Cold Steel Recon Scout

bullrick · Post by **bullrick** » Sun Jun 24, 2012 11:51 am

Hi Friends!

Greetings of the day...

I am new to the forum and going through the posts and the upcoming trek that i have i have decided that i need a Survival knife with me just to feel safe and deal with any situations...Although i have a wenger swiss army knife as well at the moment, however i really loved some beauties that Mr. Mack The Knife has....and want a good survival knife with me.

So i have done some reserch and here are my shortlisted knifes(in order of preference):

1. Cold steel recon Scout SK V/ VG San Mai III(this one s really expensive)
2. Gerber LMF II

Now i checked the price for LMF II on olive planet and it is for 8990 bucks however if i want recon scout(not available on olive planet) on knife centre its for $119.95. So even if i throw in BG ultimate survival kit along ($37.95) the total with shipping to india comes out to be $ 195.80/- which is roughly 10k in Rupees.are there any other charges apart from this to get the knife home from knifecentre.com...please tellme the details.

it is a no brainer as to which one should i choose on this front, however if you guys feel cold steel has some problems do suggest other options in the budget.

Also one thing against LMF II is that it has serrations which i guess will be really hard to sharpen hence i want something without serrations.

Regards
Ricky ( Chandigarh )

nagarifle · Post by **nagarifle** » Sun Jun 24, 2012 12:31 pm

best knife would be in India under 9 inch long and uotp 2 inches wide. for Survival knife, it should be able to chop small size wood and able to dig, hence in my neck of the woods a doa is ideal tool for any and all work,from cutting wood to choping heads.

if you thinking about one for every day around town then its not a survival knife you need but a small size with 4-6 inch blade. then any thing that can be found would do the job. no need for fancy stuff.

Rajat · Post by **Rajat** » Sun Jun 24, 2012 4:17 pm

bullrick wrote: the total with shipping to india comes out to be $ 195.80/- which is roughly 10k in Rupees.are there any other charges apart from this to get the knife home from knifecentre.com...please tellme the details.

You forgot to add 25 - 28% customs duty on top of it.

ArmisNine · Post by **ArmisNine** » Mon Jun 25, 2012 4:17 pm

bullrick · Post by **bullrick** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 12:13 am

Do not repost your own posts in their entirety.
Repeated abuse of this kind will result in your removal from the forum - Mod

bullrick · Post by **bullrick** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 12:20 am

I just drool over the cold steel recon scout however carrying a big knife lk that wud attract unwanted attention and also a bulky thing to carry fr trekking trips etc.... So to furthur my research i have found a Becker BK II... It is small in size but packs a knockout punch to competition...N fits all my needs as well...... Watsay guys??? And plz if you could hep me in the procedure of procuring one from knifecente or respected mr. Amrendra(choombak)...thanks in advance!

Post by **Mack The Knife** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 7:21 am

If you want no nonsense, good quality knives, with the best warranty around consider those from ESEE.
http://www.eseeknives.com/index2.htm
I have more or less got their entire line up now and have no complaints. Ofcourse, there are minor dislikes with some models but nothing major. These dislikes can also be rectified.

P.S.: I had a Recon Scout. Did not use it before gifting it to a friend, so I cannot comment on it but don't get swayed by a popular You Tube reviewer who shills for Cold Steel and a few other manufacturers. Said shill is apparently very popular with some on here but I would advice you take his comments with a pinch of salt.

ArmisNine · Post by **ArmisNine** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 7:52 am

Post by **Mack The Knife** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 8:31 am

Not saying Nutn...

choombak · Post by **choombak** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 9:51 am

Rajat wrote:
bullrick wrote: the total with shipping to india comes out to be $ 195.80/- which is roughly 10k in Rupees.are there any other charges apart from this to get the knife home from knifecentre.com...please tellme the details.

You forgot to add 25 - 28% customs duty on top of it.

I was slapped 41% last time for a $75 knife! :-/

choombak · Post by **choombak** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 10:01 am

Mack The Knife Bana wrote:If you want no nonsense, good quality knives, with the best warranty around consider those from ESEE.
http://www.eseeknives.com/index2.htm
I have more or less got their entire line up now and have no complaints. Ofcourse, there are minor dislikes with some models but nothing major. These dislikes can also be rectified.

P.S.: I had a Recon Scout. Did not use it before gifting it to a friend, so I cannot comment on it but don't get swayed by a popular You Tube reviewer who shills for Cold Steel and a few other manufacturers. Said shill is apparently very popular with some on here but I would advice you take his comments with a pinch of salt.

I have not so good opinion about Esee 3 after a buddy found it losing edge far too often in the field. His other fixed blades did better. Probably the 55-57 rc hardness of Esee knives may be the culprit making it too soft for the field, or he received a lemon.

To the OP, depending on your exact needs you should purchase a knife and not go by what looks better or macho. So far I gathered you need a knife for the field, which brings the choice down to a fixed blade of you intend to use it on wood or hard substances. I would put the appropriate size to be around 4", and probably 1095 carbon steel reasonably done. I have also found custom blades done by good makers to be much better in overall terms. Lookup the fixed blades for sale section on bladeforums (knife makers market). Yes, sign up and basic membership is free. Rick Hargis makes very good knives around $130 price point, and shipped to India can be somewhere in the range of $160 to $200. Backwoods is another good maker. There are many.

I can always assist you to source the blade, but you will have to do homework first. Spending $150 or so when you are fully convinced is much more enjoyable than feeling bad because someone suggested you a blade that does not for your purpose.

Post by **Mack The Knife** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 10:19 am

choombak wrote:I have not so good opinion about Esee 3 after a buddy found it losing edge far too often in the field. His other fixed blades did better. Probably the 55-57 rc hardness of Esee knives may be the culprit making it too soft for the field, or he received a lemon.

1095 does not have the best edge retention, regardless of whether it was heat treated by Rownen, Paul Bos, etc.

What was he working on with the 3, how often did he have to sharpen to finish the work, how good are his sharpening skills and what were the other knives? Were the knives factory or self sharpened?

How well the knife is sharpened makes a huge difference in how the knife works. Most people go up in grits before setting the edge with the coarsest sharpner they have on them. 90% of the sharpening is done at the coarse level, otherwise they are merely polishing a dull edge.

It's possible but I haven't come across a Rowen made lemon yet.

Rajat · Post by **Rajat** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 1:10 pm

The Esee's are great knives but if not, go for the Beckers at a lower price range. You wont be scared of beating up these knives for any kind of job.

Well I didnt want to burst your bubble bullrick but I have a pretty strong opinion against Cold Steal (

) and their cheap marketing gimmicks. They might have a few good blades in their line up but the rest are not worth spending your money on. But all in all their marketing tactics are deplorable.

I have got nothing against anyone who likes cold steel, it is a matter of personal opinion and experience, but they certainly are not among my favorite manufacturers.

nagarifle · Post by **nagarifle** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 2:00 pm

again we are degrassing from the subject. its like how to make a curry, many ways,

go for bucks knife, nice all round town knife.

slingshot · Post by **slingshot** » Tue Jun 26, 2012 9:08 pm

Hi Bullrick,

The CS Recon Scout is way to large and though it may add to your weight, it may also add a lot of unwanted attention. If you want a CS knife that fits the bill for urban carry or camping, choose the CS Search & Rescue Knife also called SRK. It is a much better option. Everything that you can do with the Recon Scout, you can possibly do (with some skills) with the SRK.

Next, I suggest that you look at the good old khukri from Khukuri House. It is just as good as the Recon Scout, if not better and has much heightened chopping ability. Though it is not a good idea to carry this on you.

The Becker BK2 or BK7 are both outstanding blades. Much more economical and will get the job done.

I usually find that camping is much easier with moderate sized blades. Like a 5 to 7 inch blade. Most wood is available on the ground so no massive chopping necessary. Also food preparation is much easier with the small blades.

These days my camping blade is the 'Churi' from Khukuri House. It has a 5 inch blade, beautifully hand crafted, very reasonably priced and is perfect.

However, if it is the CS Recon Scout that you want....Go for it. Sometimes blades are to be pursued and owned for the sheer joy of it

Hope this helps

Indians For Guns

Indians For Guns