Buy a real Canadian belt knife from Grohmann Knives. This is the original knife and they have several models including folders. The Grohmann fixed blade knives are full tang...very strong and they have models for military, moose hunting, bird and fish knives and camp/survival knives. The Cold Steel versions are cheap copies.
When I was in boyscouts my parents got me a Grohmann boat knife. That is the original design. I loved that knife. Had it until I was in the service. Someone decided they needed more then me. I'd highly recommend trying a original. The Canadian military uses it ( at least they used to)
I have used this knife every day in my kitchen since 2018 with no issues and it is still razor sharp, only maintained on a honing steel. This is the #1 in the series. The #3 is the jump knife that is issued to our Canadian military. It is a slightly different design. After buying this plastic handled version I bought the numbers 1 to 4 real versions. I don't use it as a Bushcraft knife that's why it's never broken. I am a 75 year old retired Carpenter and my motto is always used a tool for less than what it is designed for and you will never break it. 30+ years doing carpentry and woodworking and I've only broken one piece of equipment that I can remember. Actually it just fell apart from use. The #3 has won some Canadian design Awards and it is in the Smithsonian Institute in the USA. I have over 250 knives from Cold Steel, Benchmade, Spyderco Etc and this is the only one I use all the time. Probably because it's cheap and I can leave it soaking in the kitchen sink without having to worry about rotting a wooden handle. I will check out your roach knife because that's the other one I wanted to get. But at 75 years old I better not wait too long because as George Burns used to say, at his age, I don't buy green bananas anymore because I might not be around long enough till they ripen.
I have a friend who's a butcher. He goes to your residence and processes your livestock right then and there and that knife, is what he primarily uses for skinning (if I'm not mistaken). He's had it for a good while but, that same brake you had on yours, he had on his! He really liked that knife too. I'm sending him your video. He makes his living using knives and I'm pretty sure this video, has some important info that he should be aware of!!! Great video Mike...
Get him a Knives Of Alaska - Yukon, it's a full tang sturdy version of this Canadian belt knife style, with better ergonomics. Best skinning knife I ever found.
Mine is awesome. Probably brittle because of the steel used but thats half the reason i got it. Its cheap enough, buy three and give one away as a present.
I have both Cold Steel Canadian belt and Roach belly knife .I also have a vintage Grohmann belt knife. The Cold Steel knives are replicas in appearance but far from the real deal. I found that The Cold Steel Spike is much more up to abuse than either of the latter models and makes a decent thrower too. The Mora Companion is far superior to the belt knife and roach belly and priced closely the same. The Mora knife also has more steel choices to pick from too. I carry a Mora Companion as a neck knife and my favorite way to carry it is on a braided leather necklace. Once you go Mora you never go back.😆🤣👍
Thank You for sharing! I think it comes down to understanding your tool and it's limitations because usually I'll have 3 blades a knife, axe, and a pocket knife. And even outside I find I use a pocket knife more then anything. A fixed blade is my most important tool to be used sparingly. Random banter!
The Canadian Airborne Regiment troopers were expected to go to war with the Grohman 'boat knife' as their primary field knife. It was always very unpopular, and was nicknamed 'the butter knife.' Are you kidding? Outfitting paratroopers and pathfinders with a medium quality skinning knife prone to breakage under hard use? The reason they were stuck with those knives for so long was porkbarreling. However the paratroopers were also issued a certain model of Schrade three blade pocket knife, carbon steel iirc, instead of the C5 clasp knife. Troopers were also given the option of bringing their own private purchase knives on field exercises. The 'boat knife' was also issued to Royal Canadian Navy bosuns, I don't know what those guys thought of it. Grohman never was interested in product development or product improvement on those gov't contract knives. They got a secure gov't contract, you see? I thought the Grohman design the CS knife was modeled after was really a copy of an old 19th century American sknning knife. I read this old cbc article about Grohman losing the contract. That the DND would order cheap knockoffs from Chinesia is a typical dumber and dumberer move from NDHQ. Mckay was CPC. No Cdn. national party cares about the Combat effectiveness of the CAF.
I bought this cause I like the original design but didn't wanna spend money for a real one . Never used it as an out doors knife but same as you I use this or my old hickory 5in hunter when grilling stuff and sometime I'll just grab the as a steak knife . Good buy especially for the price
I must say that I would never baton with a Canadian Belt Knife. The neck between the handle and blade, even with the original Grohmann's, is too thin. Otherwise, I think you called the issue with the Cold Steel. It is WAY too thin. Great review and thanks. I would recommend it for processing meat and veggies. That is what I use mine for and it does very well for the price.
The real version from grohman is full tang and very strong. Don't judge the original by a cheap knock-off version. They are designed as a skinner/trapper knife, and I have batoned my grohman version through very knotty wood. I used to be a cold steel fan boy, but they have changed.
I doubt the design has changed since GSM bough it. That spot might have always been a long time weak point. I just don't think people hard test this knife so this was interesting to see.
GSM/Cold Steel needs to fix the design and the heat treat. Please contact them and show them this, its a cheap fix that will make this a better product for them.
Cold Steel stop existing when was eaten by gsm gas station knives. They changed construction and materials to worst quality but still using good name of old Lynn's company. Quality doesn't matter anymore when I see dollars in your eys😢
The best version of this style blade I've found is the: Knives Of Alaska - Yukon. Full tang thick stock D2 steel, qith an extremely ergonomic handle. The elliptical blade shape stems from old American late 1800's game processing designs.
Man, really uncomfortable watching the stabs with this one, Mike. Glad you came out unscathed. Not so much for the knife, though. Lol. Good stuff as always.
There's a "screwdriver" grip for stabbing with guardless knives, but the end of this one is too pointy for me to want to plant it in my palm and drive into something. I may cover that in another video.
Its a good shape for what it's designed for. But... I think it's a terrible knife for Cold Steel. Shortcuts and budget savers (that most high production companies regularly use) kill a knife like this. An experienced custom maker using quality steel and handle materials is how this design is meant to be executed. Great video! ✌🏼
The closest pattern I have to this knife is the Joker Canadiense bushcraft knife, it's much thicker in every way and you can baton it if you can't help it. :) This CS sample seemed very brittle at the neck indeed. Quality control is obviously lacking.
not every tool can be used for every job (shocker) and if a tool can do every job it never does any of them well. every design is a compromise. if I need to split wood, I never grab a knife. I use an axe, because thats what its made for. an axe will always be better for chopping and splitting and is more efficient for those tasks. knives are for finer jobs like carving and skinning. hard use knives are generaly useless when compared to an axe and arent nearly as good as lighter knives for actual knife tasks. the only thing those large knives are better at than a small axe or a light knife is fighting. if you need to gut a motherfucker, nothing beats a large knife. but then one must also ask, why not just get a machete?
"...full tang, probably stronger at that spot" - you reckon?! Lovely video, thanks. I recently picked up an old Grohmann at an antiques store as part of a lot. I don't think it cost much more than that easy-break piece of Chinesium: certainly not more than two of the buggers.
Yeah idk what they were thinking there. Maybe afraid the plastic qould be too thin there? Doesn't really matter hiw good rhe plastic is if the blade breaks though. Lol
The Cold Steel model is very flawed. They have changed after Lynn sold the company. I have one from Alaska Knives. The design of the blade is excellent. It's about $100. It has a full tang and a textured grip. The one I have is the Yukon model. It is quite sturdy. (I have no association to the brand)
The Knives Of Alaska Yukon is an awesome knife. I've had one for years, and I believe it's better than the original Canadian. It's so ergonomic in the hand, truly a pleasure to use.
Get the real thing instead, a full tang Grohmann. Grohmann has a clearance/seconds section on their website where deals can be had. I prefer the boat knife or their survival knife. Also Condor has a pattern that mimics the belt knife but with a more normal handle...and it also is full tang.
Stick with the Grohman Full tang, and the shape of this one is a little off. They made a mini version for small game/trout, and they also made the Canadian army knife (not a fighting knife)/ boating knife
question: when the original FAILED why buy another...? this is apparently NOT a good knife I had a Cold Steel Machete FAIL, handle CRACKED and THEY told me that was not possible a lot of their handles are polypropylene crap plastic NOT a fan of Cold Steel especially since the Cold Steel / GOG buy-out
When a knife fails you have to apply some critical thinking and analysis. Yes the knife broke, but it a reasonable for what the knife was designed for. For the price it's a good budget version of the Canadian belt knife. It's a hunting/camp knife. Not a bushcraft or survival knife.
Although I have, carry, and use MANY cold steel knives.. They have a long established heritage of poor handle design and build. Not all models, but some are extremely poorly made regardless of how awesome their blades on the same knife may be.. Let the buyer beware.
@@michaelrizzo5523 At the shape of it and also the thickness of it is suspect to be easily broken even though it’s straight full tang! as I have said Outdoorsman is much better, also have the Tanto blade!
I have had real Grohmann knives for roughly 40-43 years and never had this problem. Real Grohman fix blade knives are full tang and very well made. I will also state that I have some strong negative opinions regarding Cold Steel's poor and failed attempt at recreating a time-honored Canadian Icon associated with outdoor & Military Issue knives over the last 6 and a half decades. If you can only afford a 20 to 30-dollar knife, "I have to say buyer beware!"
I think that sums it up: CS/GSM really insulted the excellent classic design with this, especially considering they can make a good durable utility knife for less than $30, and so can other makers. That was why I was so shocked when this broke like glass. And then I did the autopsy...
@@michaelrizzo5523 I also have to add that the real Grohmann knives are more so for outdoor cutting choirs and the elliptical blade is actually great for that. It really was not designed for a stabbing-like action " The Canadian Military issue Bayonets for that" Use an axe if you have to chop wood like that! I also get it that some people don't have a lot of money to spare. For just a few dollars more you can get a reasonably nice Rough Rider or maybe even a Marbles knife. As an avid Hunter myself I prefer Leather sheaths ( rattle is everything) peace
Matt Jensen has the “Tree of Woe” and the “Croquet-stick of Doom” - Mike has the “Redwood Board of Bad Omens” and the “Baton of Broken Dreams/Puny Tangs”… 😂
Buy a real Canadian belt knife from Grohmann Knives.
This is the original knife and they have several models including folders.
The Grohmann fixed blade knives are full tang...very strong and they have models for military, moose hunting, bird and fish knives and camp/survival knives.
The Cold Steel versions are cheap copies.
When I was in boyscouts my parents got me a Grohmann boat knife. That is the original design. I loved that knife. Had it until I was in the service. Someone decided they needed more then me.
I'd highly recommend trying a original. The Canadian military uses it ( at least they used to)
The Boat Knife looks interesting
@@michaelrizzo5523 Will it suit for the close combat?
@@michaelrizzo5523I have one I wish I had one when I was in the service
I have used this knife every day in my kitchen since 2018 with no issues and it is still razor sharp, only maintained on a honing steel. This is the #1 in the series. The #3 is the jump knife that is issued to our Canadian military. It is a slightly different design. After buying this plastic handled version I bought the numbers 1 to 4 real versions. I don't use it as a Bushcraft knife that's why it's never broken. I am a 75 year old retired Carpenter and my motto is always used a tool for less than what it is designed for and you will never break it. 30+ years doing carpentry and woodworking and I've only broken one piece of equipment that I can remember. Actually it just fell apart from use. The #3 has won some Canadian design Awards and it is in the Smithsonian Institute in the USA. I have over 250 knives from Cold Steel, Benchmade, Spyderco Etc and this is the only one I use all the time. Probably because it's cheap and I can leave it soaking in the kitchen sink without having to worry about rotting a wooden handle. I will check out your roach knife because that's the other one I wanted to get. But at 75 years old I better not wait too long because as George Burns used to say, at his age, I don't buy green bananas anymore because I might not be around long enough till they ripen.
Kudos
Did better than I would have imagined,
and it's an excellent light duty car or truck
knife and I would also think it's very sheeple friendly. 👍
I think that the original one Grohmann #1 has a full tang and a leather sheath that makes much more sense.
@@martkbanjoboy8853 I don't own once, just was browsing, do you own one? What's your opinion about it?
had this knife for about 4 or 5 years now. happy to see it still getting some attention. all in all great knife, thanks for the great review.
Shocker! I love the Roach Belly. I hope the stress points are not the same. Great video Mikey ! 👍
Thanks! Spoiler: The Roach Belly did just fine.
I have a friend who's a butcher. He goes to your residence and processes your livestock right then and there and that knife, is what he primarily uses for skinning (if I'm not mistaken). He's had it for a good while but, that same brake you had on yours, he had on his! He really liked that knife too. I'm sending him your video. He makes his living using knives and I'm pretty sure this video, has some important info that he should be aware of!!! Great video Mike...
Thanks! He might appreciate one of the better made ones
Get him a Knives Of Alaska - Yukon, it's a full tang sturdy version of this Canadian belt knife style, with better ergonomics. Best skinning knife I ever found.
great, thorough review!
Thanks for bringing this to light!
I immediately thought was he batoning it 😂
16 buck skinning knife what do you want...
Well, their other cheapo Lite knives survived my stupidity. Made me overconfident.
Mine is awesome. Probably brittle because of the steel used but thats half the reason i got it. Its cheap enough, buy three and give one away as a present.
Now I want a review of the original one; great video, very educational.
Thanks! And, yeah, I've been thinking about an original
I’ve had mine for a number of years now and use it as a steak knife. So far, so good.
This is why you buy the original ;)
Also, I recommend going for the #3
I have both Cold Steel Canadian belt and Roach belly knife .I also have a vintage Grohmann belt knife. The Cold Steel knives are replicas in appearance but far from the real deal. I found that The Cold Steel Spike is much more up to abuse than either of the latter models and makes a decent thrower too.
The Mora Companion is far superior to the belt knife and roach belly and priced closely the same. The Mora knife also has more steel choices to pick from too. I carry a Mora Companion as a neck knife and my favorite way to carry it is on a braided leather necklace. Once you go Mora you never go back.😆🤣👍
I'm glad I gave Mora a try!
Thank You for sharing! I think it comes down to understanding your tool and it's limitations because usually I'll have 3 blades a knife, axe, and a pocket knife. And even outside I find I use a pocket knife more then anything. A fixed blade is my most important tool to be used sparingly. Random banter!
The Canadian Airborne Regiment troopers were expected to go to war with the Grohman 'boat knife' as their primary field knife. It was always very unpopular, and was nicknamed 'the butter knife.'
Are you kidding? Outfitting paratroopers and pathfinders with a medium quality skinning knife prone to breakage under hard use?
The reason they were stuck with those knives for so long was porkbarreling.
However the paratroopers were also issued a certain model of Schrade three blade pocket knife, carbon steel iirc, instead of the C5 clasp knife.
Troopers were also given the option of bringing their own private purchase knives on field exercises.
The 'boat knife' was also issued to Royal Canadian Navy bosuns, I don't know what those guys thought of it. Grohman never was interested in product development or product improvement on those gov't contract knives. They got a secure gov't contract, you see?
I thought the Grohman design the CS knife was modeled after was really a copy of an old 19th century American sknning knife.
I read this old cbc article about Grohman losing the contract. That the DND would order cheap knockoffs from Chinesia is a typical dumber and dumberer move from NDHQ. Mckay was CPC. No Cdn. national party cares about the Combat effectiveness of the CAF.
Good info. Reminds me: I forgot to mention the blade shape is very good for spreading butter and such. Butter knife indeed.
@@michaelrizzo5523
Michael, The Dexter lambskinner has about the same blade style fwiw.
The elliptical design does stem from various late 1800's American patterns. I've seen a few of the originals
I bought this cause I like the original design but didn't wanna spend money for a real one . Never used it as an out doors knife but same as you I use this or my old hickory 5in hunter when grilling stuff and sometime I'll just grab the as a steak knife . Good buy especially for the price
I must say that I would never baton with a Canadian Belt Knife. The neck between the handle and blade, even with the original Grohmann's, is too thin. Otherwise, I think you called the issue with the Cold Steel. It is WAY too thin. Great review and thanks. I would recommend it for processing meat and veggies. That is what I use mine for and it does very well for the price.
4116 at ~60hrc ?!! That surprising if true
I think they might got too far with the hardness of these Krupp steels. My 60 file has trouble biting in.
The real version from grohman is full tang and very strong. Don't judge the original by a cheap knock-off version. They are designed as a skinner/trapper knife, and I have batoned my grohman version through very knotty wood. I used to be a cold steel fan boy, but they have changed.
I doubt the design has changed since GSM bough it. That spot might have always been a long time weak point. I just don't think people hard test this knife so this was interesting to see.
GSM/Cold Steel needs to fix the design and the heat treat. Please contact them and show them this, its a cheap fix that will make this a better product for them.
Worth a try. I suspect GSM would write it off as abuse.
Cold Steel stop existing when was eaten by gsm gas station knives. They changed construction and materials to worst quality but still using good name of old Lynn's company. Quality doesn't matter anymore when I see dollars in your eys😢
The best version of this style blade I've found is the: Knives Of Alaska - Yukon. Full tang thick stock D2 steel, qith an extremely ergonomic handle.
The elliptical blade shape stems from old American late 1800's game processing designs.
It does look like a very good knife, thanks!
Man, really uncomfortable watching the stabs with this one, Mike. Glad you came out unscathed. Not so much for the knife, though. Lol. Good stuff as always.
There's a "screwdriver" grip for stabbing with guardless knives, but the end of this one is too pointy for me to want to plant it in my palm and drive into something. I may cover that in another video.
@@michaelrizzo5523 Yeah, I have seen that grip demonstrated and it makes perfect sense. As you say, pretty difficult with this one, though.
@@mrjackolanterns I'm considering a video trying the screwdriver grip with a couple of shorter no-guard knives.
@@michaelrizzo5523 I will be here for it.
Its a good shape for what it's designed for. But... I think it's a terrible knife for Cold Steel. Shortcuts and budget savers (that most high production companies regularly use) kill a knife like this. An experienced custom maker using quality steel and handle materials is how this design is meant to be executed. Great video! ✌🏼
Thanks! Yes, the other CBK designs look much better made.
If you buy one from Grohman you won't go wrong
very well
The closest pattern I have to this knife is the Joker Canadiense bushcraft knife, it's much thicker in every way and you can baton it if you can't help it. :) This CS sample seemed very brittle at the neck indeed. Quality control is obviously lacking.
not every tool can be used for every job (shocker) and if a tool can do every job it never does any of them well. every design is a compromise. if I need to split wood, I never grab a knife. I use an axe, because thats what its made for. an axe will always be better for chopping and splitting and is more efficient for those tasks. knives are for finer jobs like carving and skinning. hard use knives are generaly useless when compared to an axe and arent nearly as good as lighter knives for actual knife tasks. the only thing those large knives are better at than a small axe or a light knife is fighting. if you need to gut a motherfucker, nothing beats a large knife. but then one must also ask, why not just get a machete?
Because machetes aren't that stabby?
"...full tang, probably stronger at that spot" - you reckon?!
Lovely video, thanks. I recently picked up an old Grohmann at an antiques store as part of a lot. I don't think it cost much more than that easy-break piece of Chinesium: certainly not more than two of the buggers.
Wow!
Yeah idk what they were thinking there. Maybe afraid the plastic qould be too thin there? Doesn't really matter hiw good rhe plastic is if the blade breaks though. Lol
Just really poor planning compared to other over-molded partial tang designs I've seen.
The Cold Steel model is very flawed. They have changed after Lynn sold the company. I have one from Alaska Knives. The design of the blade is excellent. It's about $100. It has a full tang and a textured grip. The one I have is the Yukon model. It is quite sturdy. (I have no association to the brand)
The Knives Of Alaska Yukon is an awesome knife. I've had one for years, and I believe it's better than the original Canadian. It's so ergonomic in the hand, truly a pleasure to use.
Worth pointing out that you are talking about a $100 knife versus $20 version. For the price it works fine for it's purpose.
Canadian knife made in Pictou Nova Scotia Canada. Not same knife
CS really dishonored a fine design.
Get the real thing instead, a full tang Grohmann. Grohmann has a clearance/seconds section on their website where deals can be had. I prefer the boat knife or their survival knife. Also Condor has a pattern that mimics the belt knife but with a more normal handle...and it also is full tang.
Stick with the Grohman Full tang, and the shape of this one is a little off.
They made a mini version for small game/trout, and they also made the Canadian army knife (not a fighting knife)/ boating knife
Grohmann bird and trout is well worth the 100 bucks . CS canadian belt knife and the roach belly are junk unless your just doing some light cuts .
You should pick up a real Grohman knife and test it. You may be abit surprised.
But if you put a floogleblonger where the digiflipper isn't , replace the clicktoid with a cube bearing set........y'know upgrade to R grade.
question: when the original FAILED why buy another...?
this is apparently NOT a good knife
I had a Cold Steel Machete FAIL, handle CRACKED and THEY told me that was not possible
a lot of their handles are polypropylene crap plastic
NOT a fan of Cold Steel especially since the Cold Steel / GOG buy-out
Because of the tasks I like it for, as in: it's never leaving the kitchen again.
When a knife fails you have to apply some critical thinking and analysis. Yes the knife broke, but it a reasonable for what the knife was designed for. For the price it's a good budget version of the Canadian belt knife. It's a hunting/camp knife. Not a bushcraft or survival knife.
Not a self defense piece..
Although I have, carry, and use MANY cold steel knives..
They have a long established heritage of poor handle design and build. Not all models, but some are extremely poorly made regardless of how awesome their blades on the same knife may be..
Let the buyer beware.
Cold steel outdoorsman is much nicer than that!
Their other Lite knives have been impressive. This one... Shockingly fragile.
@@michaelrizzo5523 At the shape of it and also the thickness of it is suspect to be easily broken even though it’s straight full tang! as I have said Outdoorsman is much better, also have the Tanto blade!
I have had real Grohmann knives for roughly 40-43 years and never had this problem. Real Grohman fix blade knives are full tang and very well made. I will also state that I have some strong negative opinions regarding Cold Steel's poor and failed attempt at recreating a time-honored Canadian Icon associated with outdoor & Military Issue knives over the last 6 and a half decades. If you can only afford a 20 to 30-dollar knife, "I have to say buyer beware!"
I think that sums it up: CS/GSM really insulted the excellent classic design with this, especially considering they can make a good durable utility knife for less than $30, and so can other makers. That was why I was so shocked when this broke like glass. And then I did the autopsy...
@@michaelrizzo5523 I also have to add that the real Grohmann knives are more so for outdoor cutting choirs and the elliptical blade is actually great for that. It really was not designed for a stabbing-like action " The Canadian Military issue Bayonets for that" Use an axe if you have to chop wood like that! I also get it that some people don't have a lot of money to spare. For just a few dollars more you can get a reasonably nice Rough Rider or maybe even a Marbles knife. As an avid Hunter myself I prefer Leather sheaths ( rattle is everything)
peace
Garbage
It made me sad...
Matt Jensen has the “Tree of Woe” and the “Croquet-stick of Doom” - Mike has the “Redwood Board of Bad Omens” and the “Baton of Broken Dreams/Puny Tangs”… 😂
I like it!
@@michaelrizzo5523 I had a feeling you would… ☺️👍🏻