Good spyderco blade steels

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Apr 10, 2011
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I'm looking for some good steels for spyderco knives to help me make a good decision on a new knife. Please name the pros and cons of the steels. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
 
When it comes to spyderco knives as with other trusted companies, I don't worry as much about steel as I do the design and build quality. I had an old delica3 for six years that was my only knife and took everything I wished out. It was ats-55 which is probably not considered a high end steel now days.
 
When it comes to spyderco knives as with other trusted companies, I don't worry as much about steel as I do the design and build quality. I had an old delica3 for six years that was my only knife and took everything I wished out. It was ats-55 which is probably not considered a high end steel now days.

Still good steel in my book Hoopster. I have one knife in that steel too, Ti Lum Tanto and it's awesome.
 
I'm looking for some good steels for spyderco knives to help me make a good decision on a new knife. Please name the pros and cons of the steels. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

i kind of think your going about this backwards. "good steel" is too broad a term to help with. lets first narrow down what type of knife you want and what it will be used for.

answer these questions first:

1. do you want a fixed blade or folding knife?
2. how big of a blade are you looking for?
3. plain edge or serrated?
4. what will you mostly use the knife for?
5. what's your price range?
 
Spyderco lets you know which knives are made of quality steel by putting this mark on them:

logo_gray_metal.jpg
 
The some of best steels that you can reasonably expect to find from them are CPM-M4, ZDP-189, H1, and VG-10. CPM-M4 is my favorite of the bunch, very tough and holds an edge forever. The only downside is that it's not stainless, but it doesn't rust very easily; it patinas first. ZDP-189 is more stainless, but it's not quite as good for edge retention, and the toughness is much worse, which can cause chipping. H1 is tough and absolutely won't rust. Edge retention is ok, but very good for serrated edges. VG-10 is a good all-around steel and doesn't cost much. Cheap, easy to sharpen, stainless, holds an edge well, and decently tough.
 
S30V is a great steel IMO
Agreed. S30V is the best all-rounder they offer. Since the OP didn't mention any particular properties of steel he wanted, I would go for that one by default. S90V is only good if you can sharpen it. If you can sharpen it easily, even that might not be enough.
 
My favorites of the Steels that Spyderco has used so far is CPM M4, Hitachi Super blue, and O-1. VG10 is a great all around steel that's stainless. H1 is a pretty amazing steel too.
 
I can't point to any steel used by Spyderco that is not a good steel. That said, if the OP must ask the question, then the answer at this time should be VG-10, IMO.
 
Most of my Spydercos have VG10 steel, and it is quite good. The steel I have used, abused, and been most impressed with is M4. Spyderco should use this steel more.

Andy
 
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