Cold Steel Night Force Folder
This is the first Cold Steel knife I have reviewed on this site, and is one of not many that I have owned. I have never been a big fan of the company, as I see their high end knives as overpriced, and their lower end knives inferior to FRN Spydercos of a similar pricepoint. Having said that, I was quite pleased with this Night Force knife that I received in a trade.
The blade steel on the Cold Steel Night Force folder is an entry level 440A Stainless Steel, with holds a decent edge, and sharpens up easily. This steel is commonly used in knives in the $50 range, of which this Night Force is priced. Its a fairly large folder, which Cold Steel is known for, and has the typical FRN handles associated with knives in this price range.
Inside the FRN handles are liners of stainless steel, inset so they are not easily visible, and a stainless steel liner locking bar. The handles have good feel and purchase, with good retention. There are finger grooves for a more comfortable grip, and for a knife this large, it actually comfortably fits my smaller hands.
The 440A steel clip point blade is also black teflon coated for anti-reflection and rust inhibition, and probably just to look cool and Night Force-like. It opens very smoothly, but does have a bit of blade wiggle. Adjusting the pivot helped stop this, but also made the blade rather difficult to open. It was kind of hard to find the perfect balance.
Overall this knife had some charm to it. It felt really nice in the hand, and the texturing on the handle was grippy, yet comfortable to the touch. The FRN handle is tough and leaves no worries of easily scratching it, while its pricepoint is low enough that it can be used as a beater without fear.
Blade Length: 4″
Overall Length: 9″
Blade Steel: 440A Teflon Coated
Handle Material: FRN Fiberglass Reinforced Nylon
January 2nd, 2015 at 7:14 pm
I bought a few of these knives at the time and can honestly say that Cold Steel is the only knife company that has sold knives with 440A blade steel that could take and keep an edge! The early Recon 1, Night Force and Pro-Lite all had blades made of 440A stainless steel, and they were known as some of the sharpest knives ever out of the box. And they kept a respectable edge. This says a lot about Cold Steel’s heat treat.