AUS8A vs CTS-BD1

I'm busy as a bee buying up all the insane deals I'm finding in AUS8, a steel which has always worked just fine for me. ;)
 
DShiflet said:
When Spyderco started using it in their Manix it WAS a downgrade, cause the prior Manix was S30V, not AUS-8. S30V to BD1 IS a downgrade. AUS-8 to BD1 is NOT a downgrade, it's an upgrade.
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That's not even close to what I posted. What I referred to was the performance of BD1 itself on the Manix. It was said to dull quickly and resharpen quickly. CS has long since proved the performance of AUS-8 in its knives. The factories they contracted with clearly understood heat treating and got excellent performance from it. CS has yet to demonstrate that BD1 is a performance upgrade.
 
ichor said:
This kind of statement is worth less than no statement at all, without some elaboration. So...elaborate, if you expect anyone to give your comments any credence whatsoever. :rolleyes:.
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I got it in their Voyager. Edge retention is poor compared to even other budget steel's. Could be a bad heat treat. I won't comment further except that I returned it and got the Talwar in XHP. Couldn't be happier with it. The 2 steels are worlds apart in performance.
 
As I said, I've had very good luck over the years with CS knives in AUS8, whereas I've used nothing in the BD1, but have been very pleased with a Code 4 in XHP. At this juncture I see no reason to even try the BD1, as I've yet to read any glowing reports..
 
DShiflet said:
When Spyderco started using it in their Manix it WAS a downgrade, cause the prior Manix was S30V, not AUS-8. S30V to BD1 IS a downgrade. AUS-8 to BD1 is NOT a downgrade, it's an upgrade.
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That's not 100% correct if you take the full 'history' of the Manix 2 from day 1
Initially they were made in 154CM which is similar to BD1 chemically- these were the sabre-grind models
Then they upgraded to S30v
Then they created the Lightweight models to run alongside the S30v/G10/full steel liner models in BD1 and FRN with no liners- these run a good bit cheaper than the 'full fat' S30/G10 model.

Apologies- just thought the expansion was worth while:

I own Manix 2s in M4, S30v, 154CM and BD1.
I would rate the edge retention of the BD1 and 154CM the same- and not dissimilar to some of my earlier AUS8 Spydies....All of which are an order of magnitude less than S30v.
One thing BD1 seems to have going for it is it seems less prone to staining. I've found it prefers a coarse/toothy edge to a high polished one for general duties

Assuming CS follow the same heat treatment, I expect the experience of users to be about the same
 
now i'm gonna have to do some real cutting with my one bd1 cold steel knife. i see a couple folks here say poor edge retention. i have other brands with this steel as well as a cold steel and never really noticed it, but i'm curious on cold steels heat treat and how it fares under more cutting than i've done so far with it. thanks for the heads up guys...
 
jbmonkey said:
now i'm gonna have to do some real cutting with my one bd1 cold steel knife. i see a couple folks here say poor edge retention. i have other brands with this steel as well as a cold steel and never really noticed it, but i'm curious on cold steels heat treat and how it fares under more cutting than i've done so far with it. thanks for the heads up guys...
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I wouldn't characterise it as 'poor'- I'd go with 'merely OK' compared to the truly excellent steels out there....But it's all relative, I guess and your mileage may vary.
 
I will repeat again - beware the words "equivalent ", and similar ! My CS Master Hunter I've had and used for years as my major deer knife. Blade design and handle design is excellent.I had no complaints with the steel !!! Then at one point there were complaints about the steel .It turned out that blade was changed to a Chinese steel "equivalent "to AUS8. I'm keeping mine and will make no comment on the new steel as far as performance !
 
I think that cts bd1 is a nice step up to aus 8. When heat treated properly cts bd1 and its bretheren 19c27 and mbs 26 make for one heck of a knife. It's relatively low in carbide volume, between aeb-l/13c26 and 154cm so it should have pretty good edge stability and a fine matrix. With a 1000 to 2000 edge it has a aggressive bite to it and it sharpens up easy and quick. Not sure the hardness on cold steels cts bd1 but I have a Fantoni in 19c27 at 62 hrc grount to 0.010 and its one heck of a cutter/edc knife. Plus as noted before its an American made steel made by Carpenter to a high standard while aus 8 is just a formula and who knows who its made by. Haven't tried CS' s bd1 yet but I like the steel on my spyderco manix lwt.
 
One thing to keep in mind is that many people base their experience of edge holding on a factory edge. Most factories use a belt or other machinery to sharpen their knives. This ruins the temper on the edge. It is best to sharpen the knife a couple of times before making any determinations about edge holding. That way, you should be into properly heat treated steel.
 
Again: CS long demonstrated the edge holding of AUS8 in videos. More recently they demonstrated the increased edge holding of XHP over AUS8. They haven't bothered to demonstrate that BD1 is an improvement, and until such time as they do, all they're doing is blowing smoke.
 
average gimp said:
Again: CS long demonstrated the edge holding of AUS8 in videos. More recently they demonstrated the increased edge holding of XHP over AUS8. They haven't bothered to demonstrate that BD1 is an improvement, and until such time as they do, all they're doing is blowing smoke.
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you know you can always buy the knife and use it right? if not, then there is really no point in arguing over the steel.
 
d00mtr33 said:
Plus as noted before its an American made steel made by Carpenter to a high standard while aus 8 is just a formula and who knows who its made by.
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AUS8 as well as the whole AUS series is made by Aichi, and is Japanese made. I find the whole American Made trumps all foreign rhetoric, in terms of standards and craftsmanship, to be hilarious. As far as craftsmanship, Germany and Japan are far ahead of the US.

8cr13mov is the Chinese clone of AUS8, made under lesser standards. That is another thing I find funny, people that are fans of manufacturers who use that Steel in folders, and tout how great a budget Steel it is, but look down their noses at AUS8, which is going to be exponentially more consistent, as it is made to higher standards, and by better a better foundry.
 
Can't speak to BD1's abilities so I'm basically useless but I've always liked AUS8....it gets dull kind of quickly, but i can make it razor sharp in about 30 seconds. In the unlikely scenario that I'm stuck with AUS8 in the wild with nothing but a rock to sharpen it with, I'll be happier with an easier sharpening steel!
 
hkyew said:
you know you can always buy the knife and use it right? if not, then there is really no point in arguing over the steel.
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There's no point in buying it if the quality hasn't been proven, which CS hasn't bothered to do. Thompson likes to bray at great length about the superiority of his designs and the manufacturing standards, but in this case he hasn't submitted the proof.
 
average gimp said:
There's no point in buying it if the quality hasn't been proven, which CS hasn't bothered to do. Thompson likes to bray at great length about the superiority of his designs and the manufacturing standards, but in this case he hasn't submitted the proof.
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Man, if you wait for companies to release testing data before you buy knives you must not own a sinlge one.
 
dkblade said:
Can't speak to BD1's abilities so I'm basically useless but I've always liked AUS8....it gets dull kind of quickly, but i can make it razor sharp in about 30 seconds. In the unlikely scenario that I'm stuck with AUS8 in the wild with nothing but a rock to sharpen it with, I'll be happier with an easier sharpening steel!
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Thats a very True.

AUS 8A kinda very good balanced steel. Its sharpener quicker and easier. It is good for cutting anything . Also very durable in any test that I saw. Also its have this unique polish grained looks. It definetly gives some "magick" to it like it have been hand-maded. And thats cool actualy.

Guys just give this bd1 more time to become just the good one or legendary one.

I think AUS 8A for now it is like really good classic masterpeace of balanced steel for any one. And I realy like it.


Anyway I am very intregued in new Carpenter XTS. i think this kinda real step forward to upgrade blade to modern super steel. It is really promising one.
 
Insipid Moniker said:
Man, if you wait for companies to release testing data before you buy knives you must not own a sinlge one.
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Generally I'm not a wondersteel fan, and I don't chase variants. The only time I did was when I had to replace some lost Spydercos with then-newer models: ATS-55 models, to be exact. Both of those I ended up dumping because ATS-55, while a good steel for edge holding, was a rust magnet. Frankly I much prefer VG-10.

I wait for CS to back up its claims, because they make so much hay about them. With CS's other claims they've done so, but not this one. If I were in the market I would have no qualms about buying their XHP blades, because t. In the past I have had no qualms about buying and owning their AUS-8 blades, or which I have at least 5. Given Thompson's calling out other manufacturers to prove their claims, and the ridiculous lawsuit against CRKT--whose quality was never anywhere near CS's--I fail to see why he hasn't backed up his claim that BD1 is superior to AUS-8, or why he hasn't replaced AUS-8 with BD1 in all such blades he sells.

AFAIK Thompson never had to brag: all he ever would have had to write in his catalogs was that BD1 was performance-equivalent and allowed them to maintain roughly the same prices on the knives they switched. He didn't.
 
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