Favorite Knife Steel?

3V in fixed blades, and M390/S90v in folders. Most of my folders just have S30V in them, and a few with Elmax or XHP.
 
S30v/S35v is my favorite stainless; I have tried many and somehow still come back to this as it gives an amazing edge that lasts.

1095 & Hitachi SuperBlue are my favorite non-stainless; Still attempting to get a feel for M4, but have not seen the results that I have got from 1095/Super Blue;
 
For a folder I'm currently preferring S90V, simply because of how long it holds a working edge. Also it also seems to have pretty good corrosion resistant.
 
M390/CTS204p are the best preforming steels for me but when not able to get such high end steels, S35vn has been my favorite mid grade super steel.
 
My favorite is CPM 3V.
VG10, S35VN, N690, CPM154 and depending on the knife 440C are good alternatives.
 
As long as my favored shape is on it. I like cpm154 and 440C. These hold an edge for a long time. I don't care for the vanadium steels. DM
 
Niolox all the way :-). I have made several knives out of it and it still has to give me something to complain about...
 
There are four that i really like. A2 and O1 carbon steel. CM154, and S30V Stainless. most of the knives I have made use one of these steels.
 
Fixed blades: Flat-ground 1095 or A2, the latter hardened to ~60RC.

Folders: Coated, flat-ground D2 hardened to ~61RC.

Lots of great options with these parameters for me.

Prof.
 
Blues Bender said:
For a folder, it's a toss up between CRK's S35VN and Rocksteads YXR7.
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Knew it was going to be one of those two for you ;) :D

You know it has to be M390 for me in a folder, and some great 3V in a fixed blade.
Although, I have come to love CPM154 more and more the longer I use my Dunlap back pocket trapper ;)
 
Properly heat treated 1095 for carbon and properly heat treated ATS-34 for stainless. I really need nothing more. Heck I can remember when ATS-34 was considered a super steel.
 
Charr said:
Knew it was going to be one of those two for you ;) :D

You know it has to be M390 for me in a folder, and some great 3V in a fixed blade.
Although, I have come to love CPM154 more and more the longer I use my Dunlap back pocket trapper ;)
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Oh yea! If I could only get a Sebenza or Umnumzaan with YXR7:eek: It'd be a match made in heaven!

I definitely knew you like that M390 on your Shiro, I have only tried ZT's M390 and I felt like it was nothing special, but there are many more heat-treats of M390 to try. Jim's 154 is great stuff, but it takes forever to sharpen for some reason. Oddly enough, it takes me longer to sharpen 154cm (or cpm-154) and N690 than many high-carbide steels. It takes me forever to sharpen my Thorburn in N690, while I can sharpen my CRK's in about 10 minutes.
 
Blues Bender said:
Oh yea! If I could only get a Sebenza or Umnumzaan with YXR7:eek: It'd be a match made in heaven!

I definitely knew you like that M390 on your Shiro, I have only tried ZT's M390 and I felt like it was nothing special, but there are many more heat-treats of M390 to try. Jim's 154 is great stuff, but it takes forever to sharpen for some reason. Oddly enough, it takes me longer to sharpen 154cm (or cpm-154) and N690 than many high-carbide steels. It takes me forever to sharpen my Thorburn in N690, while I can sharpen my CRK's in about 10 minutes.
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Well actually that's a combination of edge geometry and hardness, because CRK S35VN is super easy to sharpen by design, and the edge geometry is designs to make it easier to sharpen free-handed as well.
Most other knives are sharpened in a much more "exact" V grind instead of the slight covex edge that CRK uses, and you have to line up the angles just right to hit the apex. If you're sharpening free-handed, then it's actually easier to sharpen something that is convex because all free-handed edged naturally end up conceded anyway.

That, combined with the fact that CRK runs their steel softer, makes it super easy to sharpen.

And yeah, Shirogorov has a magnificent heat treat on M390 and takes it a little higher in hardness where it should be to truly perform well.
 
For fixed blades I like O1 and 52100 for folders I don't really have a preference but the one I carry most often has a 1095 blade on it.
 
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