Page 2 of 2 - Cold Steel Recon 1 Tanto Reviews

I bought this knife over 10 years ago and have used it as my daily work knife. As a mechanic I've used it more ways than it was intended to. As a pry tool, screw driver and more unusual ways. It's never let me down and has never failed me. 10 out of 10 recommended.

As soon as it arrived I didn't like the very long grip, which is too much for those with large hands, the G10 plates don't hold a candle to many of the more refined products we find made in the USA and Europe, and one thing that made me hate it right away right away, to the point of almost giving it back... Let's go... As soon as it arrived it was noticeable as something crude, without any refinement, rough opening and the Tri-Ad Lock was a disappointment, as it was hard in a way that made it impossible to open it without hurting your fingers, in addition The hardness of this makes closing very unsafe, as this tensioning bar is also responsible for pushing the blade so that it is brought to its inertial position. Both opening and closing felt like a guillotine with unnecessary force, and any slight lack of attention could certainly lead to an accident. I decided to disassemble everything using T6 and T10 (Torx) wrenches and I noticed that the brass and Teflon washers were dry, without any oil (this model uses two washers on each side of the blade). The metal bar that tensions the Tri-Ad Lock had a much steeper curvature than necessary for the assembly to function properly, making the opening completely hard and also making opening and closing dangerous as reported above. After smoothing the curvatures of the tensioning bar and lubricating everything, the scenario changed completely, and then I was able to begin to notice the details of something truly admirable. Even though the G10 is crude, it is understood to be a model more aimed at tactical use. The blade has a very reasonable thickness and the grinding design is at least very well made and beautiful. It does not have a coating that could be called resistant as seen on Spyderco models or even on the small Spanish knife manufactured by Cudeman that I show in the photo, and which has a simple oxidized finish (the same used on many firearms) and can be easily redone by the user. The edge of the blade is flat, but sometimes I wonder if it's concave. It didn't come very sharp from the factory, but that won't be a problem. Crucible's North American steel CPM S35VN needs no comment, it is a steel classified as premium (not ultra premium like Maxamet, Magnacut, Elmax, CPM S110V, M390 among others), but it has excellent edge retention, although this is a burden when sharpening, but nothing that a Lansky sharpening kit or even diamond sharpeners can't solve. The toughness is also excellent, as is the resistance to corrosion, in addition to having a reasonable hardness that is between 60 and 61HRC using 0.50% niobium in its composition. Logically, it would be very interesting for Cold Steel to update this model to CPM S45VN steel, which has improvements compared to the first, as it uses 0.15% nitrogen for this improvement. Definitely one of the best pocket knives in terms of value.

Love this knife! Thick blade, plenty of heft, perfect feel in my hand. Just the look of it would be a real deterrent because it’s a substantial knife. Highly recommend if you’re looking for an outstanding EDC knife.

This is a great knife well engineered and sharp as a razor the only complaint I have is cold steel should have made a sheath for such a fine knife both to carry it in open and closed configuration for Molly mounting or belt carry.

Incredible handgrip and blade. Love it. It’s a must to have