ZDP-189 edge chipping test:

DennisStrickland said:
very good edge retension, i see no problem with the edge after a strenuous workout. zdp seems to work well in regular pocket knives.--dennis
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Spyderco keeps the hardness at around 65 HRC on the Endura 4, that seems to be a good balance between edge holding and toughness for the steel.

ZDP won't roll at 65 HRC.
 
I think it would be natural to expect a touchup whenever you cut up coffee cans. I don't understand the reason for this post or the intent behind it? Are you happy with the results? Not happy? Just bored and decided to try this? Between girlfriends or something? :D
 
I dont think it matters why he did the test, its very interesting, and its why i continue to come back to bladeforums time and time again. Thanks for all the work, im looking forward to the s30v test :)
 
It must be something with the name, but a lot of useful information seems to come from 'Jims' around here. ;)
 
cziv said:
I think it would be natural to expect a touchup whenever you cut up coffee cans. I don't understand the reason for this post or the intent behind it? Are you happy with the results? Not happy? Just bored and decided to try this? Between girlfriends or something? :D
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it's did it for 2 reasons:

1. misinformation. there is too much guessing and speculating, especially when it comes to ZDP. someone describes it as "chippy", then a few people adopt the idea that ZDP-189 = chippy. before you know it ZDP gets a rep for being chippy and brittle. people looking to buy a knife might shy away from ZDP because they don't want to take the chance of having their blade chip.

2. to add more actual tested information to the knife world. i do alot of reading on reviews and tests performed by others and that helps me increase my knowledge. to pay it forward and help others i take my time out to perform tests and add another piece to the puzzle.
 
jimnolimit said:
it's did it for 2 reasons:

1. misinformation. there is too much guessing and speculating, especially when it comes to ZDP. someone describes it as "chippy", then a few people adopt the idea that ZDP-189 = chippy. before you know it ZDP gets a rep for being chippy and brittle. people looking to buy a knife might shy away from ZDP because they don't want to take the chance of having their blade chip.

2. to add more actual tested information to the knife world. i do alot of reading on reviews and tests performed by others and that helps me increase my knowledge. to pay it forward and help others i take my time out to perform tests and add another piece to the puzzle.
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Thanks, I wasn't trying to be an *sshole I just wondered. Not for nothing but my Izulas 1095 steel will do that and still have a mirror edge. That's not under the knid of magnification you're using. It must be a "bit" chippy then right?
 
cziv said:
Thanks, I wasn't trying to be an *sshole I just wondered. Not for nothing but my Izulas 1095 steel will do that and still have a mirror edge. That's not under the knid of magnification you're using. It must be a "bit" chippy then right?
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no problem.

the thickness of the blade right behind the cutting edge plays a huge roll in that. the pictures im taking are at 40x-50x, the edge still looks excellent to the naked eye (and i have very good eyesight). if i handed you my endura 4 right now, you wouldn't even know i cut a bunch of metal with it (i cut even more metal, pics coming in a few minutes).
 
i decided to take the test one step further and use my endura 4 ZDP-189 and S30V para 2 (new thread coming soon), to cut lines in the side of a three liter olive oil can. these cuts were made in the olive oil can after cutting the coffee can (both knives) and some cardboard. i didn't sharpen either edge throughout the entire test. each line took about 4 cuts using only the 1 inch section of blade i marked off.

this is the ZDP-189 edge (40x-50x magnification) after 3 cuts to the olive oil can:

ZDPafter2canandoilcan3cuts.jpg




this is the ZDP edge after 6 cuts to the olive oil can:

ZDPafter2canandoilcan6cuts.jpg




this is what the can looked like after 7 cuts with both the endura 4 ZDP FFG and S30V para 2:

s30v-ZDP2canandoilcancut.jpg




i wanted to see how well each knife cut after:

1. cutting the top out of a coffee can
2. cutting the coffee can in half
3. slicing 15-25 piece of card board (about 2 inch long pieces)
4. slicing 7 lines in the side of the olive oil can (each lines took 4 cuts)


this is a credit card application (junk mail):

s30v-ZDPlettercutaftermetal.jpg
 
I have had to open a can with a knife before when I was on the trail and forgot a can opener and didn't have one on my multi tool. True most of us don't use our EDC's for opening cans and many consider it abuse but I for one like to see how a particular steel holds up during tough tasks. Ive been looking at trying ZDP 189 but probably won't unless I buy a Caly 3.5. It just seems like when you get into that high end of a steel M390 and S90v will out perform it and likely not be as brittle. But then again knives with those steels are rare and usually far more expensive.
 
i took the test even further. i used both knives to keep cutting the olive oil can. each made 18 cuts in total to the can (after the coffee can and cardboard).


here is the olive oil can after the additional 8 cuts for each knife (15 cut's in total for each):

ZDP-s30v15cutsoilcan.jpg




here is a credit card application (junk mail) after 15 cuts. i had to use a sawing motion for each, but the S30V required at least twice the amount of strokes to get a decent cut.

zdp-s30vletter15cuts.jpg




here is copy paper after an additional 3 cuts each into the olive oil can (18 cuts in total for each). again the S30V required at least twice the amount of sawing to achieve the cut:

zdp-s30vcpoypaper18oilcancuts.jpg




here is the olive oil can after the test:

zdp-s30vmetalcutfinal.jpg
 
this is the last part of the test. i decided to try and cut through the rim of the oil can (after all the other tests). i pushed down on the spine of the knife with about 35 lbs of pressure and rocked the handle back and forth about 12-15 times.

zdpoilcanrimcuttable.jpg




here is the ZDP:

zdpoilcanrimcut.jpg




here is the S30V:

s30voilcanrimcut1.jpg
 
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How are you sharpening them to ensure the edge angle is the same? That's some interesting stuff regardless. I remember when S30V was constantly being attacked as being prone to chipping.
 
Kaizen1 said:
How are you sharpening them to ensure the edge angle is the same? That's some interesting stuff regardless. I remember when S30V was constantly being attacked as being prone to chipping.
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i do all of my sharpening freehand (with many different stones). i have been sharpening a long time and i have sharpened many many pieces of steel over the years. i have good muscle control and hand/eye coordination, im pretty accurate.
 
my daughter just asked for a piece of cardboard concrete form. this tube is 8.5" in diameter, the ZDP just cut it easily (after all the steel cuts).

zdpconcreteform.jpg
 
wow, I think that's a great service your doing ! I've been curious about that for a while, that's about how imagined it would go and it would be cool to see some lower end steel results I'm not suggesting anything!again thanks
 
jimnolimit said:
this is the last part of the test. i decided to try and cut through the rim of the oil can (after all the other tests). i pushed down on the spine of the knife with about 35 lbs of pressure and rocked the handle back and forth about 12 times.

zdpoilcanrimcuttable.jpg


here is the ZDP:

zdpoilcanrimcut.jpg




here is the S30V:

s30voilcanrimcut1.jpg
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I hope you knew S30V is tougher than ZDP to start with.

I am not suprised at those results.
 
BITEME said:
wow, I think that's a great service your doing ! I've been curious about that for a while, that's about how imagined it would go and it would be cool to see some lower end steel results I'm not suggesting anything!again thanks
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you welcome.

i don't have another olive oil can to cut ;).

p.s. i normally run my EDC blades at 15-20 degrees per side which is why i tested these blades around 17-20 degrees per side (probably closer to 20). im pretty confident that if i set the ZDP and S30V edges at 25-30 degrees per side they would held up even better to all the metal cutting.
 
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Ankerson said:
I hope you knew S30V is tougher than ZDP to start with.

I am not suprised at those results.
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absolutely. the ZDP did even better than i thought it would. the ZDP didn't showed any signs of damage until i tried cutting through the crimped rim.

those pics are at 40x-50x magnification, to the naked eye, the small dents and chips are only slightly noticeable.
 
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Thanks for doing these tests! I love all the "real" tests that help all of us understand steels and blades in so much more depth!
 
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