Cold Steel Micro Recon 1 Tanto Tactical Folder Knife On Sale
First impressions of the knife are largely positive, but after using it for a bit I realized certain things that, if fixed/changed, would make the knife significantly easier to use, safer to use, and an all-around better knife.
I have many knives, quite a few Spyderco's (Delica4, Endura4, Tenacious, Ambitious, Resilience and a ladybug) and I also have the original Cold Steel Recon 1 in Tanto. I think Cold Steel wanted to compete with the Spyderco ladybug/manbug, because the specs and size are nearly identical.
With that said, I'll jump right into the pros and cons.
======= PROS =======
- Very compact and light, which helps this knife melt into your pocket (or wherever you choose to put it) unnoticed. Weighs 31g on my scale. Not nearly as light as the ladybug (~17g), but I don't mind a little more heft, as it makes it feel more robust, strong, and tough (like a quality knife should feel).
- Feels nice in the hand, the two-finger grip is very comfortable and surprisingly secure for such a small handle. Feels good enough to use defensively in a pinch in which you can be confident the knife will stay put.
- Handle texture is plenty grippy. May be fake G-10, but it still grips well. I've always liked Spyderco handle textures, and most of them just use plain-Jane FRN. So I don't mind that it isn't real G-10.
- Ultra tight and secure lock-up. Pretty amazed such a small knife has such a beefy lock-up. Probably overkill, but who cares, it's nice to have and I love that authoritative click!
- Zero blade play out of box. Up/down, left/right, no play whatsoever. Has adjustable pivot screw as well.
- Crazy sharp out of box. Probably won't last long due to AUS-8 steel, but it sure is plenty sharp. Effortlessly sliced through paper and opened up some boxes with absolute ease.
- Tanto option? Yes!! Don't think there is too many knives out there in this size (with well-known companies) that have tanto options for 2" or less blades. Tanto is pretty great for a lot of reasons, but it becomes really apparent when opening boxes. And the extra strength of the tip is nice to have in case you have to do some prying.
- This knife looks very cool. I mean a dark blade Tanto with an all black handle? Awesome! Everything about how this knife looks just fits perfectly. The instant I saw it in the glass knife case at my local mall, I knew I had to have it. This knife has character, and lots of it.
- Made in Taiwan. Not sure how much better than China that really is, but it's probably quite a bit. Not quite as awesome as the VG-10 steel from Seki-City Japan on some Spyderco knives, but it's better than being made in China.
======= CONS =======
- A bit hard to open one-handed. I really have to hand it to Spyderco and their spydie-hole, once you get used to that it's really hard to go back to studs. Even the ladybug is relatively easy to to open with it's tiny little hole. But I have to concentrate a bit to open up this knife with one hand. Thumb stud needs to be positioned a bit further out and maybe be a little bit taller (right hand user). My hands are pretty average, not small but also not big.
- Needs slight indent for the blade-release "button". Spyderco has this one nailed, which has a slight indent on the blade-release (David Boye Dent). On a Spyderco knife it is really easy to find, push and use the blade-release, because it is slightly curved inward. But with the micro Recon 1, the blade-release is completely flat. And after frequent opening and closing, my thumb is now raw and tender.
- Blade release is far too stiff. The lever to release the blade once it is locked is way too hard to un-release. I really have to push it in far to fully release the blade. And as mentioned, after a few uses my thumb is pretty raw and tender. The tension on my ladybug blade release is effortless, but the micro Recon 1 takes far too much effort. Which is actually a safety problem, in the same way a dull knife is more dangerous than a sharp knife.
- Finger choil on blade is practically non-existent. If you are the kind of person who likes to close the knife one-handed by pressing the release and 'flicking' the blade downwards onto your index finger, then wrapping your hand around to close, you may want to re-think doing that with this blade. All my Spyderco knives that have a lock-back, have generous choil which prevents the sharpened side of the blade from coming into direct contact with your finger. Which makes flick-closing one-handed pretty safe to do. The micro Recon 1 however, has such a small choil that I have already cut my index finger using this method. So instead of flicking it closed, I now press the release then gently press the blade down on something to get it out of the lock-position, then flip my hand around and close it that way. Definitely not as convenient or quick, but it does make one-handed closing a reality. Also since there is essentially no finger choil, the risk of slicing off a finger when closing it is possible too (like if you fall or bump into something as you are closing it).
- No blade jimping, and cut-outs on top of the handle are mostly useless. The top handle jimping/grooves would be useful, but the spine of the lock mechanism rides up above those cut-outs. So rather than providing grip, it is pretty smooth since the finger mostly rides on the metal railing and doesn't really come into contact with the cut-outs. Would have liked to see some kind of jimping on the blade, I've gotten pretty spoiled by Sypderco knives which all have wonderful blade jimping (ladybug too).
- AUS-8 steel. Even the ladybug has VG-10 steel, so I would have liked to see something a bit harder than AUS-8. My old Recon 1 dulls very quickly due to it's AUS-8 steel, and I am not a good sharpener (I usually make them duller).
- Tanto point. Now wait, didn't I say this was a pro? Yes, but when it comes to sharpening, tanto is inconvenient and difficult to sharpen properly. Not really a con for this knife in particular, but any knife with tanto. Which is another reason why I would have liked a harder steel, because the less I have to sharpen it the better.
- One last con is that I would have liked some kind of small pocket-clip option. I mean CS could have drilled a few tiny holes and included a small clip with the knife in case we wanted to use that option. Cheap steel and cheap handle material should have gotten us at least a little something extra.
======= FINAL THOUGHTS =======
So there you have it, overall I think this knife is going to be my main go-to knife for any task that it could work for, then my full sized Endura will be in reserve in case I ever need a near 4" blade.
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Cold Steel Micro Recon 1 Tanto Tactical Folder Knife Price
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Cold Steel Micro Recon 1 Tanto Tactical Folder Knife Overview
Cold Steel Micro Recon 1 Tanto Tactical Folder Knife Feature
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Cold Steel Micro Recon 1 Tanto Tactical Folder Knife Detail
- Item Weight: 1.6 ounces
- Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
- Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
- Origin: Taiwan
- ASIN: B006YBW8BI
- Item model number: 27TDT
Cold Steel Micro Recon 1 Tanto Tactical Folder Knife Other Resource
Steel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaSteel is an alloy of iron and other elements, principally carbon. When carbon is the primary alloying element, its content in the steel is between 0.002% and 2.1% by ...
Stainless steel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In metallurgy, stainless steel, also known as inox steel or inox from French "inoxydable", is defined as a steel alloy with a minimum of 10.5% to 11% chromium content ...
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