Kershaw Blur vs ZT350 vs Kershaw Speedform vs Spyderco ZDP-189 vs Kershaw Leek D2

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stuffstuff

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Jan 1, 2013
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I was about to buy a blur in S30V, when I found out about all of these other super steels. So which is best, ELMAX, S30V, D2 or ZDP-189? And how much of a difference is there? I don't carry knives, I just keep mine on a fridge magnet, and take it off to open boxes, packages, food packaging, cutting the occasional zip tie, food cutting, and other things that I can't think of off of the top of my head.
I'm very nice to my knives, I don't use them as a pry bar, cut things that are clearly too hard, or drop them. I always clean the blade after using it on any food or anything that dirties the knife. I wipe it off with a wet paper towel, then a dry one.
I don't have a sharpener or know how to sharpen, and I don't want to because I don't want to mess up the edge. When it gets dull, I'll just send it in to Kershaw. I would however, like to strop my knives, since I can't mess up the edge like that. Where could I find a good strop?
 
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Any of those would work just fine for you. If your just keeping it in your kitchen to cut boxes, why not save yourself some money and get a box cutter?
 
coop7 said:
Any of those would work just fine for you. If your just keeping it in your kitchen to cut boxes, why not save yourself some money and get a box cutter?
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you are on bladeforums and you recommend a box cutter? lol.

stuffstuff, I love my elmax blades on my ZT551 & 561, they keep an edge longer than my S35 ZT350 & 301. I have only had a little play time with my D2 tanto so can't comment on that. zdp i have not experienced, I will say the slowest wearing knife I have is made of M390, and it's a bit harder to sharpen than my elmax blades. Hope this helps.

I also noticed that the price is quite varied on your options. does price matter?
 
Price does matter, but not much. As long as it's less that $100, it's fine. I'd like a quality knife.
 
I love that laminated D2.

Just got a JYD II for the backpack, and I am really liking it for the money.

The Leek meeting the Legal Requirements here, plus its a framelock, and Laminated D2, I am heading in that direction.
Price is right also!
 
The ZDP 189 Spyderco Stretch goes at about 100 dollars will work wonders especially if you take care of it like you said.

I use the KnivesPlus green strop and it works great. Goes for about $25 and will last you for a long time.
 
stuffstuff said:
Price does matter, but not much. As long as it's less that $100, it's fine. I'd like a quality knife.
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ok well I have not seen a ZT350 for that price, all your other options are under, the Spyderco Endura might be around 100. I would say to keep the costs about the same, I would compare the blur with maybe a Spyderco Delica in ZDP.
 
I just stropped my burst on a magazine and it's much sharper now. How much better is the leather strop than a magazine?
 
From my experience:

Spyderco ZDP (Stretch) > Elmax (Speedform II)> Kershaw CPM-D2 (Leek, JYD II, Rake) > Kershaw ZDP (TiZDP Leek) > Spyderco S30V (Military) > Kershaw S30V (Spec Bump, ZT400, ZT350)

This might look like Spyderco has better examples of ZDP and S30V, but I have no way of quantifying that. I do know for sure that Spyderco's blade geometry makes for a better slicer as far as factory grinds go. I thinned out the edge on my Speedform II, JYDII and Rake to about a little less than 28 degrees inclusive and they turned out to be very wicked slicers.
 
Ok, I've narrowed it down between zdp-189 (blur for $65, possibly a spyderco) and elmax (speedform 2 for $75). Why do you like spyderco zdp better than kershaw?
 
From time to time, a Speedform II will pop up on the exchange for as low as $50.
 
How does elmax compare to zdp-189 for edge retention and toughness? If it's pretty close, I think I'll get a zdp blur, since the speedform seems like it isn't a very good knife.
 
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stuffstuff said:
Ok, I've narrowed it down between zdp-189 (blur for $65, possibly a spyderco) and elmax (speedform 2 for $75). Why do you like spyderco zdp better than kershaw?
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Keep in mind the zdp blur is discontinued and may be difficult to find, especially for $65 like you say...

My recommendation would be a spyderco stretch in zdp-189.
 
stuffstuff said:
How does elmax compare to zdp-189 for edge retention and toughness? If it's pretty close, I think I'll get a zdp blur, since the speedform seems like it isn't a very good knife.
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The ZDP Stretch holds its edge very well and is very well designed for slicing and has great ergos. I'm just not a big fan of the FRN handle. That said, it's very light.

I like the Speedform II a lot. It's the only other knife I have an identical duplicate of (the other one is a Spyderco Gayle Bradley, but not really identical since one has skeletonized liners, and the other is a first-gen). The Speedform II is part of the knife selection I pick from when I'm dressed up. It's a very robust linerlock for its size, and extremely smooth and easy to flick open quietly.

Comparing the two, the Stretch slices better. I just haven't really tried to cut really fibrous or tough stuff with, mostly foodstuffs like fruit, cheese, and pepperoni. I put the Speedform II through a lot more, like zip ties and CAT-5 cable. I've rolled the edge of the Speedform II once, but it was easy to correct.
 
So is the stretch better? People say that the speedform has too many sharp edges, making it uncomfortable, is this true? The weight, quietness, gentlemanliness, and lightness don't matter to me, since I won't bring it anywhere. Also, there are no blur zdps left.
 
Mod 7 said:
I love that laminated D2.

Just got a JYD II for the backpack, and I am really liking it for the money.

The Leek meeting the Legal Requirements here, plus its a framelock, and Laminated D2, I am heading in that direction.
Price is right also!
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For purposes of clarification, the Leek is not a laminated blade in any sense of the word. It's a composite blade, 2 separate pieces of steel are brazed together to make 1 distinct blade. Laminated knives are similar to a Caly 3 in ZDP-189.
 
stuffstuff said:
So is the stretch better? People say that the speedform has too many sharp edges, making it uncomfortable, is this true? The weight, quietness, gentlemanliness, and lightness don't matter to me, since I won't bring it anywhere. Also, there are no blur zdps left.
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The stretch is one of the most comfortable, utilitarian knife designs out there, its not fancy, its not classy, it doesn't FEEL super high end, but man oh man does it perform. The speedform on the other hand it just about the opposite, its a gentleman's knife, also a decent performer, but is more in place in a suit rather than seeing a lot if actual use. With regards to edge holding, especially when cutting lots of highly abrasive materials like cardboard, again, the stretch wins. Zdp-189 is a bit of a bear to sharpen, but since you're planning on letting the factory handle that for you, it won't be a problem, and zdp holds an edge with the best of them. Elmax is tougher (more resistant to chipping, etc.), but zdp-189 blows it out of the water with regards to edge retention.
 
Would I have problems with rusting or chipping with the way I use knives? Would I have to oil it? Also, what about the endura and delica?
 
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