Sandvick 12C27

[knarfeng]

For those steels ,in order from best - 154CM, VG-10, 440C, AUS-8, 12C27.

Personally, I have found VG-10 to be far superior to 154CM in both edge holding and sharpenability.

I have found 154CM to hold an edge arguably better than VG10. I have found the VG10 to maybe sharpen up a tad easier.

I'm kind of thinking that some of our differences may be due to edge configuration rather than steel performance.

My usages are pretty much general EDC. I cut plastic, cloth, cardboard, etc with a lot of things that are more slicing or trimming than push cutting. But I also do some trimming operations that put a fair amount of side pressure on the blade. And I want a blade that costs no more than about $50-$60 so that if something happens to it I am not moping because I cannot afford to replace it. For this cutting, I value a combination of edgeholding and toughness with a greater empahisis on edge holding.

For my usage I value steels pretty much in the same order as mete. For me, VG10 and 154CM are equally desirable, followed closely by 440C. A slight step down is AUS8 and bringing up the rear is 12C27.

 

[gine]

Of course, I fully agree with you, I was just in a hurry to get to my class when I wrote that post. I just meant that once you get into the higher end steels, which usually are around 60 Rc, it just depends on the company and the user as to which steel is best. Personally I love benchmade's 154cm and CRKT's Aus8. These aren't the only things that I've used, just the ones that have done well for me. For corrosion resistance, try to stay away from bead blast finishes, I've been told (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong) that it leaves pores on a very very small scale and thus leaves the actual blade open to oxidation and then corrosion (rust spots).

Yes bead blasting makes pores in the steel and traps in things you don't want like for example salty oily finger sweat.Under a micro scope bead blast would look like a egg karton.

 

[batosai117]

Yes bead blasting makes pores in the steel and traps in things you don't want like for example salty oily finger sweat.Under a micro scope bead blast would look like a egg karton.

Thank you for verifying that, I didn't want to sound crazy when I typed that post, but I figured someone else out there had to have heard the same thing. I believe that the high gloss satin finishes are probably the best thing for corrosion resistance, then the black coatings and other stuff.

 

[Whammy]

i guess buck is just putting out pure garbage with their 420hc then? after spending some time with a 110, i don't think so. great balance of sharpness, corosion resistance, ease of sharpening, etc etc. try one, i dare you!

I sold all of my BUCK knives made with 420HC after being introduced to Mora knives. I actually use my knives, so they do eventually get dull, and the "ease of sharpening" (more like struggle of sharpening) is not even anywhere comparable to 12c27 Sandvik. Sure, you can get a usable edge back on the BUCK, but it doesn't hold it as long and you can't get it back to factory sharp easily like you can with properly heat-treated Sandvik.

Also BUCK's 420HC is very brittle - EVERY person I know that has thrown a BUCK has snapped the blade tip - of course this is improper use, but it is indisputably brittle, and I wouldn't trust my life to it.

Just saying.

 

[The-Stig]

I didn't read the whole thread, but wouldn't heat treat make a huge difference? You can have the best blade steel in the world but if it has a crappy heat treat it will be crap.

 

[Turbomammoth]

Holy thread resurrection Batman!

I do love my Laguiole in 12C27. Been a damn nice steel, more so than many of my better described steel. It is awesome what craftsmen will do with the tools they use.