Six is really quite a few. It's also very difficult to compare "carbon" or "tool" steels alongside stainless types - in my experience carbon steels are on a higher plane than most stainless in terms of toughness and ease of sharpening vs. edge retention, but how do you rate the fact they'll rust if they contact fruit acids, body oils, blood, salt water, etc? A very tricky topic... thank goodness you're only talking about what's used in production knives
440V: After finally putting my Starmate through its paces, I'm convinced this steel lives up to the hype. It takes a wickedly aggressive edge with ease and holds it for a LOT of cutting - even when hardened to a fairly low Rc where its toughness is decent. All this and with corrosion resistance similar to the more rust-prone "standard" stainless types (e.g. ATS-55) The particle-steels are revolutionary; stainless that finally performs like carbon steels but resist rust!
420V: Supposedly far tougher than 440V, perhaps less edge retention. I dunno, not currently used in any production knives (and I haven't got any)... but stay tuned.
BG-42: This just makes the "production" list because it is used in the Sebenza. I don't have experience with it yet (though I'll be grinding some this week
) All I can say is taht it was the only other
in use stainless that got top marks in Spyderco's testing, similar to 440V.
D2: This steel holds its edge quite a while because it can be hardened to extreme levels (60+ Rc) without becoming unreasonably brittle. I can say from experience that it's a real bear to grind, very tough on belts. This is probably why it's rare in production knives, but it's definitely one of the better stainless types.
VG-10: Folks credit this with edge-holding akin to ATS-34, but better rust-resistance and easier sharpening. Well, it certainly doesn't rust, and I can't comment on the sharpening until I manage to get my Calypso dull!
M-2: I'm leaving carbon steels off of this list, both to simplify things and because they are rarely used in folders (with good reason, as the pivot area just invites corrosion). But since Benchmade uses this (and EDI will soon use A2), I'll say that reports "in the field" credit it with edge-retention on par with ATS-34 and maybe even 440V, plus enormous toughness and easy resharpening. That fits with what I've seen from assorted carbon steels. But why, with new stainless types available, would one make a carbon-steel folder and then have to coat it and/or disassemble it frequently for cleaning (which violates the Benchmade warranty)? I'd prefer M-2 over ATS-34, but 440V will give me at least as good performance and fewer hassles.
ATS-35 / ATS-55 / 440C: ATS-34 (and the oft-ignored 440C) are the standards by which high-carbon stainless should be judged - several types exceed their performance, but in my mind they mark the boundary between "adequate" and "excellent" stainless, and are definitely not to be scoffed at. ATS-34 offers a bit more edge retention than good 440C but is a bit more rust-prone and can be extremely brittle if over-hard. 440C is highly variable, but I'd consider well-treated (e.g. Solingen) 440C to be equal to ATS-34 in the sum of its properties. ATS-55 is proprietary to Spyderco, and is supposed to be easier to sharpen than ATS-34. I can't say I've noticed, but folks at Spyderco who handle a lot of both say the difference is real. One of them also warned me that ATS-55 is surprisingly rust-prone, even moreso than ATS-34. I thought that was unlikely, but examination of my Spydies since has made me a believer; it does seem more rust-rpone than ATS-34 or any other stainless type I have. Go figure.
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-Corduroy
"Why else would a bear want a pocket?"
Little Bear Knives
Drew Gleason:
adg@student.umass.edu
