Why does everyone hate coldsteel?

I have some CS knives (SRK and Voyager) and like them. For the prices I think they are sound products. I know their advertizing can be misleading their marketting approach piss people off. My biggest beef is that their customer service doesn't seem to be that great.

Will
 
I don't think people hate Cold Steel so much. They do however seem to hate some of the things that they do and that their owner does. (Or that the company and the owner seem to do would probably be more accurate.)

First I think it bothers some that CS doesn't really make anything. (well they apparently do make videos) They are primarily just a marketing company. However that does not mean they sell bad products.

Some of their knives are quite nice. I've had a lot of fun with some of mine and I have been very impressed with the locks on the Voyagers and Vaqueros I have. My Recon Scout that I gave my son to take to Iraq with him served him quite well from what I understand.

Cold Steel sometimes does things that cause people to question their integrity though. Stuff like the following: on the surface it looks to many like they pretty much made an axis lock folder but just gave it a different name and made minor changes to the design just enough to 'make it legal' when they came out with the Recon 1 folder.

Whether or not this is true is always debateable though. When you actually look at that lock on the Recon 1 and study that folder it is indeed a different lock than an axis lock. Personally I believe we should be giving Lynn Thompson the benefit of the doubt but many of us sometimes show just how human we really are. Lynn has after all proven to be very honorable in the past. Just ask Sal Glesser. Lynn really doesn't owe anyone an explanation except the people holding the patent and from what I understand there is a patent pending on the Recon 1 lock mechanism so obviously he feels it is unique.

Of course that is not the only thing that has come up. It has been said that the "Black Sable" folder is a clone of an Ed Schempp design but when you study the design, you once again realize there are subtle differences. I think the point is that when you walk that gray area too much it just rubs people the wrong way.

Fact is Lynn may have burned some bridges in the past, but haven't we all? I still have a few CS knives on my wish list that I intend to purchase down the road. It really doesn't bother me that Cold Steel doesn't make the knives they sell. Hell, A.G. Russell doesn't make the knives he sells with his name on them and in many instances they are made in Seki City Japan where Lynn has some of his made. The fact that CS doesn't make anything has little to do with whether the knife is good or bad. IMO Seki City is putting out some of the best cutlery on the planet. A.G. wouldn't have it with his name on it if that were not the case.

Anyway, my take on this has changed some. I get a bit put out by Lynn's antics like everyone else does but I can be accused of beating to a different drum also so I don't hold that against him. If you see a knife you like get it. Just don't buy it from Cold Steel direct. Get it at Smokey Mt. Knife Works or somewheres else to save a few $. That is how I do it.

End Rant
 
I don't like the name of the company.

I don't like any of their designs.

Their FRN or whatever the handles are made from feel way cheap to me.

Lastly, I think the owner is a jerk.

Just my opinion :)
 
Ahh, a beautiful knife....

csstoreonline_1853_524524


What the heck IS san mai though?

So what's the fuss around this one?

I mean, other than it's 400 dollars!

Come on, at some point, customs start to look very reasonably priced....
 
it's gray area though. that's like how people argue that websites are rip-offs due to similarity. I mean there are only so many ways you can make a knife, just like there are only so many ways you can design a website. Eventually you're just gonna run flat out of new fresh ideas, so :shrug:

Curved blade with a curved handle... I mean you could make the reverse argument that Brian Tighe's design loosely resembles a fancy cold steel scimitar.

then again, the CS black talon is more or less a redone spydero civilian, and the hatamoto looks a lot like a buck strider. so for this particular trio of knives (black talon, black sable, hatamoto) i think lynn thompson might have just "borrowed" some creativity since he was running out of ideas :cough:
 
I have more than a few cold steel products, and like them all. But, they have taken a turn to making what apear to be clones (the nicest way to put it) of popular knives already on the market. Go with what you enjoy and form your own opinion.
 
I haven't looked at Cold Steel in years. They used to have a very good competitive upscale Carbon V product line that competed well with the likes of Al Mar, Gerber, Blackjack, and SOG, and were a definite notch above the more commercial brands like Buck (excluding their customs department), Kershaw, Western, Case (Coleman years), and Sharade. But, they have since taken a real dive for the bottom and have pumped the market full of junk knives.

20 years ago Cold Steel was among the top tier of production knives; at that point Randall, Chris Reeves, Busse were all considered custom knife makers. That latter group has since come to dominate the high end production market and other makers like Buck and Camillus have gotten much better. Cold Steel for its' part has drowned in its own rethoric, it has lost its focus, and has now been relegated to flea market stands. They are still making a few good knives, but the brand has turned into a train wreck.

n2s
 
The newer Cold Steel knives are not as good a quality as their older stuff. I use to have a older SRK that was a great knife. Went to replace it with a new one a few years back and noticed the quality was no where near what it was.

Aside from their products I also think some of their buisness ethics are pretty sad. Seems like rather than being new an innovative they are copying other makers designs.
 
While i love the BUSHMAN knives, and a few of the other knives, and i wish i had some of their knives from when they started, Lynn just irritates me to no end....some of the advertising too would have you believe that you should walk down the street with a tactical folder knife in every pocket and shirt fold, 6 boot knives on both ankles and legs, a plethora of throwing knives and spikes on the belt, and 4 walking sticks, sambocks, and sword canes in your hand, tomahawks and blow guns strapped to your back and 200 non metal knives buried in every flowerpot, nook and cranny of your home, etc etc etc etc........... :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

sorry, just my 2 cents :grumpy:
 
CS makes good fixed blades imho, most are worth the $$, and the folders are "ok" but seem to me to be more of an entry grade knife imho, FRN handles, just not nutz about them myself.

the owner makes some pretty wild claims, the steel is "iffy" and varies some from batch to batch, and those FRN handles is imho the main cons. and the folders just dont have a look to them like BM/spyderco/etc, they just look cheap to me. also i have heard of warranty issues ie unless bought from CS or a CS dealer they wont warranty the thing which aint good at all.

i wouldnt ever buy some CS imperial tanto for $300+, but the std fixed blades are really pretty good imho.
 
I have a Cold Steel Ti-Lite with the blue anodized titanium handle and it's a real nice folding knife. I have used it quite a bit and can honestly recommend it as a solid knife.

I've heard the owner of the company is a jerk but I've never met the guy so I will reserve my judgement.
 
I can tell you that a lot, and I mean a Lot of custom makers have a problem with Cold Steel ripping them of. A few years I was at a Shot show with Ted Nujent, with a new line of knives Ted wanted to carry. Lynn T. was there and was looking at my then new Combat Tanto. Lynn said it would never go over. Would't sale, not worth making. About a Year later, Here Comes the c.s. Recon Tanto. Lynn Strikes again Go To photo.epson.com Type in michaellovett@earthlink.net look on mikes knivesIII
 
looks like CS also copied this knife by M.Lovett :
Thumbnail



CS:
csstoreonline_1851_5323937


while i agree that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, i can understand why Custom Knife makers like M. Lovett are royally pissed off.....
:grumpy:
 
Artfully Martial said:
What the heck IS san mai though?
Click to expand...
Sanmai is a type on laminated steel. It's a harder core steel sandwiched between layers of softer steel. I believe Cold Steel uses a stainless variation with AUS-8 as the core steel.

Here's a quickly drawn cross section:
sanmai.gif


There are other types of laminate, like makuri, hyoshigi, hon-sanmai and others. This is pretty much japanese (sword) terminology...
 
I never hated Cold Steel, but the fact that none of their models really appealed to me (with the possible exception of the Ti Lite, especially the new blue one), and their rather gung-ho advertising campaign pretty much turned me off completely. Not a fan of their serration pattern either.

But now, after their unlicenced Civilian and Tighe Stick ripoffs, "hate" does seem a more appropriate word now.

Still, as said previously, Cold Steel does make (or rather, label and market, they don't actually make anything) some decent knives for the price. Their low-cost bush blades (machetes and such) are old favorites, as are their carbon V fixed blades. And the consensus is their Voyager series is decent enough.

However, for pretty much any decent knife they have, I find you can get better for the money from other companies.
 
not in favor of Lynn Thomson, but the Black Talon was reluctanly agreed on by Sal and given permisssion I think.
The SubHilt is a loveless design
 
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