ZDP-189 steel - not that impressed

[ejames13]

I was recently given a Spyderco DFII in ZDP-189 and was pretty excited based on reports I had heard regarding the superior edge holding abilities of this steel. However, after using it for a little over a week I've been a little disappointed.

Factory edge was hair popping sharp out of the box, but after cutting down a few cardboard boxes it would no longer shave hair. I reprofiled it with the diamond sharpmaker rods to 30deg inclusive and then gave it a 40deg microbevel. Didn't go up to the white stones but still got it hair shaving sharp with the browns. I then went and broke down a cardboard box, cutting it along all the pre folded lines, and after that it barely shaves hair now.

What's your experience been with ZDP-189? Am I missing something??

 

[The Aflac Duck]

Are you stroping to eliminate any burrs? If you still have a slight burr, edge retention will be bad regardless of steel type.

 

[devieduran]

Are you stroping to eliminate any burrs? If you still have a slight burr, edge retention will be bad regardless of steel type.

i'm agree with you

 

[Popsickle]

yup, its a steel ran extremely high so make sure your burr is gone

 

[ejames13]

Are you stroping to eliminate any burrs? If you still have a slight burr, edge retention will be bad regardless of steel type.

I don't strop, but I feel pretty confident I am removing the burr with extremely light passes on the stones at the end. Besides, as I said, the same thing happened with the factory edge. I didn't feel a burr on that either.

Don't get me wrong, the edge seems to last longer than say s30v...just not as long as I was expecting.

 

[Gaston444]

I wonder in a blind test who would be able to rank anything "correctly"... Am I really the only one whose edge retention varies from sharpening to sharpening on the same blade? And no burr in play either...

Gaston

 

[Jason B.]

Cardboard is tough stuff, not real surprised.

 

[wolf-man-12]

I carry about 98% of the time ~~ a Delica ZDP189 clipped in my left pocket and I use it about everyday or close to it and every time I sharpen it or any other Knife I Strop the Blade.! Which is about once a month and believe me ~~ it is "Sharp" for another month or more.! More or less the same thing I do with my Razor I do to my EDC Knives and all I own is a Sharpmaker and 4 Strops.!**

 

[Boris74]

I wonder in a blind test who would be able to rank anything "correctly"... Am I really the only one whose edge retention varies from sharpening to sharpening on the same blade? And no burr in play either...

Gaston

I notice a difference in edge retention between sharpenings depending on what it is I use it for between sharpenings. If duties remain the same it's pretty much the same interval.

That's the only difference I notice.

 

[Insipid Moniker]

I don't strop, but I feel pretty confident I am removing the burr with extremely light passes on the stones at the end. Besides, as I said, the same thing happened with the factory edge. I didn't feel a burr on that either.

Don't get me wrong, the edge seems to last longer than say s30v...just not as long as I was expecting.

That actually sounds about right to me. Lasts longer than S30V, but not as long as some of the other high-end steels available.

 

[brownshoe]

William Henry edge lasts for at lasts much longer than that. I hAve stropped my edge just because, but in a year it hasn't really needed sharpening.

 

[hank_rearden]

my opinion is you don't need a roll or convex at 15dps. 15dps isn't that outlandishly sharp for zdp. you can bring it down to 10dps and maybe add a micro. yeah, bring it lower if you want to appreciate zdp's sharpness. however, cardboard can dull it fast, just like any other steel.

my zdp endura and delica don't produce burrs. you could go on sharpening your edge to mirror finish past 2000 grit. it polishes like a gem stone.

 

[KennyB]

It's super steel not miracle steel. Cardboard is abrasive stuff and pretty much any steel isn't going to be hair popping after cutting a good bit of it.

Try to aim for a lower edge angle. It won't increase wear resistance ( the opposite in fact ) but what you have with the steel you have is steel that will hold a more acute edge angle through more cutting tasks than say S30V or something similar. Take advantage of the performance increase of the steel for a lower cutting angle if you really want to see a difference, because cardboard is so abrasive that you're really not going to see a difference in wear resistance.

 

[me2]

The initial sharpness decreases quickly for basically any steel. The differences are difficult to tell. I checked 8CrMoV vs. S30V and couldn't tell a difference. Also, what is considered "sharp" is pretty subjective. I can say I cut over 1000' of cardboard before my current test knife absolutely couldn't cut hair off my arm or hand, but by my standards it was dull and, were it not a test blade, would have been sharpened long before that point. For a very high sharpness edge, I abandoned the super steels long ago. Any extra edge holding wasn't noticed, and they were more expensive. Sharpening ability has more to do with this kind of edge holding than steel type. If you can't get a clean, high polish, burr free edge, it doesn't matter which steel you have. On the other hand, some steels take a clean, high polish, burr free edge easier than others.