Supersteels. Do we really need 'em?

I have zero experience with CTS-204p. That's interesting. Is Spyderco the only major company using it?
 
Siety338 said:
I have zero experience with CTS-204p. That's interesting. Is Spyderco the only major company using it?
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Nope:
Zero Tolerance
Benchmade (usually uses cpm20cv or m390–basically the same alloy by different companies)

And I know this list is longer but I don’t own that many knife brands
 
James Lewis said:
I wasn't aware that M390 and CTS 204P was the same thing. Interesting!
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I don’t know if it can be claimed they are identical, since there must be patents involved; very slight(like .5%) changes in alloy composition and marketing (regarding the “superiority” of one powder process over the others) are the only differences I’m aware of. They seem to perform the same to me.
 
I poked my head in here so figured I may as well add another two cents :

Todays Wowbagger tools (and a pair I could carry for a year or two straight and be super happy) . . . I used the Para 2 in M4 super steel to cut / trim abrasive rubber knowing full well it would come out shining and it did; just as sharp and grabby at my finger nail as when I started.

Though I enjoyed using the Boker Traditional large Stockman in public with customers around because . . . in Nick Shabazz's lingo "It was less Murdery looking". I cut into some fairly heavy plastic bag packaging and I had just sharpened it on the Edge Pro so it went through it literally like a hot Exacto knife (remember those ? Like a soldering iron but has an exacto blade) you could cut hard plastic like it was a plastic bag.

Now if I would have used the Boker to cut the rubber it would be MUCH duller right now but because I used it on the plastic packaging and used the super steel on the rubber my nice slip joint Stockman is still extremely sharp and I have it to carry another day in polite company without resharpening . . . and when I just want to say FREEKIN' WOW I use the Para in M4
I enjoy both.

M390 / CTS-204p
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Oh heck yes that's good stuff too !

IMG_4961.jpg
 
sodak said:
A high alloy "super" steel that's optimized for it's design with a good heat treat can give you orders of magnitude more performance, not just 10% more. Check out Ankerson's testing thread for the numbers.

And yes, I still enjoy O1 or 52100 in my garage or hiking in the woods. I don't feel the need to have to choose, it's ok to like both. I still think Victorinox makes the best knives for the money, hands down.
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I completely agree.
If a person buys a lot of knives and uses them to their limits they will find out these are facts.
 
Siety338 said:
How do you like your Spyderco with M4?
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Ha, ha, ha . . . and I thought there wasn't a single member left here in Blade Forums who wouldn't be cheerfully willing to suffocate me in my sleep with my own pillow if I posted just one more gushing post about HOW MUCH I LOVE THIS THING ! ! ! !
Yes . . . even though I have a few other Para2s . . . even one in S110V . . . I must say this particular Para2 in M4 has changed my life. For the work I do there just is nothing better; from the steel alloy / heat treat to the shape of the blade and the compression lock ( so fun to fool with).

I'm not saying it is the only knife I need but dang I love this thing.
 
How is it the corrosion resistance? I have heard of peaple having issues with the Gayle Bradleys rusting, which utilizes M4.
 
We don’t need SuperSteels.

We don’t need Tide Pods.

We don’t need LED TV’s.

We dont’ need 8 core processors in smart phones.

Blah, blah, blah. The market demands them, we continue to buy them and so it goes.

Anyone with a problem with Super Steels, stop buying them and the market will respond accordingly. Hi Gaston.

I like them, use them and learn to sharpen them. Just sharpened S110v successfully for the first time that didn’t actually take more then 10 minutes.
 
Siety338 said:
How is it the corrosion resistance? I have heard of peaple having issues with the Gayle Bradleys rusting, which utilizes M4.
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First off a disclaimer : I live in the high mountain deserts of Colorado and not near the ocean or where it is humid . . . so what right have I got to spout off about rust.
. . . however . . .

awe the Gayle Bradley . . . a lovely thing ! ! ! !
That's my GB M4 blade with my Spyderco Military in M4. These are old photos. I was attempting to photograph the FORCED patina that I put on both blades. What I was attempting to illustrate was how much less the GB took a patina than the Military. In either knife the light has to be just right to even see much of a "stain" in a photograph.
IMG_4558.JPG IMG_4559.JPG

Here is another photo that I took when the light was just right to even see the patina. As you can tell it has come and gone and changed over time.
I wouldn't call it rust though and this was really trying . . . letting various things sit on the steel for hours. If I had just cut something wet and reactive with the steel and wiped off the blade or washed it there would be next to nothing to see on the blade.
IMG_4411.jpg

For example on the Para2 I have never attempted to generate a patina; I just use the knife and wipe or wash it off. Even though it has cut its share of food there just isn't anything to see as far as stains on the knife. Now compare the two Spydercos in M4 here with a Case blade in CV steel, known for getting not only a patina but actual rust. Though the light is hardly adequate to see the stains on the M4 AND THERE IS QUITE A BLUE PATINA ON THE CASE BLADE that isn't showing up in this photo much the rust on the Case blade is super obvious. Quite a striking difference in rust ability I say.

This rust appeared one day, probably from some moisture while washing the other blade in the Case knife and I just haven't got around to removing it.
THERE HAS NEVER BEEN ANYTHING EVEN REMOTELY LIKE THIS SHOW UP ON THE M4 knives that i
have.
IMG_4962.jpg
 
Wowbagger said:
First off a disclaimer : I live in the high mountain deserts of Colorado and not near the ocean or where it is humid . . . so what right have I got to spout off about rust.
. . . however . . .

awe the Gayle Bradley . . . a lovely thing ! ! ! !
That's my GB M4 blade with my Spyderco Military in M4. These are old photos. I was attempting to photograph the FORCED patina that I put on both blades. What I was attempting to illustrate was how much less the GB took a patina than the Military. In either knife the light has to be just right to even see much of a "stain" in a photograph.
View attachment 852442 View attachment 852443

Here is another photo that I took when the light was just right to even see the patina. As you can tell it has come and gone and changed over time.
I wouldn't call it rust though and this was really trying . . . letting various things sit on the steel for hours. If I had just cut something wet and reactive with the steel and wiped off the blade or washed it there would be next to nothing to see on the blade.
View attachment 852444

For example on the Para2 I have never attempted to generate a patina; I just use the knife and wipe or wash it off. Even though it has cut its share of food there just isn't anything to see as far as stains on the knife. Now compare the two Spydercos in M4 here with a Case blade in CV steel, known for getting not only a patina but actual rust. Though the light is hardly adequate to see the stains on the M4 AND THERE IS QUITE A BLUE PATINA ON THE CASE BLADE that isn't showing up in this photo much the rust on the Case blade is super obvious. Quite a striking difference in rust ability I say.

This rust appeared one day, probably from some moisture while washing the other blade in the Case knife and I just haven't got around to removing it.
THERE HAS NEVER BEEN ANYTHING EVEN REMOTELY LIKE THIS SHOW UP ON THE M4 knives that i
have.
View attachment 852451
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Let’s please change the topic to “Do we need a patina?”.
 
Very interested. I live in the near the coast and in a humid environment so I am concerned with the corrosion resistance. Does the forced patina actually protect the blade better than keeping your blade oiled?
 
Siety338 said:
Very interested. I live in the near the coast and in a humid environment so I am concerned with the corrosion resistance. Does the forced patina actually protect the blade better than keeping your blade oiled?
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You will probably get some spots of rust from what I have read here in the forums.
An even patina, so far, has been challenging to put on the M4 though fairly easy to put on the plain carbon and CV steel.
No, probably oil will be your best bet or some other protectant depending on whether you need to cut food with your knife.
 
I've been dying to get my hands on a blade in m4, just waiting for the right deal. I really like the edge retention/toughness combo. I am always at the coast if not actually on the water (saltwater). The fact that it isn't stainless doesn't bother me a bit. I don't mind taking care of it. I may even give it a very fine polish to help resist rust/make it easier to rub it off.
 
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