wich knife company does s35vn best?

M

mantzao

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Jun 16, 2011
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Hello guys,

I remember when the steel first came out that it had some pretty negative reviews but now a lot more companies, like microtech, hinderer and others are using it.
Personally I never tried it because of those reviews but since it keeps popping up on some of the latest knife models I believe it will be inevitable for me to try it.
So guys, wich ones are worth trying?
Wich company does it best?

Thanks for looking:)
 
I heard Strider do the best heat treatment among production, follow by Microtech.
 
Out of the knives I own, spyderco does it pretty good, and crk does it horribly
 
Don't put to much stock into reviews. Many don't have a clue what they are doing, and it's best to try it yourself to really know. Spyderco and CRK does it well IMO, and I have no others with it.
It's a great all around steel IMO. Tough, and holds a pretty good edge.
 
Some makers will heat treat S35VN to 58-59 Rockwell Hardness. Others will push it to 59-60. The ONLY area where I notice a difference is in sharpening. But that's because I'm anal with keeping my knives SHARP. Both hardnesses have their theories and intended uses. One HRC point is significant.

At a lower hardness you will have an overall tougher blade whos edge will tend to roll Instead of chip. Those who believe that there is a big difference in edge retention are just not being careful with sharpening. In my experience it is easier to raise a burr but more difficult to remove that burr. If the burr does not get removed, the knife will seem sharp until the burr bends over creating a fairly dull edge. Your options are seemingly 1. poorly resharpen and go through it again or 2. just use the knife, slowly removing the softer, folded, "wire edge" eventually attaining a good working edge. Best thing to do if you don't know whether you've removed the burr or not is to whack the edge on a piece of hardwood. It will not affect a good job, but should be an obvious flat spot if you have not removed the burr.
Higher hardness will hold a razor edge an unperceivable, in my use, amount. The big bonus in the higher hardness is that the edge will chip away on a micro level, quickly attaining & retaining a nice "working edge" for quite a while.

In my opinion neither is better. I enjoy both.
58-59 is arguably tougher/more durable but requires more attention when sharpening.
59-60 even if you do a poor sharpening job and don't remove the burr it'll just break off, leaving a decent edge.

ANY S30V/S35VN keeps a "working edge" for a looong time.
 
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So my contribution to this thread is a question. does anyone have any experience that s35vn is any tougher than s30v. I do love the extended cutting of s30v due to carbides. But I have had a little edge chipping problem. Although I don't have a lot of experience with the steel. I have chipped out my ZT350 a couple of times, mostly due to things you shouldn't do with a knife anyway.
 
I should mention that my testing mainly involves CRK and Shirogorov at 58-59 and Strider and Spyderco at 59-60. I've had others but the two I actually spent hours testing head to head were a CRK Sm Seb and a Strider mini SJ75 both w S35VN.
 
I would say Strider. Ive been work EDCing a SMF in s35vn since early April this year and after my initial sharping at 42 degrees inclusive on my Edge Pro now I just strop it as needed to maintain a great working edge that will pop hairs off my arm. Im in commercial /residential construction and remodeling and I use my knife at least 50 times a day from sharping my pencil to opening bags of concrete mix, and cutting annoying "zip" ties. Strider S35vn seems to hold a better edge than on my CRK Sebensa Insigo that I use for lighter tasks. A Microtech is on my list of knives I want to get this year looking at a Delta. The steel I wish that was used in Midtech - higher end production knives would be M390 that steel so far in my use is much better than s30v or s35vn.
 
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