Here's a look at the whole family of Cold Steel Recon 1 clip points in CTS-XHP steel, new for 2015. They are new, improved, a bit pricier, but still a whole lot of knife for the money. Bravo, Cold Steel!
I don't consider myself a "fan boy", I will buy anything that is worth the money and I feel I get the most for my money with Cold Steel. Not to mention their customer service department is top notch. Not too many brands that I trust my life with lately but this company is one of them.
I like all the XHP versions of 2015 from CS. My experience so far is that all the ones i got (Lawman, Recon1 Talwar, Code 4, AK47) were much easier to deploy out of the box then the older Aus8 versions. For me reason to believe that something more changed in the production then the bladesteel. Nice edges as usual. And nice vid. Tx for sharing.
I own one of the AUS8 Recon XL's and i sincerely wish Cold Steel would change the blade on the Large Recon CTS to a the same full flat grind that is used on the Recon XL's blade.. IMO that would transform it into the ultimate 4" folder on the market.. An FFG Spear Point Recon One CTS XHP is my dream EDC folder..
Hi, while watching your video, I am polishing my folders all from cold steel, yes polished dlc looks amazing lol. The only coating i will accept(period) and it suits for the name of recon 1 being black cos when doing recon job out there, no one would want to carry a shiny satin finished blade. Good video. Keep it up while i still polishing all my blades
Those are the newer versions with the better coating and the better blade steel. Plus they rack up the price for people who know you get more for what you pay for and people abuse that to trick people.
Custom Southern Arms what kinda crack you smoking... They're like 140$ CAD so about 110US. The CTS-XHP steel compared to the old AUS8 is like night and day difference.
Just got the recon 1 in xhp dlc .the sharpening notch is just what the apostlep prescribed . The plung grind is squared with the sharpening notch the the end of the edge . I wouldnt pay $125.00 .got the clip point plain xhp dlc bk $83 .shipped free and it got to me way out in the sticks in 5 days . Had to get one cuz i gave my last one away to my son . Have had many recon 1s keep giving them to my sons and daughters and friends .then i have to get another . This new one is the best one .
Great video. I just got the mini. After years of boxing and martial arts, the triad lock actually hurt. I ground the spring per your video and now, for me, the knife is a dream. Thank you.
T_MAC686 the coating can come of but its a test of your physical endurance to do so. I used 220 grit wet/dry sand paper (I should have used 120 grit but I didn't have any) after that I went up grit by grit untilI got 1500 then used honing compound to polish everything so it would open and close smoother. 😷 3 hours plus with breaks
Cold Steel knives today are just like they were 15 years ago. They're very fairly priced, and they just WORK. I have an OD Recon 1 tanto in cts-xhp coming. My Recon Tanto fixed blade has been a staple in my collection for years. Not a fan of their advertising or of Demko and his smack talking other brands, but that doesn't mean the knives or the tri-ad lock aren't amazing. Great value for the money, as always. Great video Rob!
Looks goooooood! I have a one of a kind XL from 1ALL's, scales made by Toad, and sharpened by you. Needless to say I won't be "upgrading" to one of these workhorses ; )
While I hate the handle scales, I'm glad I picked up the mini/fullsized/xl in the AUS-8A flat ground Voyagers over the past few months. Think I got all 3 for less than $100
I love my Cold Steel Mini Recon 1 Clip Point Tactical Folder Knife Aus 8 @ 3" as that is the carry limit law around here. I did strip off the black paint and added some nice and new bronze phosphorous a little-oversized washers. Thanks for pointing out the large plunge grind on the new one. I am very curious why this knife (the mini) is discontinued? If you have any idea or insight as to why I'd really like to find out before I look at picking up one of these mini CTH-XHP versions.
Holy crap! What did you use to sharpen those and to add those sharpening notches under the thumb studs? You removed a lot of steel. CTS-XHP is a 67 on the hardness scale. That had to be a LOT of work.
Great video, as always. I'm a big fan. I got a Recon myself recently, thought it was the new XHP but it actually turned out to be BD1 also from Carpenter. Are you familiar with this steel? Thanks!
Had the four inch Recon, but could not get it open with one hand. I have arthritis in my hands, but come on! I didn't intend on buying a two handed knife. Lots of other knives I can buy that will actually open.
had to tell you .just got a recon 1 spear point plain edge and the recosso ( spelled?) is as you have said it should be done .its in xhp and dlc od g10 .the plunge grind is sharper .it doesnt have the round grind int to the cutting edge ( slightly more cutting edge ) all the way to the ... recosso ? i guess they saw your review ! cool ! i like it better!
My recon 1 has the dlc coating, but it does not have such a high gloss look to it. It is a little bit more of a flat black. Has anyone seen them like this ? I bought it from Amazon. I hope it is a real one.
Hey ApostleP, I tried to e-mail you a few times asking this question, but I got no response, so I'll try asking you here. I have the CS Mini AK-47 that has the same grind as the Mini Recon. If I send it in to have it sharpened, does the blunt base of the blade have to be modified into that wider choil? Mine has about 1/8" of that unsharpened base. Can it be sharpened completely, or at least narrowed down to about 1/16"? I just want to know what the options are. Please let me know when you can. Thank you.
XFS540 Sorry I missed your emails. If you don’t want the choil expanded, you’re better off leaving it as is, and starting the sharpened edge where it is at the factory. If you try to sharpen it back to the existing notch, the bevel will be obscenely wide at the base. It might back up just a bit in the course of sharpening though.
So if I want to leave that unsharpened area intact, would you still be able to give it a nice, symmetrical grind with a polished edge? To my eye, the grind seems to be okay at the base, but starts to stray into asymmetry more toward the tip.
Rob, the coeating in facts isn't really one. As I understand it, it's anodized black, so unless you scratch the surface of the steel, you can't remove it, unlike the past tefflon coating ;)
I think you are correct, but the process they are using is really similar to ano ;). It takes the superficial layer of steel and attach to it a color. It was a cold steel rep at bladeshow that explained it in a vid if I remember well
I just received my band new standard size 4" blade Recon 1 a few days ago. There are absolutely no markings on the blade or box stating that it has the CTS XHP steel. I thought I was getting a bargain at $84.99 with free shipping from MidwayUSA. I am very suspect that it's the older version knife with the AUS 8A blade
+TheIrcbully look at the standard recon 1 in the video. It also didn't have markings for the new steel. I think all the new regular recon 1s are not marked.
+Jacob White Look at DogOnMountain's channel. He does a review on a new Cold Steel Recon 1 with a CTS XHP blade. It clearly has the proper markings on the blade. Now maybe I have an older one that was made before they started doing it. But I would prefer having it on there for possible resale value
+perfectcircle0800 I just bought one from Amazon today for $85. The description said it has the new steel so I am hoping I will get the markings also. This is my first cold steel I've ever purchased lol.
+Jacob White OK. Well good luck to you. I hope you end up being satisfied with your purchase. If you get a chance, let me know what you end up receiving.
7:45 maybe i'm missing something, but I don't see the need to re-grind the sharpening choil.. Just continue sharpening the edge down, they just missed with the belt.. If the thumb stud is in the way, remove it for sharpening.
You are indeed missing something. They didn't just miss the last 1/8" of sharpenable edge at the factory. In fact, the edge thickens dramatically in that area, which is why they don't sharpen it. The choil is not sized or positioned correctly for the plunge grind on the blade. If you continued sharpening back to the factory choil, the width of the sharpened edge would be as wide as the choil is tall. Is that making sense?
So, It appears the grind for the primary bevel is not 'deep' enough in that area. I see.. Just picked up a mini in xhp for $45 open box. Will have to check it out when it arrives. thx
traderjoes Dont hold back they are the state of the art .do a lock spring mod then a pocket clip mod and there's no folding knife that can compete . Most reviewers dont bring up or compare the knife theyare reviewing because they would have to say the knife they are reviewing isn't as good and it costs a ton more That is if they were an honest reviewer that is !
traderjoes get it you wont regret it .get the xhp its really good steel .use diamond stone for the first bevel .take the fisrt bend closest to the blade out of the lock spring . Watch out to keep enough spring tension to hold the blade in ( doesn't take much to hold it in ) .then it will work sweet as can be .also bend the pocket clip till it stays 1/16" above the scale .and smooth the scale under the clip. I take out the second finger noch ( following the line of the back of the handle ) in the handle. and put a Celtic button( also known as the ranger bead knot) lanyard.
+sTEVAL570 You're an idiot! Cold Steel Rules! Strongest lock on the planet! Best knives in the world! I can't believe anyone would be stupid enough to pay $400 for an inferior titanium piece of junk! How am I doing? LOLOLOL!!!!
+Markus Iesonmann regardless, the $100 PM2 is hard to beat, nay, unbeatable, in my opinion. I have two large sebenza 21's, one regular one and a Damascus bladed version. I use my regular one often, but not like I use a PM2. The PM2 is more tactically oriented than a sebenza for sure. To each their own...I carry two knives everyday so my lineup always changes, but it is very hard for me to not carry a PM2, because of ease of blade deployment, blade steel, ergo's, and weight. If you're looking for a tactical folder, you can't go wrong with a Hinderer, if money is no object.
