Caledonian Edge
For almost a decade, Cold Steel offered a small, wicked looking, boot knife called the Culloden. It was based on the traditional Scottish "Black Knife" or "Skean Dhu", as it was more commonly referred to, in Gaelic, the ancient language of Scotland.
For the dawning years of this century, however, Cold Steel has created an entirely new tactical folder, that takes some of its design cues from the ancient Skean Dhu.
The Caledonian Edge features a number of modern variations and refinements on its older predecessor. The blade is made from virtually unbreakable San Mai III laminated stainless, and, like the original Skean Dhu, features a thin, acutely pointed tip that's as sharp as the proverbial needle. It glides effortlessly through even the most puncture resistant materials. Additionally, its precisely and carefully hollow ground blade has been honed so sharp, it will shave hair from your arm just as if you were using a straight razor.
The traditional jimping seen on the Skean Dhu of old has been retained and provides an aggressive, non-slip platform for one's thumb and forefinger, allowing for better control when using the blade to cut or pierce.
The Caledonian Edge's handle sports a palm-hugging profile and a relatively thin cross section that augments its covert qualities. It's flat enough to resist rolling or twisting in one's palm yet comfortable enough to accommodate a wide range of gripping styles. A perfect blend of strength and beauty, it features a superstructure of attractive, highly polished, black Micarta scales and custom Titanium bolsters that are bolted, utilizing the latest in high-tech fasteners, to a strong, yet lightweight Titanium liner substructure.
The Caledonian Edge's leaf spring locking mechanism will protect your fingers from its sharp edge. It's made from Titanium and is hand fitted to the closest tolerances possible. It has proved incredibly tough and reliable even when exposed to brutal testing by Cold Steel.
For discreet carry and immediate access, the Caledonian Edge comes with a brightly polished stainless steel pocket clip and thumb stud on the blade. This arrangement allows a wide variety of carry options as well as lightning quick one handed opening.
Caledonian Edge
| Blade steel | VG-1 San Mai III |
| Rc hardness | 56-58 |
| Blade length | 4 1/4" |
| Length open | 9 5/16" | | Blade thickness | 4mm |
| Weight | 5.8 oz |
| Made in | Japan |
More about San Mai III steel:
San Mai means "three layers". It's the term given to the traditional laminated blades used by the Japanese for swords and daggers. Laminated construction is important because it allows different grades of steel to be combined in a single blade. A simple way to think of this type of construction is to imagine a sandwich: The meat center is hard, high carbon steel and the pieces of bread on either side are the lower-carbon, tough side panels. The edge of the blade should be hard to maximize edge holding ability, but if the entire blade was hard it could be damaged during the rigors of battle. For ultimate toughness the body of the blade must be able to withstand impact and lateral stresses. Toughness is generally associated with "softness" and "flexibility" in steel, so that, surprisingly, if a blade is made "tough" the edge won't be hard enough to offer superior edge holding. San Mai III provides a blade with hard (higher carbon) steel in the middle for a keen, long lasting edge and tougher (lower-carbon) steel along the sides for flexibility.
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