CPM3V Question

T

thombrogan

Joined
Nov 16, 2002
Messages
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Hi everybody!

Does anyone have any experience with fixed blades made with CPM3V? Looking to get a drop point made of the stuff and want to know how it compares to other stock-removal non-stainless steels like M2.

Many thanks
 
If corrosion is not a big concern, then CPM3V is as good as it gets for stock removal. Maybe as good or better than a forged blade, but I'm not even going to go there. ;) :)

3V is so tough, that knifemakers can grind it thinner than most other steels and still have a tough knife. It takes and holds a wicked edge. Like I mentioned earlier, 3V is not stainless. It will spot and rust if you don't take care of it. It is about like D2 in corrosion resistance. Take care of your blade and wipe it down, because when 3V does speckle with rust, it tends to pit also.

CPM3V is one of my favorite steels, and I am fortunate to have a fixed blade camp knife made by Richard Rogers. Sort of a large Green River skinner type, and I love the knife. Flat ground thin with stainless guard and green canvas micarta handle. I say I am fortunate, because Richard really only makes fancy multiblade folders now.
 
Thanks, Danbo!

I'm looking to get a drop-point or wharncliffe made with 3V and protected with BC1 coating sometime next year (or late this year if I'm lucky). My current favorite steel is M2, but 3V got my attention.
 
thombrogan :

[3V]

... how it compares to other stock-removal non-stainless steels like M2.
Click to expand...

Far tougher with a lower max RC and sigificantly lower wear resistance. M2 would be better for a light utility blade, it is pretty much optimal for that, and 3V for a chopper / prybar, though I would not argue that class of blade needs a high wear resistance.

While 3V is tough, it only gets the attention it does in that regard because it is commonly compared to brittle cutlery stainless grades. 3V isn't significantly tougher than steels like L6 and the like, and can easily be exceeded in toughness by more than 50% with steels like A7.

3V would be best in a mid range knife which would see both heavy chopping and prying as well as heavy use in cutting very abrasive materials.

-Cliff
 
So 3V would be more for super-machete applications as opposed to holding a relatively narrow edge?
 
I assure you that if you have a nice hunter made from properly heat treated CPM3V, you will love it.
 
thombrogan :

So 3V would be more for super-machete applications as opposed to holding a relatively narrow edge?
Click to expand...

Yes, M2 would be far better for a very thin and acute edged light use knife. You can run it much harder than 3V which would make the edge stronger and much more resistant to rolling, it is inherently more wear resistant, and it is far more heat resistant. All are factors which would allow M2 to be run at a higher performance cutting geometry and edge holding.

The main advantage of 3V would come out in applications like hitting the knife very hard with a hammer, trying to chisel cut bone or metal. But if this is the case it is not like you are going to be able to go with a very thin edge, 3V or otherwise. As an example of how hard it is to fracture a decent steel :

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=243045

Are you going to be using the knife harder than the D2 one was subjected to on a regular basis? Unless the answer is yes, there are far better blade choices than 3V. If the answer is yes, you are also going to want to be cutting very abrasive materials at the same time, otherwise you can get the same performance in a much simplier steel like L6.


-Cliff
 
All I know is 3v is amazeing,I own a Fehrman and its held a edge better then anything else I own,Ive chopped up deer leg bone with NO loss of edge,it stayed razor sharp,It also cuts like no large chopping blade should.Ive cleaned out a 500 pound pig also,So im sure that CPM3V would be great in a skinning knife.I dont think there is a better steel out there jmo.
 
Well, I plan on using the knife for opening sacks of cat food and cat litter, everyday cutting, whittling, and practicing kungfu. I might use it for skinning vermin if the cats keep killing chipmunks like they did the last two summers so they can eat 'em easier (the last thing I want to clean out of the rug is mouse and chipmunk pelts). M2 would be more than sufficient, but 3V sounded really exotic, so I wanted to know what it could or couldn't do. Evidently, it depends.

Thanks, guys. It looks like I'll find out on my own or beg the maker to get some M2 stock.
 
You could even go further down than M2. None of what you described merits the use of a really high wear resistant steel, M2 is very high alloy speciality steel. A simpler steel like 52100 at 60 RC would do very well for those kinds of tasks and be easier to machine for the maker, easier to polish and easier to heat treat. Of course if the maker offers you CPM-3V at the same price of 52100 ...

-Cliff
 
For my uses, AUS-6A tempered down to Rc 50 would handle 80% of my cutting needs, but... I tend to eventually break everything I touch and I like the idea of a knife that will keep an edge despite hard use when it does occur. Like I could get the same speeding ticket whether I drove a nice car or a bucket, but I'd rather drive the nice car if I could afford it. Also, the maker didn't offer 52100. He did offer O1, though. Maybe that'd be worth looking into.

Again, thanks for the help. Always appreciated.
 
O1 would be fine. For a light use knife get it very hard, 62 RC. It is essential that the edge geometry be very fine or else sharpening will be problematic. You want either a light hollow grind, or a full flat grind, either ending in a thin edge. The blade should be at maximum 0.010" thick behind the edge and thinner if possible and honed at 15 degrees per side or less

Let the knife do the work when cutting and it will hold its edge for a very long time on cardboard, ropes and meats and sharpening will be a snap. I would carry another beater blade for rougher work. A SAK or Leatherman are solid choices as they are very versatile and have lots of other tools like screwdrivers and prybars to save the knife points and edges.

-Cliff
 
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