bob the goat
06-27-2008, 02:20 PM
My electronics toolbox has always contained a big knife. It was an "Old Timer" hunting knife from the 70's that I got from my dad and weighed about 2 lbs. It was useful for a lot of things, most of which because I kept a razor edge on it, so it slit bubble packs like a light saber. The end of the blade closest to the handle I modified with my dremmel. I carved about a 3/8" Half curcle shape cutout in the blade and sharpened the inside edge. This was a wonder at cutting wire, string, or rope.
Sadly it was stolen last year when my car was broken into. I was heartbroken. I posted fliers that if anyone had it I would pay them $50 no questions asked just to get the knife back. No answer.
After a long search I gave up on finding a replacement that was the same and had to shop for something different. I settled on Cold Steel because of the superior performance I have seen in their steel. I bought one of their Roach Belly knives on e-bay for $10. I was not convinced that it would live up to the good name of Cold Steel.
When I opened the small plain box I found a coudura sheath that was well fit to the knife. Fully pushed in about 1/2 of the handle is inside the sheath and is held in place by friction. At first I was not all that trusting, but then discovered that the knife is so light that the friction is more than enough to keep it in place.
Sharp. This is a work knife, and is sold as one. It is ground to a much steeper bevel than I had on my old knife, so I was expecting it to go from razor down to just sharp very quickly, then the quality of the steel would keep it at sharp for a long time. I was wrong.
When I break down a cardboard box to go into a garbage bag I slice off each of the 4 top and bottom flaps, then slice out off each of the 4 side panels. Basically, everywhere there is a fold I cut. I have broken down over 30 cardboard boxes and it is still a razor; sharp enough to cut a 1/8" wide strip off the edge of a sheet of paper.
I also used it to lop the ends off six 16ga speaker wires. It sliced thru them like twine, and there was not so much as a mar on the blade.
The handle is a little slicker than I would like it to be, but it is soft enough to work with bare hands. The blade is thick and has some groves on the back for thumb traction.
I give it a 9/10.
Huge bonus points for the steel quality, and the $10 price tag. It only lost 1 point for the handle being a little too slippery for my taste.
Sadly it was stolen last year when my car was broken into. I was heartbroken. I posted fliers that if anyone had it I would pay them $50 no questions asked just to get the knife back. No answer.
After a long search I gave up on finding a replacement that was the same and had to shop for something different. I settled on Cold Steel because of the superior performance I have seen in their steel. I bought one of their Roach Belly knives on e-bay for $10. I was not convinced that it would live up to the good name of Cold Steel.
When I opened the small plain box I found a coudura sheath that was well fit to the knife. Fully pushed in about 1/2 of the handle is inside the sheath and is held in place by friction. At first I was not all that trusting, but then discovered that the knife is so light that the friction is more than enough to keep it in place.
Sharp. This is a work knife, and is sold as one. It is ground to a much steeper bevel than I had on my old knife, so I was expecting it to go from razor down to just sharp very quickly, then the quality of the steel would keep it at sharp for a long time. I was wrong.
When I break down a cardboard box to go into a garbage bag I slice off each of the 4 top and bottom flaps, then slice out off each of the 4 side panels. Basically, everywhere there is a fold I cut. I have broken down over 30 cardboard boxes and it is still a razor; sharp enough to cut a 1/8" wide strip off the edge of a sheet of paper.
I also used it to lop the ends off six 16ga speaker wires. It sliced thru them like twine, and there was not so much as a mar on the blade.
The handle is a little slicker than I would like it to be, but it is soft enough to work with bare hands. The blade is thick and has some groves on the back for thumb traction.
I give it a 9/10.
Huge bonus points for the steel quality, and the $10 price tag. It only lost 1 point for the handle being a little too slippery for my taste.