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Cold Steel

5K views 24 replies 24 participants last post by  Hekkenschutze 
#1 ·
Are they a reputable blade with strong, sharp steel? Not sure if I like them yet or not. Well, right now I'm sure I don't like them. Can anyone convince me other wise?
 
#2 · (Edited)
They are decent knives if you get a good price on them. They are NOT at the top of the line in my opinion.

They are really sharp, but I have not found the designs, fit and finish, or the quality to be all that great. Certainly not as great as their marketing would have you believe.

ETA: I should add that I do have a few CS knives. They make great knives for times when you might lose them.
 
#3 ·
I have three or four Cold Steel knives. They have done everything that I have asked of them.

Cold Steel is widely loved and widely hated. I'm not sure why Cold Steel is so controversial, but a lot of it probably has to do with their marketing, which detractors and fans alike agree is "over the top".

Cold Steel knives are not as nice as some of the truly top-of-the-line stuff. But in ways that are likely to matter to the vast majority of users (not the true afficianados), they are more than good enough - -and cheaper.
 
#5 ·
Cold Steel knives are one of the industry benchmarks for practical use. I carry a Recon Tanto on my LBE and it is very field serviceable. But, it is not the top of the line as an upper tier knife. For that I have a Randall #1. Yes, carry a Cold Steel for general use and probably have it for a lifetime.
 
#8 ·
I have/had several Cold Steel knives. Overall they're decent blades, very sharp, and the locks are tough. I really don't like their snobbish, chest-thumping marketing tactics.

Let's see, I have or had:
- Recon tanto- very nice factory second. Gave it to a friend. I miss it.
- Culloden - mounted on the sun visor in my vehicle
- Voyager tanto, 3 7/8" blade - older model with plastic clip (plastic clip bent, did not like tip-up carry)
- Black Bear Classic - safe queen
- Para Edge - Gave it to a friend, who laces it to his boot.
- Scimitar - Gave that one away to a friend, too. Isn't it nice to be my friend? :biggrin2:
- Triple Action dagger - poor design. Mostly useful for "ooh, aah" factor.
- plastic CAT Tanto - shower buddy
- Safe Keeper II - Sold it.
 
#9 ·
I've always like Cold Steel in general. Owned many including the Trailmaster bowie, San Mai Tanto w/12 inch blade, SRK, and a couple of others. Like many manufactuers, the quality of the steel is controlling. Any Cold Steel with San Mai or Carbon V blades tend to be good knives. Their lower price blades tend to be like any companies lower priced blades... you get what you pay for.
 
#10 ·
They're decent enough, and usually pretty affordable. I think where a lot of people are turned off is the 'better than anything else' attitude, even selling DVDs ("Proof" and "More Proof") to prove how great they are.

Are they great? Really no better or worse than a lot of other stuff out there. Some of their prices are a good deal.

There's also a bit of dicsussion on what 'Carbon V' steel is exactly. A popular opinion is that it's whatever decent carbon steel is available at the best price from the supplier on any given order. In general, at least, it seems to be a decent steel, but once again, no better or worse than many other lines.
 
#11 ·
Would say that with CS you get what you pay for. Not top of the line,but right up there. I feel that they make some very good to good products.

I do not own any of their knives. I have a long time friend that has made the Tai-Pan his EDC blade. He has carried it for(IIRC) 5 years now. He has since bought another one to train with. Knowing him he has put the "trainer" through pure HELL.

I have owned the LTC Kukri for some years now. It(always) hangs by my side on my recon's into the river swamps,on the trail of wild hogs.Keeps an edge and fairly easy to sharpen. Cuts like a SOB !! (Would highly reccommend the Concealex Sheath for this blade.)

I also own two of their spears. The Assegai and the Boar Spear. Don't know what steel they are made of and how hardened but burned out several high speed steel bits,and a couple of Ti bits trying to drill them for bolt holes."Lost" the Boar Spear to a really big and really mad old hog in south Fla. a couple of years ago.He took it with him into the thick underbrush and thrashed it about royally. When I finally recovered it it was not bent or broken. It was also still razor sharp. He was dead.

These are the extent of my dealings with the CS brand.

Would I buy any more of their products ??.....yes.... -------
 
#12 ·
They are OK for the price. Hype is a little over the top but the video is good for laughs and is free. I like looking through their catalog but when I ordered an SRK they said they were out, never ordered another knife since. If isee a knife I like at a knife store I know I can trust it but won't order one from them.
 
#13 ·
i've never been disappointed by a cs blade. they're great when you live on a limited budget. they on par with spyderco, as far as i'm concerned. i own knives from both companies. i currently own:

the imperial katana. it's a little blade heavy, but good enough for full contact, hard target cutting.

the norse hawk and the trail hawk. the trail hawk is really well balanced, much better than the norse.

the steel tiger. because i collect karambits.

the mini gurkha. this lives in my van, and has gone everywhere with me for the past 5 years.

the ti lite, with the zytel handle. i gave it to my dad.

the xl voyager. i gave it to my girlfriend, and she loves it.

the samburu spear. it throws very well.

the sjambok. i wanted something that was less than lethal to have in my van.


i've also purchased some blades as gifts for others; mainly my dad, who owns a farm in puerto rico, and always needs a good, hard use blade. he's had nothing but good things to say about the srk, the ti lite, the kukri machete, and the frontier hawk.
 
#14 ·
I carry one of their punch knives, similar to what they call the "Safe Maker" now. I bought it around 1989 and carry it everyday at work (for rescue purposes only, of course:yup: ) Just as good as the day I bought it. I carried one of their shovels in my car until my ex stole it, and I have one of their spears hanging on the wall in my safari-decorated guest bedroom. There's one of their tomahawks in my axe collection. Nothing negative to say about any of them.
 
#16 ·
If you can ignore Thompson's attitude, they're great knives for the money.

I own (or have owned) a Ti-lite, a Gunsite II (great knife), a SafeKeeper (push-dagger), a Ready Edge (small fixed blade), and probably a couple of others. All have been great knives. The only thing I don't like is the way they cut their serrations. They don't seem to hold up to hard use very well.
 
#20 ·
The only thing I don't like is the way they cut their serrations. They don't seem to hold up to hard use very well.
True, and they are somewhat mis-marketed. Their serrations are not for "hard-use", they are for making deep cuts in meat, and they do that better than anyone else's offering.:wink: Unless things have changed, CS serrated's are the only blades Hatch will not warrant their Resistor (kevlar lined) gloves against.
 
#17 ·
I have only used their fixed blades and they were good. They are good, hard working knives.
I've bought a few for gifts also and folks were quite happy with them.
Ebay is a good place to get an occasional deal on one.
 
#21 ·
I have quite a few Cold Steel knives and they are a decent value for the dollar.
I have an SRK that is my 'garage' knife and general outdoor 'beater' knife. It has been positively thrashed on and yet it still keeps an edge very well and the blade coating has withstood the test of time.
I keep a CS Voyager Tanto in my vehicle and also have a Voyager Clippoint in my garage as a folder back-up to my SRK.
All keep and hold an edge quite well and the folders do have very strong back-locks.
I've owned and used many other CS knives through the years including: Hai Hocho, Recon Tanto, Special Ops Tanto, Bushman, Trailmaster, Oyabun, ProLite Tanto, and Master Hunter.

I would recommend CS knives because they are a great value.
(If you can look past Lynn Thompson's brash marketing and the fact that CS doesn't actually manufacture any of their knives themselves.)

Regards,
Mike
 
#22 ·
+1 on Cold Steel as a product line. I see it as a Glock, they are not as sexy or pricey as some other very fine knives, but they are up to hard use, well balanced, reasonably priced and get the job done. For the dollar I can't think of a better blade; you guessed, I am biased, owning a few does make me partial.
 
#24 ·
Have you noticed?

Have you noticed through this entire thread not one person has trashed Cold Steel knives (or anything in their product line) as junk, a poor value or a rotten piece of sh*t? That no one has told a horror story about their Customer Service or a wrongly rejected warranty claim? There's been some well-deserved jabs about Lynn Thompson's ego and mentions that they're not the FINEST blades available at any price on the planet. But I, like most folks joining us here, have knives EVERYWHERE! I have drawers full. They're snug in my pocket, packed on my belt, tucked in my truck, scattered in my toolboxes, slipped in my range bags, slung around my neck and (if I dared to look!) buried in my wife's purse. Some of those many dozens of knives are Cold Steel products. They've done everything I've asked, more than I expected & never let me down. What more can you ask of ANY product?

With all the well-spoken opinionators on this thread, if there was anything WRONG with a Cold Steel knife you can bet your Grandma's iron lung that SOMEONE would have let us know. Buy one, cut something, keep cutting somethings and decide for yourself. Me? I'm keeping every one of mine and likely will buy a another one or two.
 
#25 ·
They are good knives, are sharp and are very durable. I've purposly abused one for a few years in camping, hunting, logging, digging a trench and throwing it. It still sharpens great, cuts great and looks great oddly enough. Actually I love my cold steel knive. But after reading this remember that I purposly abused it just to see if cold steel's turture tests held water and ... they do!
 
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