Blade Steels - Who can REALLY tell the difference?

singularity35 said:
Everyone here(well except you maybe) knows that while D2 and S30V ARE premium steels, they are considered somewhat pedestrian these days compared to S90V, K294, M390, etc.
Click to expand...
That's an excellent summary, thanks!

To change the direction a little, I think where a lot of folks get wrapped around the axle is that when newer and more wear resistant steels come out, they tend to get defensive about their favorites. The old steels still work as well as they ever did, it's just that others have come that work better - in that particular category or application. But yes, the old ones still work.

And with a 21st century heat treat, they can work a LOT better than people would ever expect...
 
sodak said:
That's an excellent summary, thanks!

To change the direction a little, I think where a lot of folks get wrapped around the axle is that when newer and more wear resistant steels come out, they tend to get defensive about their favorites. The old steels still work as well as they ever did, it's just that others have come that work better - in that particular category or application. But yes, the old ones still work.

And with a 21st century heat treat, they can work a LOT better than people would ever expect...
Click to expand...

I agree, I also think innovation is good because it tends to give us better tools to accomplish certain jobs easier.
 
kurodrago said:
Because you sound like expert,where's the improvement V30S= V35S?;)
Click to expand...

Not hardly, but as even the experts say, they perform around the same.

I get that you are wanting people to identify specific steels. That really is the only point that you keep harping about.

That's not the issue here. Give me two mules an s90v and a BD-1. And I'll sharpen them and use them and I'll tell you which one is which.

One more time, it's not about identifying specific steels, it's about being able to tell the difference between less edge holding and longer edge holding.

One more thing, I'm posting a screen shot of the OP. If you peruse it carefully you'll notice that it says "Blade Steels: Who can Really tell the difference?"

It doesn't say "identify the steel". ;)

Screenshotkurodrago.jpg
 
Last edited:
kurodrago said:
4116 VS D2 = everybody can tell
AUS VS D2 = everybody can tell
4116 VS AUS= Nobody can tell

I'm trying to keep semple for ya;)
Click to expand...

LMAO, you really are grasping. Asking somebody(or me for that matter) to tell similar performing steels apart, is not "telling the difference". It's "identify the steels".

Besides that, which one is the supersteel between AUS-whatever and 4116(whatever)?

It's "tell the difference between the supersteel and the un-supersteel". It's not "name the steel".
 
Last edited:
Fully process 2 deer with Identical knives with identical edges: one made from CPM 10V, one made from 1095. You will be able to tell the difference in about 3 minutes and the 1095 knife will probably be getting dull by the time you start the second deer while 10V will be cutting as well as ever.

The difference between traditional steels like 1095, 01, W2, 5160, 154CM, 420HC etc... and the top of the line super steels like 3V, 10V, M390, M4, ELMAX etc... is absolutely night and day. Not only is general edge retention better, but alot of the high end steels can reach deeper hardness and you can take the edges thinner than traditional steel which opens up a whole new world of performance. The edge geometry attainable with a steel like K390 cannot be matched by a steel like 01 or ATS 34.

If you get by with traditional steels and are happy with them awesome. A knife is about fulfilling your needs. Tons of people are happy with old school steels. But for me and many others 1095 just doesn't cut it for hard cutting tasks where you need your knife to keep slicing all day.
 
singularity35 said:
LMAO, you really are grasping. Asking somebody(or me for that matter) to tell similar performing steels apart, is not "telling the difference". It's "identify the steels".

Besides that, which one is the supersteel between AUS-whatever and 4116(whatever)?

It's "tell the difference between the supersteel and the un-supersteel". It's not "name the steel".
Click to expand...


LOL, you remind me of Nozh2002 "Vassili", this guy can tell you the difference of CTS 20CP, S110V, XHP, M390 and Jody Muller 1095, just with the smell. lol
 
kurodrago said:
LOL, you remind me of Nozh2002 "Vassili", this guy can tell you the difference of CTS 20CP, S110V, XHP, M390 and Jody Muller 1095, just with the smell. lol
Click to expand...

Seems to be your English is getting better.

Now let me make it simple.

I can't tell the difference between steels of similar performance.

I can't identify steels by smell or taste.

What I can do is tell the difference between say, 8Cr13Pos and 20CP. That is why I prefer to use my grey para over my tenacious(because I can tell the difference in edge retention) when I had to do all that packing and unpacking during the construction and transfer to my new house.

Is that simple enough for you?
 
Sharpen your own knifes and you will find lots of differences. You will see varient types of ways the blade will get dulled, and from there you can get an idea how long a knife keeps sharp, how damaged it will get under certain situations and how easy some knives are to sharpen.

I actually prefer a softer steel over something like ZDP-189.

While cutting something, when a steel is sharpened to almost perfection, no you cannot tell... it's the 30 or 40 cuts after that when you can.
 
lets compare the same knife in every way except steel - one is 154cm and one is vg10 both have perfect HT- it would he HAAAAAAAAAAAAARD to tell, barely anyone would be able to tell.

now with cutting :

compare one of them to ZDP, ZDP will win

compare zdp to a superblue (corrosion aside) these 2 are going to be hard to tell apart BUT put it on a sharpening stone and you will know the difference in an instant

steel is such a geeked out subject and im far too tired to think
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top