Who does not like "supersteels"?

I have a D2 Ontario and sharpening it is a pain in the ass.
It's just whether you have to do it often for a few minutes, or seldom and it takes hours.

Every time I see statements like these, I think back to the first time I tried D2. I bought a KME diamond system and it still took a good while to sharpen it. Once it was sharp then re sharpening only took a few minutes. When I thought back on that first sharpening I really wasn't sharpening, I was re-profiling. Re-profiling the newer steels can take a while but once sharp, they resharpen easily.

If it takes 3 minutes to resharpen 1095 it only takes a couple minutes more to resharpen S90V. If you have the “correct sharpening medium”, and take a little time to learn the characteristics of the steel. Jumping from 420HC to S30V you kind of have to re learn how to sharpen.

Fifteen years after that first D2 I don't rely on diamonds to re-profile. Instead depending on the steel I have 120 to 400 aluminium oxide or 120 to 600 silican carbide. I can use more pressure and remove a lot of steel with those stones. Then and for sharpening only, I use the 600 diamond or 800 Boron Carbide.

For me need has nothing to do with anything, I enjoy the performance of the newer steels. Some days 420HC,12C27, C75 or some other low carbon simple steel would be fine. Some days those steels won't cut it for the days use and it aggravates the hay out of me to have to resharpen half way through the day. It means the edge failed to do it's job.

In the 70's I came to hate the old stainless steels. Today the newer stainless steels are the greatest thing since sliced bread. They hold an incredible edge, several times longer than the old steels. They're the wash and wear of steel that doesn't get that horrible, nasty, dirty, uncared for look defined by some as patina.

If you're scraping, prying or doing other stupid non knife jobs, or just like a steel that's easy to sharpen on cheap stones. Then the newer steels might not be the best choice.
My knife use is cutting and slicing only and I like performance. I like Super Steel.
 
I love cheaper steels like Buck 420hc,Victorinox stainless,Opinel 12c27mod,Solingen c75 ,Solingen 440c,aus8 and aus 10.Still like d2,and also s30v,and cts xhp by Cold steel.D2and s30v are easy to sharpen on norton crystolon and Dmt stones.Heat treat and geometry is much more important than steels at the end.High carbide steels are harder to sharpen in field,while simpler steels like 12c27 or Victorinox can be sharoened on bottom of coffee mug or whatever and be brought back to razor sharp in seconds.Done it many times on road and Victorinox locking blade was my only knife for any task and performed flawlessly.
 
Ps.i might get a knife in m4 soon,to .test it out,am sure its excellent steel.Folding dmt sharpeners make it easy to touch up harder supersteels,once the primary bevel is set on belt sander or stone.
 
I was looking at m4. I work outdoors and with sweaty pockets it doesn't sound like a great idea. NY State is concealed carry so it can only be in the pocket.
 
Its coated,on Benchmade knives,my buddy has BM with m4,its excellent steel,I love 12c27,behaves like carbon in any way,but stainless so no problens,i travel a lot in s america,its humid and i sweat a lot,thats why i use Victorinox and Opinels in stainless,have carried Opinel no7 in carbon too,and it isnt too bad,after it develops patina,just wipe it off right away and no problems,but still with ease of sharpening and all around utility and usefullness Victorinox SAKs rule!
 
Bill3152 said:
I was looking at m4. I work outdoors and with sweaty pockets it doesn't sound like a great idea. NY State is concealed carry so it can only be in the pocket.
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have you looked at Spyderco h1 serrated knives? Rust proof and top notch edge retention, the plain edge h1 doesn't perform anywhere near as well. I'm beating up two of their serrated Byrd knives in 8cr13mov and their work horses as well, just trying to find out what I like before I spring for h1.
 
I have a good range of knives in different steels that suit my needs. I'm using at the moment a manly wasp in s90v. I spend some time in NYC. So a slip joint is a little more relaxing to carry due to the knife laws. What I will say though is the better steels definitely hold an edge better. Although I have no problem giving a knife a few licks on a dmt.
 
H1 is good steel,and all knives by Manly,heat treat on them is awesome,have their 12c27,holds edge for long time.
 
If all you do is ocassionally open some mails, peel an apple, or cut a sandwich, supersteels are perhaps over killing. If you cut abrasive stuff for extended periods of time, 440c and m390 will make a major difference.
 
Bob6794 said:
If you abuse them a super steel and more common steel like 440a will have the same edge retention from my experience.

Diamond stones help negate this but it still takes more time to sharpen a super steel. It's something I have to deal with at work due to the nature of my job.

So I don't have any particular love or hate for super steels as they aren't super for me. Plus I tend to have a sharpener handy or grab a small one when I have a lot of cutting to do to help maintain a high degree of sharpness so I kind of negate the entire point of super steels.

One of my favorite steels is still 440a from rough rider, I've abused their knives before and never had any issues and I swear if I look at it funny with a stone in hand I can scare it sharp.
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I bought a diamond sharpening set (the Smith one) for the Ontario. It's my only "supersteel" knife (if D2 is a supersteel) and I didn't want to spend more on the stone than I did the knife. If it works out I may get something better but I have to be mindful of the budget.

It will sharpen that Ontario though. I think as it gets used it will get less aggressive.

Sometimes if the Ontario gets dull, I have to "bench it" for a while because it does take a while to sharpen.
 
lonestar1979 said:
I was wondering,how many people here do not like so called supersteels,that hold edge forever,but are also harder to sharpen?I do not hate supersteels,and my only supersteel is s30v and d2,lol,but am just satisfied how the steels that are easier to sharpen perform and dont mind sharpening more often.Also i prefer razor sharp edge,and most suoersteels hold that working edge long but lose razor edge quickly ,then youre stuck with so so sharp forever.I love 12c27,440c,1075 and 1095,also d2 and still think that heat treat along with gwometry is what makes the knife perform,not so much the steel.all input welcome.
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These days, I don't really care what the blade steel is, as long as it's from a reputable company and it seems to fit the knife's intended uses. I use a Wicked Edge with some loaded and bare strops for finishing and I've had no trouble maintaining steels up to, and including, S110V. Sharpening is therapy for me, so I like to do it. It's my second-level therapy activity just below "fuzz therapy" (supplied in abundance by my dogs) :D.

I'm actually more concerned about what steel my knife ISN'T... i.e. "unnamed", "surgical stainless", "Campbell's Soup tin", etc.
 
dalefuller said:
These days, I don't really care what the blade steel is, as long as it's from a reputable company and it seems to fit the knife's intended uses. I use a Wicked Edge with some loaded and bare strops for finishing and I've had no trouble maintaining steels up to, and including, S110V. Sharpening is therapy for me, so I like to do it. It's my second-level therapy activity just below "fuzz therapy" (supplied in abundance by my dogs) :D.

I'm actually more concerned about what steel my knife ISN'T... i.e. "unnamed", "surgical stainless", "Campbell's Soup tin", etc.
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I did always wonder what Case's "Surgical Stainless Steel" is.....

I do check the package or the blade for the steel content before I buy a knife though.
 
lonestar1979 said:
I was wondering,how many people here do not like so called supersteels,that hold edge forever,but are also harder to sharpen?I do not hate supersteels,and my only supersteel is s30v and d2,lol,but am just satisfied how the steels that are easier to sharpen perform and dont mind sharpening more often.Also i prefer razor sharp edge,and most suoersteels hold that working edge long but lose razor edge quickly ,then youre stuck with so so sharp forever.I love 12c27,440c,1075 and 1095,also d2 and still think that heat treat along with gwometry is what makes the knife perform,not so much the steel.all input welcome.
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What I don't like so much is not the steels themselves but how many people are offering them at a premium price and then putting a heat treat on them that doesn't let them outperform S30V or S35VN with a good heat treat.
 
Heat treat on some of these super steels is less than optimal and you have cheaper steels outperforming them.As far as im concerned ctsxhp is the most supersteel i need and is excellent steel,as done by cold steel,but still like easy to sharpen low carbide steels ,d2is also very good,along with s30v,just with proper ht.Most manufacturers treat steels lower on rockwell scale,because of warranty issues,they dont want broken knives returning,so they give them softer ht,thats what i read on forums ....but am not sure,i dont really care about type of steel as long it has decent edge holding and i can sharpen it,even Victorinox steel is good in my book and better than many offerings that i encountered.
 
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Many manuf.put lousy ht on s35vn lately,and many pple on forums and yt say itis much worse than s30v,just easier to work with,but with worse edge holding....its marketing people,some are good and some crappy.dont believe all the hype,hype is made to sell more knives
 
A little off topic but this video has some very good points
Although he puts a lot of importance in stain resistance, and for me is not a problem at all.
 
lonestar1979 said:
Heat treat on some of these super steels is less than optimal and you have cheaper steels outperforming them.As far as im concerned ctsxhp is the most supersteel i need and is excellent steel,as done by cold steel,but still like easy to sharpen low carbide steels ,d2is also very good,along with s30v,just with proper ht.Most manufacturers treat steels lower on rockwell scale,because of warranty issues,they dont want broken knives returning,so they give them softer ht,thats what i read on forums ....but am not sure,i dont really care about type of steel as long it has decent edge holding and i can sharpen it,even Victorinox steel is good in my book and better than many offerings that i encountered.
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I totally agree with you that a lot of companies low ball the ht on their super steels.
It is really ridiculous because most of those knives don’t even get used and that is why you rarely hear about these knives under performing.
 
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