Junk Steel

I avoid 8Cr13MOV like it radiates carcinogens. Many times I have looked at knives, and then I saw it was 8Cr13MOV, and I stopped instantly.
It would rust in the Sahara Desert, and a swift breeze towards the edge makes it dull.
 
bladeboss said:
I avoid 8Cr13MOV like it radiates carcinogens. Many times I have looked at knives, and then I saw it was 8Cr13MOV, and I stopped instantly.
It would rust in the Sahara Desert, and a swift breeze towards the edge makes it dull.
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Say what? Haha that hasn't been my experience. I'd post a pic of the Persistence I carried last year, but I can't post pics yet.
 
Bob6794 said:
440C, D2, Elmax junk steel, what have you been reading?
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David Lowry said:
Where are you getting this info from? Never have I heard D2, S30V, or Elmax being called "junk". WTF?
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I've been getting this information from some folks who are posting on these forums And yes, David, I wholeheartedly agree that for the most part, those folks don't know what they're talking about. They've heard something from somebody who read somewhere that such and such alloy is too hard to sharpen or tends to chip or won't hold an edge or rusts if you look at it funny and they spew that information out as if they know what they're talking about. Or they'll make a sweeping generalization that the alloy under discussion can't hold a candle to the latest super steels. Fortunately, there are enough people around here who actually USE the alloys those folks disparage to put such unwarranted notions to rest.
 
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Yes. To be honest, S30V isn't good enough for me. Neither is S35VN, VG-10, 154cm, 14c28n, etc. I prefer exotic and/or very high performance steels, or low-carbide high-toughness carbon steels run hard.

Oh, and if this somehow means that I don't use my knives, LOL. I have the means to sharpen any steel, so why would I buy something like S30V when I could have CPM-M4 that will out perform it in every way except rust resistance (which I can control very easily)?
 
Strong Dog, do you do competition cutting or something? Honestly, I can't really tell too much difference with a lot of the high end steels other than that some take a lot longer to sharpen than others. At work, I have a knife in my hand for about 4 hours a day. Since I do so much cutting (I install commercial vinyl and linoleum), I mainly use a fixed Stanley knife with disposable utility and hook blades. Those don't hold an edge worth a darn, but even if I was using the best knife steel available, I guarantee I would spend more time sharpening than it would take to just slip a new blade in. I have to laugh.... I have several $1,000 invested in knives and I use a $10 disposable more than anything else. My work edc is usually a $20 Dozier (for when I don't have my tool pouch on). After work, I rotate a few of my higher end knives bust most of them are for fondling and admiring, and in that case, steel type doesn't matter one bit.
 
Who attacks S30V?? That is generally regarded as one of the best all around high end knife steels.

Junk steels? See entries under "G" as in "Gerber"...
 
bladeboss said:
I avoid 8Cr13MOV like it radiates carcinogens. Many times I have looked at knives, and then I saw it was 8Cr13MOV, and I stopped instantly.
It would rust in the Sahara Desert, and a swift breeze towards the edge makes it dull.
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Rust, you say? I doubt it. Lets see. I will stand my kershaw volt in a glass of vinegar for an hour and report back.
 
draggat said:
Strong Dog, do you do competition cutting or something? Honestly, I can't really tell too much difference with a lot of the high end steels other than that some take a lot longer to sharpen than others. At work, I have a knife in my hand for about 4 hours a day. Since I do so much cutting (I install commercial vinyl and linoleum), I mainly use a fixed Stanley knife with disposable utility and hook blades. Those don't hold an edge worth a darn, but even if I was using the best knife steel available, I guarantee I would spend more time sharpening than it would take to just slip a new blade in. I have to laugh.... I have several $1,000 invested in knives and I use a $10 disposable more than anything else. My work edc is usually a $20 Dozier (for when I don't have my tool pouch on). After work, I rotate a few of my higher end knives bust most of them are for fondling and admiring, and in that case, steel type doesn't matter one bit.
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Nope. What I do with my knives isn't light enough to not "need" a supersteel, and definitely not so heavy as to render the benefits of a supersteel pointless as you do.
 
All steels are good, just different..

Depends on what the actual user will be doing with the said knives and steels and or what their budget is.

Some can get by with an SAK because they just don't use their knives all that much while others need a much more wear resistant steel because their knives seen a lot more use.
 
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bld522 said:
I'm always interested to see the alloys some folks consider to be substandard for creating cutting edges. 420HC is often attacked as are 440C, D2, and most recently, S30V and Elmax. So here's a simple question. Are there any knives you would refuse to purchase based on their blade alloy alone? If so, which alloys are on your hit list and why?
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S30v is junk steel? Damn, my Sage1 and ZT 0350 are my highest end knives.
 
I love steels like 8cr. They seem easy at sharpen. I once had a S30V buck knife and it was so dull I laughed. In my use S30V is a very dull steel so I prefer other cheap steels. Excuse my english please
 
Jue Boy said:
I love steels like 8cr. They seem easy at sharpen. I once had a S30V buck knife and it was so dull I laughed. In my use S30V is a very dull steel so I prefer other cheap steels. Excuse my english please
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Try a Spyderco S30V. My Sage1 is the sharpest knife from the factory I own. It was sharper than my Mora's.
 
adamg01 said:
Try a Spyderco S30V. My Sage1 is the sharpest knife from the factory I own. It was sharper than my Mora's.
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I would like to, but usually getting knives can be sort of painful. Maybe spyderco makes their s30v with a special process so it is not as dull of a steel as buck's
 
bladeboss said:
I avoid 8Cr13MOV like it radiates carcinogens. Many times I have looked at knives, and then I saw it was 8Cr13MOV, and I stopped instantly.
It would rust in the Sahara Desert, and a swift breeze towards the edge makes it dull.
Click to expand...
^This is pretty fantastic, though I just avoid it purely for political and xenophobic reasons. I'm sure it's a fine steel, looks good chemically, but there are so many steels out there, China can go...you know.

In fact, those are the only steels I actually avoid for the sake of avoiding the steel itself. Every other situation depends on how I think I'm going to use the knife, and what steels it's available in. My Mini-Grip is S30V, my PM2 204P, my Leek the D2 composite. Not that I don't love me some cheap steel. I have 5160, 1095, AUS8, 12C27, and even 440A in my rotation among others. They all get used and I enjoy them all, cuz they aren't made in China.
 
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