CPM M4 (Benchmade HT) - Does it hold up well to a thin bevel?

Gunsnknives

Gunsnknives

Joined
Mar 26, 2011
Messages
647
Howdy knife knuts,

I've been trying to resist buying knives recently, but the new BM 810 Contego just has all the Tacti-Cool features, so I had to get it. Even though M390 is my favorite steel, I've been EDC-ing my Endura 4 in ZDP-189 with a very narrow 11 deg/side bevel. I LOVE this thin bevel, even though I realize it is fragile and has limited applications.

Question is: How well does CPM M4 hold up to narrow angled bevels? I don't want to grind the Contego down to 11 deg/side like my ZDP blade, but I would like to got down to maybe 13 deg/side.

Anyone have experience with this?

Thanks!!!
 
It can go very low when at proper hardness. That said I think BM does a poor job on the HT of that steel.
 
According to their product detail of the Contego on their website, it is 62-64HRC. I've been using mine pretty hard for about a week now and it holds a good edge. My edge is nowhere near what you are asking though. There is only one way to find out. Try it and see how it holds up.
 
Depending on how it is used, M4 holds up pretty well when thin. I would suggest that you might enjoy greater performance and durability with a thinly ground blade and a fairly standard edge bevel angle with properly heat treated M4.

My only experience with Benchmade's treatment of M4 is on the 171. I doubt that they run their smaller knives at the same hardness as this model though...So I cannot give you much advice regarding your edge angles.
 
nightman said:
There is only one way to find out.

Try it and see how it holds up.
Click to expand...




It really depends on how you use your knife.


M4 is fairly tough, but not like 3V.


Only you can answer your question, thin it out and put it to work.





Big Mike
 
I've got it 17 per side, and it is doing great. I am probably going to go thinner. I bet it would take 14 no problem
 
Interesting. Right after I posted this last night, I found this done by (I think) Crimsontideshooter. If I'm wrong, forgive me and I'll correct this post. Anyway, I hope per this youtube review, that BM did a better HT on this M4. I don't know if it's better than the Spyderco HT'd M4, but per the AFCK release and this one, it seems BM is trying to improve their initial sharpness (not a real issue for me since I'm OCD about sharpening anyway) and now hopefully their HT. Better QC = we win!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sevAMUzPh8

Anyway, thanks for your responses, and please keep them coming if you have information to share!
 
Gunsnknives, are you saying that you hope benchmade does a better job than what is seen in the vid, or something else? The M4 on that contego did very well, noticeably better than my M4 Manix.

The disparity could be attributed to geometry and not the heat treat, but regardless the Contego stayed very sharp all the way through the cutting. :)
 
Oh and to answer your question:

Despite the fairly thick blade, the Contego is actually really thin at the cutting edge. Right behind the edge it is noticeably thinner than some knives that people all assume are great cutters (para 2 and military). It cuts VERY well due to the thin stock. I doubt you would really need to thin the edge much to get really good performance.

I am going to leave my edge around 36 inclusive. The thin stock makes it cut like a laser, really no need to weaken the edge. Benchmade did a good job with the grind.
 
Gunsnknives, are you saying that you hope benchmade does a better job than what is seen in the vid, or something else? The M4 on that contego did very well, noticeably better than my M4 Manix.
Click to expand...

CrimsonTideShooter, I was trying to say that I'm hoping the HT on the Contego is better than past HT's of previous BM models. Per your youtube review, it sounds like the Contego has a good HT, running at RC 62-64. I know hardness does not make the HT, but still an indication that this HT may be different than past models.

I'm excited that the cutting edge behind the bevel is nice and thin...I do like slicers. If it is indeed thinner than the PM2 and Millie, then I probably won't have to go too thin. I may start off at 15 deg and see how that does.

However, per additional input (if any) from this post, I may/may not feel comfortable grinding it thinner. The Contego isn't the most expensive knife out there, but I'd sure hate to grind it so thin (10 deg, 12 deg, 14 deg per side) as to damage the blade.

I understand that my use will dictate how thin I can go...I will likely use it to open up boxes of grocery products plus light duty use.

Also, I generally don't like black blades, but I wanted to try out the Cerakote and thought that seeing how well the black wears would be easier than looking for a nearly invisible clear Cerakote.
 
Gunsnknives said:
CrimsonTideShooter, I was trying to say that I'm hoping the HT on the Contego is better than past HT's of previous BM models. Per your youtube review, it sounds like the Contego has a good HT, running at RC 62-64. I know hardness does not make the HT, but still an indication that this HT may be different than past models.

I'm excited that the cutting edge behind the bevel is nice and thin...I do like slicers. If it is indeed thinner than the PM2 and Millie, then I probably won't have to go too thin. I may start off at 15 deg and see how that does.

However, per additional input (if any) from this post, I may/may not feel comfortable grinding it thinner. The Contego isn't the most expensive knife out there, but I'd sure hate to grind it so thin (10 deg, 12 deg, 14 deg per side) as to damage the blade.

I understand that my use will dictate how thin I can go...I will likely use it to open up boxes of grocery products plus light duty use.

Also, I generally don't like black blades, but I wanted to try out the Cerakote and thought that seeing how well the black wears would be easier than looking for a nearly invisible clear Cerakote.
Click to expand...

I didn't have any ill intent behind my question if it came out that way.

Yeah I am pretty sure that BM has never ran their folders as hard as this one. I've only seen them claim 60-62 on their M4, while this one is supposed to be at 62-64. It does hold an edge very well, taking much less damage than the M4 Maninx, but again that could be geometry. Doesn't seem likely that it is since the Manix had thicker stock behind the edge, but it could be.
 
CTS, are you saying that the Contego comes with the 36 degree blade edge from the factory, or did you resharpen it to that edge?
 
cutter17 said:
CTS, are you saying that the Contego comes with the 36 degree blade edge from the factory, or did you resharpen it to that edge?
Click to expand...

Mine came pretty thin, somewhere between 30 and 36 inclusive. I will measure it with an angle block when I sharpen it and let you know. :)
 
I didn't have any ill intent behind my question if it came out that way.
Click to expand...

It's all good :). I'm not offended or anything else.

Thank you for your input and for your youtube vids! My blade arrives tomorrow (supposedly) and I'm all pumped. I have a Rift and it too has a thin edge. However, 154CM just doesn't hold an edge like I'm hoping M4 will...Although it does take a nice edge.

Before this blade came out, there was a thread that was asking for people's "ideal" BM product. One of mine was the Rift in M390...I think this Contego in M4 and its other features may surpass that dream (maybe because I have the Spydercos in M390). Also M4 has me excited since I think M4 is tougher than M390 (tends to roll vs. chip). PLUS...I'm hoping M4 will take a finer edge than M390, although M390 takes an amazingly fine edge, along with ZDP.

Anyway, I'm rambling now.
 
CrimsonTideShooter said:
Oh and to answer your question:

Despite the fairly thick blade, the Contego is actually really thin at the cutting edge. Right behind the edge it is noticeably thinner than some knives that people all assume are great cutters (para 2 and military). It cuts VERY well due to the thin stock. I doubt you would really need to thin the edge much to get really good performance.
Click to expand...

CrimsonTideShooter, I have checked out your video on the testing of the Contego and enjoyed it. The knife sure is impressive! I would like to ask a few questions:

(1) Are you sure that the blade on the Contego is thinner than say the Paramilitary? It looks thick in the video.

(2) The description of your video said that you touched up a little before doing the test. Do you remember how much sharpening did you do exactly? I am asking this just to get an impression of the out-of-the-box sharpness.

(3) How do you like the handle? Does it feel rough in the edges? Some people suggested that a little sanding may be in order to get a more comfortable feel, do you think that it is necessary?

Thanks for your help, I am also eyeing on this knife as well.
 
bchan77 said:
CrimsonTideShooter, I have checked out your video on the testing of the Contego and enjoyed it. The knife sure is impressive! I would like to ask a few questions:

(1) Are you sure that the blade on the Contego is thinner than say the Paramilitary? It looks thick in the video.

(2) The description of your video said that you touched up a little before doing the test. Do you remember how much sharpening did you do exactly? I am asking this just to get an impression of the out-of-the-box sharpness.

(3) How do you like the handle? Does it feel rough in the edges? Some people suggested that a little sanding may be in order to get a more comfortable feel, do you think that it is necessary?

Thanks for your help, I am also eyeing on this knife as well.
Click to expand...

1) He means near the edge, which is very thin. The grind starts pretty high up and it thins out a lot.

2) Only he can answer that one! :p

3) It is very ergonomic but some of the jimping near the rear end of the big choil is quite aggressive. I grinded some off. Jimping elsewhere isn't a problem
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top