Cold Steel SR1 and SR1 Lite Issues. (Tri-ad Lock)

Here I cover my findings of issues with the Cold Steel Sr1 and Lite models. Disappointing as I really like this design. Thanks for watching.

*For your own safety, don’t try to close this knife one handed*

[MNWoodland]

UPDATE: Not even a couple days after filming, I’m starting to see a second tiny roll in the SAME spot on the SR1 that the SR1 lite had. This means that even the SR1 will damage by simply closing the blade. It wasn’t as apparent probably because the s35 was taking longer to wear. Huge disappointment! I’ll be reaching out to cold steel.

[zakmohti]

What's wrong with people $hitting all over this guy's video. He's sharing some good valuable observations here for free. No blade should be chipped using the knife, that should be built into design. Now you can advise us how to avoid the problem after we bought it, but still this video makes some good points. THANKS for taking the time to put it together.

[Fr_dG]

That explanation at 6:30 makes so much sense. I have both chips too.

[southernlonghorn]

Just bought one of these (SR1 Lite) and have read several reviews about this happening. I figured it might be something I need to fix/tweak on a $35 sharp crow bar. This thing is a beast, most knife for the dollar I have purchased and I have dozens. Not sure if they have fixed the issue but my tanto version has not had this issue. Best beater knife I own so far.

[DLT]

I will say this, That is the one knife that bit me bad while one handing the lock back while closing. I had my index finger a little too low on the handle and I thought it cut my finger completely off. Learned a valuable lesson about playing with knives that’s new to you

[damianNZ]

Hola gracias por el video me fue útil ! Me pasaba lo mismo en la lite drop point, me dejaba una pequeña mecha y no sabía porqué, entonces probé sacando solo una cacha y ver el problema, efectivamente la hoja cerrada tocaba con el resorte!! El cuál lo quite y lo aplaste 3 mm y el problema fue resuelto! No toca más la hoja !! Es muy sencillo de hacer !! Gracias

[meoffjack]

Received my SR1 a few days ago and have been carrying it since then. Great knife. I like it. I like its toughness over my previous Spyderco PM2 EDC knife which I carried for 3 years exclusively and broke the tip two times until it was sturdy enough to withstand "my" handling. Already cut up stuff and opened boxed and so far this knife is neither too big nor the blade not as sharp and "slicey" as some people make it out to be.
Tried everything to get the same detents on the edge as you but no luck so far. My knife doesn't have this issue.

[russellwalker]

just purchased SR1 tanto a few weeks ago, no issues. i did have to sand down scales under pocket clip and tweek tension on clip. it arrived impossible to clip over pants pocket. other than that, i love the beast. i purchased it for my edc work knife as a home re-modeler.

[Kris_Stiletto]

I have several SR1 Tanto Folders in both the Lite and Regular Models. None of mine have this issue. I would suggest that you contact GSM, Cold Steel for a replacement. Sorry to hear that you are having problems. :-) Peace, Stiletto :-)

[edlicsathiamurthy]

I have both drop point and tanto for SR1 Lite... no problems at I have been using the tanto for 1 year... still no problems at all... perhaps you got a bad deal????

[SixWhisperEdits]

Thanks just got the knife and after this video i tried closing my knife a little harder to see if it caused damaged, and yes it did now im gonna send it back

[ingenieriasdwight]

I have the SR1 Lite in the tanto version and it doesn't have this issue, works perfectly. Maybe it was a problem with a specific lot

[fishnknives]

I too have noticed this problem. But discovered the fix is to bend the spring out a little bit.

[FitMagic]

I just tried this by pressing the Tri-Ad lock mechanism button all the way in on the 4-Max Scout with the knife closed and the lock button facing the ground (so the weight of the knife is completely against the lock) and I saw the blade rise, indicating that the 4-Max Scout also potentially faces this issue. I can confirm that I tried this on the AD10 and the AD10 limited edition with titanium scales with 3V blade and the blade on both of these did not move at all, potentially indicating that they do not suffer from this issue.
The bright side is that you have to press the button all the way in to get the blade to move at all. The bad side is that if you get to the point where you've owned the knife long enough to break it in or you just have extremely strong fingers, you could potentially damage the blade if you close it using this method (and essentially treating the knife like it has an Atlas Lock or Shark Lock).

[dtester]

I tested out a few different tri-ads after watching this. Most are impossible or very hard to close the knife that way. My SR1 lite does seem to be the easiest one to do this although I wasn't trying to test it hard. With my limited experiment, it seems to be something about that particular model. However, I never had an issue because I don't close the knife that way.

[CaffeineThrottle]

Per last comment, I had mine on occasion start to unlock.Just for kicks I added a Boyd Dent to the lock, problem solved.I noticed this during some hard pushing through some soft metal.

[Riedenlow]

Could you update. What happened and did Coldsteel reimburse you or fixed the problem on later production? I am interested to buy a SR1 but won't do it before I know if they have fixed the problem (changing the tolerances would do I think). Also I want to thank you for sharing this valuable information. Thanks! :)

[Life]

Will have to test my sr1 and see. I will be closing mine w two hands always. Very risky to try w one hand. My sr1 is for the bugout bag and will generally stay there. It’s a very serious tool and not for fidgety people for sure.

[zororosario]

Very astute of you👍, thanks for the heads up 👆 😊

[jamesreese]

That's good to know. I own about 2 dozen Triad lock knives and have never had that problem, but I can see how it could happen. The tolerances are tight enough that the lockbar can't be depressed while allowing the knife to slam shut. I do not have the SR1 or the SR1 lite so it may just be a manufacturing or design flaw in the SR series. The closest C/S I have to the SR is the Air lite and it doesn't hit even if I hold the lockbar down. I don't think it's a Triad lock problem it's a SR series problem. If I were you, I'd contact Cold Steels customer service people, they'll probably be able to help. Edit: Just found a couple of Youtube video's going back over 5 years that discuss this same issue on the SR series of knives. Colds steel has to be aware of this issue, I'm disappointed that they haven't fixed this issue.