Cpm m4 vs cpm 4v for a hunter

[hugofeynman]

I’m anxiously waiting this too. I recently tested a v4e knife to destruction. It was a higher austenized piece, cryo, low temper. 61-62 rc. It tested very well, chopping antler caused no damage, 18 thousands behind the edge, convexed with a 20 degree micro bevel. Didn’t even chip hammering through concrete, just blunted the edge!!! Surprising. I ended breaking the knife cutting through mild steel with a 1.5 lb sledge hammer. I would place the toughness lower than 3v, but not by much! Maybe 30 percent lower. Guesstimate. It took 29 side impacts with the sledge to break the rest. 3v has taken 50 hits, and still not broken. But the v4e knife was .150 thick! Not an overbuilt knife.

Vanadis 4 extra can take a lot of punishment. Some videos in the internet shows small knives being hammered and surviving all the test. Out of curiosity, what was the cpm3v knife thickness? Same thickness? Same geometry? I ask this because thickness and geometry can turn a knife much tougher than the other. The only knife that survived Noss tests was a 1/2”+ thick monster in cpm3v (I’m almost 100% certain it where high tempered in those times, no one used the low temper protocol back in those days), the knife surpassed a Battle Mistress in the last test, but that doesn’t mean cpm3v is tougher than Infi! What means is the cpm3v one was created to survive those tests and Battle Mistress was not created to do so.

 

[Kevin Cox]

I was offered k890 as a test for a chopper by there sales rep .
It hold its edge very good in chopping.It never chipped use it for 3 years at my moose camp cutting trails . Then one day I hit a knot in a tree and a huge piece pop out of the blade. I hit it again and second piece broke out.Funny no small chips but when it did chip it was big lol.
Still this was a test knife and I did have it thin so it’s some of my own fault. It do rust easy to.K890
Very hard to buy here in Canada.
Z wear so far I haven’t broke one yet edge holds up very good @ 62 rc and no rust on my blade in 3 years of use. I do make some hunting knives in z wear to 63/64 rc it does take a nice edge.
Plus easier to buy . Today all my hard use knives come in z wear.
So to carpare the two I would take z wear over k890 but it’s not fair for k890 I only did one knife with it.
I personally like z wear for a few things better . No rust is a big one for me edge retention good on both . Tuffness will hard to say on that one but z wear is still going . And it have took a lot .

 

[Kevin Cox]

If you go to Instagram on
fire_starter_specialists
page roll down alittle and you will seem him hammer one of my z wear knives through a tree with ne problems.

 

[hugofeynman]

I was offered k890 as a test for a chopper by there sales rep .
It hold its edge very good in chopping.It never chipped use it for 3 years at my moose camp cutting trails . Then one day I hit a knot in a tree and a huge piece pop out of the blade. I hit it again and second piece broke out.Funny no small chips but when it did chip it was big lol.
Still this was a test knife and I did have it thin so it’s some of my own fault. It do rust easy to.K890
Very hard to buy here in Canada.
Z wear so far I haven’t broke one yet edge holds up very good @ 62 rc and no rust on my blade in 3 years of use. I do make some hunting knives in z wear to 63/64 rc it does take a nice edge.
Plus easier to buy . Today all my hard use knives come in z wear.
So to carpare the two I would take z wear over k890 but it’s not fair for k890 I only did one knife with it.
I personally like z wear for a few things better . No rust is a big one for me edge retention good on both . Tuffness will hard to say on that one but z wear is still going . And it have took a lot .

Good answer. Thank you very much! Hard to buy here in Europe too! My guy can buy a piece cut from a large block, but only 1/2” thick minimum! Not the perfect size for a knife.