Schrade new line in 1095?

A

adimo

Joined
Apr 13, 2015
Messages
55
Hey friends.

I have been looking for a while at the Schrade schf line of knives and really like the schf36. I've seen videos on youtube and read reviews, but I am still unsure about their 1095. Is it as good as the Ka-Bar 1095? I have no idea how their heat treat, edge retention or hardness are. I was wondering if somebody has used a 1095 Schrade blade for a longer time and if if you had any surprises. Maybe somebody will just point me to a thread that I wasn't able to find. Any help would be welcome. I know, for the price point I could try for myself, but I really don't want another knife to slowly rust at the bottom of the drawer waiting to be put out of it's misery (I sadly have a few of those).

Thank you
 
One member (Boris74) here really likes the imported Schrade 1095. But he feels the other blade steel is just as good as far as edge holding capabilities. I have no personal experience with either from the imported/Chinese Schrade line.
 
adimo said:
Hey friends.

I have been looking for a while at the Schrade schf line of knives and really like the schf36. I've seen videos on youtube and read reviews, but I am still unsure about their 1095. Is it as good as the Ka-Bar 1095? I have no idea how their heat treat, edge retention or hardness are. I was wondering if somebody has used a 1095 Schrade blade for a longer time and if if you had any surprises. Maybe somebody will just point me to a thread that I wasn't able to find. Any help would be welcome. I know, for the price point I could try for myself, but I really don't want another knife to slowly rust at the bottom of the drawer waiting to be put out of it's misery (I sadly have a few of those).
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Pro Tip:

M-335.jpg


If you maintain your knives, you shouldn't have any issues with rust.

Otherwise, get the Salt Series from Spyderco. Worth the investment.
 
22-rimfire said:
One member (Boris74) here really likes the imported Schrade 1095. But he feels the other blade steel is just as good as far as edge holding capabilities. I have no personal experience with either from the imported/Chinese Schrade line.
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Schrade SCHF 1095 line up is mostly manufactured in Taiwan.
Roughly 2/3 of world flat stock of AISI certified 1095 is produced in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. Large quantities of that steel is imported into USA, resold several times through various wholesale dealers, many times finding its way into high end, top dollar, USA made custom knives. Just reality of our times...
 
Yes marcinek, I have a USN Mark1 and I am really happy with it, but I would like something heavier too, but not quite as massive as the BK-2.
 
The BK-15 and BK-16 are great choices. I hate to sound like a broker record, but these are good strong cost effective knives.
 
Not a big fan of the Schrade imports in general. But I am eyeballing the SCHF42D. They are reported to be available around sometime in October. The SCHF42 series was designed by Brian Griffin who goes by MistWalker here on blade forums. A review of the SCHF42 can be found in the following thread, "Schrade SCHF42 - Followup review."
 
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adimo said:
Yes marcinek, I have a USN Mark1 and I am really happy with it, but I would like something heavier too, but not quite as massive as the BK-2.
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I was thinking along the same lines of SALTY and 22-rimfire...you like the Kabar in 1095, so there may be something in the Kabar or Kabar Becker family that would work for you, I'd think.
 
22-rimfire said:
One member (Boris74) here really likes the imported Schrade 1095. But he feels the other blade steel is just as good as far as edge holding capabilities. I have no personal experience with either from the imported/Chinese Schrade line.
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This was my first thought as well. I know the specs listed show that it should be about the same hardness as kabars 1095 (which is actually 1095cv, which is slightly different). Beyond that, I have no experience with it. I would say I would trust that Kabar has its HT down better, but that is based purely on historical info/anecdotal info.

For what its worth, I'm quite happy with Kabars 1095cv.

marcinek said:
"Former" member.
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I had no idea he was gone. I guess that explains why I haven't seen him lately.

marcinek said:
I was thinking along the same lines of SALTY and 22-rimfire...you like the Kabar in 1095, so there may be something in the Kabar or Kabar Becker family that would work for you, I'd think.
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^^ Agreed. Especially the BK15 right now (its being discontinued, and has been quite cheap for a while now, so get one at that price while you can). I also think the handle ergonomics on them are quite excellent, which makes them great knives just because they're comfortable to hold for hours at a time.

That said, the SCH42 that Mistwalker designed is probably the only schrade I'd consider at this point (or the non-recurve version the 42D that comes out in a few months). The rest of them I think have strange handle ergos, too low of grinds, and are generally too thick.

Good luck finding something that works for you :).
 
Think I will have to hold one of the SCHF42D's before I take the plunge into the current Schrade line. Although, the fact that it is associated with Brian makes a big difference to me. I suspect that will happen at manufacture's days at the Sevierville TN knife store in October and I can see Ethan again.
 
bghorn said:
Schrade SCHF 1095 line up is mostly manufactured in Taiwan.
Roughly 2/3 of world flat stock of AISI certified 1095 is produced in China, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan. Large quantities of that steel is imported into USA, resold several times through various wholesale dealers, many times finding its way into high end, top dollar, USA made custom knives. Just reality of our times...
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Although this makes perfect sense, where did you come by that information? Good info and I am sure 1095 is not the only steel that applies to.
 
22-rimfire said:
Think I will have to hold one of the SCHF42D's before I take the plunge into the current Schrade line. Although, the fact that it is associated with Brian makes a big difference to me. I suspect that will happen at manufacture's days at the Sevierville TN knife store in October and I can see Ethan again.
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I think I'm the same way. The photos and reviews look pretty good, but its hard to know until you get it in hand. The upside is from the photos, the handle looks somewhat like the Becker tweener handles, which is encouraging.

Cobalt said:
Although this makes perfect sense, where did you come by that information? Good info and I am sure 1095 is not the only steel that applies to.
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Curious about this as well. I do know that Brian (MistWalker) mentioned in the review thread that at least the 42 was made in Taiwan, although I'm not sure about the rest of the lineup.
 
the 1095 Cro-van used by Kabar is upgraded from the normal 1095 used by Schrade. Yes, it should be better, as of yet I have not done a test comparing the two steels. I now own an SCHF37 that I purchased to do a side-by-side with my BK2 or BK9, so I might still do that comparison. One this to consider is the ergonomics, and that is where the Schrade is lacking in my opinion: the handle is very sharp and not nearly as comfortable as other knives from Ka-bar, Kershaw, Ontario, etc.
 
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The BK 2 is simply better but double the price.

The schrade would get the job done and is a great value but in the end is it not better to get the knife one really wants?
 
Bk-2...? Better than what at double the price? Better than the Schrade stuff. Probably. But I have never really taken a strong liking to my BK-2; it isn't the type of steel, it's the 1/4" bar steel that makes the knife sort of a chopper, but it isn't a chopper. It is too much knife for me. :D
 
Haha yea, the schrade stuff.

The BK2 is an awesome knife. Yes it's obnoxious, but that's what makes it fun. I've swung it like a hatchet to split wood at car camp. Its too much knife though for hiking.

To answer the original question, yes there is a difference between the schrade and Kabar 1095.
If you bought them both you would notice the
Kabar performs better.
 
I used to own a SCHF9, in 1095, and I found the edge retention to be respectable, held very well for wood cutting, and I loved the knife.

The one issue I did have however, was very quick rusting. Now, I do not necessarily blame it on the knife, but on the circumstances. When kept at home, even with minimal oil, it was fine. One weekend when camping on Cape Cod, it was extremely humid & salty air, and I had used the knife in the evening, and forgot to wipe & oil it down after, and by the next morning, there was rust on the entire length of the edge. Again, my fault, not the knife.


What it did make me realize, is that due to where I live, and how & when I use a fixed blade, I would be better off with a stainless blend knife. I cleaned up the edge and sold off the SCHF9, and instead got an SCHF26, which is a little smaller, lighter, and IMO more versatile, and is 8Cr13MoV High Carbon Stainless Steel. I've been just as happy with the steel, and it performs well for my needs. Apparently, Schrade also is now making the SCHF9 in this same stainless steel. I would assume 8Cr13MoV is not as strong or stay as sharp as 1095 at the limits, but for general use, it does the trick, and IMO its worth the trade off in having a stainless steel.
 
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