In answer to your questions, go to the first post, coarse edge testing. See the Coyote Meadow in CPM 10V at 64.5 HRC? That's my knife. Then go down to the second from the bottom. Compare the numbers yourself. As for the cost, it was much less than 20x the cost, but that's as specific as I'll get out of consideration for the maker, Phil Wilson.
Yes, I can go from full dull (draw the knife across my wrist) to full sharp in 3-5 minutes easily. This myth of modern steels being hard to sharpen is utter BS. They almost never develop a large burr, if they are properly hardened, and sharpen up much quicker than "traditional" steels.
I have nothing against 12C27, and enjoy it in my Mora 2000. But it is not easier to sharpen than my Coyote Meadow. As for the toughness, I don't care, these are both for cutting.
Sodak,
What sort of sharpener are you using?
The issue I have with a field knife is that I may not have access to a diamond stone. I carry a small DMT credit card "stone" in my EDC pack and carry one in the field, but in the field, it's possible to loose that stone.
With a field knife, or as the OP correctly reports for military personnel in the battle field, they need a blade they can abuse horribly and then get a passable edge on it with nothing more than found objects like coffee mugs, smooth rocks or tempered glass (car window edges, head lamps).
I have several 440C knives, which isn't considered terribly hard to sharpen.
I have a bunch of fine-carbide knives: 420HC, 12C27, 440A, 1095, 1086...
For me, when I head into the field, it's a no-brainer. Unless I'm hunting, where the superior edge retention of 440C will be a big win, I'll pick a faster dulling but easier to sharpen fine-carbide blade every time.
The issue isn't merely that fine-carbide steels are easier to sharpen. It's that they're able to be sharpened using a crude river stone or it's equivalent. I totally agree that access to modern sharpening systems are a game changer and make powdered steels (which have larger and more carbides) relatively easy to sharpen. I can see how guys in the trades might opt for these steels - the steel will stay sharp all day long and can be touched up at night or on the weekend using a good sharpening system. But, take away that sharpening system and then what? That's where a fine-carbide steels make more sense, atmo.
There's another place where fine-carbide steels make sense is when you need to maintain a keen edge over the course of a long project and prefer to do quick touch ups. I've seen papers (as I'm sure you have) that show that professional meat cutters prefer easily touched up fine-grained steels. 12C27 and 12C27mod are highly favored for industrial kitchen use. Again, a few laps on a stone or steel returns the edge. Woodworkers and carpenters still prefer fine-carbide steels for the same reason. I know I can return a 420HC or 12C27 edge to hair popping and curl making in 30 seconds of touch up and would much rather do that every once in a while as needed than to stop, get a more robust sharpener out and then spend 3 to 5 minutes on the knife.
Buck, Opinel, Mora, Leatherman and (I hate to say this) Victorinox are among the most popular knives on the market and all use fine-grained steels. Some of this is due to lower manufacturing costs due to fine blanking processes that can be passed on to the customer. But the other part of this is that for huge number of users, this kind of steel gives a great balance between sharpness, toughness and yes
ease of sharpening.
This isn't to say that some users won't find more modern steels to be better. Just saying that I think the OP has raised a valid concern - one that is more widely accepted on the Outdoor and Traditional forums.
Would it perform better with S30V blades? In abrasive cutting, yes, but it might also cost >2X $$$
