wont stay sharp

adammichael

adammichael

Joined
Sep 13, 2004
Messages
1,553
I have a small sebenza that I just had a new polished s30v blade put on by Chris Reeve. after about 3 weeks of carying it and using it maybe 10 times to cut clear packing tape, its so dull i cant cut anything with it. When I say cutting clear tape I mean stabbing it and then ripping the tape. Can someone tell me why such a great knife has such $hitty edge holding ability? Im ready to dump this on Ebay and get something else.
 
How did it cut before the new polished s30v blade? Maybe something is wrong with the new blade.
 
I would suspect a problem with the edge of the blade, either a wire edge or a less-than-spectacular sharpening job from CRK. I've had a couple of new Sebenzas that were not well sharpened. But every one I've sent back for re-sharpening has come back with an outstanding edge. Go figure.

All of my Sebenzas hold their edge well, however, once they get a good sharpening. I've had a dozen so far and never had a problem with their edge holding ability. My wife EDCs a small Sebbie and she is not... repeat, not... kind to her EDC blades. After a year of carrying the same knife, though, all it ever needs is a cleaning and a touch up with a strop, or maybe an occasional visit to the U/F Sharpmaker rods in an extreme case.
 
Could you post some pictures of the edge with the highest zoom possible?
 
Mr. Clean said:
You don't by chance mean the fiberglass reinforced packing tape do you?
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not the fiberglass.

The edge holding is horrible on this knife. There is no wire edge on it.

The blade I had replaced wasnt any better. This is the 3rd blade I had on this knife. The first one was rusting after I cleaned it. I was told by CR that it is normal for it to rust and i should have dried it off. I sent it in and they said the heat treat was bad and they replaced the blade. I sharpened the second blade alot because it wouldnt hold an edge and then decided to get a new polished blade put on. It was reblasted and cam back looking brand new. A few weeks later it wont cut worth a damn.

Its very frustrating. I shouldnt have to have the blade rockwell tested to check there heat treat on a $350 knife. I have a rockwell tester so thanks very much for the offer to test it but i dont see what good it will do. Is CRK good about replacing blades untill I get one that will stay sharp for more than 20 cuts in plastic tape?
 
Well, I got to admit that I find the edge holding on my Seb to be quite poor. Have to sharpen it more then other knives that I use just as much. I would love if Chris would put them 2/3 points higher on the rockwell scale. Or off course, S60V or S90V;)

PS: I just saw your site, great knives! And seeing you use S60V and BG42 I think you are rather spoiled with edge holding:p Those two steels would be much better for the Seb if you ask me
 
I just peeped at your site...obviously you know how to sharpen a knife.

If you don't like the Reeve then dump it and make your own to standards that fit your needs.

Reeve uses S30V just like many others.

If you have a hardness tester...why don't you test the hardness and if there is a issue you should be discussing this with Chris Reeve Knives.

They are a production knife and as such i would guess that one might come across a bad one once and a while but three in a row as you claim doesn't seem the norm for Reeve.

They have great service and should be able to take care of you but maybe you will just never be happy with S30V.

Also , i own one of the new decorated umnumzaans and the blade is wicked sharp...like no other Reeve i have owned....Maybe there is a change in steel comming in future Reeve's...guess we will see what the future holds.
 
You're on your 3rd blade..? Maybe the bevel angle was/is too high? I havn't had any problems with sharpness on my S30V Sebbies. A light touch up on a stone was all they have ever needed (I sometimes use a dremel or strop to polish the edge). I don't cut a lot of tape, mostly cardboard, plastic straps, and opening letters.

I would be shocked if it's a quality control issue; 3 bad blades in a row is just too many. There has been some discussion regarding micro-chiping with S30V, but that should go away after the blade has been resharpened once or twice. I didn't have any micro-chiping problems with my Sebbies, or perhaps I just never noticed. In the unlikely circumstance that you have been unlucky with 3 bad blades, just pick one up 2nd hand that has already been put to the test. If that one turns out to be a dud, then it's probably not the blade. Just my two cents.
 
I've got the same problem with my sebbie and my mnandi. Both hold an edge like a $5 cheapo knife. I reprofiled the mnandi to a 30 degree edge which didn't help much. I sent the sebbie to Bark River to put their awesome convex edge on it. It came back incredibly sharp. It holds a little longer but I still need to touch it up once a week after opening my mail. Spyderco's s30v and VG-10 have fared much much better. Bark River heat treated blades blow CR out of the water.

CR makes beautifully engineered works of art. Mine just don't hold an edge very well. I rotate them through my office EDC. But I'll never take a CR into the field.
 
You must be sharpening wrong , perhaps too fine an angle.The Sebenza I think does better with a microserration edge.To say it dulls cutting plastic packaging tape means either incorrect sharpening .I think even the softest steel will hold up to tape as you can cut it with many things even a key.
 
fzen said:
I've got the same problem with my sebbie and my mnandi. Both hold an edge like a $5 cheapo knife. I reprofiled the mnandi to a 30 degree edge which didn't help much. I sent the sebbie to Bark River to put their awesome convex edge on it. It came back incredibly sharp. It holds a little longer but I still need to touch it up once a week after opening my mail. Spyderco's s30v and VG-10 have fared much much better. Bark River heat treated blades blow CR out of the water.

CR makes beautifully engineered works of art. Mine just don't hold an edge very well. I rotate them through my office EDC. But I'll never take a CR into the field.
Click to expand...

I didnt think it was a quality control issue when every blade had the same issue. (except the first one) I had a small Sebenza a few years ago and it didnt hold an edge either. I ended up selling it.

I didnt sharpen this knife. This is the way it came from the factory.

The majority of the cutting i did with it was for packaging up my MAP Arms. The majority of the cutting was tape. I also opened a few box's, cut some foam for packaging up a microscope, things like that. I didnt do anything that should be a problem for a $350 knife.
 
The last Seb I had seemed sharper than my current one. My new one hasn't seen any use but I decided to use a Sharpmaker to make the edge a little keener than factory. I think it's ok now but maybe sending it in would give me a great edge? It's hard to compare when I'm now used to the Lightsaber sharp blades from Murray Carter. But those are fixed blades and a whole different story. I think it may be time for a Seb or Mnandi with a damascus blade...
 
CRK's blades are very good for me in edge holding. Some others(like Strider), not so much.
 
gull wing said:
CRK's blades are very good for me in edge holding. Some others(like Strider), not so much.
Click to expand...

Really? I have never really put any CRK to the test, I tend to baby them along with most of my knives. I had a Shadow I and it was pretty damn sharp. I liked the A2 but don't know how long it would hold an edge. I did not know this about Strider. I have a Strider SA but I have not used it and I'm trying to get rid of it. I wanted a SnG but if the blade sucks I don't want it.
 
I am sorry Mr. Kanter but don't you think you should have taken the complaint to Mr Reeve before posting here? Wouldn't you, as a knifemaker want the same courtesy? By the way I think your work is very, very fine.

Shike
 
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