Mr. Cold Steel, Are we going to get an upgrade from AUS-8A? Mine are not holding up.

P

PHP87

Joined
May 19, 2013
Messages
69
Let me explain:

First I break serrations on my favorite CS knife, the CS 4" Voyager Vaquero 4" Serrated cutting an old, dry twig about half of the diameter of my little finger. I $#!T you not. It was that small and that brittle. I had to turn it into a big serration. Pissed as this as this is my favorite EDC

Next is what really pissed me off.

I've been looking for a 6" Vaquero Grande for about a year now in good shape at a reasonable price. Not only do I find one, but it's in VG-1 at a mere cost of $40.00 and it's in VG condition.

It's not quite as sharp as my Vaquero Voyager 5.5" XL, so I sharpen the large serrations with a tapered diamond rod and use a 1200 grit "V" block sharpening stone on all of the tiny "teeth"

So things are going well but slow. Facing the "Vaquero Grande" Silk Screen print, I'm running the stone downwards at about a 45 degree angle and using some sharpening oil to remove any grit and to keep things smooth, again, running the stone edge down the serration groove.

I've done two sets of the small teeth, then I do the third set and when finished, I can't believe what I see - 4 teeth almost all worn down to nothing! and this is with VG-1 steel using sharpening oil and light pressure!

I can upload some pics later, but can't understand why the serrations basically "melted" away from a few strokes each from a 1200 grit hone + oil and light pressure. This makes me particularly angry as I can easily replace the 4" Vaquero, but the 6" Grande in VG-1 doesn't grow on trees and is worth well over $100.00 on eBay.

Ant suggestions to restore those tiny serrations?

14+-+1
 
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Sharpening and knife maintenance is an interesting topic. Everyone has an opinion and no two opinions are the same.
I would recommend giving our customer services team a call at (805) 658-0180 they may have suggestions or advice.

Sharpening serrations is much more difficult without a doubt. If you are having difficulties I would recommend sending the knife back to us for re-sharpening.
Another excellent alternative is Lansky. They manufacture a small stone set up for our serrations
 
Sharpening and knife maintenance is an interesting topic. Everyone has an opinion and no two opinions are the same.
I would recommend giving our customer services team a call at (805) 658-0180 they may have suggestions or advice.

Sharpening serrations is much more difficult without a doubt. If you are having difficulties I would recommend sending the knife back to us for re-sharpening.
Another excellent alternative is Lansky. They manufacture a small stone set up for our serrations
 
I have an old 6" Vaquero Grande. Long ago I just put the thing in a clamp type device and, over time, have practically eliminated all the serrations. I am not a fan of them anyhow. Blade still has the chisel grind that the serrations cause, just a little bevel on the backside that used to be totally flat. The thing still cuts really well, minus the serrations. And it's easier to sharpen now as well. I'll never buy another serrated knife, as long as I live. Hate em.
 
Looks like you took the wrong approach with that.

I have to say, after 15 or so years with Aus8A on several knives, there is nothing wrong with the steel.

CS serrations, especially the pointed teeth, are very fine, I would not recommend using them to cut wood.

Rope and cardboard, and fabric and plastic shrink wrap etc.

The little teeth aren't great for other hard material like wood.

I don't buy the serrated models, because more of my cutting is on wood, and I can maintain a plain edge at hair shaving sharpness easily on a strop. They slice through certain materials and keep cutting longer than a plain edge will, but the combo of very fine teeth, and the additional difficulty of sharpening have kept me away.


As to higher end steels, I hope to see more models offered in steels like 3V, etc, so I am with you on that.

They are now using both 01, and 3V, on some models, so it seems they are taking steps in that direction.
 
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