What is the ULTIMATE super steel?

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No one knows what that steel that is because NASA keeps it under lock and key. They ain’t telling anyone either.
As far as what’s available on the market today based on your description, it doesn’t exist. Repeating what’s already been said, there’s always a trade off.
‘if you want to know what the trade off is, that will have to be another thread.
 
I think reading here for a bit will help as there are MANY threads on steel choice. Your parameters are tooooo broad as the question is what steel for what is best. If I want an "indestructible" blade (or as close as man will come) it will be made from a different material than the scalpel that I may use for fine cutting. There are lots of great steels for specific tasks and there are some that are masters of none but more than acceptable for most.

All of this ground is covered here.
 
Ajack60 said:
No one knows what that steel that is because NASA keeps it under lock and key. They ain’t telling anyone either.
As far as what’s available on the market today based on your description, it doesn’t exist. Repeating what’s already been said, there’s always a trade off.
‘if you want to know what the trade off is, that will have to be another thread.
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This is a very courteous response, I thank you kindly for it. Some would do well to take note of the civility contained in such a response and apply it to how they interact with others on this forum in the future.
 
if you looked at knife steel nerds you’d see magnacut is not the best.. while tough.. it doesn’t have the edge retention..

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shane45-1911 said:
You'


You have been a member here for over 6 months. You should know that there is no such thing as the "ultimate" steel.

Stop with your absurd posts please.
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If I ignored you, would that prevent you from seeing my "absurd posts?" Or you can likewise ignore me, if it elevates your blood pressure to such a degree it makes you uncomfortable..
 
Ajack60 said:
‘if you want to know what the trade off is, that will have to be another thread.
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You just had to do that, didn't you.....
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sharpknives23 said:
If I ignored you, would that prevent you from seeing my "absurd posts?" Or you can likewise ignore me, if it elevates your blood pressure to such a degree it makes you uncomfortable..
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Over 20 years on this forum, and I have only ignored ONE person. There is a high probability you will be number two.

And I am quite cozy and comfortable, and my blood pressure is fine per my physical last month.
 
sharpknives23 said:
Your response didn't come across as condescending in any way, you're fine.
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remember that specialty steels for cutlery kinda didnt exist for knife making until really s30v. where crucible what to Chris Reeves and asked him what he wanted for cutlery.

meaning a steel made for cutlery only. bringing together better edge retention/wear resistance, some toughness, some corrosion resistance together. since then different steels have improved upon those attributes along with powdered steel technology. keep in mind im simplifying this history dramatically here. at best weak paraphrasing.

in the past knife maker took steels they could get and made knives from them. often ball bearing steels did well in cutlery. so they were common if the maker could get enough. so 154cm was an earlier super steel sort of. so super steels are kinda newer thing.

the spread between toughness, edge retention/wear resistance and corrosion resistance while being able to be heat treated to bring all three together, isnt an easy task.

Dr. Larrin has brought together some of the attributes in his magnacut steel which is quite new. he has a site called knifesteelnerds that covers many topics on this.

best to read Dr. Larrins site and decades of information archived here from many makers on these topics to get a proper and correctly done history of this and the issues and such. hope that was helpful in a slap together quickly done way. mind ya I'm sure I made some mistakes here in this post. dont take it as carved in stone accurate. as my memory is getting old.......

enjoy the reading, it's a fascinating topic for a cutlery hobbyist.
 
sharpknives23 said:
Do you guys just sit in your rockers all day shaking your fists at those 'young whippersnappers' trying to create discourse on a public forum? I seriously don't get it..
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jlauffer said:
Search/read more, post less.
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Bob Denman said:
There is no single "best" steel.
It depends on your intended application.
And even the "best" steel is totally dependent on the proper heat treatment.
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There is no actual answer to your OP question and the explanation of why is very complex .

If you really care about this , you can search this forum and discover a wealth of information .

Don't expect to be spoon fed . :)
 
The quality and capabilities of a knife blade are not the result of the steel alone. There are other very crucial factors, like the heat treat, the grind, and how it's sharpened.

You could have a blade made out of the most expensive knife steel on earth, and although it might be very high-quality steel, if the blade doesn't have a good heat-treat (too low or too high) and cannot hold an edge, or chips with normal cutting, then what good is the steel.

When it comes to steels, there is always some amount of compromise. For example, some steels (properly heat-treated) might take a sharper edge, and hold it longer cutting tough material, but it may be highly susceptible to rust and corrosion.

But these are things you learn over time. There are decades of combined knife and steel knowledge here at Bladeforums. Knowledge on topics like blade steels, edge geometry, heat-treat, etc, all things that factor into the performance of a knife blade. Such knowledge doesn't come quickly, it takes a fair amount of reading and commitment to learning.

If you're serious about learning, I hope you are able to make the most of this forum, and that knowledge, just as many others have :).
 
killgar said:
The quality and capabilities of a knife blade are not the result of the steel alone. There are other very crucial factors, like the heat treat, the grind, and how it's sharpened.

You could have a blade made out of the most expensive knife steel on earth, and although it might be very high-quality steel, if the blade doesn't have a good heat-treat (too low or too high) and cannot hold an edge, or chips with normal cutting, then what good is the steel.

When it comes to steels, there is always some amount of compromise. For example, some steels (properly heat-treated) might take a sharper edge, and hold it longer cutting tough material, but it may be highly susceptible to rust and corrosion.

But these are things you learn over time. There are decades of combined knife and steel knowledge here at Bladeforums. Knowledge on topics like blade steels, edge geometry, heat-treat, etc, all things that factor into the performance of a knife blade. Such knowledge doesn't come quickly, it takes a fair amount of reading and commitment to learning.

If you're serious about learning, I hope you are able to make the most of this forum, and that knowledge, just as many others have :).
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great point there, Sir. can't forget geometry...very crucial to performance.
 
Basically, what everyone is trying to tell you, is that the BEST steel for me and my uses might not be the best steel for you and your uses. The only way to figure out what works best for YOU is to buy some knives, use them the way you intend to, see where they fail your expectations, and move on until something satisfies YOU.
 
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