Poor Man's VG-10?

C

Confederate

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Sep 5, 2005
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Okay, VG-1 has been around now long enough that we should have some idea how good it is. The general consensus is that the increased carbon level and other elements make it better, edge-retention wise than AUS-8. But is it as tough? Is it anywhere as good as VG-10, as some claim?

Has anyone actually field tested it? It's one thing to look at a chart and make predictions; it's another to actually use it in different configurations and climates, and in a variey of situations.

Finally, is Cold Steel the only manufacturer using this steel as blade material?

Thanks!
 
Thanks. Even though that's an old thread, we still don't have a definitive answer on VG-1. Mostly opinions were stated on how good VG-1 should be.

You can't really take CS's word for it, right? I mean, they dropped 420 and began making some of their knives out of 4116 Krupp. They said it was better, but the 4116 Krupp obviously is the more inexpensive steel. I dunno, maybe CS is giving us better steels at reduced costs, but I'd like to see some serious tests or reviews of VG-1 in relation to both VG-10 and AUS8.

However good it is, it shouldn't have to be laminated for strength. I'd rather have an entire blade made from VG-1 than to have it made from San Mai III. Adding crappy steel to VG-1 just wouldn't do anything.
 
im hoping to receive one of the new voyagers with vg-1 for Christmas (hint, hint family) and if i do i will do a comparison with my older voyager in aus8.,,,VWB.
 
Here's some info according to "Larrin" - a metallurgy expert with pretty good credentials

"VG-1 is similar to 19C27. It is tougher than VG-10, has smaller carbides, and less wear resistance, it should be quite easy to sharpen. There was a popular line of knives that had an unkown steel that many were convinced it was some type of super steel, it ended up being VG-1. "

Hope that helps.
 
Yes, that helps, but we still need some good hard core testing. Being "tougher" many times is equated with being a bit softer. And "easier to sharpen" also would be closer to AUS8, which is a breeze to sharpen, than VG-10.

What gives me pause is that no other knife manufacturer seems to be using it except Cold Steel. So obscure was this steel that many CS users immediately jumped to the conclusion that it was a shortened version of VG-10. That was quickly dispelled, but some on this forum saw that the carbon content was up and that it added a new component or two to the mix and concluded that the steels might perform similarly. Others thought that it might be a little more than a two-point-oh version of AUS8 and little more.

But still, no one has actually tested it to destruction. I admire VWB563's willingness to check out the two blades, but I wouldn't like to see him damage either of his Voyagers.

For serrated blades, I suspect AUS8 might be a bit better at avoiding chipping of teeth, but for a plain blade, I'd probably opt for a VG-1. I'm always a bit suspicious of steels used in kitchen applications. And medical applications, too. But the steel charts seem to indicate that VG-1 is perfect for folders and tactical uses.

In a previous thread, Esav Benyamin called VG-1 a "low grade of stainless steel." Cliff Stamp replied by noting: "VG-1 lies very close to the critical tie line for C/Cr stainless steels, which is a very nice place for stainless steels to fall because it allows them to obtain a high hardness and corrosion resistance. It is far to the right of the carbon saturation line and thus has a higher primary carbide fraction than steels like AEB-L so it has a lower edge stability but higher wear resistance."

.
 
I use MBS-26 (VG-1 by another name) in my stainless-bladed chef knife and it handles everything I give it. That sort of use is more controlled than beating on a knife away from a cutting board, but it puts up to both my clumsy use and high standards for sharpness (it'll breeze through a butternut squash, break a whole pineapple down into tiny chunks, make a bunch of salads with finely-diced tomatoes, and still shave hair off my arm). Figuring if it stands up to being bounced repeatedly off a cutting board and doesn't rust from pineapple juice (you should see how that puts blue and orange on a carbon blade) and still shaves, it makes for an a-ok steel. If pushcuts, slices, and impact with hardwood and bamboo have nothing to do with your uses, that might help a little.
 
Confederate said:
But still, no one has actually tested it to destruction.
Click to expand...

I don't get quite what you're saying. Steel doesn't get tested to destruction, knives do. What it takes to break a piece of steel largely depends on how big that piece is, and what it's shaped like. Probably the closest you'd get is charpy impact numbers, but there won't be anything mind blowing from it.

AUS8 has a heck of a lot of phosphorus, which I thought was interesting, since it's generally considered an impurity that can make steel brittle, but also improves machinability. I found a little bit of an article here http://library.aist.org/ISSStore/PDF.nsf/OnePage_by_Name/PR-311-092/$FILE/PR-311-092.pdf?OpenElement
 
thombrogan said:
I use MBS-26 (VG-1 by another name).
Click to expand...

I didn't know that VG-1 is the same as MBS-26. If so, VG-1 is a lot better than I thought. MBS-26 is a nice steel, nothing fancy but good, solid properties. Probably somewhat comparable to 12C26.
 
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