Why D2 instead of something like CTS-XHP or M390? Help me understand!

I don't think anyone has mentioned it yet, but d2 takes a real good polish, which might be another reason for choosing it over others.
 
shqxk said:
From the view of vast majority of people, buying $300 folding knife is also pointless man.

Be aware that you are in a knife forum, discussing any thing about steel is absolutely make sense. Saying that the difference among steel is pointless would referring that you actually have a little knowledge about cutting tool.
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I am a student of many things in life, and I'm sure you're correct that I have many more things to learn about cutting tools. However, I highly doubt that I'm wrong in previous assertion--for the vast majority of users, in the vast majority of uses, steel snobbery is silly.

I cut wood with knives, for hours at a time. Soft wood, hard wood, cutting for hours. The knives I use for this purpose are folding knives that have AUS-8 blades, and they work just fine. If those knives were compared with knives that had the same geometry but 200% the edge retention, say a similar knife in M390/CTS-204p/S90V/S110V or whatever, the only difference would be in how frequently they needed sharpening. So instead of stropping them before I used them I would perhaps need to strop them once before using them and once while I was using them. Keep in mind these knives are cutting wood, continuously, for hours--not just opening the odd package or slicing an occasional apple.

The reality is that for the vast majority of users, in the vast majority of uses, doubling or even tripling edge retention or toughness or whatever will make very little difference.
 
Everybody should try a properly heat treated D2/CPM-D2 blade, or whatever blade steel you pick, just keep it sharp. :)
 
evilgreg said:
The reality is that for the vast majority of users, in the vast majority of uses, doubling or even tripling edge retention or toughness or whatever will make very little difference.
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Pretty much the way I see it within reason. People used 440A a great deal years ago and touted it as being great steel then. Then you have all these other steels being used. 440A took a back seat and now you're seeing it again on "better" knives and people are saying... great steel. It is all about selling knives. Most people aren't going to buy 5 of the same thing or 5 similar knives unless they have used them up or lost them. But if the pattern you like is brought out in a new steel... you buy it even though you already have others that have done you perfectly well for years. Marketing.... selling..... making money.....
 
D2 works. I have a queen country cousin that I shapened 6+ months ago and it is still going strong. And it was a poor sharpening job on a Lansky to boot. And, for me, it is stainless enough to not leave much after taste.
 
22-rimfire said:
Pretty much the way I see it within reason. People used 440A a great deal years ago and touted it as being great steel then. Then you have all these other steels being used. 440A took a back seat and now you're seeing it again on "better" knives and people are saying... great steel. It is all about selling knives. Most people aren't going to buy 5 of the same thing or 5 similar knives unless they have used them up or lost them. But if the pattern you like is brought out in a new steel... you buy it even though you already have others that have done you perfectly well for years. Marketing.... selling..... making money.....
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Correct me if I'm wrong on this, but I think D2 was too hard to sharpen to make a viable production steel a few decades ago. Customers complained about the Buck 110's 440C being too hard to sharpen back in the 80's. Older folks using traditional stones were used to getting fast edges with more traditional steels & didn't like it. The big improvement in edge holding D2 offered wouldn't have been worth it to most knife users back then. Modern knife nuts are all about edge retention & use more modern sharpeners so D2 probably has more of a place in the market, at least for the knife nuts.
 
Freman Bloodglaive said:
Who makes a folder in the 3.5 to 4 inch range with FFG in D2?
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Queen Cutlery has a medium lockback, actually they have a few different knives in D2. If you can find one, Spyderco ParaMilitary in CPM-D2.
Do you have to have FFG?
There is the Kizlyar Supreme Biker Z(I have never heard of this company, but they make a few D2 knives). Lion Steel makes some. Benchmade also makes some.
Good luck, there are a lot of choices out there.
 
Great. All this D2 talk ALMOST made me add a Kabar/ESEE "D'Eskabar" to my "cart" last night (among other things I superfluously added) while doing a little X-Mas knife shopping.
 
I noted on the first page, and I still say I prefer Stainless in a folder. I actually do have a D2 Folder but I use it super rarely. It's a Knives of Alaska folding Hunter. I've tested the steel and sharpened it but that's about it.

With fixed blades I have preferences but the main thing I don't want in a steel is one putting off an odor/taste with food prep (such as 1095), which I do a lot of with whatever knife I have on me. And typically on a FB one can completely clean the knife in every nook. Not so with folders. For me, in an actual EDC folder I prefer stainless for sure. If there were two identical folding knives in front of me (Like two Para 2s, two Microtech Socom Deltas or two Benchmade Griptilians), one with D2 - the other with S35VN, not only would I choose the S35VN. I would shell out extra bucks for it. Now if the two steels were S35VN and 154CM I would be less likely to pay a significant premium (such as is available for the Griptilian) for the upgrade to S35VN. I do prefer S35VN(or S30V) to 154CM. But 154CM covers a lot of my interests.
 
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The D2 used on some of my Benchamde pieces had really impressed me far and above from what I had expected. It's a great steel, holds a really nice edge for a long time, and for me does not corrode. My guess would be that the cost of super steels is far above what it would be for D2, also the limited availability and recommended/advanced heat treating of super steels might put them at a higher price point. I won't turn my nose up a well done D2, in fact it's been a good choice for me over the last several years.
 
There always seems to be some new "super steel" that's the latest greatest thing. People rave about it for a year or two and then it fades away but for some reason D2 has remained popular with knifemakers for many years even though people love to complain about it being hard to sharpen, or not stainless enough, or not fine grained enough. I'm guessing the reason is because its a good all around steel that knife makers feel comfortable working with.
 
It's a very solid performer, short answer; if it ain't broken don't fix it.
D2 is some tough mofo. Yes, it's not the toughest steel around, but with a decent design it can take some serious abuse. Yes, it pits when it rusts, but one has to try to make it rust given proper maintenance.
In my uses, high end PM steels like M390, Elmax, S30v, S35vn the edge all tend to flatten when compared to D2 when the edge comes into contact with other metal (HT'ed or not) while D2 simply just shrugs it off (YMMV).
When not using diamonds it also sharpens much faster when compared to higher end abrasive resistant steels like M390 when the edge is completely dull, like a plastic butter knife dull (again YMMV).

Have a CPM 3V inbound soon(GSO-3.5), it seem to be like D2 with juiced up toughness to some pretty ludicrous level.


Off topic: All this talk about D2 is making me itch for a Ka-Bar BK24, but no B&M imports them and international shipping cost an arm and a leg.:mad:
 
No one has mentioned that D2 cannot be as sharp as some others. It's large chromium carbides provide a good wear resistant edge but limit it's sharpnes. Sharpness is defined by the smallest radius that steel can have .Because of the large carbides in D2 a CPM type will be sharper !!
 
mete said:
No one has mentioned that D2 cannot be as sharp as some others. It's large chromium carbides provide a good wear resistant edge but limit it's sharpnes. Sharpness is defined by the smallest radius that steel can have .Because of the large carbides in D2 a CPM type will be sharper !!
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This is pretty much a non issue as far as I'm concerned. D2 might not be able to get as sharp as some of the fine grained steels like AEB-L or Hitachi White/Blue but it can still take a hair whittling edge which is plenty sharp for me.
 
mete said:
No one has mentioned that D2 cannot be as sharp as some others. It's large chromium carbides provide a good wear resistant edge but limit it's sharpnes. Sharpness is defined by the smallest radius that steel can have .Because of the large carbides in D2 a CPM type will be sharper !!
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I have a couple of D2 knives by Bob Dozier and they get plenty sharp for me. For any function I need a knife to perform, the microscopic differences in carbide size and that impact on sharpness is meaningless. Of course, for some this could be a deal breaker but I'd be surprised if that applies to anyone other than people just going for a "perfect" edge just because they like it.
 
Yeah, D2, I just bought a Kabar Becker BK-24. I like the steel and have little need for the latest and greatest steel. They charge more for these new steels. Worth it? Probably to some.

Flatface77, I think you're probably right about the hardness of D2 relative to sharpening. It wasn't so long ago that corrundum bench stones were about as good as it got for sharpening knives. The old Bucks were difficult to sharpen and for that reason, I only bought a 110 a couple years ago. Basically, I ignored the entire Buck line of knives since I was a kid. Still do for the most part even though they have switched steels and hardness. I have moved on...

My Doziers are plenty sharp for me too.
 
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