- AK-47
- Rajah
- 710 Axis
- Lum Chinese
This review consists of :
Knives :
This review consists of : |
|
Maker Webpage : Cold Steel AK-47 :
A few specifics :
A few interesting numbers :
Note :
One of the unique features of this blade is the Tri-Ad lock which uses a secondary stop pin to add great security to the standard back lock design.
Construction :
The AK-47 was used and sharpened so the general finish can't be judged as-boxed however it does lack a number of finishing aspects :
Very nice symmetry in general :
On 3/8" hemp :
Nice reduction in force showing decent aggression (as reflected on the thread slicing as well)
On some wood work, compared to the #1260 Mora on some 1" dowel making 2" points with light force (10-30 lbs) :
The performance was much in favor of the Mora because of the much lower edge angle (9-11 dps) which produces a much higher cutting ability due to the greater mechanical advantage (it is a more efficient wedge). This difference meant that the AK-47 tended to make more "curls" and the Mora actual slices.
With heavy force (50-70 lbs) :
The AK 47 should have pulled ahead due to the thin primary but it can't because the edge is not sharpened back to the choil. Cuts made cut back to the choil the blade slips off of wood and thus cuts are forced to be made further ahead on the blade. However there is so little of the edge straight that almost any movement goes into the belly and the blade slides rapidly in the wood and the torque against the wrist skyrockets.
Five hundred slices into pine, basswood and hardwood flooring show the handle is decently comfortable but there are issues :
All could use some work. However :
With the edge a little blunted from some previous work an attempt at utility cutting showed a fairly interesting aspect of performance :
As a general point of comparison it is fairly simple to see that compared to for example the 710 Axis that the AK-47 is behind in general utility as :
This is a blade which is simply made for much heavier work not simply cutting but stabbing, prying, chopping and digging. It continues the transition away from pure cutting of the Opinel to say the 710 Axis and takes that step another one further towards strength and durability.
This really isn't a knife which functions significantly well for any kind of food cutting because :
The only thing that it does well is heavier work and work which takes advantage of the higher strength and durability. For example cleaning a rabbit it does ok, again assuming the focus isn't on finesse and the legs and neck are chopped off.
This is where the AK-47 shows the general kind of area where it excels as it :
It has enough snap/chopping ability to significantly improve efficiency wise compared to folders like the Paramilitary due to the :
However there are ergonomic issues :
It isn't all negative :
It is quickly obvious though that aside from the decent weight, this really isn't a working choice for wood craft. However for heavier and less precision cutting type work it is a very nice choice.
On some heavier work cutting sods for a walk-way :
The blade really shows :
Ergonomics : the grip is quite specialized. The handle is comfortable in :
grips but only if the handle closely matches the very specific size required to fit in the intricate contouring. Any grip which turns those very specific shapes into the hand such as an ice-pick grip is very uncomfortable. The only grips which are in general very comfortable are side/pinch grips.
There is no jimping aside from some very wide scalloping forward in the handle and thus control in a thumb forward sabre-grip make be an issue for some.
Security : the handle is extremely secure when the handle is positioned so as to fit into the very specific shape contouring which is further aided by the uniform checkering of the G10. The indexing is so high that there is no concern about slipping even if the grip is severely compromised with water or oil and in order for the knife to come out of the hand then the grip has to essentially be opened.
However in other grips such as ice-pick the shape contouring fails completely, there is no indexing at all, the points of contact do nothing but add aggravation and in fact make the grip more likely to fail by causing significant pain in any hard work.
Side and pinch grips have no shape indexing at all and rely completely on friction based adhesion and thus security is very low as there is no contouring or shaping at all through the thickness.
Thus the security of the handle depends greatly on if it is used in the few grips that suit the very specific shaping of the handle.
Durability : the handle is solid G10 and thus is extremely resistant to :
The only real weakness would be direct impacts such as using it as a hammer on hard objects but the extended metal pseudo-tang serves as a strike point for that class of use.
Clip : left/right position clip but only tip up carry mainly because the opener is intended to be used similar to the Emerson Wave.
Construction : the handle is held together through torx, t6 for the main construction and t10 for the pivot. The main issue in taking it apart and assembling is the placement of the back spring which is the only moving part.
The AK-47 has the Tri-Ad lock which is simply an enhancement to the standard back lock with the addition of a stop pin between the blade tang and the rocker bar as shown to the right. This small feature though has one very essential and critical property :
This may not sound at first reading to be significant but it certainly is because that is the exact criteria which is necessary for robust lock designs which in general terms is that general loads places on locks should not act to unintentionally release the locks and that the lock should fail by breaking if it is to fail.
Aside from that it is curious that Cold Steel didn't use the depression commonly used to make lock bars more stable popularized by David Boye however attempting to use the lock bar shows why it isn't necessary here because there is no way the bark is going to be depressed by accident. It takes approximately 10 lbs to depress the lock, the action is extremely stiff.
As expected for AUS-8A easy to grind, trivial to sharpen :
There is an issue though with the primary grind. Note the pictures on the right which show the bevel (reground to 9.5 dps) which is much wider on one side of the knife than the other. This is simply due to the fact that the primary grind isn't as deep on that side. The main problem this has is that part of the edge will not respond as fast on the stones and thus isolated honing has to be done on just that part of the edge each time it is sharpened.
In regards to harder work, cutting hardwoods, plywoods, natural woods and occasion impacts into dirt when cutting brush, the knife did well and resisted chipping enough so that steel removal was minimal. This was further enhanced by the high grindability so that it was very quick to restore even on basic stones.
On Cardboard it performs as a Class II type steel as expected being of moderate carbide volume and hardness :
| # runs | Sharpness | 15% | 10% | 5% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| cardboard cut (m) | ||||
| 3 | 40 +10( 8) | 1.7+0.1(0.3) | 6.7-1.1(1.7) | 47- 9(10) |
The knife uses AUS-8A steel which is similar to a number of popular steels :
It is a steel which is inexpensive and is found thus on many of the introductory models of most manufacturers and it often ran a little softer than optimal to enhance the durability and ease of maintenance.
Modifications :
Overview :
Comments can be emailed to Please Use the Forum or by posting to the following thread :
and/or the YouTube Playlist for Cold Steel.
Most of the pictures in the above are in the PhotoBucket
album.
| Last updated : | |
| Originally written: | 03/06/2013 |