CS-97TKMS: Tactical Katana Machete / 36.25" Overall / 24" Blade / 2.8Mm Thick

Martial artist and landscaper here, familiar with swords, tools, machetes, axes, etc. I also have an older, straight-bladed TKM model from Cold Steel, with which I have cut 2” green bamboo and 1.5” mulberry and black locust. The curved blade of this model is superior, though further testing will be done at which time this review will be updated. (Update: After several more tests it’s clear this model is superior to the straight-blade. Looking forward to putting it to heavier testing and reporting here.) Multiple reviews mention the bad handle design. This is only a problem if your hands are more used to keyboards and tissue paper than tools and handles. The handle by itself is fine from a practical standpoint: it’s very anti-slip and has no sharp corners. Wrap it with some sports wrap or wear gloves when using it if it hurts your hands. When I’m actually using a machete to clear land or blaze a trail I would typically be wearing gloves anyway to protect from briars and poison ivy. Several other reviews mentioned a dull blade and crappy sheath. This one came perfectly sharp for its intended use and the sheath appears to be high quality and protects things around the machete from getting damaged. This isn’t intended for iaijutsu practice after all. Draw it, drop the sheath and go to work. Now for the elephant in the room: the price. This isn’t a beautifully made heirloom, but it is one heck of a deal for under $100. It’s well-made using quality materials by a company that knows what they’re doing. And it’s badass. Great balance and weight for powering through heavy growth combined with a generous handle length for maximum leverage will make you question ever using a 1-handed machete again.

comes very sharp out of the box, looks awesome, good value and seems sturdy. however the grip is not very good as it can be quite uncomfortable while swinging

As cold steel known, it's quite good quality, should be perfect for cutting bush, not too sharp out of the box but, enough I'd say, decent weight, absolutely horrible handle, very hard plastic and I'm sure it could slip, add some kind of wrap, otherwise it will hurt from grabbing and all the more from the actual impact, very uncomfortable grip, I added a baseball bat rubber grip tape, looks great and feels great now.

In some reviews I read about this machete the handle was a problem, it's not a problem it's just plain nasty. The handle is molded plastic and configured to imitate traditional Japanese wrap. The problem is that the area that is supposed to look like the top layer of the wrap is at least a quarter of an inch higher than the rest of the handle with square edges. After some thought I corrected the problem by using a craft saw to remove the excess material then smoothing the handle with a rasp and sand paper. The modification turned this into a very useful tool. It is NOT a sword it is a machete. It resembles the shape of a katana shape, but if you want a katana, this is not your best choice, if you need a machete then this is a good choice.

Well made and sharp!

Bought as a birthday gift to myself. Always wanted a sword. Received with on a small nick on the top side of the blade. Was not very sharp out of the box but that was fixed quickly with a 2 grit sharpener. It took an extremely sharp edge well. The grip is unique and will suite the sword well especially if wrapped. Overall happy with the purchase.

Fanfrickingtastic. I ordered 3 cold steel machetes. The katana, the Chinese sword, and the jungle. Low and behold the katana is 1055 carbon steel south africa baby. I didn't think their was any left. Just made my whole month. To the seller THANKS FOR GIVING ME THE SUPERIOR STEEL I REALLY APPRECIATE IT. 5 STARS ALL THE WAY!!!!!

Best budget katana

It's a good sword for cutting and chopping with but you might cut your arm off practicing thrusts on armour. I've never been more afraid than when I trusted at my armor for practice and it folded at 90 degrees and almost cut my arm off. All i can say good for it is it bent back right away and cuts amazingly.