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Which or Who for an ESSE-like 3 or 4 in CPM 3V?

S

Sid Post

Joined
Oct 14, 1998
Messages
4,729
I am interested in a shorter knife in a general profile of an ESSE 3 or 4 most likely in CPM 3V but, M390 and 20CV are possibilities. I am price sensitive so, $200 options are out. I'd to like stay in the ESSE 3 SVN35 price range.

I'm receptive to possibly other stainless steels like 'good' AEBL and similar but, I have had too much bad experience with poor heat treats on good quality stainless steel so, while 440C would be a good choice for many properly heat treated, I think I need to stay with the more popular 'super steels' where heat treat formulas are more reliably produced.

I do not need extreme rust resistance so, I'm thinking CPM 3V heat-treated to reasonable hardness is a great place to start. This allows me to have a thin blade stock and THIN EDGE while still having 'sufficient' strength to avoid chipping out in normal everyday type activities. Hopefully, this makes sense! ;)

TIA,
Sid
 
You can get a Cold Steel 3" Pendelton Mini Hunter in 3V for about about $100, CS sheathes can be a little middling, but that's easy to replace for a small cost down the road.
 
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KAEDC said:
You can get a Cold Steel 3" Pendelton Mini Hunter in 3V for about about $100, CS sheathes can be a little middling, but that's easy to replace for a small cost down the road.
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That looks like a great option and at 3mm thick, should be a very good cutter.
 
Bigfattyt said:
Custom, or production?
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Alberta Ed said:
Not sure of the profile is what you want but check out Benchmade's Puukko 200.
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Custom or Production is not significant to me. Price is!

I'm looking for an everyday utility profile so either a drop-point or spearpoint with a ~3" blade. I'd like something a bit better (thin edge for slicing with edge durability) and not super pointy so it has some belly for slicing.

Tasks include twine, small branches, boxes, packaging in general, and similar things in no particular order that might be found in a lunchbox, etc. in a rural setting.

I'm not "hard over" for anything specific as long as it is a good slicer, reasonably rust-resistant, and "pocketable" so, nothing overly large and heavy. I'm thinking 3V for the ability to hold a very thin edge without chipping out.
 
KAEDC said:
I think my DCL Knives small EDC in 3V was $165-175ish, but it's small, sub 3" (maybe sub 2") blade.
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Bark River Knives Bravo Necker II Fixed 3.25" CPM-3V Blade

Something along these lines is what I'm currently thinking, though a the Coldsteel Pendleton is tempting too, especially at ~$70.
 
OrangeBlueOrangeBlue said:
Who's doing custom 3V for less than $200?
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You have to keep an eye peeled for good deals..but he mentioned AEBL...

And I grabbed an immaculate Phillip Patton custom hunter in AEBL for $150!!

If you watch the exchange you can occasionally nab a great deal!!

Being set on 3v or m390 or 20cv is going to be a bir tougher.

Cusrom maker has a Vanadis 4 Extra PM steel blade up right now for $220 (CPM4v equivalent) he often has other high wear steels at similar prices.

There is a W2 cusrom forged Phillip Patton right now on the exchange for $250. Absutely gorgeous knife. He just sold its twin in AEBL for the same price.

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/recurved-camp-utility-knife.1750429/

There is a custom bushcraft knife on the cusrom makers for sale forum right now with a m390 blade for exactly $200

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/classic-bushcraft-with-bohler-m390-3-5-mm-in-micarta.1749477/


There are a whole ton of steels out there that I'd not hesitate to buy from a cusrom maker ( or a production maker I enjoy for that matter )

I have cpm3v and AEBL, but I have a lot of steels I enjoy all the way down to simple carbon steels etc.



 
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My New Livesay 'Wicked Knives' knives were more rust resistant than any carbon steel had a right to be and held a much better edge than common 1095 knives today. I'm not sure what Newt's heat treat 'magic' was but, it sure worked!

I need a 'pocket fixed blade' that I can keep in a heavily sweat-soaked pants pocket in high humidity East Texas. That has me thinking of the better stainless options. I have had some bad results with ATS-34 so, I am a bit skeptical of a lot of them with thin edges. AEBL is known for good kitchen knives so, in my application should work pretty well with a thin edge and potentially salty (sweat and salt water exposure) or slightly acidic (plants) uses. CPM 3V is sorta, kinda, semi-rust resistant maybe similar to D2 so, it seems like a good thin edge choice as well. However, I'm not hard-over it MUST be one of those two steel choices. The knife MUST be fit for purpose!
 
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