Cold Steel Roach Belly Knife Review
One of the best bargains out there, the Cold Steel Roach Belly is an efficient camp/utility knife at a price that anyone can afford. Based on personal experiences while camping and in the kitchen, I've found it to be both easy to use and low maintenance.
It features:
Total length is 8.5 inches (21.59 cm) with a 4.5 inch (11.43 cm) Blade
Blade Thickness: 2.5 mm
4116 Krupp Stainless Steel Blade (this steel is often used for surgical tools and mid-level kitchenware in Germany - it's roughly analogous to 420HC)
Durable polypropelene handle that will not swell, shrink, crack, or rot the way wood handles do
Lanyard Hole on handle
Excellent blade shape with a curved sweep allowing for full use of the cutting edge and an extremely sharp piercing tip
Jimping on the spine is well-defined, allowing the user to obtain more control of the blade.
Very lightweight at 2.6 ounces (73.7 grams). 3.5 ounces (99.2 grams) with sheath.
MSRP is $18.99 but can be had for $12-13 online.
If i were to change anything I would:
Put a more textured surface on the handle for better grip
For general camp usage the Roach Belly is great. However, I would gladly pay double or triple if Cold Steel would make a higher quality version with better steel (e.g. Aus8, VG10, S30V, etc.), a thicker blade (at least 4mm so I can do light batoning of wood), and a kydex sheath.
Make the belt loop a snap-on attachment to make it easy to put on/take off
NOTE: I have made a video of how to add a snap to the sheath for quick attachment to your belt:
• PROJECT: Adding Snaps to Your Gear
Even with the above nitpicks I believe that the Roach Belly is one of the best value knives out there and encourage you to consider it for your utility needs.
This video was shot with an Olympus 770SW.
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