Need some input on VG-10 durability

I have of course now purchased a delica for myself as well :D loved it. And man does that steel take a wicked edge.
 
OK Spyderheads tell me this??? What blade steel that Spyderco has used over the years has lasted as long as VG-10 has on it's main line folders and fixed blades. I can't even think of any steel with the possible exception of S30V that has lasted nearly as long as VG-10 has.

And there is a reason that Spyderco has offered that steel as long as it has. I was told that the very first Moran fixed blade model was the very first knife that Spyderco offered in VG-10. And I believe that goes all the way back to 1996 if I'm right. It literally took the place of ATS-55 which I personally thought was a really decent blade steel myself.

But when you look at the sales charts I bet there isn't any blade steel that even comes anywhere close to all the folders and fixed blades over the years that has sported VG-10. And I get the feeling it isn't going away anytime soon either. That alone should speak volumes to everyone. VG-10's longevity and commercial success being used in Spyderco's knives proves itself to be a really good product any way you look at it.

I'm willing to bet that VG-10 has outsold any blade steel in Spyderco's line up at least 3 times over and to me that's a conservative estimate. I would never turn down a Spyderco blade as an EDC./user blade that has VG-10>> Case Closed ;)
 
IMO, VG-10 is an excellent steel. It may not hold an edge as ling as some of the new 'super steels' such as S110V, but it still holds an edge well, and it gets super sharp with ease. I have never had a VG-10 blade that wasn't easy to get super sharp with only my Sharpmaker. It's much better than many of the 'super steels' from less than 20 years ago, such as ATS-34/154CM, ATS-55, etc.

I hope that it continues to be Spyderco's base steel on their Seki models. I really cannot see a better 'middle of the road' (but great) blade steel than VG-10.

Jim
 
There will be a point where Spyderco someday will ultimately replace VG-10 with some other Japanese blade steel. I'm going to be really curious as to what blade steel that might end up being. Because as dependable and durable as VG-10 has shown itself to be it's going to take a really top notch, premium blade steel in that performance range to prove itself better.

Actually I don't look for that to happen anytime in the near future because you just have way too many satisfied customers. Shortly before "Tactical Knives" magazine went out of business there was one of their writers that went on record saying that VG-10 by his estimation was the best overall blade stell on the market today.

I use my Spyderco TEMPERANCE 1 model ( VG-10 blade steel) a lot in the kitchen and when I barbeque. And I'm telling you I don't know of a better blade steel for food uses. And it's also like I've said before I don't know of too many blade steels that Spyderco has used that perform just as good in Spyderedge as they do in plain edge. But VG-10 performs good regardless which edge type>> I can't say that about too many blade steels I've used in the past. Because most of the newer/better supersteels seem to do better in plain edge for the most part.
 
I have been very, very hard on VG10. I have beat this Schempp Rock like it owed me money. It is a factory second that I got in a trade so I don't baby it. I have thrown it at trees from pretty far and I have used it to process a lot of wood for kindling. Hemlock knots are actually quite hard on knives and I have beat it through many of them.

I keep it in the wood shed for kindling and other uses. I have batoned some nasty wood with it. Sycamore is the latest. This pic is of me batoning it into my smaller stump that I use for kindling work. I think it is hemlock. If the design of the knife is sturdy then vg10 is quite durable.

DSC03776_zps4nmytzkv.jpg
 
Sal Glesser said:
VG-10 is one of the best ingot blade steels on the market. Good edge retention, good corrosion resistance and good toughness.

sal
Click to expand...
There you go!

As for durability, may I also remind that the Saber ground delica will be naturally tougher by design?

If I were getting a non knife person a blade, I would stay away from hard steels and full flat grinds. To me, steels like VG-10 are the best compromise of properties anyway. Reinforce that happy medium with the thicker Saber grind and you'll have a blade perfect for me, let alone any average, non invested user of tools!

I kinds get the impression that we knife knuts are usually the only people who would even notice the extra edge retention and cutting ability of a ZDP FFG delica over a VG SG one anyway, since we know to look for it.

Hell , I barely notice, let alone care. I like the insurance of having a tough blade. Vast edge retention is a non issue. I constantly maintain any knife I use so I'll never have to rely on the edge retention. And if it's a long day where I can't, at least the slightly softer stuff is quick to bring back to sharp if it actually gets dull.

My perception of the higher steels is something like:

Edge retention 3 percent better.
Sharpening time 400 percent longer. Lol.
That equation does not compute in my use!

My wordy 2 cents worth.

Thx!
 
VG-10 is great, it blows away steels like 420HC by a noticable margin. , my only bad experience with it, whitch took me by surprise, is after I had left my endura's blade in a cup with some dish soap for a few hours.....it came out with tons of bit of edge missing....some of the steel had corroted away.....I'm still not sure how that happened so fast like that....the degreaser part of the soap is surely the culprit here....
 
Even with all the good press Vg-10 I still consider it an underrated steel. The Vg10 and 154cm range of steels I personally consider to be one of my favourites and an ideal balance for this type of folding knife. Some people claim these steels do not make good large fixed blades and I don't have enough experience with them in that format to comment. However for folding knives it is perfectly balanced.
 
Lapedog said:
Even with all the good press Vg-10 I still consider it an underrated steel. The Vg10 and 154cm range of steels I personally consider to be one of my favourites and an ideal balance for this type of folding knife. Some people claim these steels do not make good large fixed blades and I don't have enough experience with them in that format to comment. However for folding knives it is perfectly balanced.
Click to expand...
Agree on all counts!

Also, I keep hearing about this class of steels rusting.

Strangely, I've never had a problem at all, and I've DELIBERATELY left vg-10, 8cr, Aus8, and 154cm wet to see what happens.

Never so much as a spot.
 
They have proven that different heat treating regimens on the same steel can cause it to be more or less prone to corrosion. So it is possible those blades in these steels that did have rust problems were just incorrectly heat treated.

Still I think the environment is the #1 factor in determining if a steel will rust out. Being a big fat sweaty guy with 100% humidity in his pockets or in his waistband.
 
Lapedog said:
They have proven that different heat treating regimens on the same steel can cause it to be more or less prone to corrosion. So it is possible those blades in these steels that did have rust problems were just incorrectly heat treated.

Still I think the environment is the #1 factor in determining if a steel will rust out. Being a big fat sweaty guy with 100% humidity in his pockets or in his waistband.
Click to expand...

I'm a skinny guy, but my Delica VG10 develops orange spotting if I carry it IWB while running (sweaty). I don't do that anymore for a variety of reasons (mostly having to do with carrying an ARK instead). Other than that I've never had a corrosion problem with VG10. I have had minor chipping and I am addicted to high wear resistance blades needing infrequent sharpening, so VG10 drives me nuts because it dulls pretty quickly. VG10 is plenty tough enough as far as blade strength though. It ain't likely to break unless it is a very thin stock.
 
Just to echo what's already been said, VG-10 is a great steel, especially for the price today. It's also available in a huge variety of great designs!

Many trend riders and elitists will knock it and turn up their nose, but there's no denying that it gets the job done. AND, when that job is done, VG-10 can be brought back to screaming sharp with little effort by just about anyone with a basic sharpener.
It's probably my most personally used steel, so kind of my baseline to judge what else I might like or how other new steels perform.



Just curious, we're you looking to get him another stainless handled model, or were you looking at the FRN versions?

Either way, good on you for trying to help him out! Very generous!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top