- Joined
- Oct 7, 2009
- Messages
- 63
Hello!
I just want to do a little writeup about the H-1 steel, after it's by far the most used steel type I've used so far. I'm not gonna go into technical specs, just visit Spyderco's website and you will find its properties.
So if I shall describe this steel in one, short sentence, it would go something like this: "An excellent, overall use steel". Let me enlighten you...
I have three knives with this steel; two Pacific Salts and one Aqua Salt(fixed blade). I've handled most of the known steel types like 440A, S30V, AUS-8A, 154CM etc. So in my personal experience, what is the closest thing to H-1, in my opinion? I would say H-1 lies somewhere near AUS-8A, only tougher, and of course, rust PROOF, not rust resistant. I've used H-1 mostly at work for cardboard cutting, nylon-plastic straps and some woodwork, but at home, I usually use it for food preparation and boating. So how does it perform?
Cardboard is something every knifeUSER know is capable of dulling a blade quite fast, especially if the cardboard is dirty and coarse. I've done a lot of cardboardcutting tests and I will say that the H-1 holds an edge for a decent amount of time. It has a little shorter edge retention time than SOG's AUS-8A(as far as my tests have gone). On the other hand, H-1 is probably one of the easiest steels to resharpen and even reprofile. It really takes an edge and it does not chip out. I had an accident where I slammed my Aqua Salt on the edge of my kitchensink's faucet, and naturally, I damaged the edge, but it rolled, so it was an easy repair, when I say easy, I mean easy if you're very confident at handsharpening. I use diamond stones and 600-800 and 1000 grit sandingpaper for sharpening of H-1, or any steel for that matter. For a quick touchup, 800 is more than good enough, that is how easy this steel takes an edge.
H-1's toughness, is after what I've heard and partially experienced, very tough. I've heard that Spyderco bent it over 45 degrees without snapping, correct me if I'm wrong.
Another benefit of the H-1 steel is its incredibly resistance against corrosion and rust. It is practically rustproof because it has Nitrogen instead of Carbon, so ordinary air and water oxidation is physically impossible. If you are using a "ordinary" knife when boating in saltwater, you will soon figure out how fast saltwater can rust a blade. For normal EDC use, this kind of rustresistance is not necessary, but it can become handy if you work a lot and sweat while the knife is clipped against your body or residing in your pocket filled with humidity and bodyheat flowing after hours of hard working.
So why do I love this steel so much? I my POU, a bladesteel should be easy to maintain, easy to resharpen and hold an edge. H-1 excells in all these areas, at least after some time since it is work hardened(gets a little harder after some use and resharpening). Would I use this steel in all my knives if I had a chance? No, I would not, allthough it holds a great edge, it dulls very quickly when it begins to dull, I find that some steels wear down at a steady rate, but in my experience, H-1 does not. It's not necessary a bad thing, because this is also the reason why it is so incredibly easy to resharpen. If H-1 had the edgeretention like let's say, S30V, this would be ONE of the best steels in the world, hands down. Rust resistance and edge retention is mostly two of the most common and obvious concerns for us knifeusers. But it also depends on situation, if I had sharpening equipment with me all the time and I had to live on an island in the Pacific, I might reconsider what I just said.
So are there any similar steels to H-1? The only one I can think of is X15TN. Used by Böker and Benchmade's H2O knives. X15TN will not rust as far as I've heard, but it's harder to resharpen and not as tough as H-1, but it holds a greater edge(lending more towards 154CM in my opinion).
Spyderco's H-1 series are obviously geared towards being near water/sea and maritime boating/rescue. So would I take H-1 over titanium? Yes, the only benefits over H-1 in my opinion is the titanium's non magnetic composition(for military divers who work around mines etc), resistance against freezing temperatures and toughness.
As I mentioned earlier, I have also used this steel for normal EDC/work. For a folding knife, EDC variety, I think H-1 is one of the best choices for that role. In other words, this steel is extremely flexible.
H-1 steel has served me great and if I had to choose one steel type for the rest of my life, it had to be this steel, regardless of its edge retention when doing extremely tough tasks. This steel will outlast any human and things can happen when in the wild/at sea, so having a totally maintenance-free knife is anything I could wish for. I highly recommend this steel for people who don't like to maintain their knives. Besides its rust proof composition, it will perform and beg for more. You can not go wrong with this steel. If you hate to sharpen knives, regardless of their ease of resharpening, you might want to look elsewhere, but hey, if you use your knives, you will eventually learn to sharpen them anyways. If don't want to try X15TN or H-1, you can also look at Bohler's N690Co. Similar to VG-10, but excellent corrosion resistance. H-1 is made in Japan and quality is guaranteed. Remember, the land of the Katana.
Take care!
NK
I just want to do a little writeup about the H-1 steel, after it's by far the most used steel type I've used so far. I'm not gonna go into technical specs, just visit Spyderco's website and you will find its properties.
So if I shall describe this steel in one, short sentence, it would go something like this: "An excellent, overall use steel". Let me enlighten you...
I have three knives with this steel; two Pacific Salts and one Aqua Salt(fixed blade). I've handled most of the known steel types like 440A, S30V, AUS-8A, 154CM etc. So in my personal experience, what is the closest thing to H-1, in my opinion? I would say H-1 lies somewhere near AUS-8A, only tougher, and of course, rust PROOF, not rust resistant. I've used H-1 mostly at work for cardboard cutting, nylon-plastic straps and some woodwork, but at home, I usually use it for food preparation and boating. So how does it perform?
Cardboard is something every knifeUSER know is capable of dulling a blade quite fast, especially if the cardboard is dirty and coarse. I've done a lot of cardboardcutting tests and I will say that the H-1 holds an edge for a decent amount of time. It has a little shorter edge retention time than SOG's AUS-8A(as far as my tests have gone). On the other hand, H-1 is probably one of the easiest steels to resharpen and even reprofile. It really takes an edge and it does not chip out. I had an accident where I slammed my Aqua Salt on the edge of my kitchensink's faucet, and naturally, I damaged the edge, but it rolled, so it was an easy repair, when I say easy, I mean easy if you're very confident at handsharpening. I use diamond stones and 600-800 and 1000 grit sandingpaper for sharpening of H-1, or any steel for that matter. For a quick touchup, 800 is more than good enough, that is how easy this steel takes an edge.
H-1's toughness, is after what I've heard and partially experienced, very tough. I've heard that Spyderco bent it over 45 degrees without snapping, correct me if I'm wrong.
Another benefit of the H-1 steel is its incredibly resistance against corrosion and rust. It is practically rustproof because it has Nitrogen instead of Carbon, so ordinary air and water oxidation is physically impossible. If you are using a "ordinary" knife when boating in saltwater, you will soon figure out how fast saltwater can rust a blade. For normal EDC use, this kind of rustresistance is not necessary, but it can become handy if you work a lot and sweat while the knife is clipped against your body or residing in your pocket filled with humidity and bodyheat flowing after hours of hard working.
So why do I love this steel so much? I my POU, a bladesteel should be easy to maintain, easy to resharpen and hold an edge. H-1 excells in all these areas, at least after some time since it is work hardened(gets a little harder after some use and resharpening). Would I use this steel in all my knives if I had a chance? No, I would not, allthough it holds a great edge, it dulls very quickly when it begins to dull, I find that some steels wear down at a steady rate, but in my experience, H-1 does not. It's not necessary a bad thing, because this is also the reason why it is so incredibly easy to resharpen. If H-1 had the edgeretention like let's say, S30V, this would be ONE of the best steels in the world, hands down. Rust resistance and edge retention is mostly two of the most common and obvious concerns for us knifeusers. But it also depends on situation, if I had sharpening equipment with me all the time and I had to live on an island in the Pacific, I might reconsider what I just said.
So are there any similar steels to H-1? The only one I can think of is X15TN. Used by Böker and Benchmade's H2O knives. X15TN will not rust as far as I've heard, but it's harder to resharpen and not as tough as H-1, but it holds a greater edge(lending more towards 154CM in my opinion).
Spyderco's H-1 series are obviously geared towards being near water/sea and maritime boating/rescue. So would I take H-1 over titanium? Yes, the only benefits over H-1 in my opinion is the titanium's non magnetic composition(for military divers who work around mines etc), resistance against freezing temperatures and toughness.
As I mentioned earlier, I have also used this steel for normal EDC/work. For a folding knife, EDC variety, I think H-1 is one of the best choices for that role. In other words, this steel is extremely flexible.
H-1 steel has served me great and if I had to choose one steel type for the rest of my life, it had to be this steel, regardless of its edge retention when doing extremely tough tasks. This steel will outlast any human and things can happen when in the wild/at sea, so having a totally maintenance-free knife is anything I could wish for. I highly recommend this steel for people who don't like to maintain their knives. Besides its rust proof composition, it will perform and beg for more. You can not go wrong with this steel. If you hate to sharpen knives, regardless of their ease of resharpening, you might want to look elsewhere, but hey, if you use your knives, you will eventually learn to sharpen them anyways. If don't want to try X15TN or H-1, you can also look at Bohler's N690Co. Similar to VG-10, but excellent corrosion resistance. H-1 is made in Japan and quality is guaranteed. Remember, the land of the Katana.
Take care!
NK
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