- Joined
- Jun 29, 1999
- Messages
- 9,762
I’ve been looking for a knife more substantial than my SAK to take to Scotland on a walking tour in a few weeks. Not expecting any wilderness jaunts, but we’ll be trekking 8-15 miles a day through various kinds of country. Be Prepared, as they taught us in Scouts back in the Dark Ages of the 1950s when kids had knives and nobody thought twice about it. UK knife laws are pretty limiting, though: no locking knives – slipjoint only -- and blade length must be under 3”. Had in mind one of Spyderco’s Europe/UK-legal folders, but couldn’t locate one in Calgary. Then I came across a review here of the Manly Wasp with S90V steel. S90V is a kissing cousin to S110V, from what I read, both with superb edge-holding and also a b*tch to sharpen, speaking of my Military in S110V.
So I had a look at Manly’s Canadian website and lo, they were advertising a closeout sale, 20% off on the 2018 Wasp models. “Knife sold without warranty in AS-IS condition.” The S90 version was around $77, and the model in 12C27 was about $25 less! Worth the risk at roughly $52 Canadian, plus shipping. Done. Placed an order for one with orange G10 grips and 12C27 steel. A week later it showed up, the padded envelope slightly chewed on one corner, maybe by one of the sled dogs Canada Post uses to deliver the mail. At least it had arrived fairly promptly. For Canada, anyway.
Why 12C27 instead of S90V? OK, heresy, I know… but I wanted something easy to sharpen and 12C27 fits the bill. Pretty simple composition: Carbon 0.6, Chromium 13.5, Silicon 0.4, Manganese 0.4. Sandvik has been making steel since 1862, and 12C27 has been around at least since the 1960’s. The late Butch Winter (RIP 2004), who penned “The Steel Bin” column in Tactical Knives (RIP 2014) thought highly of 12C27. I saved his column, "12C27: A Steel That Gets No Respect" from a couple of decades ago. It is a fine-grained steel that, "properly heat-treated, is a steel to be reckoned with", Winter concluded. Sandvik says on its website, “12C27 is Sandvik's most well-rounded knife steel with excellent edge performance allowing razor sharpness, high hardness, exceptional toughness and good corrosion resistance. Continuous improvement over a period of 45 years has evolved it into the high performing steel grade it is today. The composition is tighter, the purity level is much higher and the fine carbide microstructure of today is far from how Sandvik 12C27 knife steel of the sixties looked. With a hardness range of 54-61 HRC, high toughness, scary sharpness and good corrosion resistance, Sandvik 12C27 is the recommended grade for hunting knives, pocket knives, camping knives, high-end chef's knives and tactical knives.”
The Wasp came in a nice little cardboard box along with two Allen wrenches (a thoughtful touch) and a hand-inscribed certificate with all the details, including the edge angle: 15 degrees. HRC 60/61, a tad higher than Opinel (57-59) and Mora (56-58) run their 12C27. Fit and finish: flawless. Flat grind blade, must have been done by CNC, perfectly centered. There was the tiniest burr, which disappeared with few whisks on a DMT ultra-fine. Wicked, hair-popping sharp.
It takes a deliberate pinch grip to open this knife; the spring is stout. I wouldn’t even try using the nail nick unless I had titanium fingernails. The four-position opening is unique in my experience, and adds a bit of safety as it’s less likely than traditional slipjoints to snap closed on your fingers. Right hand clip (not overly tight), tip up carry, my usual preference. You can switch it to the other side, using one of the Allen wrenches. The sheeple-friendly orange G-10 handle has a slight texture. It’s just tad smaller than a Spyderco Native 5 lightweight but a bit heavier (75 g. vs. 71 g.), very pocketable.
OK, out to the workshop, whittled a 2” diameter piece of seasoned pine down to shavings in about 10 minutes. Nice long strokes, cut through some small knots. Sliced a couple of grapefruit; it went through those effortlessly. Still hair pinging sharp. No dents, dings or shiny spots on that 15 degree edge. No complaints.
Conclusion: this is a stout little knife, extremely well designed and constructed. I’m not giving up on my other knives in S30V/S35VN/S110V, but I suspect the Manly Wasp will be finding its way into my pocket frequently. Sometimes simpler is better.
So I had a look at Manly’s Canadian website and lo, they were advertising a closeout sale, 20% off on the 2018 Wasp models. “Knife sold without warranty in AS-IS condition.” The S90 version was around $77, and the model in 12C27 was about $25 less! Worth the risk at roughly $52 Canadian, plus shipping. Done. Placed an order for one with orange G10 grips and 12C27 steel. A week later it showed up, the padded envelope slightly chewed on one corner, maybe by one of the sled dogs Canada Post uses to deliver the mail. At least it had arrived fairly promptly. For Canada, anyway.
Why 12C27 instead of S90V? OK, heresy, I know… but I wanted something easy to sharpen and 12C27 fits the bill. Pretty simple composition: Carbon 0.6, Chromium 13.5, Silicon 0.4, Manganese 0.4. Sandvik has been making steel since 1862, and 12C27 has been around at least since the 1960’s. The late Butch Winter (RIP 2004), who penned “The Steel Bin” column in Tactical Knives (RIP 2014) thought highly of 12C27. I saved his column, "12C27: A Steel That Gets No Respect" from a couple of decades ago. It is a fine-grained steel that, "properly heat-treated, is a steel to be reckoned with", Winter concluded. Sandvik says on its website, “12C27 is Sandvik's most well-rounded knife steel with excellent edge performance allowing razor sharpness, high hardness, exceptional toughness and good corrosion resistance. Continuous improvement over a period of 45 years has evolved it into the high performing steel grade it is today. The composition is tighter, the purity level is much higher and the fine carbide microstructure of today is far from how Sandvik 12C27 knife steel of the sixties looked. With a hardness range of 54-61 HRC, high toughness, scary sharpness and good corrosion resistance, Sandvik 12C27 is the recommended grade for hunting knives, pocket knives, camping knives, high-end chef's knives and tactical knives.”
The Wasp came in a nice little cardboard box along with two Allen wrenches (a thoughtful touch) and a hand-inscribed certificate with all the details, including the edge angle: 15 degrees. HRC 60/61, a tad higher than Opinel (57-59) and Mora (56-58) run their 12C27. Fit and finish: flawless. Flat grind blade, must have been done by CNC, perfectly centered. There was the tiniest burr, which disappeared with few whisks on a DMT ultra-fine. Wicked, hair-popping sharp.
It takes a deliberate pinch grip to open this knife; the spring is stout. I wouldn’t even try using the nail nick unless I had titanium fingernails. The four-position opening is unique in my experience, and adds a bit of safety as it’s less likely than traditional slipjoints to snap closed on your fingers. Right hand clip (not overly tight), tip up carry, my usual preference. You can switch it to the other side, using one of the Allen wrenches. The sheeple-friendly orange G-10 handle has a slight texture. It’s just tad smaller than a Spyderco Native 5 lightweight but a bit heavier (75 g. vs. 71 g.), very pocketable.
OK, out to the workshop, whittled a 2” diameter piece of seasoned pine down to shavings in about 10 minutes. Nice long strokes, cut through some small knots. Sliced a couple of grapefruit; it went through those effortlessly. Still hair pinging sharp. No dents, dings or shiny spots on that 15 degree edge. No complaints.
Conclusion: this is a stout little knife, extremely well designed and constructed. I’m not giving up on my other knives in S30V/S35VN/S110V, but I suspect the Manly Wasp will be finding its way into my pocket frequently. Sometimes simpler is better.
yet I find myself sort of wishing that I had gotten the simple 12c27 one...
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