What is the ULTIMATE super steel?

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353 said:
I dont think he is a troll, he's either a young boy, a total knife noob or just totally ignorant.

Maybe a combination of the three?
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I wonder what he'll come up with next??
Perhaps even scarier: It doesn't seem that anyone checks URLs around here. It could very well be, that he's one of us; with another screen name, and a nasty streak...
 
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There is no ultimate. I have a few favorites though. in no particular order - 3V, S30V, CPM20CV/M390, 5160.

I like S30V and 20CV/M390 for EDC. My doitall beater-yard knife is 5160 and my survival knife is 3V.
 
Easy answer, S35v. Just kidding, there is no absolute best super steel that makes all of the rest obsolete. There are compromises with each steel. In addition to that new steels are produced and used by knife makers/manufacturers So it is a moving target.
 
sharpknives23 said:
These D2 cultists crack me up 🤣 they strike me as the types to be completely satisfied with McDonald's Happy Meals, despite the larger Big Mac or Quarter Pounder meals that are readily available.
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That would explain this -

Will it snap under my weight?

This knife, is a very nice knife. It's made from CPM S35VN steel. From my research, this steel is a well rounded steel, that doesn't particularly fail in any one area. That said, it doesn't excel in any one area either.. But that's okay. If I was sliding down a hill, or an embankment of some...
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kobold said:
D3. :cool:
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GAGL said:
whatever they use in that kitchen-survival knife
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Are you referring to the Tactical Swedish Chef Knife......?
 
Do you think that the O.P. will ask about the best knife for defense in a bear attack next?
 
Ron Sabbagh said:
It's not the wand, it's the magician.

For all the people badmouthing D2 steel......I'd take a D2 blade forged by Walter Brend or Bob Dozier to almost anything else. I challenge anyone to find a more suitable fixed blade steel than the 52100 super steel made by Ed Fowler.

For production knives - it's a bit more complicated because there are so many factors involved but the point is that the steel is just an ingredient. It's what you can do with it that makes it special.
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D2 is harder to navigate as a cutlery steel than a lot of them, because of how the results can seem to be all over the place.

D2 doesn't seem to work as well for large production knives, where they're tossing hundreds of knives into an oven at the same time for heat treatment. D2 seems to be have a lower tolerance for small fluctuations in mass production ovens that wouldn't have as much effect on other steels. It's great for low production knives, where there is more care and focus taken, but I'm really starting to question its use for high production knives. It makes me a bit more appreciative of Aus 8 steel in high production knives.
 
The Grendels said:
It makes me a bit more appreciative of Aus 8 steel in high production knives.
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Lol. Surely you jest.

The worst D2 with marginal heat treat trumps the best AUS 8 any day. ALL day. EVERY day.

(I can't believe I just used the words "best" and "AUS 8" in the same sentence.)

D2 seems to be have a lower tolerance for small fluctuations in mass production ovens that wouldn't have as much effect on other steels.
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And what is your source for this statement? Please point me to the relative example where "mass production ovens" produce "small fluctuations"?

I am really getting tired of the recent influx of "experts" on this forum making outlandish statements as if they were fact.
 
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The Grendels said:
D2 is harder to navigate as a cutlery steel than a lot of them, because of how the results can seem to be all over the place.

D2 doesn't seem to work as well for large production knives, where they're tossing hundreds of knives into an oven at the same time for heat treatment. D2 seems to be have a lower tolerance for small fluctuations in mass production ovens that wouldn't have as much effect on other steels. It's great for low production knives, where there is more care and focus taken, but I'm really starting to question its use for high production knives. It makes me a bit more appreciative of Aus 8 steel in high production knives.
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Interesting! I am learning about steels, and I am learning about sharpening. I try to use my knives whenever possible and have nothing that just sits and collects dust, but I know I need more use to develop my opinions. I am glad I started out buying budget (not cheap, budget) knives like Opinel and Ontario, as well as the classics like Mercator, Douk-Douk and Higonokami. Carbon steel has been the only thing to come to me as sharp and nice, as say the S45VN on my Spyderco PM2, and it also made me realize how I did not need the most expensive super-steel to handle my cutting needs, I realize that carbon steel or Sandvik is absolutely great and anything else is gravy. Also, I think different steel/grind/angle for the task. I don't want my 7" outdoor chopper, my 1075 Ontario SP-1, to shave hair, I need it to handle wood and vines and heavy stuff, so I do not have a small, fine edge on it, that I maybe would keep on a 3" Delica that I use as a gentleman's knife. This is what my beginner mind seems to understand about taht.

For all intents and purposes, I am a beginner in use, even, but I had been using an AUS-8 RAT2 for a while as my main utility knife, and I love it, it works very well, though it doesn't lightsaber through stuff like my PM2. Now, I have a D2 version of the RAT1 and RAT2 that I bought myself, have not used them yet, but am wondering if I will see a noticable difference, or if this will not become apparent until I start sharpening. I hope Ontario's D2 is quality.
 
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