Looking for you guys opinions on the best steel for a small EDC fixed blade. I'm looking for a steel that has a good ratio between a long lasting edge and ease of sharpening. I currently use a 100/220 grit Arkansas stone and a 1000/6000 king water stone. I have pretty much narrowed it down to cpm-154 or a2. Still open to suggestions on others and opinions on the steels I mentioned.
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Best steel for a EDC fixed blade
- Thread starter noob93
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There isnt one best still. It depends on what type of performance you want.
If you want toughness something you call beat the shit out of and hold a good edge id say 3V Is what you want
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If you want toughness something you call beat the shit out of and hold a good edge id say 3V Is what you want
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A2 is still a good choice but cpm154 is more stain resistant a little more tougher but harder to sharpen when dulled.
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Thanks jim I appreciate the input. Just wondering is cpm-154 easily sharpened without diamond stones?
Ankerson
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Yes, it's not bad at all to deal with. :thumbup:
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may be difficult to sharpen depending on the heat treat and the stone's he has.
115Italian
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Edc fix, are we talking a light use blade? If so i would look for something with good wear resistance over toughness. I love 154 in general, cpm or cm, but for when I need tougher stainless.
Well its blade will only be around 3 inches. To be honest I don't EDC anything that I would have to worry about failing under reasonable use. As in I don't wanna worry about needing to cut something like thick plastic and the like (but don't plan on cutting myself out of any airplanes).
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I have had excellent performance from n690. Not a powdered super steel but very easy to sharpen and it gets stupid sharp holds it very well and it's very stain resistant. Longest edge holding I ever experienced was a Spyderco caly with zdp steel
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ATJ999
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Someone said CPM 3V, and I have to agree, at least for medium to large blades. If it is going to be small and not used extremely hard, CPM 154 would be great! It is a good tough all around stainless. If it will see lots of abuse, then CPM 3V. In general though A2, CPM 154, and CPM 3v perform very well. You would not be disappointed with any of them! If it is a 3 inch blade, CPM 154 would be perfect. I use Arkansas stones on all three of those steels with no problems.
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A2.
I have my heat treat down to perfection with the stuff.
I have my heat treat down to perfection with the stuff.
Hey cm how would you say edge retention compares between the 2?
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Compared to what?
How does a2 compare to cpm-154 in terms of edge retention?
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Thanks I did read through that thread among others but as usual different people had different opinions. I have no doubt a2 can hold a great edge as many good makers use it (yourself included of course). I was just curious if cpm-154 was substantially better at holding an edge. Would be nice to see someone do a head to head comparison.