from LT. I got tired of waiting so I made my own.
 
Welp...yeah , if LCT and his guys had made an OTF, it would have been to your liking . :cool:

The new ownership has not been inspired to follow in those footsteps , so far at least . :(

Still waiting on their steel balisong .
 
I'm guessing that LT is in his 60s and just got a big ol' payout. That's how these things work: You sell your company and negotiate what is and isn't included, typically stick around long enough for them to hire on someone who can supposedly do what you do, then lay low and keep your trap shut via a noncompete. I applaud the zaniness that is LT's CS. A Trailmaster was my first "expensive" knife costing over $100. I still buy the goofy stuff, and when I'm not feeling all knife snobby, a basic CS folder sporting AUS10 rides in my pocket as often as my higher end stuff.

That said, OTF are niche and boujee. They are tougher than they look, but are typically premium in material and price. They also seem to scale larger as you take them to larger sizes. That is to say, a Combat Troodon fits in my pocket and sports a 4" blade. A Halo requires a belt holster both due to the firing mechanism as well as the massive size.

Too many intricate parts for a company that can't seem to stock pocket clips. hard pass.
 
I guess if LCT were to sell knives again, there is probably lead time to get a product to market. Also, there is the issue of the Tri-ad lock. When does that patent expire again? I can't see Lynn putting out knives with an average locking mechanism after what he did at CS. Maybe he and AD can collaborate again, who knows.

I suppose these would be pretty limited runs, and mostly for collectors with deep pockets.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top