Another CMP154 thread...

Magnaminous_G

Magnaminous_G

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Jul 13, 2011
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CPM154 has been around for a while now, and I love the mirror-polished knives I’ve seen. It seems like lots of users are very happy with their CPM154 knives. I'm going to get one very soon.

Question for the makers: those of you who regularly work with stainless-steel, what are your impressions of this steel now after several years of availability, with regards to stuff like grinding/polishing? How do you rate it now compared to other high-end stainless steels, and how do your customers like it?

Thanks!
 
154 is an extremely under rated steel, I don't know why it is so under rated by the end users, but every 154 knife I have ever owned has preformed flawlessly. I haven't worked with CPM154, but I have ground out a few 154cm blades and it works nicely. Only thing is I haven't had them heat treated yet so I can't comment on how it is to finish:o I do know that after my experience with CPM D2 I am doing to bring them to a higher pre HT finish than they are at right now, air hardened steels come back so clean it is amazing:eek:
 
I agree that CPM154 is underrated. S30V came out a few years back and over shadowed it, but in my opinion 154 has always been the better all around steel.

I personally have never used a better all around stainless that can be purchased in America, though I'm sure they exist.

Vanadium is not listed as one of the primary elements, though folks who have had it analyzed claim it is in there. I wish it had just a touch less chromium, though it is hard to find fault with its outstanding corrosion resistance.

Having worked it, I can say that it wears out cutters just as fast as things like D2. It does polish out very well, I'd say it is probably capable of an SPI A1 finish.
 
Yeah, I get more orders for CPM S30V. CPM 154 is just fine and you can get a true mirror finish. S30V seems to be alittle more difficult to work post heat treat. I have a preferance for BG-42 which has really become unpopular.
 
I consider CPM-154 to be the current gold standard of "stainless" steels. It's not particularly hard to grind or sharpen, finishes very nicely*, can happily take either a toothy or highly polished edge, and is tougher than I think it gets credit for. The only other stainless steels I've worked with that have the same or better corrosion-resistance, ability to take and keep a fine, thin edge, and maybe a bit better toughness are CTS-XHP and ElMax; but both are way more expensive IF you can find them in the size you want. In any case you really can't go wrong with CPM154 for small-to-medium knives.

*bear in mind, you don't have to mirror-polish it, although you certainly can. I think it looks great with a hand-satin polish at 1,000grit.
 
My experience is much more limited than those who have already posted but I will agree with most of what has been said. Takes a great finish no matter what finish you prefer. Takes a great edge whether toothy or polished. And I agree it is tougher that I gave it credit for. I use it for bushcraft knives and have beat the snot out of it with no problems. It's my stainless of choice at the moment.
 
I've only made 2 CPM-154 knives and really like it's performance. The only thing at this point keeping me from using it a lot more is how expensive it is when I buy it PG. I also agree with George, the two knives I sent out at 400g came back looking almost like they had never been in the oven, only took about 5 minutes to get it looking exactly like it did before. You can definitely take it to a higher finish pre-ht :thumbup:
 
wolffbite said:
The only thing at this point keeping me from using it a lot more is how expensive it is when I buy it PG.
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It seems like sticker shock, but I've found that buying precision-ground stock when it's available is worth it, because it saves me time and belt$. If a person has more time than cash (and many of us do) then buy the non-PG stock and employ a little more elbow grease with cheap, coarse files or good, coarse belts to get the mill scale off. Pickling helps, too.

Definitely do as much work as possible before the steel is HT'ed, I feel this goes for any air-hardening steel that is properly wrapped or protected with anti-scale compound during the austenitizing process. That includes not only the finish on the bevels but also grinding to final edge thickness. If you're using a pro HT shop like Peters' that handles oil-quenched steels in an inert furnace (virtually no scale is formed during austenitizing), you can do the same with O1, 1095, 1084 etc. :thumbup: Hand-sanding deep scratches out of any steel at 58-60Rc isn't nearly as much fun as it looks!
 
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I have used CPM154 as my stainless steel choice for years. Before that it was 154CM/ATS34 ( same thing - different makers). Now I am using a lot of CPM S35VN for kitchen and slicing knives. It is like CPM154 with a few extras.

I still find it hard to beat CPM154 for its:
Availability is the sizes I want.
Ease in grinding and polishing.
Sharpness, durability, and edge retention.
 
yep i thikn those are the bigest +s but if you need a bit more "tooth" for a slicing knife the added edge retension is worth the extra work (i believe s35vn is better then s30v in nearly every use)

thing is my hate of s30 is that for a while the thought was that it was the end all be all SS and that is was great as a chopper or a razor and every think in between ( pick the steel for your use and choose the HT to max the steel for it )
it might vbe a hell of a folder steel but what if you want a longer lastign edge (s90v) or what a crisp clean hand rubbed finish or mirror finish (CTS XHP or cpm154)
 
CPM154 (precision ground if available) is my favorite general use steel.

It finishes nicely, it's tough and holds a good edge.

It's tough to beat.
 
james terrio said:
It seems like sticker shock, but I've found that buying precision-ground stock when it's available is worth it, because it saves me time and belt$. If a person has more time than cash (and many of us do) then buy the non-PG stock and employ a little more elbow grease with cheap, coarse files or good, coarse belts to get the mill scale off. Pickling helps, too.

Definitely do as much work as possible before the steel is HT'ed, I feel this goes for any air-hardening steel that is properly wrapped or protected with anti-scale compound during the austenitizing process. That includes not only the finish on the bevels but also grinding to final edge thickness. If you're using a pro HT shop like Peters' that handles oil-quenched steels in an inert furnace (virtually no scale is formed during austenitizing), you can do the same with O1, 1095, 1084 etc. :thumbup: Hand-sanding deep scratches out of any steel at 58-60Rc isn't nearly as much fun as it looks!
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Wish I'd read that before sending off some 5/32 and .113 CPM 154 for HT figuring I'd just "grind it hard" when it came back. Oh boy! Yeah, I'm really grinding hard alright! Thank goodness for Blaze belts for the 2x42 or I'd still be trying to grind it down!

Learned my lesson on this...the hard way...pun intended ;)
 
If it makes you feel any better, I learned the hard way too. Just chalk it up to experience and move forward :D

Incidentally, most folks who make really small and/or thin blades HT them when barely profiled and do their grinding and polishing after. So it certainly can be done. Then again, they're dealing with a couple square inches of steel surface at most, not several ;)
 
If it makes you feel any better, I learned the hard way too. Just chalk it up to experience and move forward
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On CPM-154 I was trying to bring 60 grit flats to a full polish after HT - whatta pain - eats a lot of paper........now I bring the knife to 400 grit before HT and it really saves on the elbow grease and the paper. I really like the CPM-154 for finishing, either in satin or high polish.....it puts the S-30V to shame and I find the CPM-154 is a little easier on belts that the S-30V
 
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