Favorite knife steel

The old Sharon 1095CV/50100B/0170-6, as formerly used by Case, Western etc and dead as dodo since 1988.

Its surrogate 0170-6C lower nickel/higher everything else with superior heat treat developed by Dan Maragni for Cold Steel/Camillus/Becker, plus Blackjack/Case of post 1988 buying into the batch/heat, assumedly Case still working off their supply of thin stock ordered back yonder for limited edition chrome vanadium blades (my understanding of their limited use thereof, anyhow).

The knives not so hot, but the DM-1 of AG Russell working off of stocks of 0170-6C bought at Camillus bankruptcy and treated per Dan Maragni.

The 80CrV2 when heat treated properly, using salt baths such as Winkler and as formerly with Carbon V, or expertly forged as by smiths in northern Europe and beyond for some time, and now migrating here.

A precise heat treat AEB-L/12C27 or damascus thereof.

S35VN if thick bladed/edged/tipped at high hardness, and dropped a point or two in hardness for thinner more refined knives...the PM last, and most such rank far below pot metal in my opinion for a working knife. The world is not only cubicals and paper and cardboard, with nice straight cuts.
 
CTS-XHP. I like it because it's a high-end powdered steel with darn good edge retention, yet it's decently tough and it has so little Vanadium in it that carbide tear-out is not a concern. I also like how it retains cutting aggression even with a polished edge.
 
mtngunr said:
The old Sharon 1095CV/50100B/0170-6, as formerly used by Case, Western etc and dead as dodo since 1988.

Its surrogate 0170-6C lower nickel/higher everything else with superior heat treat developed by Dan Maragni for Cold Steel/Camillus/Becker, plus Blackjack/Case of post 1988 buying into the batch/heat, assumedly Case still working off their supply of thin stock ordered back yonder for limited edition chrome vanadium blades (my understanding of their limited use thereof, anyhow).

The knives not so hot, but the DM-1 of AG Russell working off of stocks of 0170-6C bought at Camillus bankruptcy and treated per Dan Maragni.

The 80CrV2 when heat treated properly, using salt baths such as Winkler and as formerly with Carbon V, or expertly forged as by smiths in northern Europe and beyond for some time, and now migrating here.

A precise heat treat AEB-L/12C27 or damascus thereof.

S35VN if thick bladed/edged/tipped at high hardness, and dropped a point or two in hardness for thinner more refined knives...the PM last, and most such rank far below pot metal in my opinion for a working knife. The world is not only cubicals and paper and cardboard, with nice straight cuts.
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Oh, the CV blade on my ca1968 western 48a is awesome.
 
I would pick Japanese Super Blue paper steel forged by Takeda as my favorite. Amazing sharpness, ease of sharpening and exellent edge retention.
 
You could make all your knives out of these steels and never look back.
M390 - Wear and toughness nearly that of M4 and is almost rustproof.
M4 - Very tough and wear resistant. Takes an amazing edge but will rust.
3V - Perhaps the best all around steel. Extreme toughness and great wear resistance.
 
I didn't consider sharpening skills. Good call Pomsbz. CPM154 is an excellent choice and sharpens up well. For that matter 3V also sharpens easily but it's hard to find in a common folder.
 
For me this would have to include what steel I like for what knife and for what use ..

I like 52100 and 01 or A2 and 1905 (especially Beckers 1095 CV) for bigger hard use knives ... and I am beginning to put Winkler's 80CrV2 right up there at the top for hard use knives ...

I like CPM154 ... M390 ... and VG10 ... and 3V is quickly becoming a favorite ... for EDC & hunting knives ... all make great slicers ... and again adding Winkler's 80CrV2 to this list in a different style knife from his hard use ...

others I like S35VN ... Elmax ... 5160 ... I would have trouble picking only one ...

but in a pinch CPM154 for stainless and be tough between 3V and 52100 for non stainless ...

but I'm glad I don't have to just stick to one I like so many in different uses and in different style knives ... and I'm sure I'm even forgetting somethimg I really like ... just so many great steels this day and age ...
 
I’m going to have to divide the catagory into two, carbon and stainless. Also heat treat makes all the difference. I have had m390 that was a joy to sharpen and touch up completely wowing me; and I’ve had m390 that was very meh.

I don’t have much experience with a variety of carbon steels. Most my carbon steel knives are 1095.

For stainless 154cm was a long time favourite of mine even when s30v was all the rage. Once s35vn came out I liked it alot since it felt like it acted somewhere between s30v and 154cm to me.

That said m390 family with a good heat treat is probably my favourite. I really want to try cpm154
 
For carbon, definitely 52100

For stainless, definitely CPM154

I used to be on the M390/20cv/204p bandwagon, and it is great steel, but my Spyderco domino in 204p seems to microchip bad when sharpening, especially when trying to add a micro bevel. I do have some others in this steel that are amazing, but that Spyderco left a bad taste in my mouth and soured me on that steel.

That said, as far as super steels go, I do really want to try some CTS-XHP, it may dethrone CPM154 for me.
 
m390 is what I look for in a folder anymore.

3v in a fixed blade. I've got bark river's and survive knives in 3v and have had no issues with rust. We get some really humid days here in the summertime, that will rust things up fast but it doesn't seem to bother them. So take that for what it's worth.

Both seem to be well balanced steels. Not too hard to sharpen, hold an edge, and tough.
 
FSUwelder1212 said:
For carbon, definitely 52100

For stainless, definitely CPM154

I used to be on the M390/20cv/204p bandwagon, and it is great steel, but my Spyderco domino in 204p seems to microchip bad when sharpening, especially when trying to add a micro bevel. I do have some others in this steel that are amazing, but that Spyderco left a bad taste in my mouth and soured me on that steel.

That said, as far as super steels go, I do really want to try some CTS-XHP, it may dethrone CPM154 for me.
Click to expand...

I didn’t realize they made a Domino in 204P. I thought they were all in CTS-XHP. Was it a sprint run, or did I miss something? I’m open to correction.

Edit: coffee reminded me that Google exists. Not sure how I missed that they made these! Very cool.
 
For edc folders , which is what I carry 99% of the time , some of my favorites are :

-M390/204P. Have not tried 20CV yet which I'm sure will yield nearly identical results.
- S35VN & S30V.
- CPM 154.
 
I am so all over the place when it comes to steel these days and preferences.

That said I would say Nitrobe-77 to this day remains the bees knees for me.
 
Since the majority of my knives are H1, I have to say H1. Very tough, very easy to get very sharp, and rustproof/maintenance free. That does it for me. It does scratch very easily though, so I wouldn't want it on a very expensive knife, or a collectible, as opposed to a user.
 
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