I know that I'm late to this whole Blade Forums soiree, so my opinions might not hold much water around here just yet, however...I really don't get the big fuss over most of these newish "super steels." I have done a lot of reading about them since discovering the online blade community and sure, some of the steel compositions seem quite interesting (I have a good deal of Chemistry education in my background)...I've even used some of them before, but for the most part...in the end it's just a trade off of features IMO. You get more hardness at the expense of durability etc. Given the specs and reviews I have read regarding tool steels that aren't O-1, it seems to me that properly annealed O-1 is pretty much still the best "compromise" all around. What I mean by that is you get the most advantageous complete package with O-1; so while it may not have the best edge retention or be the most stain resistant etc. you get the most all-around, well balanced steel for knife making (in my admittedly limited opinion). In fact I would go so far as to say that, with O-1 steel, something like 90% of all edge problems and defects that occur with a knife that is made properly (ie. has an appropriate blade shape and dimensions for the intended usage, is properly heat treated and manufcatured, is made from pure, reliably sourced stock material etc.) are more than likely caused by inappropriate usage of the knife (aka. USER ERROR). This is of course an assumption based on no factual evidence whatsoever, but it feels pretty damn true to me...a well made knife, even one made from such "outdated" steels as 1095 or O-1, will tend to outlast its original owner if it is used and cared for properly. The magic is in the making, IMO...especially the heat treat. I don't know...I guess I just don't understand the desire to fix something that's really not broken. Just my opinion of course and I hope I'm not stepping on anyones toes: whatever works for you is always the best choice.
The high carbon stainless steels are a totally different story. I'm very interested to see what happens here, and I hope we get to see some pictures of those S35VN blades after they meet their lucky new owners! I have had a few blades in different Sandvik stainless steels and I didn't really like them (I don't own any of them anymore)...however I live in a SUPER humid, wet, marshy area and the idea of a stainless steel that can compare somewhat to high carbon tool steels is very attractive to me. I still think that O-1 does the job just fine as long as you don't totally neglect it, but I'd love to have a blade that I can feel comfortable using for extended fishing trips when it's pouring rain. O-1 does the trick but a S35VN Fiddleback sounds mighty appealing.
My Carver in O1 (I think thats what it is) holds a Dang good edge! Though if you ever play with some 5160..... 