What's so special about S30V?

[stabman]

All I know is that I strongly dislike S30V. S35VN is a bit better, but nowhere as well rounded as 154cm.

Well, in the end we all have to decide on what works best for us. There's too much variety out there, and not even Bill Gates has enough cash to buy it all.
Certainly nothing wrong with 154CM. :thumbup:

 

[o4tg]

I know that you're trying to be kind here, but there are plenty of steels that blow it out of the water. From my cutting, CPM 3V and CPM M4 will beat it easily on cardboard and rope; S110, S90V, CPM 10V are in a different league altogether - no comparison.

Personally, if I were looking for a steel around the performance of S30V, I'd take VG10. For me, it works MUCH better.

Only a little bit. My best cutter is my Sandvik Skyline. Problem is it won't cut as long as my S30V blades do. It may be a step back but I'm trying AUS8 again for an EDC. I had a CRKT with AUS8 but the knife fell apart before I ever really had a chance to form a solid opinion on the blade steel. I haven't had a throw away in years (Skyline normally is but mine's a sped) so I won't be afraid to give it a work out.

I used to have a Spyderco Endura that I think was VG10, but it was fully serrated so I could never get a good feel for it. I'll have to look around and see what's out there in VG10 sometime.

 

[Lennyo3034]

Well, get it right; it was an 80 grit belt, not stones.
And this is the internet...silliness is to be expected.
If you want seriousness, go to work; work is usually full of seriousness, short on silliness, and entirely devoid of fun.

Fair enough, although technically I WAS posting from work.

 

[stabman]

Fair enough, although technically I WAS posting from work.

Then you get to be serious.

 

[dkb45]

Well, in the end we all have to decide on what works best for us. There's too much variety out there, and not even Bill Gates has enough cash to buy it all.
Certainly nothing wrong with 154CM. :thumbup:

I would hope you don't have a problem with 154cm, because them's fighting' words! I still haven't had a chance to try out CPM-154 though. I hear it makes some good stuff almost perfect.

 

[LX_Emergency]

S30V.... Jack of all trades master of none.

 

[singularity35]

Is this going to be one of those high catbide volume steels vs. Low alloy steels threads?

 

[egally08]

I like s30 pretty well. I think it loses its keen edge pretty quickly but keeps a working edge for a good amount of time. However, I prefer m4, s90v and cts-204p over s30v any day.

Maybe I'm not understanding when your saying you used a belt on s30v and it still took a long time? Like a belt grinder?

I could reprofile a blade in super blue at 64 within 45 seconds on a belt grinder. Hell you could grind the whole knife in half within a couple mins on a belt grinder. Maybe that's not what you meant though. Are you doing it free hand, and what grinder are you using?

Honestly, I've found paper wheels to be amazing. You can sharpen up or reprofile any knife to a mirror polish with just a few passes.

 

[RemyKaze]

I know that you're trying to be kind here, but there are plenty of steels that blow it out of the water. From my cutting, CPM 3V and CPM M4 will beat it easily on cardboard and rope; S110, S90V, CPM 10V are in a different league altogether - no comparison.

Personally, if I were looking for a steel around the performance of S30V, I'd take VG10. For me, it works MUCH better.

Right on. I love VG-10. Too bad I can neger find knives I really like in that steel. Closest would be the Superleaf.

 

[OHALLUM]

Honestly, I've found paper wheels to be amazing. You can sharpen up or reprofile any knife to a mirror polish with just a few passes.

I have sharpened several knives with S30V on my paper wheels, and found them to be very easy to re profile and or sharpen to a scary sharp condition in short order. In fact, they sharpen up much quicker and with better results than other lesser steels. The burr forms quickly and evenly all along the edge and then will polish off quickly with the slotted wheel. Other lesser steels often take longer to form a good even burr and are more difficult to remove, when they roll or flip flop when stropping on the slotted wheel.

The paper wheels are nothing more than a belt sander without the flex built into them. The Gritted wheel is made up of 180 grit, and imbedded with a wax compound to keep the heat and sparks down to a manageable level. A lot of people will "dish" the wheels and brag about using their belt sanders, when all along they are really the same concept, but just designed differently. You can get the same results with either one.

Blessings,

Omar

 

[K.O.D.]

I have 3 knives in AUS-8, 1 in ATS-34, 1 in 154CM, 2 in VG-10, 2 in S30V, two in 1095, 1 in CPM M4 and 1 in Damascus. So far, I haven't seen anything special about S30V, and prefer my M4, 154CM and VG-10 blades for maintaining a sharp and good edge for a decent amount of time. My ATS-34 blade has stood the test of time (15 years) and I am very pleased with it overall. The two S30V blades I have are the ZT0350 and Benchmade 162. I will say the 162 has held its edge better than the ZT, maybe just a better heat treat. But S30V is definitely not the end all be all.

I've been incredibly impressed by CPM M4 thus far.

 

[Jastab]

I can't notice a difference between s30v and d2. I much prefer d2 over s30v

 

[yoko]

I have no problem with s30v, I can get a keen edge and it will last longer than the edge on vg10 for what I use it for

 

[dkb45]

I like s30 pretty well. I think it loses its keen edge pretty quickly but keeps a working edge for a good amount of time. However, I prefer m4, s90v and cts-204p over s30v any day.

Maybe I'm not understanding when your saying you used a belt on s30v and it still took a long time? Like a belt grinder?

I could reprofile a blade in super blue at 64 within 45 seconds on a belt grinder. Hell you could grind the whole knife in half within a couple mins on a belt grinder. Maybe that's not what you meant though. Are you doing it free hand, and what grinder are you using?

Honestly, I've found paper wheels to be amazing. You can sharpen up or reprofile any knife to a mirror polish with just a few passes.

I was using a HF 1x30 and a tried it with a fresh 80 grit AlOx belt, and a fresh 120 grit AlOx belt. Neither did much to anything to the blades, hence it taking an hour of constant grinding, excluding time for stopping and repeatedly saying "Are you kidding me!?" and dipping the blade in water to cool it (and using a belt cleaner). I have heard that AlOx is poor for high carbide steels, so that didn't help, but because of that I just plainly won't use the steel any more. Too much work involved in it.

 

[A.P.F.]

I was using a HF 1x30 and a tried it with a fresh 80 grit AlOx belt, and a fresh 120 grit AlOx belt. Neither did much to anything to the blades, hence it taking an hour of constant grinding, excluding time for stopping and repeatedly saying "Are you kidding me!?" and dipping the blade in water to cool it (and using a belt cleaner). I have heard that AlOx is poor for high carbide steels, so that didn't help, but because of that I just plainly won't use the steel any more. Too much work involved in it.

And that is fair enough. No one has the right to tell you what does or does not 'work' for you. Personally I like S30V for it's 'toothy' edge, which reminds me of 440C which I like as well. My technique is to never let S30V get dull enough to require stones. Instead, I strop frequently, which works for me.

 

[dkb45]

And that is fair enough. No one has the right to tell you what does or does not 'work' for you. Personally I like S30V for it's 'toothy' edge, which reminds me of 440C which I like as well. My technique is to never let S30V get dull enough to require stones. Instead, I strop frequently, which works for me.

I was able to keep my S30V blades stropped to stay razor sharp, but they lose that edge so quickly. It isn't the steel, it's me asking too much out of it. I know it was designed to hold an awesome working edge, and is optimally very toothy. I prefer a fine grained steel that keeps a razor edge longer but cuts for less time because I can always strop my knives. I just hate S30V because it is such a pain in the ass to regrind relative to other steels. I did have a hard time reprofiling my Quartermaster Murdock, but that was because I was reprofiling a 1/5" blade back by about 10° inclusive.

I know some people love S30V, but if you keep your knives sharp mostly for showoff reasons (like I do, I do very little that can really dull a blade) then S30V is not the tool for the job.