Best PM2 Steel Choice?

Sigsog226

Sigsog226

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Hey everybody, im usually not one to start the conversation often, but i was hoping to get some help on a decision. I know there are alot of questions like this one, but couldn't find a thread exactly like it.

I am planning on buying a Spyderco PM2 again and have been debating awhile now on what steel to get it in. Im getting custom scales made for it and having it cerakoted, so colors arent an issue. Im just wondering what the best all round steel choice would be for the pm2 (past/present).

I guess the use would be for allround chores as well. Food prep, box break down, whittling, cutting anything that comes in its way really. I know some steels accelerate better at some task then others, but best allrounder.
When looking at graphs/charts online it seems that elmax and s35vn seem to be the most rounded at the top of the chart. Have any of you all who have used them extensively found this to be the case.

Ive had 3 different s30v pm2's in the past and one especially performed amazing. I really put it through hell with 2 yrs of continuous cutting of boxes and shrink wrap, some prying, and even batoning it, just to put it through its paces. Only had some wiggle to it when i was done with it, so i know its a solid design with plenty good steel to begin with.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
Um well s110v is now standard production , so I'd imagine its a lot easier to get warranty the a sprint blade. I got one
 
S110v is solid for sure. And just like rabbits said its the standard for Spyderco now.
Personally I favor Cts-xhp. I have a green sprint with it and I love it to death. Only thing is that they are abit pricy to find.
 
S30V since it is the only way to have DLC black blade with DigiCamo handle.

If you go stainless you will hardly notice any different among S30V, ELMAX, XHP, 204P, M390 etc. since they are all good PM steel with trustworthy heat treat.

The different in aesthetic will be much more relevant.
 
s110v to my understanding will have better edge retention than cts xhp. But what comes with that is the sharpening wont be as easy. It comes down to your preference in the end
 
shqck well i see you didnt read the post considering he said hes getting it cerakoted and getting custom handles. Also depending on how hard you use your knives the difference between steels is noticeable. I would say going from s30v to say m390 or s110v would definitely be noticeable edge retention wise
 
My bad that I didn't read the post carefully.

S110V has much higher wear resistance than other steel while also being significantly more fragile at the same time.

Edge retention is depend on the material you cut and if you cutting soft/abrasive stuff (robe or cardboard) with low force then S110V will hold an edge better than S30V. But it will be different story if you cutting something hard especially with high force. Like carving hard wood or even some type of cable tie. S30V will has much less chance to get chip at the edge/tip.

M390 is another excellent SS but naturally of 20Cr4V type steel are wouldn't be as tough as S30V or XHP.

S30V, XHP are well balance powdered SS. Plenty tough with more than enough wear resistance.

If you want steel that strong, tough with excellent wear resistance. CPM-M4 should be the best steel especially you going to cerakote the rust should be less problem then.
 
shqxk said:
If you go stainless you will hardly notice any different among S30V, ELMAX, XHP, 204P, M390 etc. since they are all good PM steel with trustworthy heat treat.
Click to expand...

I agree with any of these given what the op said he is looking for in the initial post. All good, all in the same general class. I would probably have the Elmax if BBS had it priced closer to $150. Just curious to try it out and I like the scale color on them. As is I have no problem sticking with my users in s30v. If you don't need stainless and are willing to wait, the 2 exclusives coming in M4 should be out soon(-ish?).
 
I love my plain old S30V version. I gather I'd like S35vn even more but the sprints are expensive. The s110 regular production is tempting. Looking very forward to the M4. Great design made better with lots of steel choices to fit a variety of end user needs.
 
Thanks for all the feedback guys. I was kind of leaning towards s110v to begin with, i just never had any experiance with it.
 
Another quick question, how prone to chipping is s110v really? Like zdp 189 or vg10 level maybe?
 
It's irrelevant, but CPMS110V is the ideal. If such a steel isn't your preference because of your opinions than CPMS30V will serve you almost equally well. Think of S110V as the top performance carbide cutter with all of the good qualities of S30V but taken to a higher level. Think of S30V as the lower carbide but still fine grain, stainless, modern take on any and all of the old school traditional tool and die steels like A2, D2, 01, 1095, 52100, CPM 3V, and so on. CPMS30V was designed by CRK and others in the knife market for blades as a stainless version of their favorite easily rusting CPM3V which they loved for it's very fine grain, extreme toughness, great hardness/wear resistance, vanadium and other good carbides, and other totally ideal qualities. S110V is closer on the spectrum to the amazing carbide drill bit, S30V is closer on the spectrum to that simple 99.1% iron .9% carbon traditional steel. But that is quite exaggerated. The many other steel choices like M390, 20CV, etc. are in between the two in performance, except for S35VN which is very slightly lower on the carbide spectrum than S30V so that it's even tougher. You don't have to worry about your S110V pocket knife chipping though lol, ZDP is much more brittle and rust prone. Still S110V is totally not worth the big price upgrade over S30V unless you're well off geeks like us...but a $130 pocket knife isn't practical despite it's performance qualities. It's worth the price upgrade to me, and the the scales are wayyy cooler.
 
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Thanks again. That really put it in perspective for me. Might go for a military one too.
 
I've only tried PM2's in two different steels - S30V and CTS-204P. Both steels perform great. I use the latter more because it has green handles. :P My experience with Spyderco S110V blades has mostly been with the forum Native from some years back, and it too performs great. (I picked up a Manix LW S110V as well, but it hasn't gotten much use yet.)
 
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