Cold Steel Code 4 3.5" S35VN Razor-Sharp Blade 5" 6061 Aluminum Handle Everyday Carry Tactical Folding Knife w/Tri-Ad Locking Mechanism

This was my first Cold Steel knife purchase. Did a lot of research beforehand. Excellent chunk of S35VN steel or a great price. Looks very classy and sleek. Once I got it in hand, it felt velvety smoothe and strong at the same time. The pocket clip is very tight, so I keep a thick piece of cardboard under the clip while not using it hoping it will stretch it out a little. The smoothness of the scales that many complain about is fine with me. I won't be using it on really tough projects. It's more of a slim EDC knife when I need one to hide in my pocket. It's so classy, I take it out just to mess around with it. The lock is extremely strong, but not so tough to unlock like many people complain. You can definitely feel the snap when it locks it. It's not going anywhere. The blade is razor sharp. I cut myself multiple times with in the first while getting familiar with it. If you want a gentlemanly looking knife that is super tough, this is it.

This thing is tough, like all cold steel knives. The triad lock is the strongest knife lock on the market hands down. Seriously, it's not even close. The lock might come a bit stiff, but it'll break in over time. If you want to break it in faster, just leave the knife half way open (90 degree angle) some place safe where you won't hurt yourself on the open blade for half a day and then check on it. Just keep checking on it every half day or day or so until you're happy with it. Mine took all of 12 hours to get a point where I was happy with it.Unlike a lot of other cold steel knives, the thin profile and small (well.. for a cold steel small) blade are much more reasonable for office/every day carry than some of the rest of the cold steel lineup.The aluminum handles are a bit smooth, but the design of the handle locks me in very well, so I'm not at all worried about it slipping out of my hand. I might be worried if I worked in an environment with grease & vaseline but outside of something like that it's not going to be an issue. If anything the handles being on the smoother side help with being able to get this beast out of my pocket and help keep the weight down.The clip on this knife is great, doesn't cause any hot spots and has good retention which is important with a smoother handle material like aluminum. It comes with an extra clip just in case you want to carry it on the other side.The code 4 comes in multiple blade shapes, I went with the "spear point". I would personally consider this more of a spear/drop point hybrid, but whatever, I got it because it looks less aggressive than the tanto and I might want to carry this around people who aren't super used to having medium sized knives around.The blade is S35VN, which is an incredible steel that has great corrosion resistance and edge retention. It might take slightly longer to sharpen than 440c, vg10, etc. but I wouldn't call it harder to sharpen (unlike s30v which led to much profanity while I was learning to sharpen knives). If it's going to be a big repair, it's a good idea to start with a diamond stone then move on from there, if you're just touching it up, you can easily get away with just using ceramic. Overall it's well worth the small amount of extra time sharpening for what you get compared to other steels imo. If you need an inexpensive, quick, and easy diamond sharpening kit, I would recommend the lansky turnbox with diamond rods.The Code 4 is extremely smooth while opening and closing and can be operated with just one hand. Put your thumb on the stud and keep some pressure on it while you roll the blade out and keep going until you hear the lock click into place. The flat part on the blade keeps your fingers from getting sliced while closing it one handed. Just keep your index finger where it would normally be while normally gripping the knife and push in the back lock to disengage it. Your finger will catch the dropping blade on the unsharpened area, allowing you to then reposition your hand so your fingers aren't in the path of the blade, then safely finish closing the knife (see pics). While you can operate it with one hand, it's not a fidget friendly knife. It's built to be a solid tool, not a toy.For the design and quality of the materials this knife was ridiculously inexpensive, and then you get cold steel's solid warranty on top of that? I mean it's highly doubtful you'll ever need to use the warranty with this tank, but it's good to know that it's there just in case. Incredible deal.My only complaint isn't a complaint with the knife itself, but rather how these get listed as having 3.5" blades. That's only sort of true. The sharpened part is dead on 3.5". There is also that small flat unsharpened area that is not included in that length measurement, however, an officer may well include that in the blade length, so be aware if you have knife length limits in your area. (see pics)TL;DR Get this knife, it's a great every day carry sized cold steel. Built stupid tough with great materials, great design, great fit & finish, with a solid warranty at a price that can't be beat.

The media could not be loaded. Just got mine in today. Love it so far. The single only complaint I have with it, is that the aluminum scales are very slick. It almost doesn’t have scales, it feels almost like a slick piece of aluminum. If it had even a little more grip, i would have no complaints with it. However, the thinness and the finger grooves feel absolutely amazing in the hand. Even though the grip is slick, it feels like it’s not going anywhere once you got the right grip on it. Thin, light, durable, aesthetically pleasing, overall great EDC so far.

Overall i like the knife. Good steel, great ergonomics in the handle, very useful blade shape, superb locking mechanism. The only gripe i really have is the handle overall is very thin which is good for carryability but not so much for holding the knife for me at least besides my hands sweat easily and handle becomes very slippery. Honestly almost a perfect folder just wish it had slightly thicker handle scales and a different texture (maybe bead blassted or something.

if I'm not mistaken this knife is equipped with the triad lock system this knife is meant to withstand some serious abuse it goes above and beyond for an everyday carry in my personal collection it's probably one of my favorites I'm a huge fan of the tanto design this knife is very easy to sharpen and a lot of utility it will suffice as a decent self-defense knife in a pinch and double as a great work knife worth the money in a heartbeat

Heavy duty, sharp and clean lines. Smooth aluminum handle but fits the hand great. Bulletproof tri-ad lock back thats heavy to close but will never slip. It comes with both right and left pocket clip. Right handed clip comes installed so wrong handers will have to swap it out.lol

I just got my Code 4 a couple days ago and am shocked by what I got for only $88!! It seems to me to be the kind of knife that's not the best at anything but nothing it couldn't do in a pinch if you had to. IDK if it could batton wood or split wood, but it would make a great EDC or what i may do is keep it for a dressier/night on the town kind of knife; its sexy. And like all CS knives, the lock closes like the door at Forte Knox and the fit/finish and ergos seem legit. While some complain that this knife wouldn't stay in the hand if you had your hands all oily/bloody/wet, i don't I don't think this is the knife i would have in my hand for extreme conditions like those would imply. But for a good all around EDC that's thin, light and gonna hold up to a fair amount of abuse, and all at a good price with premium steel, THIS IS IT.

It an ok knife but there are many better optionsThe only problems with this knife is the handle scales are pretty uncomfortable and the pivot seems to get loose pretty easily