Spyderco Forums

My vote is for the M390 PM2 if money is not an issue. You have lucky timing to get one. As soon as it sells out, it will increase in resale value. Not to mention, it's an amazing knife! I think most dudes would prefer the blue scales over the blurple.

I'm dying to get one, but bad timing for me right now since I'm trying to buy a new house...

Both are excellent steels. S110v will hold its working edge a bit longer but m390 will take a bit nicer edge with a bit less effort. S110v has a slight advantage in corrosion resistance in my testing but both are in the excellent range. I would choose m390 as I prefer its sharpening response. I also prefer smurf blue to blurple.

Surfingringo wrote:Both are excellent steels. S110v will hold its working edge a bit longer but m390 will take a bit nicer edge with a bit less effort. S110v has a slight advantage in corrosion resistance in my testing but both are in the excellent range. I would choose m390 as I prefer its sharpening response. I also prefer smurf blue to blurple.

wow really? how did you test corrosion resistance? I think everything I've read about S110v vs m390 is that m390 should be more corrosion resistant!! I'm really interested! also, whats more preferred, being able to hold an edge longer or touching up more often? it seems like a realistic trade off if I think about it.... Since you can't have something easy to sharpen and last forever...

ALSO!! Has anyone noticed any real life chipping differences between the two? or is this not a real concern...

Thank you guys all so much for the help though! Im really learning a lot and really appreciate the help!!! <3

If I had the money, M390.

Here's a S110v Manix2 Lightweight next to a Tenacious if you think he'd like something similar but a massive steel upgrade... :D

Patronus wrote:

Bill1170 wrote:I agree that you should let color be your guide. I personally prefer the smurf blue Bento exclusive, and it's been my work carry for 5 years now.

Oh wow, 5 years!? do you have anything you dont like about it? and whats the most abusive thing youve done to your knife would you say?


and thank you guys all for the input!!! I really do appreciate it, especially on something like this. Thank you all for taking your time to help a girl out :D

Probably the most abusive thing I've done to that knife was using it to cut the plug off a refrigerator. Cutting the stranded copper freehand on a slant put a small chip in the edge. I'm overall very satisfied with M390, and blue is my favorite color. The PM2 is a wonderful knife for many uses. I clean the blade often so it can also be used on food. Last night at school (I'm a part time teacher at a two year college here) I used it to open an avocado and an orange as part of my dinner break. Earlier on Monday I carved off the high corner of a twisted stud so the new drywall would lie flat at the sole plate. I had to carve up so as not to strike the concrete floor. For jobs like that the thick spine is helpful because the blade bends less.

M390 all the way. Just not from bentobox. Ever. At all. If it is a choice between anything at bentobox and an S110V, then go for the S110V. And the extra money can buy a steak and a new teddy to show off to your boyfriend. And a couple black rhino 3000's. That'd be much better than the minimal improvement of M390 over S110V. And yeah, those black rhinos work. Like freaking TNT.

Bodog wrote: And a couple black rhino 3000's.

Thanks Bodog... I now have black rhino 3000 in my search history, so ads are gonna be weird for a while... :rolleyes:

Lol. Still, they're crazy. Ads aside.

Haha I thought it was the bullet black rhino... so yeah.. :D

Lance has not been on to answer the question of how he tested corrosion resistance. I will try to avoid putting words in his mouth, but I don't think it was "formal" testing. He spends a lot of time in a kayak on the ocean in the tropics, so think warm salt water. If I recall correctly, he reported S110V did better in this environment than any other stainless steel he has used. How much better he would have to say. Other "non-standard" stainless steels do better (H-1 and LC-200N) but S110V is the best of the high carbon stainless steels.

Welcome to the forum btw...

I don't own M390, but do have CTS-204P (which is almost identical) in a Military and CPM S110V in a PM2 (and Manix 2). My take is that if he sharpens his own blades and loves getting a real razor edge, then M390, if it's more about being a useful cutting tool for a longer time between sharpenings than the "basic" steels, then S110V.

Both the "smurf" and "blurple" are great colors IMO, though the slight translucence of the blurple is cooler to my eye.

Really, any PM2 or Manix is going to be a great upgrade, the Manix is a bit more robust all around, but also heavier and the PM2 is a very sturdy knife as well.

There seems to be a fair amount of resentment toward BBS, probably because they don't discount prices as much as other sellers and charge shipping, but in this case they are the only game in town for that steel in the PM2 and the asking price isn't unreasonable, especially if you compare it to a (discontinued/Sprint) forest green CTS-204P PM2...

I have my eye on their exclusive Elmax version ...if they ever get any in stock again.

I don't like giving BBS my money either, but for the M390 PM2 I feel that it's worth it. The knife is awesome.

Bodog wrote:M390 all the way. Just not from bentobox. Ever. At all. If it is a choice between anything at bentobox and an S110V, then go for the S110V. And the extra money can buy a steak and a new teddy to show off to your boyfriend. And a couple black rhino 3000's. That'd be much better than the minimal improvement of M390 over S110V. And yeah, those black rhinos work. Like freaking TNT.

Nice go at showing off your clueless/crass/sexist side Bodog, you might want to try treating new female forum members more like fellow knife enthusiasts than sex toys! :mad:

Why is the M390 only available at BBS?

OakTree wrote:Why is the M390 only available at BBS?

It's a dealer exclusive. :)

farnorthdan wrote:

OakTree wrote:Why is the M390 only available at BBS?

It's a dealer exclusive. :)

But why? Why does BBS get exclusivity?

OakTree wrote:But why? Why does BBS get exclusivity?

Because they contracted with Spyderco to make them that particular knife.

I had a picture of the M390 PM2 on my screen and my daughter just walked in and said: "That's pretty! I like it!".

OakTree wrote:I had a picture of the M390 PM2 on my screen and my daughter just walked in and said: "That's pretty! I like it!".

She has great taste. :)