Best "highend" steel for EDC?

There's no one answer.

"Best" is entirely subjective, and what may be better for you may not be better for me. It depends entirely on what you use it for.


Q: What's the best car for daily driving?

Person 1: A ferrari because I drive fast on backroads all the time.
Person 2: A truck because I haul all my tools.
Person 3: A minivan because I have 8 kids.
Person 4: A BMW because I need to drive cleints around.

You can see where I'm going with this...
 
That all depends on if you are good at sharpening? And what you use them for. If you are just opening mail and simple stuff then S90v and ZDP189 is great as they hold an edge for an extremly long time, but for good edge holding and easy to sharpen I like CPM 154 or 154cm/ats34. A lot of people have a hard time sharpening S30, 60, 90v and ZDP189. The trick with those is to not let them get dull. If you spend 5 min. and just strop them every couple days you will be good to go
 
I'm liking ZDP-189. It keeps cutting and cutting and cutting and cutting. Chipping hasn't been a problem for me (at least not on this Delica; I was getting microchipping on my ZDP Endura), and nor has corrosion.
 
Uber_Grim_Kvlt said:
I asked this question over on ARFCOM, but was redirected here. It is my understanding that S30V is better than 154CM, S60V, and S90V based on seeing this: http://www.crucibleservice.com/products/cutlery.cfm

However how does S30V stack up to CPM M4?
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S30V was created specifically for knive blades as far as I know. It's an awesome steel, but a pain to sharpen if it gets dull. CPM-M$ is a class of tool steel refered to as High Speed Steel, it's original use was to...cut other steel under extreme heat and pressure situation. S30V is a more stain resistant steel than CPM-M4.
 
I like 230v for edc. It keeps a nice edge, easy enough to sharpen and very rsut resistance. All the requirements for my edc. I lie to run and do exercise with my blade and it gets pretty moist. I dry it off when im done, but i have had speking on some other steels including zdp189 and and carbon steels
 
I love my Spyderco and Chris Reeve S30V blades. Easy to touch up and hold an edge ver well. My Sage II did have some minor chipping with hard use in the yard but a quick sharpen using the medium Sharpmaker stones and all was well again. I have an older BM 710 with CPM 154 and it is a pain in the a** to sharpen.
 
Like others have said it depends on your use but most people would think S90V is better than S60V is better than S30V. None of them would be real good in a big chopper so for a pocket knife that holds an edge for a long time S90V should be best.

M4 is also great but it can rust. M4 will get silly sharp for me with not too much work and probably gets the sharpest for me but ZDP189 is right there and probably too close to call. M4 should also be fairly tough at least more so than the others.

They are all good steels but for a pocket knife I would take S90V, M4, and ZDP189 above most others.
 
for my daily use: lots of cardboard, wet environment, acidic fruits, i'm finding s90v (in manix 2) to be unbeatable.
 
ginaz said:
for my daily use: lots of cardboard, wet environment, acidic fruits, i'm finding s90v (in manix 2) to be unbeatable.
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I'm with you on this one, great steel that gets friggin sharp and stays that way for a good while.
 
Considering all aspects CPM-D2 is about as good as it gets.
 
Most of my fixed blades are carbon steels such as 1095 or O1. My folders are mostly stainless steels, and when I got my Spyderco Gayle Bradley in CPM M4, it impressed me with it's edge holding ability. After cutting some very tough material and seeing it come back to shaving sharp after just a few passes on a ceramic rod, I put it in my pocket, replacing my ZT MUDD in 154 CM. The MUDD has many good characteristics, but M4 vs. 154 CM.... it's a lock. The M4 is superior.

Andy
 
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