Cold Steel

Cold Steel built a following on aggressive marketing and blades that survive tests other makers would not attempt on camera. Behind the showmanship, the Tri-Ad lock is genuinely one of the strongest folding-knife locks made.

The range runs from everyday folders to machetes, tomahawks and swords, and very little of it is delicate. If a knife is going to be used hard rather than admired, it is a sensible place to look.