New Steel – Crucible S45VN

afishhunter said:
oh goodie ... another "latest and greatest" that will have "people" throwing money at just for "bragging rights" and then lie about how it performs in a vain attempt to "justify" getting a knife with that blade steel.

Truth of the matter is most folks (even knife nuts like us) would be/are served just fine with 10xx, 440A or 420HC or even 420J and 4114 with a good heat treat, for most (if not all) of their cutting tasks.

Sorry to be so cynical, but look how many millions of people world wide are happy with and served well by whatever blade steel and heat treat used by firms like Victorinox, Opinel, and Mora is.

"Super Steels" are not needed by most knife users on this rock, and I would not be surprised if most around the world use their knives a heck of a lot harder than most in the USA would even think of.
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I would have to disagree about needing a better steel. In my job and the exposure to some corrosive elements and very tough and abrasive materials of various kinds . 420hc Bos ht just won’t do it except in my time off. At least not through the work day. S30v Bos ht does very well and I do like it on a small vantage pro but I have etched the blade a bit not knowing I was cutting some tubing with residual sulfuric acid. I also had some chipping problems. It’s still very usable I just wasn’t sure if I wanted to make it worse. Then after getting a large vantage pro in 20cv Bos ht I’m blown away by its edge holding and corrosion resistance. Not a mark on it after almost a year now and I touch it up or strop it every 3-4 weeks in hard use. I’m as satisfied as I can be and it’s a pleasure to use.
I know there are guys who use disposable utility knife blades and some of the guys I work with do carry them but it seems they run out of blades frequently and ask if they can borrow my knife. Lol I don’t know about others but for me I’m very glad for super steels. I may have to try this new s45vn to see how it compares to 20cv in my personal job/ work usage.
 
I absolutely love my Benchmade 710 M2HS, been with me about sixteen years, great steel and design, for the city or back country, wickedly super sharp edge holding, very easy (for me) to sharpen. Wish Colorado knife 3.5 inch laws were a little more liberal, I'd carry it more in the city. There's something very special about a great, 'vintage tool steel' that is in such a classic design.

Btw, I enjoyed the research and some of the informative posts about S45V, interesting steel. We'll see how this new steel performs in the real world as I'm sure it'll do just fine for most buyers. For me, there's something very special about using on a regular basic, fantastic steels in knife designs that have handled the test of time and still perform as they were designed for.
 
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tyyreaun said:
With threads like this one, I’m always amazed by how much pushback there is against innovation for the sake of innovation.
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I agree.

Why not try to improve stuff?

This may make an interesting kitchen knife steel. I'd like to try it out some day. Now it may not make some crazy ultra performance kitchen knife. But it should make an excellent user for most home cooks.
 
I’m sure that back in the Iron Age, Bronze Age, and Stone Age there were some who persisted there was no need for better blade materials or improvements. Sure obsidian is very hard and very sharp but it’s also very delicate and breaks very easily in rough usage lol. Everything has its reason or purpose and there are many different needs for many different applications so it’s a good thing we have persons who endeavor to find a better steel to suit the purpose or need. Otherwise we would still be napping flint and sharpening sticks for tools and weapons. Now you don’t have to change and no one is forcing anyone to accept the new steels being developed but why limit everyone to the same confines as your needs or expectations? They likely have a much different job, life style, environment, or practical need for improved blade performance.
 
To me these new steels always feel like Galaxy note 9 , galaxy note 10 , galaxy note 10 pro plus , galaxy note 20 . I will say there was a marked increase in virtually every aspect from s30v to s35vn . Most notably it was noticibly easier to sharpen . And in the world of super steel making a steel as tough but easier to sharpen is worth its weight in gold .

Will there be a real world difference in s45vn ? Who knows. I really like s35vn alot . Its going to take alot to pry me away from it. But then again I like 14c28n alot too .
 
afishhunter said:
oh goodie ... another "latest and greatest" that will have "people" throwing money at just for "bragging rights" and then lie about how it performs in a vain attempt to "justify" getting a knife with that blade steel.

Truth of the matter is most folks (even knife nuts like us) would be/are served just fine with 10xx, 440A or 420HC or even 420J and 4114 with a good heat treat, for most (if not all) of their cutting tasks.

Sorry to be so cynical, but look how many millions of people world wide are happy with and served well by whatever blade steel and heat treat used by firms like Victorinox, Opinel, and Mora is.

"Super Steels" are not needed by most knife users on this rock, and I would not be surprised if most around the world use their knives a heck of a lot harder than most in the USA would even think of.
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Given that trappers and hunters on the American frontier got by (doing a hell of a lot more daily hardcore use than any of us ever do) with basic carbon steel, one could use that logic on ANY steel used nowadays. And why stop there? As folks here have already pointed out, one could go even further back than that.

Why?
 
Ignoring the small subset of the world that really needs a knife with special properties, most people are served well by very 'pedestrian' steels.

I've jumped on so many 'super steel fads' I can't remember them all. In reality, the biggest differences were edge geometry and heat treatment.

I had a Newt Livesay 1095 knife that was rust-resistant beyond all expectations and held an impressive edge. It was also easy to sharpen.

I have also had ATS-34 that rusted easier and was brittle (thanks Benchmade :mad:).

I still really like BG-42 in a really nice pocket knife. My CRK's with that steel take an exceptionally keen edge and polish like few others. Simply stunning. They are wicked cutters for a picnic or desk knife.

These days, an Opinel Garden Knife or Morakniv with 12C27 is hard to beat for general utility IMHO. The fact they are relatively cheap makes them even better IMHO. Not everyone or every task needs an expensive knife. ;)

Today, there are a lot of good options in 440C and D2 that will serve many very well for a very long time with minimal fuss and expense! :cool:
 
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