CPM D2 or CPM 3V for a solider

Short answer... after some testing and research, I sold off my stock of CPM-D2 and kept/bought more CPM-3V. 3V wins hands-down in every way.

Long answer... The corrosion-resistance is not noticeably different, in my experience. Neither will just rust overnight; both may get some pits and spots... nothing that detracts from the knife's usefullness. Google "passivating" for more info on how to get the most out of either alloy in that regard, or pm me and I'll forward you the info I have.

Polishing... I have no idea why so many people insist on HT'ing high-alloy, wear-resistant steels at 220 grit and then bitch about how hard they are to polish afterwards. Polish before HT and clean it up later. You CAN get a very fine finish on 3V this way, as long as you prevent heavy oxidizing/scale during austenizing. (tool-wrap, vacuum-furnace, etc.)

I'm currently working on a couple projects in Elmax, and the corrosion-resistance is absolutely outstanding. It remains to be seen if Elmax compares to 3V for toughness, they aren't HT'ed yet.
Justin King said:
You can buy little credit card-sized diamond stones, so field sharpening of even the high-V steels need not be an issue anymore.
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True. Also, 3V is tough enough to support a very thin, keen edge, which means when it does get dull, you don't have to slave away and grind off a bunch of steel to get it sharp again. Win-win!

Justin King said:
If I knew I would be carrying a knife into critical situations, 3v would be my first choice.
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Same here :thumbup:
 
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My vote goes to cpm3v It's crazy tough and holds an edge pretty good too.

I've been carrying a 3v knife daily for almost 7 years and have never had a problem with rust. All of my carbon steel blades are rusty though :D I consider 3v to be pretty much stainless in actual use.

The only thing I don't like about cpm3v is that it can be a bit of a pain to sharpen. Establishing the edge is about the same as 154cm but the bur is quite tenacious and takes more effort to get rid of.
 
james terrio said:
Short answer... after some testing and research, I sold off my stock of CPM-D2 and kept/bought more CPM-3V. 3V wins hands-down in every way.

Long answer... The corrosion-resistance is not noticeably different, in my experience. Neither will just rust overnight; both may get some pits and spots... nothing that detracts from the knife's usefullness. Google "passivating" for more info on how to get the most out of either alloy in that regard, or pm me and I'll forward you the info I have.

Polishing... I have no idea why so many people insist on HT'ing high-alloy, wear-resistant steels at 220 grit and then bitch about how hard they are to polish afterwards. Polish before HT and clean it up later. You CAN get a very fine finish on 3V this way, as long as you prevent heavy oxidizing/scale during austenizing. (tool-wrap, vacuum-furnace, etc.)

I'm currently working on a couple projects in Elmax, and the corrosion-resistance is absolutely outstanding. It remains to be seen if Elmax compares to 3V for toughness, they aren't HT'ed yet.


True. Also, 3V is tough enough to support a very thin, keen edge, which means when it does get dull, you don't have to slave away and grind off a bunch of steel to get it sharp again. Win-win!



Same here :thumbup:
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I realized just how fine of a pre HT finish you can put on D2 after I got it back from HT, I know better now:o I had treated the pre HT finish like any other knife I had made, with the expectation of having a lot of sanding to do to get through the crud from HT. When the blades came back nearly spotless I was shocked, and when it came time to sand them out I remembered just how wear resistant D2 was.
 
Unky, I learned the same lesson, the same (difficult) way.To put it in perspective, I used to lose money on wear-resistant knives, because I didn't take into account the labor costs of finishing after HT. I have learned to do more work while the steel is soft, keep my prices the same, and actually pay myself a bit for my time.:thumbup: That's pretty important when the mortgage needs to be paid, and the kid is hungry :)

Work Smarter, not Harder.
 
for those that are worried about rust i have had my 3v necker in the hottub with me more then once and didnt bother to wash it off that night and still no rust

and i have never oiled it ..... ever it had a high belt finish and scottbrite belt finish and iron wood handles
after carring it for over a year a customer bought it right off my neck at full price with no issue
 
unky_gumbi said:
I am a firm believer in tools steels:o I just love the edge I can get on them. While I can get a stainless blade sharp, it just never feels as sharp to me as a good tool steel. I will admit that there may be some bias there, its not like I have any sort of scientific proof, but to me tool steel always feels sharper:confused:
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bohler calls elmax a tool steel.
 
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