O1 has a little alloying which increases its potential to get a fine grained tough knife. Although 1095 lacks this alloying, it usually performs so close you might not notice. This comes down to experience with O1 or 1095 and geometry. Slight differences in either will put one KNIFE ahead of another. S7 or INFI are really easy to sharpen and are routinely put through tremendous amounts of abuse, which is why I personally prefer them in this size knife. The additional corrosion resistance is a plus too.
Exactly,
I must say, if you want more toughness on a big knife. Having the high amounts of carbon in 1095 and 01 is counterproductive
The wear resistant carbides produced with the excess carbon reduce the toughness.
That's why swords and axes aren't made from 1095 and 01
Something like a 1060 would be better for a tough blade that is bigger then a junglas.
Add chromium and you get 5160 which has better hardening. You can get finer grain at the same hardness if ht properly which means more toughness then 1060 but its not going to be miracle steel.
S7 has more alloying and costs more and is not as common so you don't find a lot of makers that are experienced enough to take advantage of the potential for the increased cost.
INFI is proprietary so no access for your custom blade.
It really all depends on what you want the final HRC at and what the use of the knife is.
I'd rock a 01 chopper at higher hardness since the edge holding would be rad. But if you hit the ground, rocks or overstress the blade it is more likely to chip and break, everything is cost to benefit
No free lunches
No magic steels.
Just a list of gains to losses that suit ones preferences
