.........

RandomAyes said:
I think this steel would be more fully-utilized and better appreciated in a full production edc type knife, i.e. Mini Grip.

What would you like to see in M390? (Not limited to the Benchmade brand)
Click to expand...

Well, Benchmade must have had a premonition, because the Mini-Grip has been done in a limited run in the M390. I picked mine up a couple of months ago. Great knife! Last I saw the limited run had run its course. I would like to see it not as a limited run, though.
 
I don't know about the toughness of M390, so I'm looking mainly at slicing type knives. I would like to see the BM Rift in M390 or Bone Collector. I love the inverted Tanto/Sheepsfoot...That being said I also like the Spyderco Military.

Not to hi-jack the thread, but isn't S90V suppose to be even better at edge retention? Perhaps it's more brittle than M390?
 
I definitely want to see the 943 in M390. It's my favorite knife from BM. And especially the new ZT/Hinderer flipper! I think the Spyderco Gayle Bradley would have been great in M390, too, since stainless would be nice on a highly finished gentleman's folder like that. But I'm really happy with CPM-M4 too.
 
Gunsnknives said:
I don't know about the toughness of M390, so I'm looking mainly at slicing type knives. I would like to see the BM Rift in M390 or Bone Collector. I love the inverted Tanto/Sheepsfoot...That being said I also like the Spyderco Military.

Not to hi-jack the thread, but isn't S90V suppose to be even better at edge retention? Perhaps it's more brittle than M390?
Click to expand...


S90V is tougher than you think. ;)

But anyway, M390 is very tough even at max hardness (62 HRC).

The edge retention is a tossup if both S90V (60) and M390 (62) are both at optimal hardness for max edge retention, they are very close.

Drop the hardness to 60 HRC on M390 as most production blades will be and S90V at 60 HRC will stomp all over it.

Both M390 and S90V are extremely aggressive cutters with a standard edge, but S90V is downright dangerous because it will start to feel dull but will still cut like a razor blade.

M390 really needs to be at 61 HRC in the production blades as I believe 60 HRC is too soft for this steel and doesn't really do it justice.
 
Last edited:
I'd love a Gayle Bradley in M390. The only thing keeping me from one is the lack of stainless steel. The ergos & edge geometry look very inviting. A Milli would be nice too.

Benchmade would force me to buy a Griptilian or two if it had this stuff too. I'd upgrade my stepdad's early 1st generation in 440C that's shrugged off a decade or so of fireman/EMT use without ill effect.
 
nightman said:
As memtioned earlier, I would like to see something from Spyderco in m390. :)
Click to expand...
I believe Sal said he was looking into Carpenter's equivalent for a mule, which should be CTS-204CP. Haven't heard anything following that in a while though. I'm guessing he's caught up with the current sprint runs for 2011. I also suspect there might be some delays on Carpenter's end as well.

rororo64 said:
I would love to see the M390 on the upcoming ZT/Hinderer flipper knife
Click to expand...
Doubtful. I feel Thomas draws a line between "premium" and "practical", and M390 would be overkill for a hard use knife(of which most Hinderer designs seem to be). Kind of like S90V in an XM-18 with a Spanto grind. The steel doesn't complement the ergos.

Unless Rick makes a mass produced equivalent of his FireTac, I think Vanax35 will be the steel of choice in the flipper.

Ankerson said:
S90V is tougher than you think. ;)

But anyway, M390 is very tough even at max hardness (62 HRC).

The edge retention is a tossup if both S90V (60) and M390 (62) are both at optimal hardness for max edge retention, they are very close.

Drop the hardness to 60 HRC on M390 as most production blades will be and S90V at 60 HRC will stomp all over it.

Both M390 and S90V are extremely aggressive cutters with a standard edge, but S90V is downright dangerous because it will start to feel dull but will still cut like a razor blade.

M390 really needs to be at 61 HRC in the production blades as I believe 60 HRC is too soft for this steel and doesn't really do it justice.
Click to expand...
Yes, but I don't think a lot of production knives ever push steels anywhere close to the limit.

Even ZDP-189 with a max attainable hardness of Rc 67 is pushed down to Rc 65 in the Spyderco knives.

What I'd like to see is M390 in more mid-tech(semi-production "buy it now") "custom" knives. Grinding shouldn't be too difficult given the 4% vanadium content.

What's interesting is that Benchmade, with a reputation for running steels softer than any other company, still didn't get M390 below Rc 60. Which to me says something about the steel:thumbup:.


Also something I haven't seen a lot of is M390 with titanium. The Benchmade 730-101 has it, but I couldn't justify the price for the knife unless the blade was pushed to Rc 61-62. The BM 755 has it as well, but the ergonomics are far from functional to me. It's a premium blade steel, it should be housed in a premium package.

Though I do have the Torrent in pre-order with aluminum and carbon fiber, which I suppose is premium enough for me. And it's at quite an affordable price too for a gold class.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top