Cold Steel Espada Series S35VN Steel Ultra-Sharp Blades Tactical Pocket Folding Knife with Tri-Ad Lock & Ambidextrous Pocket/Belt Clip

I've never been a big knife guy. My ideal knife for years has been one of a few Spyderco ladybug/manbugs. I never thought I'd even consider a knife over 4 inches, let alone the 7.5 of the Espada XL. I've joked with others for a long time that I'm like 5% mall ninja, though, so every once in a while, some of the more absurd things out there get my eye. Until recently, that's mostly been limited to the occasional throwing star, and a couple of small impractical daggers. Then I learned about Cold Steel, who I have somehow missed all these years.Cold Steel is what you get when you combine a genuine love of all knives - including the impractical, the fantastical, and the absurd - with excellent engineering and quality control. I've picked up a few of their blades, and all of them have been well put together, smooth operating, sharp, and finished well. Even the cheapest of the carbon steel blades has been good.Importantly, I've made a point to pick them up from reputable sellers. Normally I'd stick to ordering them from a few other sites that I trust, but I've taken a leap and ordered a few from here. It's important to look at the seller - I've made sure that if I order from here, it's actually being sold by Amazon, and not like QWRRSTools or some other place that sells it for a cent cheaper. Counterfeit knives are out there, and at this point, I truly believe that if you have a cold steel knife that has play in the blade, feels very rough, or has finish issues, there's a good chance you have a counterfeit.Anyways, as I was saying... I've picked up a few. And I've been eyeing the Espada XL for a while now, but have held off, thinking 'nah, this is just ridiculous.' I'm not sure what ultimately pushed me to finally get it - believe it or not, it wasn't alcohol or any other substances (although the hand-and-a-half dagger MIGHT have been under the influence), I think it was the combination of being so impressed with their knives so far that I just had to see for myself how they were going to pull this off.The answer - superbly. This thing is a masterpiece. Feels surprisingly good in the hand, opens smoothly with a satisfying "clunk", and the lock is totally manageable. It's hard to explain how they pulled off a knife that's likely the largest production folding knife out there (I haven't checked, but there aren't exactly a lot of makers in this space) yet still feels well balanced, and SOMEHOW feels smaller than it is. It feels extremely usable, not just like a showpiece. That being said, the pocket clip won't even reach my pocket if I stick this thing in my back pocket, but it still sits surprisingly well there.I really agonized over the 5.5 vs the 7.5, as well as the "fancy" vs the plain, and I have ABSOLUTELY no regrets going for the 7.5 "fancy". Ultimately, I don't think either would ever be my EDC, I just feel like the entire reason to get this is to go big - after all, this is a homage to the historic Spanish folding knives that could be much bigger than this. I cannot emphasize how much better this feels in the hand than you'd think.Cold Steel is such an anomaly. I can't say that I can think of any other company that has made so many "historical" production knives in any quantity that are actually well made and usable. Literally nobody needs a foot long dagger, but you can get one from them that's well put together, sharp, and cheap - and probably next day. There's not many of their knives that are meant for practical purposes, which is probably why a lot of people overlook the knives that ARE practical (tuff-lite is excellent). I never would have thought of myself as the target demographic for a company whose president makes videos of himself stabbing ballistic jello and mannequins, it just all feels very focused on all the ways I don't use a knife or expect to use one - I'm an EDC guy. Well, mostly - they've made me acknowledge the parts of me that aren't.I don't think any other company could have pulled this off, but they did... It's the intersection of historical repros, mall ninja, and excellent engineering. It's one-of-a-kind, and if it remotely has any appeal to you, you should get it.

This knife from cold steel is the highest quality knife I’ve ever seen them produce. The others are tanks and utilitarian. This one is a tank but finished in a very elegant and high quality finish. It’s eye catching but also a monster of a blade. The handle Is comfortable in hand as it’s hones and finely finished. You can get a full grip on front of handle and a full grip on rear of the handle. This blade dwarfs all knives and makes a full sized chef knife look like a miniature. The Triad lock is as always rock solid and snaps into place. The blade also catches your pocket and opens union draw like the Spartans.This knife came razor sharp and I’m sure the S35VN slab of steel will hold that just fine. If you have any of the other XL line you need this blade as it makes the rest seem dainty.Cold steel for the “Zero F*#^ks Given” award.

Super & I mean SUPERZ HIGH grade folding knife. Very sturdy, top lock. Way bigger and better than normal BUCK 110 that we all grew up with and probably still have 1 or 2. Unique design and absolutely gorgeous. Sure it's expensive yet you'll have it all your life and you spend twice thus much a week in groceries per week I do. Then the groceries are gone soon, the knife is still here. I recommend this knife. I first saw thus folding knife in movie "Savage Dog" yielded by the villain. I thought " HOLY COW!". Looks like a HUGE BUCK Folding Knife(110) only gigantic. I watched it over and over in both real time. Slo-mo and stop action to get a real good look. I want this I said to self. So I researched it online then bought it. Not sure what to practically use for, certainly not as a tool. Mire of a collectors piece. Only own and want my 4 knifes. Fixed blade BOWIE KNIFE. normal size, BIG. Abnormal BUCK 110 & Two Espadas: the Large and it's big brother, the EXTRA LARGE! Only things are the Espada large is well tooled so as no sharp edges along bandleader where hand is: nicely rounded. Not so with the Espada EX I received. The non cutting edges along handle are square with a sharp painful edge that is not supposed to be there. Maybe those edges can be tooled smooth, we'll see. The other thing is a bit "sporting" to unlock and close. Difficult in other words.

I've been a Cold Steel enthusiast for decades. The Espada XL has been one of my must haves for some time. The knife was delivered as described and the fit and finish is exceptional. If you're looking for the largest pocket knife look no further. Good looks, strong design and scary sharp making the Espada XL a great addition to any collection.