A Review on Cold Steel Espada 62NL Large Vs Cold Steel Rajah II

Espada was designed by custom knife maker Andrew Demko and Cold Steel President Lynn C. Thompson. Their goal was to harness old world craftsmanship with new world advancements in mechanics and materials to create a new series of tactical folders for today’'s Conquistadors.They are huge yet surprisingly well balanced and feature dramatically upswept clip point blades that are ideal for cutting, slashing and piercing.

Made from vacuum heat-treated and sub-zero quenched Japanese 8A stainless steel and hollow ground to a thin, razor sharp edge, they will cleave through just about any obstacle or target in their path. To minimize overall weight and maximize strength and rigidity, cold steel have CNC machined the frames and integral bolsters of the Espada's handles from 7075 Aluminum billets. While quite costly, this material rivals even Titanium in strength and can endure years of the hardest abuse.

Finally to make the handle as beautiful as it is effective and strong, Cold Steel have mirror polished the dovetailed bolsters and attached glossy black G-10 handle scales using the latest high tech fasteners. The state of the art pistol grip handles are strongly curved and equipped with multiple finger grooves and even a sub-hilt for either a forward or reverse grip. 

Cold Steel Espada 62NL LargeESPADA, LARGE

Specifications:
Blade Length: 5 1/2"
Blade Thickness: 4 mm
Overall Length: 12 1/4"
Steel: Japanese Aus 8A Stainless
Weight: 9.8 oz
Handle: 6 3/4" Long Polished G-10 w/ Polished 7075 Aluminum Bolster & Frame

Pocket Clip: Stainless Pocket / Belt Clip



The knife speaks for its self. It is massive and awesome. very well made and strong like all cold steel knives. It has a very smooth operation both to open it and to close it and out the box it is extremely sharp!!! if you desire the highest quality knife in this category, this is your knife. The lockup is Herculean. The blade itself, is a masterpiece. The steel, grind, and scary sharp edge remind you why you paid what u did for this knife.

 This knife is surprisingly light for it's size, which makes it tolerable for EDC if necessary. The weight also gives it a surprising dexterity you wouldn't expect. The clip is perfection and thumb ramp deploys this blade faster than a switchblade with practice.

Cold Steel Espada Large- The Good

-Beautiful sharp and highly polished knife
-Solid grip and easy handling
- light for it's size, which makes it tolerable for EDC
-The polished G10 on this version is beautiful

- Wave Rapid deployment is impressive and functional

-TRI-AD lock

Cold Steel Espada Large- The Bad

-The polished G10 on this version is beautiful - but slick

-Expensive
-Speaking of slick - BE CAREFUL - the Triad lock mechanism on this knife is very stiff. -Opening is easy, closing can be a challenge at first. Since the blade is so long - and you need a decent amount of pressure to close, you can inadvertently get fingers in the way of the blade as it is closing - and then hello Emergency Room. SO please be careful out there.

-May be too large for people with smaller hands

Cold Steel Rajah II

The Rajah folders, designed by Andrew Demko, are big enough to approximate the feel and heft of a fixed blade Kukri. Their broad, downward curved blades exhibit the best of a Kukri’s characteristics. First, their unique shape presents their thin, hollow ground edges at just the right angle so they naturally bite deep instead of bouncing or skidding off. And secondly their points are thick, wide and sharp enough to pierce even the toughest targets.

RAJAH II available now at our online store for RM 630

Specifications:

Blade Length: 6"
Blade Thickness: 4.8 mm
Overall Length: 14"
Steel: Japanese Aus 8A Stainless
Weight: 13.4 oz
Handle: 8" Long Grivory
Pocket Clip: Stainless Pocket / Belt Clip

Cold Steel Rajah II- Pros
kukri blade shape, super shave sharp
Great light tactical knife from cold steel
The lock up is rock solid (TRI-AD lock)
Handle is grivory and really gives an excellent grip with all the finger grooves
At first it is a little hard to unlock the knife, but after a little use and oil, it opens up pretty fast

Cold Steel Rajah II- Cons
Blade rusting (Have to put some oil once a while to prevent rust)
It is a little hard to unlock the knife
Too big too carry around compare to Rajah III

At first thought, carrying a "pocket sword" as big and heavy as the Espada & Rajah II may seem impractical. However, after much experimentation, we have found this is not the case. Even the biggest model can be carried discreetly and unobtrusively in the front pocket of most pants and when clipped to the waistband and covered by a "bloused" shirt or sweater they totally disappear. Then in an emergency they can be drawn and opened in a single motion by snagging the patented thumb plate on the edge of a pocket. 

If you want the maximum knife for your money, well made and with a classic bowie design get the Espada large. If you just want to go crazy and turn heads with more pocket knife than you'll likely ever need get the Espada extra large. But, before you get the extra large, I recommend you check out the Cold Steel Rajah II. It is much economical range of large foldable knife and cost less expensive than the classic bowie Espada.

Please visit the following link for more reviews on CS Rajah II & Spartan

http://skldiyuptown.blogspot.com/p/a-review-on-cold-steel-spartan-vs-cold.html