M390 vs 3V

[Silver Needle]

Guy is all about trying out premium steels. Perhaps to the point he doesn't come out ahead. Keep in mind, he's a perfectionist. His work proves it over and over so when you see an SK! anywhere, it's what you think it's worth to you. You. That's it.

If you've never owned one (assuming you don't already) it is worth the wait. They're really that good. Guy's OCD, Premium Materials, Saber Grind, Peter's HT, Interchangeable Handles...He practically gives them away. I have $500+ knives that don't compare to SK! So if you're on the fence about getting one, well now you have more reason to consider it.

Dang man, this is one of the best posts I've seen here. Seriously. You get it. You understand how SURVIVE! operates and what goes into one of Guy's products. I wish anyone who stopped by our happy little subforum or the S! website or the Facebook page (especially the Facebook page) could see this to get a little better perspective on what they're getting into. I applaud you, sir. :thumbup:

Bladeflana, this turned out to be an educational thread for me. Hope you got what you wanted from it.

 

[Fancier]

Ok tell me the benefits of M390 over 3V.

Feel free to send me a link to a thread addressing this.

Thx

To continue to beat a dead horse, I think that it comes down to do you want a slicer (M390 preferred) or a chopper (3V preferred)? Hence the smaller blades are available in either alloy and the larger ones just come in 3V. A lot of the secondary market pricing comes down to scarcity driving up the price. If a knife is not readily available (or even more so is no longer in production) then the price goes up. Once something becomes more rare and more expensive then human nature is to start weaving tales about it. Additionally, some folks still get very nostalgic about "old world craftsmanship" and M390 is from Bohler Uddeholm, a decidedly European company.

 

[SURVIVE! Ellie]

Thanks and that has been my understanding. I perhaps should have been more specific in my question and that is this: M390 has a weird, "cult" following when it comes to SK available items in the Exchange. Of course most of what Guy is currently pumping out is in 3V so M390 is either out or on hold for a while (never know about new models and what further experimentation and research may reveal) and he may move from 3V to another steel that is even more in line with his philosophy of what his knives should be providing in terms of their build, use and customer expectations.

Therefore, saying all that, that is where my question comes from is what is the difference between M390 and 3V in terms of preference.

I believe that an M390 blade, being more in the camp of S30V and other "stainless" steels, which has a finer grain and very excellent edge retention, would begin to fall apart in the field in terms of practicality because if you cannot sharpen your knife on a piece of granite rock, like you would be able to with 3V, then what's the use? You may lose your pack with your diamond sharpening stone and then where are you when you dull it out? Additionally, you give up toughness (ability to bend/give under lateral pressure) with the "stainless" steels, unlike the tool steels such as 1095, 4140, O1, A2, 3V, Z-Wear, PD#1, etc....

Hope that helps everyone.

Guy was using M390 because it was, what he considered to be, the best stainless option available. Eventually, he had done enough business with the steel mill that he was able to convince them to produce the US equivalent, 20CV. For the foreseeable future we will be sticking with CPM-20CV as our stainless option. The fact that it is no longer an option and not many were made, mixed with Guy's abuse videos, are probably big parts of why M390 is so sought after.

 

[bladeflana]

Guy was using M390 because it was, what he considered to be, the best stainless option available. Eventually, he had done enough business with the steel mill that he was able to convince them to produce the US equivalent, 20CV. For the foreseeable future we will be sticking with CPM-20CV as our stainless option. The fact that it is no longer an option and not many were made, mixed with Guy's abuse videos, are probably big parts of why M390 is so sought after.

Makes sense...thanks Ellie! Give Guy our best.

 

[SBaker34]

Anyone here actually experienced actual problems with CPM-20CV? I'm thinking of buying my first survive! knife, and for a 5-6 inch knife, I'm not sure if I would benefit at all from 3v toughness.

 

[bladeninja]

M390 has .4 more Manganese than CPM 20cv and .6 Tungsten which CPM 20cv doesn't have. Crucible steel particles are much tighter (per their site) than their competitors and is U.S. made.

Guy has done his research and continues to (like us) in order to find the best steel. Crucible, in my opinion is it unless the secrets of Infi are someday revealed...