CTS-XHP Taiwan vs USA made

D

Doppler Bob

Joined
Oct 31, 2020
Messages
169
Do Spartan blades, Spyderco etc use the same or nearly the same hardness and quality of steel in Asia as USA?
 
There is only one source of CTS XHP steel alloy, Carpenter Technologies. So if it's CTS XHP, it's all the same alloy.
Heat treat can vary. So can final hardness. Some companies publish their spec for final hardness. I'm not aware of anyone who publishes the specifics of their heat treat protocol.
 
Doppler Bob said:
Do Spartan blades, Spyderco etc use the same or nearly the same hardness and quality of steel in Asia as USA?
Click to expand...
Asia is not one country. As far as I am aware, knives manufactured in Japan and Taiwan have not had any reported steel quality issues.
Knives manufactured in China have sometimes had steel quality problems. In some cases the steel used has turned
out not to be what was respresented.
 
I would not hesitate to buy a Spartan Blades Harsey Talos. It's quite similar to the original Gerber Harsey Air Ranger, which was from the first series of "Gerber International" knives, also made in Taiwan. In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if the same factory is making the Talos as made the Air Ranger. The quality of Taiwanese manufacturing has been among the best in the world for several decades, now. It is every bit as good as Japanese or German or Swiss or American manufacturing. The original Air Ranger was AUS8 steel with 6061-T6 aluminium scales. I have one sitting on my nightstand, right now.
 
KenHash said:
Asia is not one country. As far as I am aware, knives manufactured in Japan and Taiwan have not had any reported steel quality issues.
Knives manufactured in China have sometimes had steel quality problems. In some cases the steel used has turned
out not to be what was respresented.
Click to expand...
Cool. Yeah I know China cheats on some steels used.
 
It's really not that hard to find out if a company is reputable or not. You're tilting at windmills if you try to guess if a manufacturer is legit based on nation of origin alone. A true exercise in confused, helpless futility.
 
Piggybacking on what knarf said, "CTS" stands for Carpenter Technology Steel, made by Carpenter Technology Corp. As a proprietary alloy, there is only one source for it, and that is from Carpenter, no different then CPM comes from Crucible, or Sandvik and Bohler Uddholm branded proprietary steels, etc. Other companies could try to mimmick the composition and processes to make it, but no reputable company would use the CTS-XHP label, instead they would have to call it something else. An unreputable company could technically stamp the label on anything...

That being said, once a company recieves the steel, grinds it to specifications, and makes their product with it, the final heat treat process is what ultimately determines hardness, but I would absolutely trust the more reputable brands to have at least close to if not equivalent standards and parameters in place for their final HT processes, regardless of country of origin.
 
Last edited:
strategy9 said:
Piggybacking on what knarf said, "CTS" stands for Carpenter Technology Steel, made by Carpenter Technology Corp. As a proprietary alloy, there is only one source for it, and that is from Carpenter, no different then CPM comes from Crucible, or Sandvik and Bohler Uddholm branded proprietary steels, etc. Other companies could try to mimmick the composition and processes to make it, but no reputable company would use the CTS-XHP label, instead they would have to call it something else. An unreputable company could technically stamp the label on anything...

That being said, once a company recieves the steel, grinds it to specifications, and makes their product with it, the final heat treat process is what ultimately determines hardness, but I would absolutely trust the more reputable brands to have at least close to if not equivalent standards and parameters in place for their final HT processes, regardless of country of origin.
Click to expand...
Thanks, that clears it up a lot. I read so much diminutive stuff about D2 from China not being real, I got really concerned about other steels from the region. It’s great hearing that Taiwan is putting out reputable products on a par with European and US made. I still prefer US made but with your info I don’t feel so worried about a Talos or similar. Also have wanted a U.S. made Spyderco, but I keep reading that Taiwan made are better. That’s a shame on American companies.
 
Doppler Bob said:
Thanks, that clears it up a lot. I read so much diminutive stuff about D2 from China not being real, I got really concerned about other steels from the region. It’s great hearing that Taiwan is putting out reputable products on a par with European and US made. I still prefer US made but with your info I don’t feel so worried about a Talos or similar. Also have wanted a U.S. made Spyderco, but I keep reading that Taiwan made are better. That’s a shame on American companies.
Click to expand...
End of the day, it's a factory/production job, where ever it is... Top end companies definitely do their due diligence when choosing factories to work with, and as long as the facilities and equiptment are in place, Eastern hemisphere or western hemisphere, anyone "can" get the job done in adequate equivalent fashion. The human element is always that wildcard though... China or USA, who's on the production line when yours went through? Are they good at their job, or are they disgruntled, or did they just start yesterday?
Plenty of disgruntled American employees, or guys just had a rough night and aren't quite dialed in...
That said, I would absolutely and without hesitation trust Spartan's Taiwan made products are going to be of decent solid quality...
 
Last edited:
I remember when SOG ended their contracts with 2 out of the 3 Seki factories and went to Taiwan production in 2005/2006. It caused a huge outcry from SOG fans who valued the Seki made mark, much like the Al Mar fans. So when in 2015 Cold Steel end all of their Seki folder production, and 90% of their fixed blades and went to Taiwan manufacture I wondered whether they would also suffer. Oddly Cold Steel did not seem to take a hit like SOG did, although much of that could be a better/marketable product lineup. Cold Steel always had 2-3 models made in Taiwan even in the 1980s/90s when most of their fixed blades were US or Japan made. Looking back now over the last decade or so, I firmly believe that Taiwan quality is top notch.
 
strategy9 said:
End of the day, it's a factory/production job, where ever it is... Top end companies definitely do their due diligence when choosing factories to work with, and as long as the facilities and equiptment are in place, Eastern hemisphere or western hemisphere, anyone "can" get the job done in adequate equivalent fashion. The human element is always that wildcard though... China or USA, who's on the production line when yours went through, are the good at their job, or are they disgruntled, or did they just start yesterday?
Plenty of disgruntled American employees, or guys just had a rough night and aren't quite dialed in...
That said, I would absolutely and without hesitation trust Spartan's Taiwan made products are going to be of decent solid quality...
Click to expand...
Thank you for diminishing my fears and I get what you say. Try not to buy a Friday afternoon or Monday morning made car I’ve always heard.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top