AUS 8A Vs N690

[DDDYLN]

As a general rule, high toughness blade steel doesn't make a knife harder to sharpen, that comes down to the wear resistance (which presents itself as edge retention). Some of the toughest steels out there like 80CrV2 an 5160 are stupidly easy to sharpen, in fact CPM-3V is decently easy to sharpen as well, it's when you get to the super high wear resistance steels of the world like M390, S-90V, etc that you start to have a rough time with sharpening.

I suppose I'll see when I get to the point where I need to sharpen it. I hear you on the difference between toughness and wear resistance. I'm not a metallurgist, but I am a mechanical engineer. And yes, tough steels like 1075 and 5160 carbon steels are easy to sharpen. My understanding is that the wear resistance of CPM-3V makes it difficult to sharpen in the field. Generally speaking, I stay away from "super steels" for more than just price. It's tough to beat the combination of high strength, toughness, and easy of sharpening 1070 to 1095 carbon steels. I have a few Ontario 1075 fixed blades. I'd have to really work hard to break them. But again, there's a benefit to having at least 1 quality stainless steel fixed blade, especially if you're near the ocean, or somewhere where you can't stay dry.

 

[Chronovore]

I suppose I'll see when I get to the point where I need to sharpen it. I hear you on the difference between toughness and wear resistance. I'm not a metallurgist, but I am a mechanical engineer. And yes, tough steels like 1075 and 5160 carbon steels are easy to sharpen. My understanding is that the wear resistance of CPM-3V makes it difficult to sharpen in the field. Generally speaking, I stay away from "super steels" for more than just price. It's tough to beat the combination of high strength, toughness, and easy of sharpening 1070 to 1095 carbon steels. I have a few Ontario 1075 fixed blades. I'd have to really work hard to break them. But again, there's a benefit to having at least 1 quality stainless steel fixed blade, especially if you're near the ocean, or somewhere where you can't stay dry.

I still think 14C28N is one of the best steels for a fixed blade. It is one of the toughest stainless steels, has excellent corrosion resistance, and is easy to sharpen. The edge retention might not be fantastic but it's generally better than AUS-8 and has always been adequate for my needs. In large fixed blades, I'll actually seek out 14C28N in customs.

 

[DDDYLN]

I still think 14C28N is one of the best steels for a fixed blade. It is one of the toughest stainless steels, has excellent corrosion resistance, and is easy to sharpen. The edge retention might not be fantastic but it's generally better than AUS-8 and has always been adequate for my needs. In large fixed blades, I'll actually seek out 14C28N in customs.

That's the Sandvik steel, right? I looked for a large (5-6 in) full tang fixed blade in that steel, but I had trouble finding anything but Moraknivs. I think part of the issue is that European steels are easy to find in Europe, but more difficult to find, and more expensive in the US. If you have a suggestion, let me know. I'm not a bushcraft guy, so I prefer a blade that's at least 3/16 in thick. True full tang isn't essential, as long as it's a full thickness hidden tang. From what I've seen, true full tang knives go for a premium, but blades rarely break where the blade meets the hidden tang, provided it's decently thick, and has good fillets. Another problem is that I have XXL hands. I find a lot of knives with 4.25-4.5 in long handles, which are too small for me. Most manufacturers make knives for the average consumer.

 

[TC]

My understanding is that the wear resistance of CPM-3V makes it difficult to sharpen in the field.

In these days of cheap and plentiful portable diamond hones (I use a DMT Dia-Fold) that should be a total non-issue. Yet I see it repeated here again and again. Go figure...

 

[DDDYLN]

I have the Work Sharp Ken Onion for home use. For the field I have the fancy Work Shark Field Sharpener. Not sure if the sharpening plates are diamond. I'll have to look it up.

 

[DDDYLN]

The more I think about it, I suspect my Cold Steel SRK in CPM-3V is probably good enough. I know CPM-3V isn't true stainless. However, I've heard it won't rust much if it's wiped dry. I've also seen videos where the rust can just be wiped off with a cloth, because it doesn't really penetrate the metal, and doesn't cause putting. I'm not sure how true that is. Time for more research.

 

[Chronovore]

That's the Sandvik steel, right? I looked for a large (5-6 in) full tang fixed blade in that steel, but I had trouble finding anything but Moraknivs. I think part of the issue is that European steels are easy to find in Europe, but more difficult to find, and more expensive in the US. If you have a suggestion, let me know. I'm not a bushcraft guy, so I prefer a blade that's at least 3/16 in thick. True full tang isn't essential, as long as it's a full thickness hidden tang. From what I've seen, true full tang knives go for a premium, but blades rarely break where the blade meets the hidden tang, provided it's decently thick, and has good fillets. Another problem is that I have XXL hands. I find a lot of knives with 4.25-4.5 in long handles, which are too small for me. Most manufacturers make knives for the average consumer.

A popular one around the forum here is the Ruike Jager. It's a good sub-$100 outdoors knife in 14C28N. Failing that, you can always use the advanced search function at places like BladeHQ to look by steel, fixed or folder, blade length, etc.

 

[DocJekl]

That's the Sandvik steel, right? I looked for a large (5-6 in) full tang fixed blade in that steel, but I had trouble finding anything but Moraknivs. I think part of the issue is that European steels are easy to find in Europe, but more difficult to find, and more expensive in the US. If you have a suggestion, let me know. I'm not a bushcraft guy, so I prefer a blade that's at least 3/16 in thick. True full tang isn't essential, as long as it's a full thickness hidden tang. From what I've seen, true full tang knives go for a premium, but blades rarely break where the blade meets the hidden tang, provided it's decently thick, and has good fillets. Another problem is that I have XXL hands. I find a lot of knives with 4.25-4.5 in long handles, which are too small for me. Most manufacturers make knives for the average consumer.

A popular one around the forum here is the Ruike Jager. It's a good sub-$100 outdoors knife in 14C28N. Failing that, you can always use the advanced search function at places like BladeHQ to look by steel, fixed or folder, blade length, etc.

Yep, this is a great knife in 14c28n. I posted about it last year being very useful for cleaning up the yard from a 105mph windstorm. It held up well and stayed sharp after just a little stropping.






Back on topic, I would take N690 over Aus8, unless you are going to be prying and digging with it and ready to sharpen it more often. So, it really depends on what you plan to do with it.

My Benchmade Azeria neck knife is made of N690 and I've made several cuts in leather, wood, and plastic, and the blade doesn't look of feel like it's been used at all; but it slices like butter while holding an edge. No rolling or dulling at all after draw cutting with the tip using wood as a backstop, and if it rolls it could be honed back or stropped. My Wharncliffe blade shape is perfect for that kind of cutting too, and I recently got a similar David Mary Wharntastic in Magnacut (wharncliffe) that I'm sure would hold up just as well while being more corrosion resistant.



The DM Custom Magnacut knife I mentioned, that joined the N690 Azeria. Back off topic again...

 

[DDDYLN]

Thank you. When I look up that steel in the US, all that comes up in the search results is Morakniv. I appreciate the suggestion.

 

[DDDYLN]

Well, unfortunately that knife is too small for my hands. It's a nice knife, though. It's a thick blade with a flat grind.

 

[Chronovore]

Thank you. When I look up that steel in the US, all that comes up in the search results is Morakniv. I appreciate the suggestion.

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Well, unfortunately that knife is too small for my hands. It's a nice knife, though. It's a thick blade with a flat grind.

Which one?

 

[DDDYLN]

The Jager. However, the posted link shows some Condor knives in Sandvik steel. They might have larger handles

 

[Chronovore]

The Jager. However, the posted link shows some Condor knives in Sandvik steel. They might have larger handles

That link should display all the current fixed blades in 14C28N at BladeHQ.

My experiences with Condor have not been great. I tried one of their XERO knives. The shape was great and the handle material was nice. Unfortunately, the grind was pretty bad and had some extremely rough finishing. I returned it.

You must have very large hands if the Jager is too small. It's a full-sized knife and just large enough that I count it as an outdoors knife versus an EDC fixed blade. For reference, I wear XL gloves. My hand mates pretty well with the handle contours and I have a little room to spare depending on how I'm holding it.

If I get chance tomorrow, I could take some reference pictures.

 

[DDDYLN]

My palm circumference is 10.5 inches. Do you think I'll be able to use it effectively?