New to me 5.1

C

Clip.

Joined
Jul 25, 2012
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Just received my first GSO, a first-gen 5.1 with canvas Micarta scales and a ferro notch. Immediately took the belt clip off and replaced with a large Tek Lok. Haven't been able to find any information on the final hardness of the 3V, does anyone have this information handy?

I've heard 3V is challenging to put an edge on, but I had no issues on a Spyderco 302M and light stropping on black and green compounds. Chopped through several pine 1x1s including directly through two knots, and it seemed to hold up well. Would still catch hair afterward and slice phone book paper. Still need to do some more head-to-head with my ESEE Laser Strike, but at this point the 5.1's handle (again, first gen), blade shape and thinner, uncoated grind are both preferred. I'm impressed with S!K so far, we'll see how I feel after a few months of use.
 
Pretty sweet and concise review :thumbup:

Looking forward to what you think when you go head to head with the EESEE

I think 3v being hard to sharpen is a myth. A few passes on a diamond stone or a few minutes stropping and I've always gotten the results I wanted. Glad you found the same.
 
In my opinion 3V is only hard to sharpen if you are comparing it to something like 1095. If you are accustomed to sharpening your knife on an old fashioned whet stone you might find it takes longer to sharpen one of the modern alloys at HRC 60 than it did a simpler steel at a lower hardness.
 
Fancier said:
In my opinion 3V is only hard to sharpen if you are comparing it to something like 1095. If you are accustomed to sharpening your knife on an old fashioned whet stone you might find it takes longer to sharpen one of the modern alloys at HRC 60 than it did a simpler steel at a lower hardness.
Click to expand...

How would you compare stropping 3v and 1095?
 
My 3V and 1095 responded similarly on the strop, as I use it mostly to refine the edge off of the 302M. Similar scratch patterns on both edges had predictable results off of the strop in terms of sharpness, but I would say the 1095 came out just a bit more polished. Nothing scientific as this was just a quick sharpening on both to restore a working edge, didn't count strokes, etc.

The 3V seemed to respond a little quicker than S90V and ZDP189 during strokes on the medium stone, understandable as they have larger volumes of vanadium and chromium carbides respectively.

I can't wait to get outdoors with the 5.1. Sitting here at the desk, I think it will be a good candidate to replace both my RAT 4 and Laser Strike based on handle shape alone.
 
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