ZT 0562 s35vn or cpm-20cv

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pikemaster11

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Dec 1, 2014
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I have decided on a ZT 0562 for another edc to go with my PM2.

I spent a lot of time narrowing it down and the ZT was my winner.
I just need to decide which steel.

I use the sharpmaker to touch up the pm2 and never let it get dull.

Is there a significant difference in touching up s35vn vs cpm-20cv as long as they do not get dull, on the sharpmaker with the medium and fine rods?

Im not concerned with the g10 vs carbon fiber handle.

I want to branch out from s30v and 154cm, but am concerned with my limited sharpening skills on even touch ups.
My edc cutting tasks are very normal, paper, cardboard, rope, etc with some bags of dog food, netting and such.
I have an itch for some "super" steel, but am looking for some experience.
 
S35V will act like S30V in most tests. Sharpening S35V will be easier than S30V, and the toughness is a bit better.

20CV will hold its edge longer, be a bit tougher, and be roughly the same difficultly to sharpen. M390 is definitely my favorite stainless steel(20CV is nearly identical as M390).
 
Hey PM and welcome!
I have a 562CF in 20cv and a 452CF in s35.
If you don’t let them get butter knife dull and just do touch ups after use there isn’t much difference.
Both steels will put a silly grin on your face so choose the one that is more pleasing to your eye.
Tell you one thing......you are going to love whichever you choose because the design and build are excellent!
Good luck!
Joe

PS......check out the web site for USAMADEBLADE. An excellent dealer that will make sure you are happy and he anodizes them for no extra charge.
His name is Scott and he’s a stand up dude that is great to deal with!!
 
palonej said:
Hey PM and welcome!
I have a 562CF in 20cv and a 452CF in s35.
If you don’t let them get butter knife dull and just do touch ups after use there isn’t much difference.
Both steels will put a silly grin on your face so choose the one that is more pleasing to your eye.
Tell you one thing......you are going to love whichever you choose because the design and build are excellent!
Good luck!
Joe

PS......check out the web site for USAMADEBLADE. An excellent dealer that will make sure you are happy and he anodizes them for no extra charge.
His name is Scott and he’s a stand up dude that is great to deal with!!
Click to expand...
Thanks for the tip, does the anodizing void the warranty? They looked awesome especially the blue and the bronze
 
Nope!! I bought 3 ZTs from Scott, all anodized and they are bad ass!!
562 is a light blue, 452 is Bronze and the 450 is a deep blue.
All bought around 2 years ago and the anodizing still looks amazing!

pikemaster11 said:
Thanks for the tip, does the anodizing void the warranty? They looked awesome especially the blue and the bronze
Click to expand...
 
I have experience with s35vn and m390. M390 and cpm20cv are nearly identical. I do not find the m390 to be any more difficult to sharpen than s30v or s35vn. In fact, i find the m390 to be a little easier to sharpen because i can get rid of the burr easier. I should say it doesn't form as much of a burr. As far as sharpening on the sharpmaker, i have used it to maintain my all of my knives including my 940-1 in s90v. It takes a bit longer to touch up the s90v but the s35, s30, and m390 all touch up pretty easily with the sharpmaker.
 
Good call on the 0562 pikemaster. Mine's in Elmax and it's an awesome work knife, and the SM keeps it touched up very well.
As for S35VN or 204P, my choice would be 204P for a bit better edge holding, but you won't be dissapointed with either IMO. And the SM will take care of your edge maintenance very well with either.
 
McFeeli said:
S35V will act like S30V in most tests. Sharpening S35V will be easier than S30V, and the toughness is a bit better.

20CV will hold its edge longer, be a bit tougher, and be roughly the same difficultly to sharpen. M390 is definitely my favorite stainless steel(20CV is nearly identical as M390).
Click to expand...
What he said.
 
So after reading that thread, it seemed like the 2 provided rods from the sharpmaker would not sharpen the additives to the steel (carbides, vandium etc) as well and may even cause them to fall out leaving just the steel and ending up with the same cutting results as a much lower grade steel.
But the SiC stones will sharpen everything leaving much higher wear resistance.
Is this the correct deduction?
The ceramic rods will sharpen 20cv, but could end up taking out some components that make the 20cv so good.
Mo2 said:
You may want to use some SiC stones from congress tools on your sharp maker vs the ceramic for the super steel. Or get the Spyderco cbn rods.

While you certainly can you may want to read this thread thoroughly

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/can-you-use-ceramics-to-sharpen-s30-90-110v-or-not.1519674/

I like zt's elmax and 20cv,m390, 204p.
Click to expand...
 
Honestly if you strop your knives at the end of each day after use, for just a couple of minutes, it will do the trick and keep most steels like M390, CTS-204P and 20CV user ready sharp for any task.
 
pikemaster11 said:
So after reading that thread, it seemed like the 2 provided rods from the sharpmaker would not sharpen the additives to the steel (carbides, vandium etc) as well and may even cause them to fall out leaving just the steel and ending up with the same cutting results as a much lower grade steel.
But the SiC stones will sharpen everything leaving much higher wear resistance.
Is this the correct deduction?
The ceramic rods will sharpen 20cv, but could end up taking out some components that make the 20cv so good.
Click to expand...

I find i have had no problem touching those steels up with my ceramic sharpmaker rods. Actual reprofiling and grinding though is a nightmare.
 
Lapedog said:
I find i have had no problem touching those steels up with my ceramic sharpmaker rods. Actual reprofiling and grinding though is a nightmare.
Click to expand...

This is all new to me, but after reading the other thread, it seemed like the consensus was that the SM rods would touch up super steels m390, 20cv etc, but they would only sharpen the steel.

The vanadium and othe additives that actually make the steel "super" are not sharpened because they are harder than the SM rods and can actually be torn out of the blade.

So your knife could be very sharp from the touch up, but the sharpness will not last as long because it is just the steel.

This makes sense to me because I can get my s30v PM2 pretty sharp on the SM. But it does not seem to last
 
pikemaster11 said:
This is all new to me, but after reading the other thread, it seemed like the consensus was that the SM rods would touch up super steels m390, 20cv etc, but they would only sharpen the steel.

The vanadium and othe additives that actually make the steel "super" are not sharpened because they are harder than the SM rods and can actually be torn out of the blade.

So your knife could be very sharp from the touch up, but the sharpness will not last as long because it is just the steel.

This makes sense to me because I can get my s30v PM2 pretty sharp on the SM. But it does not seem to last
Click to expand...

Yes this is pretty true due to those carbides being harder.

I am not sure how much it matters as the carbides are so small that they seem to just fall out as the steel is worn away.

The voids they leave from falling out are so tiny I can't feel them. Technically i believe it could be sharper if these carbides were sharpened rather than just falling out but it is happening at such a small scale I can't feel it.

Still diamond or cbn is definitely recommended and the proper way to do things.
 
palonej palonej , you have good taste for color combo's ;)

UWjm8Hd.jpg
 
The 0562cf arrived yesterday. It is very different than my pm2. The pm2 is a big, solid knife, but the ZT makes it feel small and light.
This is my first flipper and frame lock and my muscle memory is for the spydie flick and thumb opening.
It feels weird, but I like it and just need some reps.
It is not as sharp as my other spydercos and benchmades. It will shave hair, but barely. The bevel seems to be a bit uneven. Pretty thin on the curve of the belly, then a little wider on the straight portion.

Overall I think I'm going to really like it. Love the looks, the carbon fiber and titanium is new and exciting. The blade shape is appealing and it is easier to get out of the pocket then I would have thought
The pocket clip doesn' seem to have a lot of tension. Im a little worried if I was running or wrestling with the kids that it might fall out.
Is this pocket clip normal for ZTs?
My big disappointment is the sharpness and bevel. I know that can be corrected, but I had some high expections.

I can't figure out how to post pics
 
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