Knife Reviews & Articles

Steel Warrior Saddlehorn

Specifications

Length closed: 3-5/16"
Length open: 5-3/4"

Blades:
440 Stainless Steel
Tested Rockwell 56-58
2-1/2" clip point
2-1/2" spay (5/8" deep at the belly)

Liners: Brass

Bolsters: Nickel silver

Handle: Wine coloured jigged bone

Pattern # SW111RWJ


You open up the box, and you are immediately impressed with this knife. The more you handle it and inspect it, the more impressed you become. And what's more, you didn't expect that! The whole thing comes as a surprise. Why? I'll tell you a little later, because this knife deserves to be judged by its quality and workmanship rather than pre-conceptions. And because this knife really is better than some of the knives from the "big names" in knife production.


The tang stamp is neat, clean and precise. The grind is perfectly neat, and there are no ugly striations on the blade or imperfections on the tang. Whoever ground this blade knew what he was doing and took care over it.		 Let's get straight in, really close in and personal, and look at that bone. The jigging can only be described as perfect. Nice and random looking. The wine coloured bone itself is really quite beautiful, with a grain reminiscent of a horse chestnut on the smooth polished surfaces. The neat inset steel shield with the Warrior emblem has a finish that looks rather like satin finished pewter.


The blade etch is neat and not too obtrusive. Note the tiny little dot just below the warrior's foot. It is a punch mark. Every knife is tested to make sure that it is to a hardness of Rockwell 56-58, and when new, there is a little sticker on the blade that points to that test mark. How often have you seen that on a knife? Its obviously a part of the quality control.

While we are here, have a look at that precise grind leading onto the tang. And by the way, that edge shaves the hair from the back of your arm with the lightest touch. One of my other sharpness tests is to cut a V shaped notch into the cross grain of an old piece of oak. This knife not only cut easily and cleanly, but it left a polished shiny surface on the cross grain of the wood.

 General shots of the knife with the two blades in the open position. It feels good in the hand, and is surprisingly weighty for its size. (Overall length 5-3/4").

Even the box is quality. Glossy. A good photograph of the knife and good artwork.

.

Someone has taken that extra bit of care and attention here. With one blade open you can see that deep in there even the inside of the springs are polished. (Compare that with any of your other production knives).

.

And the back of the knife. A fine satin finish to the steel and the brass liners that feels silky to the touch. Hey.... its positively erotic to the touch.

Now let's get really cruel with the photography, and a look extremely closely at the workmanship, compared with a current knife from one of the best known names in the business.

The Steel Warrior is the one on the right. One of the tests that I do with any knife, is to see how clean the ends are. Hold any knife end-on against the light and look at the reflections, and at the cleanliness of the edges. It tells you a lot!

The knife on the left, (a trapper from one of the biggest names in the USA) has over polished edges that are soft, and very uneven and unequal. The reflections show that the radiusing of the end is both variable (stepped) and tilted. And there are scratches too. Now look at the Steel Warrior on the right. Perfectly horizontal reflections, and edges that are clean and precise, with an imperceptible radius on the edges so that they are not sharp to the touch.

Just look at the nickel silver, brass and steel sandwich. And the fit between the layers!

You choose! As you will see, there just isn't any contest! And folks, the whole knife is to that standard of workmanship. I had better say it again just to remind you. The knife on the right is the Steel Warrior.

Want to see the other end just to make sure? Here you go. Now you see why I was so surprised when I opened the box.

So there you go. One of the neatest and well engineered knives that I have seen in a long while.

And why was I so very surprised? Because of this:

See that little tiny etch on the back of the blade? It says "CHINA".

This knife is the new 2005 offering from Frost Cutlery, and it sets up a whole new standard of knives from Frost. Throw away any prejudices you may have had about Frost or knives from China. This one's got it all going for it.

How much is it? ..... It is incredibly inexpensive, at a tiny, tiny fraction of the cost of a USA made Case or Queen knife. And I got mine from one of the most reliable dealers in the business who knows his knives. Mike Latham at CollectorKnives.net

Other knives currently in the same range are tiny toothpicks, saddlehorns, stockmans, and a lockback. I'm sure more are coming.

Rod Neep
March 2005