Vg-10

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elkhoundss

Joined
May 23, 2002
Messages
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I looked at the article here on the website and didn't see anything about VG-10. Can someone tell me about this steel. How does it compare with other stainless steels?
 
elkhoundss,

Welcome to the forums. I'm really not too much of an expert on steels. But I do know that VG-10 was originally developed as a horticulturist steel, for use in pruning tools. It is an all around very good steel in toughness, edge retention, and rust resistance.

I have VG-10 in both my Al Mar SERE 2000 and my Fallkniven A-1, and can't complain.
 
A search should turn up more information. VG-10 is a superb stainless steel IMHO, and compares well to high carbon steels such as Carbon V. I understand that it requires a specific heat treat with cryogenic chilling.
 
Vampire Gerbil stumbled into a campfire one night with a few twelve packs of Schlitz Malt Liquor. The incendiary blaze smelted the cans and quenched them with the beer. VG had a neck-katana made from the mystery metal.

He liked it so well, he gave it a "10." Hence the name 'VG-10.'
 
Originally posted by komondor
But I do know that VG-10 was originally developed as a horticulturist steel, for use in pruning tools. ...

I have VG-10 in both my Al Mar SERE 2000 and my Fallkniven A-1, and can't complain.
Click to expand...


Yes, Spyderco first learned of it from one its Japanese manufacturers and introduced it in their original Moran fixed blade ( with upsweep blade). Fallkniven then tested it and changed to it from Ats34, now others use it too.
Search in Spyderco forum, also Fallkniven forum on "other" knife forum,
Martin
 
When a manufacturer changes raw materials, the tendency is to maximize profits by minimizing costs... at times they may switch to a better raw material because in the long run it reduces the amount of warranty liability.

Which is the case here?
Just a thought.
 
Uhm, no. At times a manufacturer will switch to a material because it does things better, and they sell their product based on performance. MM, I think your point may be more true of low-end products; I'm sure Wal-Mart for example does things as cheaply as possible. Spyderco, however, is a high-end knife company. They don't sell their products based on cost, but rather on quality or reliability. Otherwise they'd be putting the Spyderco logo on the 2.99 Chinese knock-offs you see in wicker baskets in gas stations. Maybe indirectly this is related to warranty liability, but I think this is more of a correlation than a cause-and-effect situation.

Originally posted by MelancholyMutt
When a manufacturer changes raw materials, the tendency is to maximize profits by minimizing costs... at times they may switch to a better raw material because in the long run it reduces the amount of warranty liability.

Which is the case here?
Just a thought.
Click to expand...

As regards VG-10, I like it a lot. It takes a good edge, seems to hold it pretty well compared to most other stainless steels, and is, in my experience, very stainless. I've been using a VG-10 Moran in the kitchen for almost a year, and it is regularly left to dry, or occasionally even left in the sink full of water. This treatment would definitely result in rust on an ATS-34 blade, or anything less stainless. So I think VG-10 is one of the better stainless steels.
 
2 of my regular-carry are made from VG-10, Spydie Viele and William Henry S-07. From my own experience, they take a very fine, and slightly more acute-angled edge, and hold it just that much longer than even the ATS-55 that Spydie uses in their Delica and Endura.

I have only touched up the Viele very lightly since getting it, and the William Henry not at all. So far, despite all the cutting and slicing I have been doing with both, they still slick right though paper. The WH has a slight advantage in slicing performance, being thinner and I used once it to cut up sushi and in slicing sukiyaki beef strips. You need to know that if your knife isn't sharp enough, you will end up mashing the sushi or tearing the seaweed wrap. Also I managed to slice the beef so thinly that they were translucent.

I believe part of the key to its performance is its ability to take on high hardness without excessive brittleness. It also appears to have a very fine grain. These both combine to allow a very fine, thin edge which slices well.

Strangely, on the Viele, you may notice some pattern on the sides when you look at it a certain way in the light. Sort of like frost or cracked and re-frozen ice. Not sure why this is so, not sure why I can't see it on the WH, and not sure if it affects performance in any way.
 
VG-10, If memory serves me, (Iron Chef reference) was developed for use in horticultural grafting knives. I believe it stands for Vandium Gold 10 which is the trade name. The idea was to get a steel that would hold up for the number of cuts that industrial horticulturalists make. Edge taking is a big factor along these lines because a sharp knife slices through the plant material rather than rupturing the cells by crushing it's way through. The less cell damage, the better the healing on the graft.
From what I've been able to find out, VG-10 is only available in Japan from one factory. (It's good to have a lock on a good thing.)
Hope this helps. BTW, my SERE 2K, Moran, and Fallknivens all hold up to a lot of abuse as well as use and keep on coming.
Doc
 
Basically, VG-10 is a Japanese steel that is a stainless steel of sorts. It's major benefit as knife blade steel is that it is tougher than most high tech stainless steels. That means it is treated to a somewhat softer consistency than, say ATS-34 (another Japanese steel.) What it means in practical terms is that it holds an edge to a somewhat lesser degree than a harder steel like ATS-34 but is tougher. So it is a particularly good choice for a hunting or camp fixed blade knife that may need to be used for prying or other uses that require toughness. In other words it is a high tech steel that trades some hardness for toughness when compared to some other high tech steels used in knife blades. It is actually one of my personal favorites. I've never considered edge retention to be as important as toughness but others, of course, feel the opposite. Hope that helps without getting technical.
 
Originally posted by Steelwolf
2 of my regular-carry are made from VG-10, Spydie Viele and William Henry S-07.
Click to expand...


Wow! My long lost brother? These are my two all time favorite knives.
VG10 is a nearly perfect steel. Good for fixed blades to folders.
 
Originally posted by The Magician

Wow! My long lost brother? These are my two all time favorite knives.
VG10 is a nearly perfect steel. Good for fixed blades to folders.
Click to expand...

Heheh :) Maybe not. I just got hold of the talonite version of Camillus' EDC. I like it a lot and am using it as daily carry for now. Probably will return to the WH S-07 when I need a dressier knife. :p Still like VG-10 though. Just wanting to put the EDC though its paces since I was quite disappointed with the edge holding of its 420HC brother.
 
Spyderco began using VG-10 because of its high-performance qualities. It is in fact, more expensive than many other steels we've used in the past. For those interested in the components....

Carbon 0.95-1.05
Chromium 14.50-15.50
Cobalt 1.30-1.50
Manganese 0.50
Moly 0.90-1.20
Phosphorus 0.03
Silican 0.60
Vanadium 0.10-0.30

*Percentages of the whole, iron making up remainder

Joyce @ Spyderco
 
You can dull it cutting and trimming cured fiberglass resin, like I did, but it sharpened back up real nice on my Sharpmaker. I like it.
 
I only had one knife made from VG-10, a Spyderco Moran. It was exceptionally sharp (split hair down the middle, twice) and held edge for a long time. Although that may also have to do with the Moran edge. Stain resistance was good, but I did get it to rust after leaving blood on it for 3 days. Washed right off though.

This is a fantastic working steel, I feel it's got a great balance of everything I need in a small knife. Can't imagine a sharper knife, don't need more edgeholding or stain resistance.
 
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