ZDP189 vs. VG-10

As far as edge retention is concerned.
Under normal cutting conditions ZDP-189 should hold it’s edge much longer than VG-10. It’s hard to give an actual figure because working conditions are never the same. To put it very simply, if ZDP-189 has three star edge holding then VG-10 would have two star edge holding.
Remember that if you have a hard time getting knives sharp you will probably prefer VG-10 to ZDP-189, people often praise VG-10 for it’s sharpening characteristics.
VG-10 should be slightly tougher as well.
 
razorburn said:
According to Matt Conable of William Henry Knives,ZDP-189 is 3X better than VG-10,4x better than D2,10X better than ATS-34.
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While I certainly respect Matt Conable and his considerable talent, I think those numbers are baseless.

I'd certainly question those multiples, and even putting VG-10 ahead of D2.
Also, there are too many variables to be considered (heat treat, rockwell hardness etc) to just simply give a pat answer such as that.
 
After having to sharpend S30vs, I don't know if I want a ZDP. I use my knife at work daily, and sharpening VG-10 takes much less time that the s30v.
 
IMHO ZDP-189 has certain applications (I think), but in a daily use knife, it may not be worth it. In fact, I don't think it is. I own ZDP knives from Spyderco, Kershaw and William Henry. First, Kershaw uses a solid billet and I think this is NOT a good idea. I have only broken a knife tip ONCE in my life and it was on a ZDP Leek. I was cutting a cable tie up againt a cardboard box and the tip just snapped!:mad:

Also the solid billet knife is an ABSOLUTE MOTHERF*%^ER to sharpen. It's just too dame hard and the edge geometry is thick,adding insult to injury.

The william henry knives do well, but the knives I own, I wouldn't consider heavy duty (B5, B10). They hold up fairly well, but I wouldn't even TRY to cut a cable tie with them, because the blades are not terribly meaty.

For an EDC, I think Spyderco does the best job with a laminated blade, utilizing good edge geometry in a REASONABLY priced knife.

That being said, I went back to carrying an old William Henry Evolution in VG10!!:)
 
I have used VG10 delicas and ZDP delicas. I would say the ZDP is worth the money for things like cutting cardboard and the like which will quickly dull VG10. I have cut all day long and still had a decent edge. So for me it has been worth it. The hardness is something to consider though, it can work against you. I have not had issues with that yet.
 
floatinglife said:
regarding the overall performance as a blade :D

Actually I am thinking if I want to upgrade my VG-10 Delica to a ZDP one. The latter has a higher price. I want to know if that worth it for daily use.
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Yes, but Performance is linked to what you do with it. What do you use your daily blade to do? Whether you see an increase in performance depends a lot on what you use the blade for. And as you say, the upgrade is expensive. If you're activities do not allow you to see the increase in performance, why pay the increase?

Do you cut a lot of cardboard?
Do you open an occasional letter or package only?
Do you cut wood or cut things that cause you to twist the blade as you cut?
 
razorburn said:
According to Matt Conable of William Henry Knives,ZDP-189 is 3X better than VG-10,4x better than D2,10X better than ATS-34.

Here are a few links to some acticles about ZDP-189 which I recently found while visiting www.williamhenryknives.com/press-awards/press-home.html


http://www.williamhenryknives.com/press-awards/articles/ZDP.pdf
http://www.williamhenryknives.com/press-awards/articles/tactical-05.pdf
http://www.williamhenryknives.com/press-awards/articles/Spec.pdf
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That is impressive but I have heard horror stories about it chipping due to the rockwell of 68. Maybe they have the heat treatment down to a science
 
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