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MT38 - M398 Mule Team - Release Date 11/15/2022 @ 9am MST

sgt1372

sgt1372

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I just received this tweet today announcing the release of the MT 38 - M398 Mule Team on Tues Nov 15 @ 9am MST.

Haven't seen any mention of the release here yet, so I thought I'd retweet it here for those who may be interested in it.

tz8Id1A.png


Notice of this release was previously posted on the Spyderco Forum on Nov 2nd, here.

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What's M398, you ask? It's a variation on M390 which increases vanadium to 7.2% from 4% but is otherwise basically the same as M390.

According to Larrin, this increases edge retention and hardness by sacrificing toughness but it is NOT a significant improvement over other stainless steels like, S90V/S110V/S125V & 10V, which have nearly the same edge retention/hardness as M398 but greater toughness.

However, if max edge retention/hardness in a knife is your "jam," this is certainly one to jump on.

See: New Steel Bohler M398 - The New King of Edge Retention?

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I'm guessing that Spyderco is not expecting a lot of demand for this one because it's allowing a max purchase of 4 w/each order at $80 each. Not much chatter on the Spyderco Forum about it also seems to indicate a general lack of enthusiasm for this release.

Since I already have an M390, S90V and S110V Mule, I think I'll pass on this one but, if there are any still sitting around after the initial release, I may try to pick up 1 or 2 but I don't expect that to happen since the flippers will be happy to grab 4 and then try to flip them on EB for 2-3x more immediately thereafter.
 
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Bob Denman said:
I figured that you'd never stay away... 😁
Click to expand...

Only because I saw your "like" and because some were still there when I looked . . . ;)

BTW, still not much chatter about it over on the Spyderco Forum. Some system problems at the opening which reportedly were resolved quickly.

Speculation is that Spyderco made over 1k of them. Question for Sal: How many MT38's were made?

Anyway, given the price, the apparent inventory and the apparent lack of demand, I now think that this Mule will be sitting around for awhile before it sells out. They all sell out eventually; some just quicker than others. But, then again, some take years to sell out.

We'll just have to see which way this one goes. 🤷‍♂️
 
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I like the idea behind M-398: We'll see how it plays out in real life!
 
Since they put a limit of 4 on them, I'm thinking well over 1000, probably 1500 or more. If the Seconds Sale doesn't eat all my money, I may have to get a couple more.
 
"According to Larrin, this increases edge retention and hardness by sacrificing toughness but it is NOT a significant improvement over other stainless steels like, S90V/S110V/S125V & 10V, which have nearly the same edge retention/hardness as M398 but greater toughness.

However, if max edge retention/hardness in a knife is your "jam," this is certainly one to jump on."

I'm confused by the quoted description of M398 above. The first sentence basically reads that edge retention of M398 is about the same as S90v etc, but it has worse toughness than the latter ones, implying that M398 is worse than S90V etc. Correct?

Then the second line says M398 can achieve max edge retention, which implies it has better edge retention than S90V etc.

Which of these two interpretations is true? Can't be both, right?
 
Edge retention and toughness are not exactly the same thing...
 
sharp_edge said:
"According to Larrin, this increases edge retention and hardness by sacrificing toughness but it is NOT a significant improvement over other stainless steels like, S90V/S110V/S125V & 10V, which have nearly the same edge retention/hardness as M398 but greater toughness.

However, if max edge retention/hardness in a knife is your "jam," this is certainly one to jump on."

I'm confused by the quoted description of M398 above. The first sentence basically reads that edge retention of M398 is about the same as S90v etc, but it has worse toughness than the latter ones, implying that M398 is worse than S90V etc. Correct?

Then the second line says M398 can achieve max edge retention, which implies it has better edge retention than S90V etc.

Which of these two interpretations is true? Can't be both, right?
Click to expand...
Well technically it says "is not a significant improvement" so it could still be an improvement, and it lists S90V, S110V, S125V and 10V, a group which encompass a range of edge retention within itself.
 
Tempting knife but I'm not much of a fixed blade guy. But when I do need one either Mora or my Glock knife has me covered :)
 
bdmicarta said:
Well technically it says "is not a significant improvement" so it could still be an improvement, and it lists S90V, S110V, S125V and 10V, a group which encompass a range of edge retention within itself.
Click to expand...
OK - so M398 may have slightly better edge retention than these mentioned steels but worse toughness.

Bob Denman said:
Edge retention and toughness are not exactly the same thing...
Click to expand...
Did you even read the original quoted text and my post? Of course they are not the same thing but that's not what's being asked about at all.
 
Whatever...
It's not better or worse: ir was just designed with different priorities.
 
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