Sharpening cpm s90v

S

Stolenives

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Jul 12, 2017
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I need a little help if you’re up to it. I just got in the mail my 3rd military, this one is the knifeworks exclusive in S90v. I watched Michael Christy sharpen it several times but he talks about how he goes about sharpening it and doesn’t compare the toothy vs polished edge. Does anyone have any insight on how to get the most out of the steel? I have a lot of sharpening equipment and have been sharpening knives for years. I just don’t feel like experimenting on a knife that retails for around 300 until I find out what the best edge is and wear away an excessive amount of material
 
From the Knife Steel App,
First introduced in 1999. Very good,highly stain and wear resistant CPM steel from Crucible. Base for this alloy was AISI 420 steel with added Vanadium, really large amount though. I’ve tried it with high polished, 100k edges and with coarse edges as well, ended up choosing coarse. Lasts a lot longer, especially on highly abrasive mediums.
 
I have a Manix2 in S90V. I've liked it coming straight off either a Coarse (325) or Fine (600) DMT. Doesn't need much, if any stropping after, if the finishing touches from the hones are good (light touch, always). Minimal burring issues. S90V seems very easy to live with, using just a diamond hone or two, according to edge finish preference.

If deciding to go for a full polish on S90V, it should be straightforward using a full sequence in diamond, through Fine/EF/EEF and hard strops with diamond compound in at least 3µ and finer.

With such high-vanadium steels, I'd not waste time using anything but diamond or CBN, which makes maintaining S90V pretty much 'no-brainer' simple. I put off sharpening my Manix2 for a long time, as it's factory grind and edge were pretty good in their own right, and I also was a bit intimidated by the steel and the risk of messing up a pricey knife. But after I finally picked up a diamond hone and went for it, I ended up wondering what I was worried about in the first place, after trying it.
 
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Obsessed with Edges said:
I have a Manix2 in S90V. I've liked it coming straight off either a Coarse (325) or Fine (600) DMT. Doesn't need much, if any stropping after, if the finishing touches from the hones are good (light touch, always). Minimal burring issues. S90V seems very easy to live with, using just a diamond hone or two, according to edge finish preference.

If deciding to go for a full polish on S90V, it should be straightforward using a full sequence in diamond, through Fine/EF/EEF and hard strops with diamond compound in at least 3µ and finer.

With such high-vanadium steels, I'd not waste time using anything but diamond or CBN, which makes maintaining S90V pretty much 'no-brainer' simple. I put off sharpening my Manix2 for a long time, as it's factory grind and edge were pretty good in their own right, and I also was a bit intimidated by the steel and the risk of messing up a pricey knife. But after I finally picked up a diamond hone and went for it, I ended up wondering what I was worried about in the first place, after trying it.
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That’s incredibly helpful thank you for the effort. I don’t think I’ve been so cautious with a steel since I got my hands on s110 v for the same reasons; i.e. the wear resistance, being a bit of a bear to fix if you make a mistake, and of course how far you have to take it on the strops. I’ll use the diamond and finish on the eef and go to the 3micron and skip the 5 that I have and take it to .25 and see where I land. Update to follow and I’ll let you know if I have any issue with it. Thank you again for making it less intimidating
 
Dave, I'll agree w/ you on this steel. My Buck 110 with s90v responds well to a worn diamond coarse & fine. Most of the time I don't have to do
a full sharpening, just remove the curl. Which I do with back honing on the fine diamond. This doesn't take long. DM
 
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