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#284345 - 04/29/17 05:54 AM Re: Which is the best steel for a cold steel srk? [Re: quick_joey_small]
Phaedrus Offline
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 04/28/10
Posts: 3148
Loc: Big Sky Country
I have a couple of SRKs of the 1095 variety (IIRC). It's a useful size but I don't think it's a great knife for the money. If you cut the handle off you will see that there are perfectly square 90 degree corners where the blade meets the tang- this creates a stress point vs knives where this area is rounded. For the record I will acknowledge that CS may have changed this but that's the way it was years ago. IMO it's also a little bit too thick for the size of the blade.

My SRKs have been retired now. They were gifts from my late Dad so they have sentimental value so they will stay at home. I really like the ESEE RAT knives in that size category or the older Ontario RATs. The KOA Bush Camp is another great knife in that general size range.
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#284348 - 04/29/17 12:09 PM Re: Which is the best steel for a cold steel srk? [Re: quick_joey_small]
chaosmagnet Offline
Sheriff
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 12/03/09
Posts: 3819
Loc: USA
A lesser-known manufacturer I really like for blades in this size is Bradford Knives. Spendy but worth it. No affiliation.

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#284351 - 04/29/17 01:51 PM Re: Which is the best steel for a cold steel srk? [Re: quick_joey_small]
Pete Offline
Veteran

Registered: 02/20/09
Posts: 1372
OP

you could also look at the Cold Steel Bushman.
They are very simple knives, but very sharp and surprisingly strong. I carried various versions when I went to Africa a long time ago. They are useful because the handle is hollow.
The price is very low.

cheers,
Pete

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#284353 - 04/29/17 07:22 PM Re: Which is the best steel for a cold steel srk? [Re: quick_joey_small]
AKSAR Offline
Veteran

Registered: 08/31/11
Posts: 1233
Loc: Alaska
Originally Posted By: quick_joey_small
Cold Steel currently sell SRKs in three different steels:

sk5

VG1

3v

Which would people say is the best one for survival use?
Regarding the OP, one thing occurred to me. What does Cold Steel say about the pros/cons of the various steels they use?

Presumably CS must have some reason that the sell the same knife in three different steels? Have they published any recommendations about why someone might choose one vs another? Has anyone contacted CS to ask them?

Just wondering.
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#284355 - 04/29/17 08:30 PM Re: Which is the best steel for a cold steel srk? [Re: AKSAR]
hikermor Offline
Geezer in Chief
Geezer

Registered: 08/26/06
Posts: 7705
Loc: southern Cal
I was just browsing the Cold Steel web page. They mention that the SK5 and VG1 models are standard issue for Navy Seals BUDS. This statement is absent from their discussion of 3V - those Government cheapskates! Any steel that would get through a BUDS course ought to work for relatively normal use.

Incidentally, i live about five miles or so from Cold Steel's HQ. I also notice that they are advertising a parking lot sale May 20-21. Might be some bargains available. I have never been to their event, but I imagine it is a way to get factory seconds dirt cheap, somewhat like REI's scratch and dent events.

I could not find any discussion of the relative merits of those steels on their site.

On a cost/effectiveness basis, I think it would be hard to justify a blade in 3V. How hard is it to put away a knife with a bit of drying and some lube?


Edited by hikermor (04/29/17 08:33 PM)
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#284361 - 04/30/17 12:48 PM Re: Which is the best steel for a cold steel srk? [Re: UncleGoo]
KenK Offline
"Be Prepared"
Pooh-Bah

Registered: 06/26/04
Posts: 2208
Loc: NE Wisconsin
Originally Posted By: UncleGoo
Originally Posted By: AKSAR
Victorinix "Spartan", which costs about $25 at REI. It is on a very short lanyard with a Fenix E01 light, and rides comfortably in my pants pocket at all times. That knife and light gets more everyday use than all my other knives, multitools, and lights combined. Mostly because it is always with me.

The best knife steel is the blade you actually have with you when need it.


The Climber is always with me. The toothpick and tweezers are long gone, but the small blade is always sharp enough to shave with, and the corkscrew has never failed me.


[[THREAD HIJACK IN PROGRESS]]

How in heck do they make the Swiss Army Knives so they sharpen so darn well (sorry for the language). Seriously, I have almost all of Doug's highish end knives, and others, but my Victorinox Climber has always been the sharpest knife in the batch. The Mora knives are darn close though.

With all the above said in this thread, I don't abuse my knives, and I don't need machetes or chopping knives, so I find myself becoming more and more of a fan of the slightly thicker bladed Mora knives (like the Robust). They are sharp, sharpen easily, simple, feel good in the hand, sized right, and relatively low cost.

Ken

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#284363 - 04/30/17 08:33 PM Re: Which is the best steel for a cold steel srk? [Re: quick_joey_small]
Pete Offline
Veteran

Registered: 02/20/09
Posts: 1372
How hard is it to put away a knife with a bit of drying and some lube?

Bingo. exactly.
anyone who respects their knife will take care of their knife.

CS parking lot sales are very crowded in the morning on the first day. better to go in the middle of the afternoon, when the crowd thins out. yes, they usually do have some blades that are factory seconds. the prices are atteactive, and the blemishes are veryminor.

good luck!
Pete


Edited by Pete (04/30/17 08:33 PM)

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#284364 - 04/30/17 09:07 PM Re: Which is the best steel for a cold steel srk? [Re: Pete]
hikermor Offline
Geezer in Chief
Geezer

Registered: 08/26/06
Posts: 7705
Loc: southern Cal
Pete, thanks for the info. Not that I really need another blade, but you never know.... Considering the admiration for their entrenching shovel, maybe I do need yet another small digging tool.
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#284370 - 05/01/17 06:12 AM Re: Which is the best steel for a cold steel srk? [Re: hikermor]
AKSAR Offline
Veteran

Registered: 08/31/11
Posts: 1233
Loc: Alaska
Heck yes, I'd go to the CS parking lot sale. A relative of mine once worked at Kershaw. I got to go to an insiders sale ( employees, friends, and invited guests). I picked up a number of things for myself, plus a number of nice items for Xmas gifts. Was a great opportunity.
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"Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas any more."
-Dorothy, in The Wizard of Oz

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#284753 - 06/12/17 02:48 AM Re: Which is the best steel for a cold steel srk? [Re: quick_joey_small]
benjammin Offline
Rapscallion
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 02/06/04
Posts: 4020
Loc: Anchorage AK
I'd about half my collection now is CS. Not all their knives are thick brutes. The Pendleton hunter light and the Finn line are comparable to Mora standards. The tang on the SRK isn't going to fail except in the most extreme cases. If you can manage to break one at the 90 degree cut point, then it was deliberate, or you were using it for rock climbing or some such. But they aren't as strong as a tang that completely fills the height and length of a handle. That's why I use Busse knives for the really harsh stuff. Costs more, but you won't find anything tougher. I have a handful of other blades, specialty or because they caught my fancy. Some are safe queens because there's no chance I'd ever replace them if lost or broken. But they are there if I need them. One in particular is a boot knife with a 4" blade that folds into a push dagger. My precious.
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The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly is to fill the world with fools.
-- Herbert Spencer, English Philosopher (1820-1903)

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