- Joined
- Nov 13, 2006
- Messages
- 86
So I finally bit the bullet and got an 2015 American Lawman as my first Cold Steel knife. I've passed the brand over for a number of years, but the steel upgrade to XHP(I honestly think something like S30V would have been a better choice, but still..) and watching *many* videos putting the linerless, 'structural' G10 to the test helped to convince me. In all honesty, some of the more recent Demko testing of the Tri-ad lock was what really tipped me over - they seemed to convey enough confidence/pride in the lock technology without overhyping things.
The American Lawman was my first choice mainly because it fills in a 'happy medium' in many aspects that I look for in a blade:
1) Medium size
Blade is big enough for most tasks, but nowhere near the size of some of the 'large' models that CS produce. In fact it looks almost 'bland' enough to be sheeple friendly, in that sense. I understand that the 2015 model has a somewhat slimmed-down and smoothed-out handle, which I honestly appreciate.
2) Non-specialist blade
I think dropped point-type blades are excellent for overall utility, and again don't have the 'scariness' factor of alot of the purpose-styled 'combat' blades. The actual blade seems a tiny bit short for the amount of handle, but I think that's mostly a trade-off for the choil, and a bit more space take up by the Tri-ad lock. Totally worth it. The blade shape combined with the essentially flat spine does mean that grinding a good 'wave opener' into it would be quite tricky. Might try adding an attachment at the tumbstud area.
3)Strong lock
Nuff said. It also has the advantage of being harder to disengage, which I really like in a locking system.
4)Ambi carry
The clip and thumbstud aren't necessarily the easiest to swap around. You have to fiddle with 6 screws and 2 clips to change the carry side, and I can't help but wonder if designing the angle of the mounting position slightly differently would have allowed for a single kind of clip to be used on both sides. Tip down carry options would have been nice too, but it looks like that would be really hard to pull off withouth liners. The clip itself is stiff enough not to bend by accident, but can be bent with pliers if you need to loosen. I've had trouble with some other company's clips, which are extremely stiff, and snapped when I tried to bend them to any degree.
5) Ergonomics for multiple, *multiple* grip styles
I read a bit about the ergos, but my happiness meter really only went through the roof when I physically handled the knife. This thing handles like a genetic hybrid of the Spyderco Manix, PM2 and Native all in one. I'm primarily a Spyderco guy nowadays, and do feel that they have the best overall ergos, so this is a big complement. the Lawman even holds well in the Reverse-Edged grips. And the choil...*contented sigh*
6) Overall QC seems to be pretty darned good for the price point. I'm especially impressed how they managed to get such little blade play in the pivot, yet have the lockbar move so freely. There was a decent-sized chip/roll in the blade from out of the box, however, which was a bit disappointing. It does look a bit like there's a slightly burned/discolored bit on the very edge of the blade, so I guess I would have had to sharpen it out anyway. A bit annoying, as I don't look forward to sharpening XHP very often!
Very happy with the purchase in general. Would have still *really* liked metal liners, however - just 'cos ;P When I get the guts to take this thing apart, I might thing about making a set of Ti Liners for it. Have some scrap 6/4 sheet lying around, and it should work...in theory ;P
As an aside, I also managed to gouge the slot in the thumbstud trying to swap it around for left-carry (it's in there *tight*). Contacted CS CS who offered to send me a new one. More to be impressed about!
The American Lawman was my first choice mainly because it fills in a 'happy medium' in many aspects that I look for in a blade:
1) Medium size
Blade is big enough for most tasks, but nowhere near the size of some of the 'large' models that CS produce. In fact it looks almost 'bland' enough to be sheeple friendly, in that sense. I understand that the 2015 model has a somewhat slimmed-down and smoothed-out handle, which I honestly appreciate.
2) Non-specialist blade
I think dropped point-type blades are excellent for overall utility, and again don't have the 'scariness' factor of alot of the purpose-styled 'combat' blades. The actual blade seems a tiny bit short for the amount of handle, but I think that's mostly a trade-off for the choil, and a bit more space take up by the Tri-ad lock. Totally worth it. The blade shape combined with the essentially flat spine does mean that grinding a good 'wave opener' into it would be quite tricky. Might try adding an attachment at the tumbstud area.
3)Strong lock
Nuff said. It also has the advantage of being harder to disengage, which I really like in a locking system.
4)Ambi carry
The clip and thumbstud aren't necessarily the easiest to swap around. You have to fiddle with 6 screws and 2 clips to change the carry side, and I can't help but wonder if designing the angle of the mounting position slightly differently would have allowed for a single kind of clip to be used on both sides. Tip down carry options would have been nice too, but it looks like that would be really hard to pull off withouth liners. The clip itself is stiff enough not to bend by accident, but can be bent with pliers if you need to loosen. I've had trouble with some other company's clips, which are extremely stiff, and snapped when I tried to bend them to any degree.
5) Ergonomics for multiple, *multiple* grip styles
I read a bit about the ergos, but my happiness meter really only went through the roof when I physically handled the knife. This thing handles like a genetic hybrid of the Spyderco Manix, PM2 and Native all in one. I'm primarily a Spyderco guy nowadays, and do feel that they have the best overall ergos, so this is a big complement. the Lawman even holds well in the Reverse-Edged grips. And the choil...*contented sigh*
6) Overall QC seems to be pretty darned good for the price point. I'm especially impressed how they managed to get such little blade play in the pivot, yet have the lockbar move so freely. There was a decent-sized chip/roll in the blade from out of the box, however, which was a bit disappointing. It does look a bit like there's a slightly burned/discolored bit on the very edge of the blade, so I guess I would have had to sharpen it out anyway. A bit annoying, as I don't look forward to sharpening XHP very often!
Very happy with the purchase in general. Would have still *really* liked metal liners, however - just 'cos ;P When I get the guts to take this thing apart, I might thing about making a set of Ti Liners for it. Have some scrap 6/4 sheet lying around, and it should work...in theory ;P
As an aside, I also managed to gouge the slot in the thumbstud trying to swap it around for left-carry (it's in there *tight*). Contacted CS CS who offered to send me a new one. More to be impressed about!
