Cold Steel CTS-XHP vs Benchmade 154CM

Omg. Is there an answer please!
i want recon large but wonder if its steel xhp worth the money compared to griptilian 154cm. Only this aspect.
 
own both. xhp holds an edge a long time. in my use longer than 154cm. easy to keep sharp as well, much easier than d2 weirdly. both take an edge fairly easy if not super dull. truth be told i like both steel. neither is bad by any means. pick the knife youd rather have, rather than steel unless its just the steel you want.
 
Not impressed with Benchmade's CM-154, or Emerson's either, for that matter. CTS-XHP is much superior in edge retention (speaking of Recon 1, American Lawman), and is easy to sharpen (on diamond hones).
 
I'd take a Recon 1 or Code 4 over a Griptillian or the like 7 days out of the week. Especially since I could get about two Code 4s.
 
cant speak too much on cold steel, but the benchmade arvensis I owned held and edge really well while camping or things alike despite being 154
 
Noah, there's no "despite it being 154cm" needed. 154cm is a great steel and holds a great edge. But it could perform better and some other things perform better. Depends on your usage as well, these are generalizations.
 
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My casual observation using CS xtp and Benchmade 154 cm in work knives is that the xtp holds an edge more like a good s30v blade, which is better than 154 cm or ats 34. The 154 cm is a good steel but the CS xtp has surprisingly good edge retention with minimal chipping problems. As for price, CS is the better bargain.
 
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I enjoy both steels and find 154 Cm noticeable easier to sharpen. It might have a slight edge in corrosion resistance also.

Recently my CS Recon 1 experienced a few micro chips and needed to be sharpened. It was sharpened along side my Fiddleback Forge production Duke in s35vn. Xhp took slightly more effort than the Duke and had a toothier edge after sharpening to 800 grit and stropping with black compound. The green compound brought both blades to a fine crisp polished edge.
 
I got chipping in Cold Steel's XHP (It could have been a burnt edge from the factory grinder) and I have pretty good luck I guess with Benchmade's 154CM.

I'll sacrifice a little edge retention to not have to sharpen out chips. I hope I just got a bad sample of XHP. It acted a lot like production S30V for me. Which is to say, rather chippy.
 
Only a few companies really leverage XHP, and CS is definitely one of them. I have their Code 4 and Ultimate Hunter. I've beat the Hunter pretty well and love it, haven't done much with the Code 4 yet. I sold a BM 950 with 154CM this year, was just never impressed.
 
Velitrius said:
For you. Not for some of us.[/Q

As one example, the CS American Lawman compared to the BM Griptilian. The Lawman has better blade material, better handle material, equal fit and finish and equal ergonomics as the Groptilian. The locking mechanism is equivalent, if different, in quality. The Lawman costs 90% of what the Griptilian costs. Sometimes, like now, the Lawman goes on sale with certain vendors. Never the Griptilian.
Aside from personal preferences, the general consensus would be the CS is more knife for the money. That s how I define a better value.
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