M390 - S110V

gull wing

gull wing

Joined
May 4, 2002
Messages
2,536
How do they compare?
I have some M390 blades, like the way they cut and hold up and sharpen.
 
Alberta Ed said:
M390/CTS-204P/20CV are for all practical purposes identical, so comparing my Spyderco Mule in 20CV to my Military in S110V, the Mule is easier to sharpen but the Military holds an edge longer. Both are great steels IMHO.
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This is a fair comparison and Spyderco generally does a good production heat treatment.

The thing is, not all companies do. Lots of companies use M390 and 20CV these days. Lots of production knives in those steels (from multiple countries) just don't live up to expectations on edge retention. Your experiences will vary based on the knife, the company, what you do with it and how you sharpen it.

Far fewer companies are using S110V in far fewer models. gull wing gull wing , which knife are you thinking about?
 
I prefer the M390/20cv/204p to s110v
S110v has an advantage on corrosion resistance and edge retention but I really didn’t like the type of edge it takes and how difficult it is to sharpen

IMO m390 is a better balanced steel for knives
 
I have a PM2 S110V. It’s a beast to sharpen, but a destroyer of cardboard, plastics, whatever. I love that knife but don’t particularly want anything else in the steel. The factory edge was chippy, but I haven’t had any problems after a light reprofile.

M390 & family seems a better all-a-rounder for my purposes.
 
BD_01 said:
I have a PM2 S110V. It’s a beast to sharpen, but a destroyer of cardboard, plastics, whatever. I love that knife but don’t particularly want anything else in the steel. The factory edge was chippy, but I haven’t had any problems after a light reprofile.

M390 & family seems a better all-a-rounder for my purposes.
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Lots of factory edges can be chippy or just not have the edge retention that you'll get once you are working with fresh steel. A surprising amount of heat can build up right along the edge as the factory edge is being applied.

So when we put our own edges on a knife, it isn't just that our hand edges are so much better. It's that we are going more slowly and we are generating a lot less heat. As we clear through steel with a diminished heat treatment and get to fresher steel with a more intact heat treatment, edge retention will tend to improve. How much you have to clear through depends on what was going on at the factory that day.
 
I have diamond sharpeners
but I don't like spending a lot of time on them. That is why, I hit them on the strip often. The Sharpmaker sometimes.
 
gull wing said:
How do they compare?
I have some M390 blades, like the way they cut and hold up and sharpen.
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S110V is harder to sharpen due to higher carbide percentage.
S110V will hold an edge longer at the same hardness for the reason above.
M390 is a fair deal tougher at the same hardness, due to the lower carbide percentage.
Both are quite stainless, so dont let that sway you.

If you want a more balanced steel with added toughness and easier sharpening use m390.

If you want pure edge retention and do not need toughness or easier sharpening use s110v. Remember however the most important factor is grind/geometry. Steel should nearly always be second determining factor as even the toughest most edge holding steel in existence is useless with bad geometry.
 
Dr Rez said:
S110V is harder to sharpen due to higher carbide percentage.
S110V will hold an edge longer at the same hardness for the reason above.
M390 is a fair deal tougher at the same hardness, due to the lower carbide percentage.
Both are quite stainless, so dont let that sway you.

If you want a more balanced steel with added toughness and easier sharpening use m390.

If you want pure edge retention and do not need toughness or easier sharpening use s110v. Remember however the most important factor is grind/geometry. Steel should nearly always be second determining factor as even the toughest most edge holding steel in existence is useless with bad geometry.
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... and people wanting to go all the way in that direction can go right past S110V to S125V. You can get ridiculous edge retention but even lower toughness.

That seems to be popular in Russia. Only a few of these are actually in stock but since Breathtaking Steel Knives Breathtaking Steel Knives is now a supporting dealer, here is his page for that steel.

breathtaking-steel.com

CPM 125V Steel Knives – breathtaking-steel

breathtaking-steel.com breathtaking-steel.com
 
Chronovore said:
... and people wanting to go all the way in that direction can go right past S110V to S125V. You can get ridiculous edge retention but even lower toughness.

That seems to be popular in Russia. Only a few of these are actually in stock but since Breathtaking Steel Knives Breathtaking Steel Knives is now a supporting dealer, here is his page for that steel.

breathtaking-steel.com

CPM 125V Steel Knives – breathtaking-steel

breathtaking-steel.com breathtaking-steel.com
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Lol true, but I dont see too many non custom knives in s125v. has spyderco even done any sprint runs in that? Must absolutely wreck grinding belts. Farthest I have gone edge retention wise is my zdp189 Delica 4.
 
Dr Rez said:
Lol true, but I dont see too many non custom knives in s125v. has spyderco even done any sprint runs in that? Must absolutely wreck grinding belts. Farthest I have gone edge retention wise is my zdp189 Delica 4.
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Even S110V is pretty rare. Spyderco has a few production knives that use it. While I have more faith in Spyderco's heat treatment, TwoSun has a couple of models that use it. I have seen a few Russian knives in S110V but not lately.

Thinking long and hard about a couple of Russian knives in S125V and M398, and reading stuff from Larrin about these steels, S110V starts to look more attractive. Yeah, S90V is a little tougher still and seems to offer all the practical edge retention any of us could ever really want; I'd jump on a design I really liked in S110V.
 
M390 would be mine favourite best balanced blade steel.
Not best at anything but very darn good at everything.
 
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