Buy a knife for the blade steel......

C

clockman

Joined
Jan 14, 2009
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I think a lot of us have done it, bought a knife for a steel we wanted to try.

The knives I've bought in a premium steel, I really haven't used hard enought to get benefit from spending the extra $$ for. S90v, cpm m4,and m390

would be some of the steels that I've bought to try out. Ya, I know they cut better and hold and edge longer but is it really worth the extra $$.

Anyone else do the same thing, are you glad or sorry you did ?..................
 
Just depends. Good steels don't have to be expensive. I like to buy the new "exotic" steels even if it is testing in a controlled setting.

Also I wouldn't say that premium steels necessarily cut better. I believe that is up to final edge finish, angle, and overall geometry. Alot of todays "tactical" knives can be outcut by a simple Opinel or traditional knife and they are not in "super steels".
 
bought my military because of the cpm m4 steel. I'm glad I did because it introduced me to the military platform which is by far the best in the four inch blade range I've tried.

that said, it could have s30v, vg10, aus8, 1075, etc and it would still be an amazing knife.

I think knife choice should be based on ergonomics, fit in pocket, etc over steel choice.
 
Steel130 said:
Just depends. Good steels don't have to be expensive.
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I absolutely agree with this. Most of the expensive knives I have bought were expensive because they're long discontinued. The knives I buy to try out new steels are relatively inexpensive, I think the most I've spent is $180 on a Para2 for the CTS-204P. Other than that, I haven't spent that much on new steels. I got M4 with a Mini-Grip for $110, ZDP in a Ladybug for $50, K390 at an absolute steal of a price of $70, add in the $25 for scales and it's still under $100. You don't have to spend top dollar for the good steels, just gotta keep your eyes open and see what the companies are offering. Spyderco, Benchmade and Kershaw all offer great steels at great prices. The Blur and Leek platforms have been offered in all sorts of steels, and were first available for relatively low prices. Benchmade offers the Grips in many steels, as well as handle colors and blade shape. And Spyderco has the Mule team as well as many sprints to try out new steels.
 
I used to buy knives for that, especially when I was all about CRKT for a while. I always go back to my SAKs and Case pocket knives me for my two fixed blade knives, a traditional Ka-bar and a Gerber LMF II, I didn't really care as they were from reputable companies. (The idea of lemons not counted)
 
clockman said:
Buy a knife for the blade steel......
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I have often bought knives, and/or been involved in testing knives, with new and interesting steels.

I find it's the best way to learn first hand about the performance of these new materials.

These knives might not become part of my EDC rotation, or favorite users, but they do steer me toward the knives I buy/try in the future.


Years ago I was impressed by steels like 50100, O1 and D2, even 154CM and ATS34.

Of course, now what we're into the Particle Metal era, there's a whole new generation of steels that pique my interest.


Just like trying styles of knives and grinds, personal experience is the great teacher when it comes to finding what works for you.




Big Mike
 
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I have a Mule Team in K390 and a Benchmade 810 (M4) because I wanted to try those steels. I suppose my BM 480-1 was also bought for its M390.

I use the Mule Team in the kitchen, and the 480-1 is my suit knife. The 810 is a DISASTER in ergonomics (even after sanding) and only gets brought out when I'm wearing gloves.
 
After I got Farid's CPM-REX121 mule and used it a bit, I got on the list for his K2 in the same bladesteel.
 
For folders it really doesnt matter.

for work, anything that is high quality carbon.
 
goodeyesniper said:
bought my military because of the cpm m4 steel. I'm glad I did because it introduced me to the military platform which is by far the best in the four inch blade range I've tried.

that said, it could have s30v, vg10, aus8, 1075, etc and it would still be an amazing knife.

I think knife choice should be based on ergonomics, fit in pocket, etc over steel choice.
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When did military come out in m4?
 
If a knife is available in a steel I don't have yet, I will choose it over a repeat. In my use the only difference is steels that I see is how often I sharpen, but I enjoy collecting different steels. The only one I sorta regret choosing was a custom in 20cv. Absolutely a bear to sharpen! It does hold an edge but not worth the effort.
 
I bought the brown Para 2 in S35VN just to see how it was different from S30. Waste of time but I still bought it cheaper than plain, used ones go for now so I'm cool with that.
 
I buy knives based on how appealing the design is to me. Steel type is usually an after thought, unless it's just gawd awful cheap stuff.
 
If I find a model I really like, I'll buy its different variations/sprints in different steels (for example: PM2, Military, BM 710, Manix 2, ect) I wouldn't buy a model I didn't like just to try a steel though, I also wouldn't buy a model I liked if the steel was something like 420J2. I've been wanting to try Super Blue, but didn't really like the Caly Platform luckily it came out on the Endura. I also had to wait for CPM-M4 to come out on something I liked (ended up getting it on the Military) for about 6 months I could only find it on a tanto/recurve model Benchmade and even though I really wanted to try the steel, I couldn't warm up to the model enough to try it, luckily the Military came out and I pre-ordered it and 18 short months later I got it in hand :p
 
clockman said:
Spyderco only made 400 of them. They came out in Oct. 2010. Knifeworks sold them for $220. I have 1 and should use it more than I do..Fantastic Knife!
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you really should

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4ptnoi.jpg
 
I have even gone as far as importing knives from other countries to try new steels. It's a lot easier and more common to try new steels than it used to be. Sal and Spyderco have really contributed to the cause ( I hesitate to call us "steel junkies" anymore since it has become almost mainstream to have that quest for performance). Sal and the Spyderco team have really gone out of their way to bring new, higher performing steels to the production world , then even came out with the "mule" concept of running them on the same platform to make not only comparisons easier, but gripping, sheathing and even modding them easier to the point people often think of them as kit knives now.

The Mule team will run the steels for best performance which sometimes is different heat treat schedules and final hardness specs that would be used on a straight production knife. In addition to all of the above Sal has brought in not only new ( to the cutlery world anyway) steels but old well known reference standards like 52100, S90V, etc. to help keeping things in perspective.

Running the program at very little markup over costs using production time that could be used to make others that have a higher margin, along with the steels and even heat treats selected show in my opinion that Sal has a real passion for making knives, likes learning and sharing knowledge with others.

These traits more than the yearly release of new models to keep the lineup fresh and current with market demands are what puts Sal in a select group of knife makers that have shaped and driven the whole knife industry and given us innovation after innovation, and brought new generations into the ranks of us collectors and knife users.

It's rubbed off on most all other knife manufacturers and most all of them, even traditional makers have their sport or performance models.


Gerber making the first "sprint runs" in steels like Vascowear ( Gerber "V" steel), M2 HSS, as well as L6 ) started a fire and it just gets hotter and hotter with production knives in ZDP 189, M390, S90V, S110V, CPM M4, Mastiffwe...er, Cruwear, etc.

I don't have to send away for knives anymore. Now production knives often outperform custom knives when it comes to cutting and most everything else.
 
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clockman said:
I think a lot of us have done it, bought a knife for a steel we wanted to try.

The knives I've bought in a premium steel, I really haven't used hard enought to get benefit from spending the extra $$ for. S90v, cpm m4,and m390

would be some of the steels that I've bought to try out. Ya, I know they cut better and hold and edge longer but is it really worth the extra $$.

Anyone else do the same thing, are you glad or sorry you did ?..................
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Here is the best explanation of knife steel I have ever read. It was prepared by Master Bladesmith Mr. Joe Talmadge, my knife guru. Steel may be the heart of the knife but it must be blended with all the other knife elements to be really effective. It is interesting to compare the steels we talk about in these forums to the steels you use in your kitchen knives, which probably get hundreds of times more use than that EDC folder or hunting fixed blade. Yet few of us agonize about the kitchen knife steel. I'm sort of old school and find the steel like 440-C which was used by bladesmiths like Bob Lovelace and other perfectly fine for my home and gardening uses.

http://zknives.com/knives/articles/knifesteelfaq.shtml


Bob Lovelace knives for sale. Note the lack of emphasis on the type of steel used in the blade. Also note the prices. Wow! I'll never own one unless my lottery ticket scores.

http://www.boblovelessknives.com/for_sale.html
 
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clockman said:
I think a lot of us have done it, bought a knife for a steel we wanted to try.

Anyone else do the same thing, are you glad or sorry you did ?..................
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I am a steel junky. And I have bought knives for the sole purpose of obtaining a blade in a specific alloy so that I could test its performance. You can find the threads documenting my results in the testing forum. Look for threads in that forum started by me.

Yes, I am happy that I did that. I will likely do it again. There's lots of subcategories within the term "knife knut". Performance of blade alloys is one. And I fit in it.
 
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