Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

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Deadboxhero
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#181

Post by Deadboxhero »

Surfingringo wrote:
Mon Jul 08, 2019 11:04 am
Deadboxhero wrote:
Mon Jul 08, 2019 10:55 am
steelcity16 wrote:
Mon Jul 08, 2019 10:33 am
Surfingringo wrote:
Mon Jul 08, 2019 10:23 am
I managed to get my hands on some more of this unobtanium called Vanax! Our local blade master Chad Kelly is making me an insane custom Vanax Waterway right now. I promise to update with pics soon!

My two Vanax test fillets are still going strong and this remains my favorite stainless steel by a long shot. 100% rust proof and edge performance is remarkable. I took my primary fillet knife down to 10dps and edge retention saw a big improvement. Fish cleaning of large fish is tough on edges. Heavy bones, heavy scales and slimy unstable media means plenty of lateral forces on the edge. No edge damage even at that low angle. Very very impressive!

Very cool Lance! Do fillet knives have any flex to them? How much flex if any do you prefer in a filet knife?

I wonder if a Catcherman sprint/flash batch in Vanax would be possible if the they start making more of this stuff.

Why is it so hard to obtain? You would think that if Spyderco decided to do a special sprint series for Vanax in all of their Seki Salt models in the way they have done a ton of the Seki models in Hap40, V-Toku, etc, maybe they could get a large enough order in? I would think the demand would be very strong, especially if they throw in some models like the Catcherman and Spyderhawk.
Cost per lbs is extreme
I’d be curious to know what percentage (street price) cost increase it would create in a typical spyderco. 25-40% might sell. Over 50%-60% probably wouldn’t. Imagine a $130 Waterway with Vanax selling for $170-$180. I think that would probably sell...especially in a sprint. A $130 Waterway that had to be pushed to $230 to cover the cost of the steel? Not so much.
I'd buy at $230, I respect what it costs.

To buy a small piece of Vanax to make ONE knife it costs me ~$50

That's just for a cut off a bar of steel.

Not including time, consumables, skilled labor and r&d.


52100 for the same size is $3 when bought in bulk

That is why you do not see Vanax in production knives even in bulk the price is exponential.

That is why custom knives cost what they do in fancy steels.

This is also why Spyderco is so Epic with what they do. They would save more money not being steel junkies and sharing all these wonderful steels.
So Spyderco is a passion as well.
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Tarheelpwr
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#182

Post by Tarheelpwr »

Did the Vanex mule or any of the makers designs gain any traction with Spyderco?
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Xplorer
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#183

Post by Xplorer »

I do not know if Spyderco's discussions with Uddeholm have resulted in any sort of progress with regard to purchasing Vanax and running it on any production knives. It's very expensive and I'm sure the discussions (negotiations) on that end are quite important.

That said, while I obviously don't know about any discussions Spyderco may have had with other makers, I have had discussions with them about knife designs that would use Vanax. Emails and pics have been exchanged, and I am going to be presenting one or two fixed blade designs and one folder design very soon. Fingers are crossed over here, hoping for good things ;) :D .

Best regards,
CK
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Tarheelpwr
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#184

Post by Tarheelpwr »

Thanks Chad. Guess I’ll hold out since your books are closed :)
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tonijedi
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#185

Post by tonijedi »

Waiting for a Salt 2 in this steel. By the way, my birthday is tomorrow, do you think you can make it till then? :D
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#186

Post by Surfingringo »

Latest Vanax project. This is a custom version of the Spyderco Waterway made by our resident master knife smith Chad Kelly (Xplorer42). This is Vanax SC ground to about .006 behind the edge. Marbled carbon fiber handles with blue and white liners. I had Chad add some jimping on this one to add some grip to the polished handle material that we used on this one. I have cleaned a few mackerel and tuna so far and this knife is an absolute LAZER!

I would still rate Vanax as my all around favorite steel. Edge performance that is better than s30v with increased toughness and corrosion resistance that is as good or better than lc200n. What’s not to love with Vanax? I would love to see Spyderco do some sprints with this steel but I really don’t know whether it is feasible. I know that the steel is expensive (maybe prohibitively so) but if some designs could be offered in this steel at a price that wasn’t completely ludicrous I would be first in line to buy. The steel really is that good.

What designs you ask? Oh, I don’t know, I can think of a couple of models. ;)

Some pics of Chad’s handiwork...

Image

Image

HOW ABOUT THAT HANDLE WORK??? :eek: :eek:
Image
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#187

Post by Pelagic »

That is a supremely beautiful blade.
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#188

Post by Bloke »

Wow! That’s awesome, Gringo!

Chad, words fail me! :cool:
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#189

Post by TomAiello »

That's stunning. Really beautiful knife.
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#190

Post by Xplorer »

Surfingringo wrote:
Thu Oct 31, 2019 6:08 pm
Latest Vanax project...
It was a pleasure to have had the opportunity to make a Vanax version of your Waterway design. It's a great design and I think the Vanax compliments it perfectly. :) I hope you enjoy your new knife. :)
Pelagic wrote:That is a supremely beautiful blade.
Thank you. :)
Bloke wrote: ..
Chad, words fail me! :cool:
:cool: :D :p ;)
TomAiello wrote:That's stunning. Really beautiful knife.
Thank you. :)
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#191

Post by JuPaul »

Wowza! There's a lot of desire around here for sprints of the Waterway...hopefully this provides some inspiration!
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#192

Post by Wartstein »

Surfingringo wrote:
Thu Oct 31, 2019 6:08 pm
Latest Vanax project. This is a custom version of the Spyderco Waterway made by our resident master knife smith Chad Kelly (Xplorer42). This is Vanax SC.....

I did not follow this thread till just right now, for I am not a "steel-nut" (in the context of this forum!)

But I am glad I had a look into it, for this is a really beautiful knife (and I don't even like cf particullary)!

I also think, the jimping makes the Waterway look even better (don't know if it is needed functionwise).
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#193

Post by Dazen »

Surfingringo wrote:
Thu Oct 31, 2019 6:08 pm
Latest Vanax project. This is a custom version of the Spyderco Waterway made by our resident master knife smith Chad Kelly (Xplorer42)....
Awesome knife and Vanax has always been a wish of mine too. Maybe we can at least see the Siren with carbon fiber sprint in the future.
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#194

Post by The Meat man »

What a beautiful knife! That's amazing work Chad.
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#195

Post by Ez556 »

I'm surprised you went with that slick of a handle (traction wise) when you seemed to go for a no-holds-barred grip texture on the production model. That is absolutely gorgeous though. Marbled CF with blue liners is now on my top 10 favorite handles, and I'm just imagining a Capara with a blue backspacer...
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#196

Post by Xplorer »

Wartstein wrote:
Thu Oct 31, 2019 11:58 pm
...for this is a really beautiful knife (and I don't even like cf particullary)!
I also think, the jimping makes the Waterway look even better (don't know if it is needed functionwise).
Thank you :) . Although I expect people will have a variety of opinions about the jimping, I agree with you that it looks good on this knife. I was also very pleased by just how much grip it provided.
The Meat man wrote:What a beautiful knife! That's amazing work Chad.

Thank you :) .
Ez556 wrote: I'm surprised you went with that slick of a handle (traction wise) when you seemed to go for a no-holds-barred grip texture on the production model. That is absolutely gorgeous though. Marbled CF with blue liners is now on my top 10 favorite handles, and I'm just imagining a Capara with a blue backspacer...
Lance and I talked about that a lot. Having a good grip on that knife in wet conditions is definitely an important aspect of the Waterway design. My original plan was to checker the handle like a nice walnut gun stock. At another point in the process I planned to (and practiced) engrave Lance's logo into the side of the handle for texture. But, this version was meant to be both a high performance custom as well as a "show" version of his beautiful design. Checkering took a lot of away from the look of the marbled CF and there were problems with material thicknesses and image proportions when it came to engraving the handle. I actually made this handle twice because I was so intent on adding texture. In the end Lance decided to add jimping in order to provide 2 good gripping surfaces while being able to maintain the aesthetic of the polished marbled CF. IMHO he struck an elegant balance between function and aesthetic. :) ..but I am totally biased of course :D
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#197

Post by JuPaul »

Xplorer wrote:
Fri Nov 01, 2019 10:30 am
Wartstein wrote:
Thu Oct 31, 2019 11:58 pm
...for this is a really beautiful knife (and I don't even like cf particullary)!
I also think, the jimping makes the Waterway look even better (don't know if it is needed functionwise).
Thank you :) . Although I expect people will have a variety of opinions about the jimping, I agree with you that it looks good on this knife. I was also very pleased by just how much grip it provided.
The Meat man wrote:What a beautiful knife! That's amazing work Chad.

Thank you :) .
Ez556 wrote: I'm surprised you went with that slick of a handle (traction wise) when you seemed to go for a no-holds-barred grip texture on the production model. That is absolutely gorgeous though. Marbled CF with blue liners is now on my top 10 favorite handles, and I'm just imagining a Capara with a blue backspacer...
Lance and I talked about that a lot. Having a good grip on that knife in wet conditions is definitely an important aspect of the Waterway design. My original plan was to checker the handle like a nice walnut gun stock. At another point in the process I planned to (and practiced) engrave Lance's logo into the side of the handle for texture. But, this version was meant to be both a high performance custom as well as a "show" version of his beautiful design. Checkering took a lot of away from the look of the marbled CF and there were problems with material thicknesses and image proportions when it came to engraving the handle. I actually made this handle twice because I was so intent on adding texture. In the end Lance decided to add jimping in order to provide 2 good gripping surfaces while being able to maintain the aesthetic of the polished marbled CF. IMHO he struck an elegant balance between function and aesthetic. :) ..but I am totally biased of course :D
Always interesting to hear the process behind decisions like this - thanks for the insight!
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#198

Post by Pelagic »

I'd be so worried about losing such an awesome knife that I'd probably have it attached to a buoy/cork the size of a football via 400lb braid!
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#199

Post by bbturbodad »

That is possibly the best looking knife I've ever seen! 👀
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Re: Hey Sal, any chance of a Vanax SC mule??

#200

Post by mattman »

Stunning as always, Sir!!
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