What is more important when considering a new knife; handle material or steel?

What is more important when considering a new knife; handle material or steel?

  • Total voters
    70
  • Poll closed .
For me it's steel, just because I like a blade that I don't have to chase the edge every time I use the darn thing. I'd sooner have a M390 blade with a well done "plastic" handle over a mammoth ivory scaled knife using ATS.

I agree with DJC72 about ergonomics, though. If the handle just doesn't feel right, then it really doesn't matter what type of material it's made out of.
 
McFeeli said:
For me it's steel, just because I like a blade that I don't have to chase the edge every time I use the darn thing. I'd sooner have a M390 blade with a well done "plastic" handle over a mammoth ivory scaled knife using ATS.

I agree with DJC72 about ergonomics, though. If the handle just doesn't feel right, then it really doesn't matter what type of material it's made out of.
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I think a huge factor is quality. If you have a quality blade but a folder that can't handle it (no pun intended lol); it will be a recipe for disaster.
 
farcry33 said:
I think a huge factor is quality. If you have a quality blade but a folder that can't handle it (no pun intended lol); it will be a recipe for disaster.
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I agree with you on the for sure. That's why I think Spyderco's Tenacious did so great. They went with the handle material > blade steel, which for us it seems is not the right recipe, but it wasn't some cheap Chinese knock off. It was made with high standards and newbies and old heads were both(mostly) pleased with the result.

And Aquaholicc, I actually had the opposite thing happen, haha. I have smallish hands, I mean I can't get all four fingers on my mini grip, but it's still comfortable. I got a Hap40 Stretch a little while ago(first Stretch) and I was super excited for it. It was one knife I was hunting for a good long while, but as it turns out my mini paws don't really fit the long handled knife. I can use it fine, but it's not as comfortable as I'd like it to be.
 
A knife has to be aesthetically pleasing to catch my attention and the handle material is a big part of that. There are certain steels that I really like and they might turn my head from time to time, but for general edc purposes, as long as the steel isn't some garbage pot metal I'm not to picky.
 
Well, I'd say either can be a deal breaker. If it has a fantastic handle and 440B blade, I'll probably pass. If it's got an M390 blade and a non-ergonomic handle made of cheap plastic or steel, I'll pass. But I'll accept a blade made from yesterday's super steel for a nice handle, or a plain G10 handle for an M390 blade.
 
Another vote for edge geometry and heat treat being more important than the materials. If I see a knife I am interested in, I always ask what the steel is, and what the handle material is. Not because it really makes any difference, but just because I like to know what I am getting. Sometimes, I just can't find that information, but if it sings to me, I take it home anyway. Picked up a new small hand-made fixed blade with bocote scales a couple of weeks ago at a Renaissance Fair near me. The seller was not the maker, and couldn't tell me what the steel was, he didn't even know what wood the handle was made from. It still came home with me. Works great on a steak, packing tape, or a cardboard box. In short, it does what I wanted it to do. And I don't even care that I don't know what steel the blade is made from...
 
madcap_magician said:
Well, I'd say either can be a deal breaker. If it has a fantastic handle and 440B blade, I'll probably pass. If it's got an M390 blade and a non-ergonomic handle made of cheap plastic or steel, I'll pass. But I'll accept a blade made from yesterday's super steel for a nice handle, or a plain G10 handle for an M390 blade.
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From majority of the comments here makes me ponder if Spyderco made the Tenacious with M390 it would be a huge hit.
 
When it comes to me... I need to like the look of a knife, and blade steel doesn't add or detract from that. I have certain handles materials I like best, and if everything lines up, and as long as the steel isn't totally sub-par (honestly I can't really tell the difference), it goes on the list.
 
How it feels in your hand and opening action for me. I've handled $1000 knives that I did not care for over $200 knives.
 
farcry33 said:
From majority of the comments here makes me ponder if Spyderco made the Tenacious with M390 it would be a huge hit.
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I don't know if I'd go that far, there are already several higher-end Spyderco knives that already fit the same use niche as the Tenacious with improved materials.
 
I would take a Maxamet Manix 2 in FRCP/FRN over a 154cm Manix 2 in Carbon Fiber, Shade tree Customs micarta or any other high end handle material.

Steel for me.
 
I maintain my knives and buy from companies that have good steel and heat treat. I'm unable to tell the difference from S30v, S35vn, 3V, 154CM, ATS34, and ELMAX in EDC capacity. I can tell some minor difference between 52100, 5160, 1095, and 80CrV2 in fixed blade/field usage.

Now handle material often attracts me to a knife. I will rarely buy a micarta, g10, or g10/Ti knife. Give me a cool handle on decent steel.
 
Steel is everything. You can change the grips all day long as you please.
Grips don't cut. Steel cuts.
 
Neither, it's the sum of all parts and the fit and finish.
Really what's the most important is the design.

No matter how good the steel is your are gunna need to sharpen it.

So if you can sharpen, who cares hahaha

Of course it is nice to Not have to stop what your doing to sharpen. :D
 
I would say that both are very important when choosing a knife but blade steel plays a bigger role. But then again if the knife handle material you have is crap I also wouldn't buy another one.
 
I'm learning the different characteristics of steels, but at this point it's more about the aesthetics, ergonomics and execution. Obviously the steel is a primary factor with the above, even if I don't grasp all of the details and subtleties. As I gain more experience and knowledge about the steel, I'm sure that it will become a more important consideration.
 
For the vast majority of real folding knife use (I carry mostly folders) blade steel beyond some basic common level (e.g. AUS-8/VG-10/440C) doesn't make much difference so I voted handle material. People like superior edge retention is some huge deal, but how often do they really need to sharpen their knives? If you're sharpening once a month, what would difference would stretching that to once every other month really make? Save you a whole minute or two once a month?
 
farcry33 said:
What is more important when considering a new knife; handle material or steel?
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None of the above. So I did not vote.
Most important to me is the overall pattern including the handle shape, the blade shape, and the size. If it does not have those, I'm passing on it.

If limited to only the parameters you listed, I'm usually more interested in the steel than the handle material. On the other hand, since there are many alloys that I find satisfactory, as long as I'm good with whatever alloy they are using, I suppose it could come down to the handle material.
 
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