Big Chris CPM S125V Full review and test.

Ankerson

Ankerson

Knife and Computer Geek
Joined
Nov 2, 2002
Messages
21,094
Specs:

CPM S125V at 63.5 HRC
Blade Length - 5 1/16"
Weight - 6.3 OZ
OAL - 9 3/4"
Spine thickness - .155"
Thickness behind the edge - .006"

Tested on 5/8" manila rope to 20 LBS of downforce, cut cardboard, wood, HD 175# ZIP ties and power cord. Edge finish is 400 grit Silicon Carbide, edge geometry is 15 Degrees per side.


Rope - Cut until down force reached 20 LBS of down force, made 1960 slicing cuts, one very small shiny spot on the edge, would still slice phone book paper after the rope.

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Sharpened the edge back up for the Cardboard stage:

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Cardboard, cut 6,800 linear ft of cardboard, edge would still slice phonebook paper after this stage, no edge damage at all, smooth sliding over my thumb nail.


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WOOD, just to test edge strength, edge would still slice phone book paper, no edge damage.

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#175 HD Zip Tie, cut that up some to test for edge strength as they are hard on edges, zero damage and no loss of edge retention, still slicing phone book paper.

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Power cord, cut that to see how the edge would hold up, no damage, still slicing phone book paper:

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Conclusion:

Excellent knife all around, feels great in hand and cuts very well. CPM S125V performed as expected with a good heat treatment, Chris does his own HT. I experienced no issues in testing and sharpening was straight forward.
 
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Impressive! Thanks for all the work and pics.

I need a Big Chris knife! :thumbup:
 
Thanks Jim, where does that rank among all the knives you have tested on rope cutting? Also, could you please share the details on that grind? Thanks for the testing bud.
 
Surfingringo said:
Thanks Jim, where does that rank among all the knives you have tested on rope cutting? Also, could you please share the details on that grind? Thanks for the testing bud.
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It's 3rd knife down.

Yeah, FFG to hollow grind.
 
Ankerson said:
It's 3rd knife down.

Yeah, FFG to hollow grind.
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That's what I figured. The low hollow grind almost looks like a scandi. It's a nice looking grind and seems like it would be nice and thin behind the edge while still keeping the blade plenty strong. The transition into the flat grind probably lowers that first shoulder enough to keep it plenty slicey too I'm guessing. Looks great.
 
Surfingringo said:
That's what I figured. The low hollow grind almost looks like a scandi. It's a nice looking grind and seems like it would be nice and thin behind the edge while still keeping the blade plenty strong. The transition into the flat grind probably lowers that first shoulder enough to keep it plenty slicey too I'm guessing. Looks great.
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It actually works very well. :)

I thought it was a scandi too when I 1st saw a photo of it. LOL
 
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I almost bought this one but went with its sister, the "Scrapper", instead. Glad to see Jim's results reflect my experience with the Scrapper. Much tougher edge than I expected and man, it cuts and cuts. Just when you think "that's got to be it," it cuts some more.
Very well done Chris. Love my Scrapper.
 
captjlw said:
I almost bought this one but went with its sister, the "Scrapper", instead. Glad to see Jim's results reflect my experience with the Scrapper. Much tougher edge than I expected and man, it cuts and cuts. Just when you think "that's got to be it," it cuts some more.
Very well done Chris. Love my Scrapper.
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Yes, S125V isn't exactly chippy or weak from my own experiences with it although some would like to have people think otherwise for various reasons.
 
Ankerson said:
Yes, S125V isn't exactly chippy or weak from my own experiences with it although some would like to have people think otherwise for various reasons.
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It makes me wonder how many people posting erroneous information are just parroting something they read somewhere else. Not actually having first hand knowledge of what they speak.
 
captjlw said:
It makes me wonder how many people posting erroneous information are just parroting something they read somewhere else. Not actually having first hand knowledge of what they speak.
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I tend to think most of it is parroting bad information that was given for various reasons.

I found those things to be true over the past 30+ years, people tend to believe what they want to believe for various reasons. ;)

With S125V there isn't a lot of it around, kinda like it used to be with S110V so.......
 
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Thanks for sharing Jim! My experience with Chris's knives have been good. Looks like a functional compound grind, not like the gimmick grinds I see a lot of these days.
 
waterstoneblades said:
Thanks for sharing Jim! My experience with Chris's knives have been good. Looks like a functional compound grind, not like the gimmick grinds I see a lot of these days.
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It did seem to work well I think, although I think it's easier to cut cardboard (Straight cuts) with an FFG, well cutting the thin strips that I do in testing.

Just my personal opinion, not taking away from the knife at all.
 
Ankerson said:
It did seem to work well I think, although I think it's easier to cut cardboard (Straight cuts) with an FFG, well cutting the thin strips that I do in testing.

Just my personal opinion, not taking away from the knife at all.
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I see what your saying. With the FFG the ridge wouldn't be there and less drag would result in cutting cardboard. The grind is sure pretty and it has a purpose during other cutting application I'm sure.
 
waterstoneblades said:
I see what your saying. With the FFG the ridge wouldn't be there and less drag would result in cutting cardboard. The grind is sure pretty and it has a purpose during other cutting application I'm sure.
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OH worked very well indeed.

It's always harder to do straight cuts like that on cardboard with hollow grinds.

I was just glad that it was Chris's knife with that handle so it was controllable.
 
Great job Chris and a big thanks to Jim!!! You guys are great and do a lot for the knife community!!


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