S110V Shallot

vwb563

vwb563

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Hello all. Sorry if this has already been asked before but I recently purchased a Kershaw Shallot in S110V and was wondering if anyone knows what hardness Kershaw had this steel hardened to? I'm curious what kinda edge holding performance to expect from it. Thanks in advance.
 
Anyone have any edge holding testimonies of S110V? I've got a Shallot coming and am excited about the steel!
 
vwb563 said:
Anyone have any edge holding testimonies of S110V? I've got a Shallot coming and am excited about the steel!
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Seems almost exactly like S90V to be honest. Though truthfully, you probably won't notice a difference between the two at the same hardness. Even after 3 months of cutting cardboard(only occasionally during my work day), my S90V Para2 was still able to slice paper. It's doubtful I could test for a difference between the two in my normal use. So unless you're cutting something like fiberglass or carpet regularly, it won't stand out much from S90V, especially not at Rc 60-62.

Though it would sure blow S30V, CPM-154, ZDP-189, and D2 out of the water.

Still, I don't think S110V really shines with a conventional heat treat. You'd probably need it to be pushed to Rc 64+ to really set it apart from S90V. But again, you'd need to be doing something to the tune of skinning 5 deer without sharpening before you can fully appreciate its performance.

I really don't use my knives that hard, so I question the wisdom of having custom ordered a knife in S125V, though I fully plan to take advantage of its properties by having it hardened to Rc 65+:thumbup:.

As an additional note, don't mistake the lack of a razor edge for a dull edge. The SXXV series aren't known for taking and holding a keen razor edge. What it does is keep a "working" toothy edge for a very long time. I wouldn't spend the time(unless you sharpen with power tools) to put a mirror polished edge on it, because that hair popping sharpness will be gone with a few cuts.
 
vwb563 said:
Anyone have any edge holding testimonies of S110V? I've got a Shallot coming and am excited about the steel!
Click to expand...

Depending on hardness and HT S110V should have around 20% better edge retention than S90V.

Higher hardness and Alloy content = Better edge retention.

S110V has 35% Alloy content and can take higher hardness, around 63-65 HRC although 63-64 is likely best.

S90V has 26.3% Alloy content and max hardness would be 59-61 HRC.

That said production blades in S110V should be around 61-62 HRC and S90V around 59-60 HRC.

HT and tempering process can make a huge difference in the way S110V will perform, if S110V isn't Sub Zero Quenched it will lose about 20% edge retention from what I have been told.
 
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I have a combo edge S110V Shallot, probably my favorite of all the Kershaws I own. I've used it some, mostly around the house and a couple times at work. It still has that factory edge, slices paper without tearing it up. It's a great little knife IMO and would buy another one if it was available for a reasonable price. I polished the edge on an S90V knife and was sort of disappointed though, it was crazy sharp for a while, then it just kept a working edge. I resharpened it, removed the polished edge and left it at 600 grit, it performs much better. Holds a really good edge so far, haven't had to touch it up at all.

Edit:
I'd love to see more RJ Martin designs in any high performance steel. The Overkill would be a winner for sure ;)
Make it happen Thomas! :)
 
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S110V does better with a toothy edge in my experience...it's too "glassy" mirror polished.
 
My Shallot ce in s110v is toothy also and seems to do a great job cutting & staying sharp. I wish the Shallot was a bigger knife...I would

carry it much more often.
 
RevDevil said:
I have a combo edge S110V Shallot, probably my favorite of all the Kershaws I own. I've used it some, mostly around the house and a couple times at work. It still has that factory edge, slices paper without tearing it up. It's a great little knife IMO and would buy another one if it was available for a reasonable price. I polished the edge on an S90V knife and was sort of disappointed though, it was crazy sharp for a while, then it just kept a working edge. I resharpened it, removed the polished edge and left it at 600 grit, it performs much better. Holds a really good edge so far, haven't had to touch it up at all.

Edit:
I'd love to see more RJ Martin designs in any high performance steel. The Overkill would be a winner for sure ;)
Make it happen Thomas! :)
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I thought the Volt was at least loosely based on the Overkill? I can't tell since I don't have a Volt to compare my Overkill with, but the resemblance is uncanny:thumbup:.

And yes, a toothy finish just seems to last longer for some odd reason.
 
Noctis3880 said:
I thought the Volt was at least loosely based on the Overkill? I can't tell since I don't have a Volt to compare my Overkill with, but the resemblance is uncanny:thumbup:.

And yes, a toothy finish just seems to last longer for some odd reason.
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Indeed, a Volt3 would be nice. Something made in the states with S35VN.
 
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