Do I really need anything more than VG10, S30V, or H1?

[Joshua J.]

I love all of the awesome steels out there - but do I really need anything more than what VG10, S30V, or H1 provides? Seems these three cover all bases for a folding knife.

Does it matter? I'm going to continue to get other steels anyways, knowing full and well they are overkill for my needs! :D

I'm not sure what other people's experiences are but 99% of the time my knives dull destructively (hitting stapes in cardboard or ruining the edge on hard plastic, even my kitchen knife tends to go dull on the dirty cutting board more than from cutting food).
If you can be incredibly careful with a knife you might save some sharpening time using extra hard or high alloy steel (use diamonds for sharpening), but it's really hard to say that better steel is a good value proposition for most people.

H-1 does something very special for specific environments so on a planet that is 70% water (by surface area) it's hard to argue against someone having one of those.

[bh49]

I do not think that I need anything more than VG10 and S35Vn at this time, but I am really enjoying sharpness of ZDP189 :)

[twinboysdad]

Wants vs needs, my friend. Our forefathers started the Industrial Revolution with carbon steel blades. Any good steel and sharpening skill will get you through a lifetime

[bearfacedkiller]

I don't NEED anything more than the 1095 I grew up with but the increased performance of modern steels is hard to deny. Bring on the 15V!!!

[The Deacon]

The only one beyond those I'd be very interested in trying is LC200N. I prefer full flat ground plain edged blades, and it sounds like LC200N is in the same league as H-1 in terms of corrosion resistance, but can be full flat ground and may hold a plain edge better. None of the models it's currently used in appeal to me, but I'd love to see it used in a PE FFG Autonomy.

[vivi]

I'm with you on PE LC200N Paul. The caribbean might end up getting a purchase from me, I'll have to handle one and see what I think. Excited to give it a shot as H1 is a personal favorite. I'm a little more inclined towards lockbacks these days though, so who knows.

I think to a dgeree H1 is slept on. Its a great general purpose steel IMO, not just a specialty one for use around water. Its rust proof, which is obviously its main selling point, but its toughness is alsp head and shoulders above any stainless I know of, and serrated H1 has edge retention on par with the super steels. You simply don't find that combination of attributes with any ither material Spyderco offers.

[ThePeacent]

I always try to carry one "salt" (h1 or lc200n) and one "non stainless super steel" (hap 40, superblue, maxamet, zdp-189, CPM M4, ect.). Ready for anything.

I also always carry one Salt on me, but the other one is not a "non stainless super steel" but a " stainless non super steel", usually one of the exemplified below, from L to R



Victorinox Stainless/420HC/440B in the SAK or Multitool
4116 Krupp/8Cr13MoV/VG10 in the Chinese folder or inexpensive small knife
AUS8/CTS-XHP in a Cold Steel knife

the only non stainless I use are the Opinel's steel, big machetes, axes and chopping tools and hand tools such as my Knipex pliers or pruning Shears
All my life doing this before H1, lived to tell, now with it all is better and easier and I'm sure I won't ever need anything more.
Only steel I want to have for sure is LC200N, to see how it compares to H1

[g4nz0]

being used to SAKs since i was a kid, vg-10 is already overkill for my EDC uses. i was only compelled to try out other steels, models and lock mechanisms because of all the chitchats in this forum which got me interested and see what the fuss was all about. so a word of advice for you if you don't want to be broke most of the time.. just be happy with whatever spydie you got in vg10/s30v and stay away from this forum.

:eek: #TRUTH :D

[Evil D]

The only one beyond those I'd be very interested in trying is LC200N. I prefer full flat ground plain edged blades, and it sounds like LC200N is in the same league as H-1 in terms of corrosion resistance, but can be full flat ground and may hold a plain edge better. None of the models it's currently used in appeal to me, but I'd love to see it used in a PE FFG Autonomy.

YES YES YES

[awa54]

I always try to carry one "salt" (h1 or lc200n) and one "non stainless super steel" (hap 40, superblue, maxamet, zdp-189, CPM M4, ect.). Ready for anything.

I also always carry one Salt on me, but the other one is not a "non stainless super steel" but a " stainless non super steel", usually one of the exemplified below, from L to R



Victorinox Stainless/420HC/440B in the SAK or Multitool
4116 Krupp/8Cr13MoV/VG10 in the Chinese folder or inexpensive small knife
AUS8/CTS-XHP in a Cold Steel knife

the only non stainless I use are the Opinel's steel, big machetes, axes and chopping tools and hand tools such as my Knipex pliers or pruning Shears
All my life doing this before H1, lived to tell, now with it all is better and easier and I'm sure I won't ever need anything more.
Only steel I want to have for sure is LC200N, to see how it compares to H1

Gotta love slip-joint pliers for EDC

[dreadpirate]

In the past month or so I have gotten a Mille 52100 (new), an Endura HAP40 (used), and just ordered a PM2 S35VN. So much for practical, but I do have a growing collection.

[dreadpirate]

so a word of advice for you if you don't want to be broke most of the time.. just be happy with whatever spydie you got in vg10/s30v and stay away from this forum.

This forum? How about another forum that always has used Spydies in great condition for sale all the time by members.

[Popsickle]

Needs VS wants. Higher end stuff like maxamet and s110v are fun, but I've realized anything more than S30V is overkill for my needs.

My main EDC is a manix 2 back lock

[ivtecdaily]

Recently I just love the small amount of upkeep with vg-10 and s30v. I'm no hard user but still those two steels are plenty for me even though I've dabbled in other ("better") Spyderco steels as well. I'll take a Delica/Endura over almost anything as far as EDC use goes.

[HotSoup]

No.

[Ryno]

I love all of the awesome steels out there - but do I really need anything more than what VG10, S30V, or H1 provides? Seems these three cover all bases for a folding knife.

Does it matter? I'm going to continue to get other steels anyways, knowing full and well they are overkill for my needs! :D

If you haven't tried ZDP189, you probably should. It holds a thin, razor edge for a really long time.

[The Deacon]

If you haven't tried ZDP189, you probably should. It holds a thin, razor edge for a really long time.

Perhaps, but my experience with ZDP-189 has been that rusts considerably more easily than VG-10 and that any advantage it has over VG-10 in terms of edge holding is negated by the increased amount of time and effort required to resharpen it.

[greencobra]

really interesting thread and something i agonize with all the time. my knife use is very light compared to most on the site, opening/cutting boxes, opening mail and food prep are pretty much it. i own several spyderco blades but only 3 are daily drivers...a vg-10 delica, s30v para 3 and a h1 ladybug serrated hawkbill. among my meager stash is a hap40 delica and zdp189 3.5 caly but honestly, i've never used them. i'm agonizing over getting one of the new para 3's in another steel but the jury is out on that yet. i'd like to pre-order a cru wear para 3 but don't know if it would give me any more function than i already have with the s30v for my meager needs. it's interesting reading the replies this thread has gotten

[mad german]

I have S30V (Para 3, Sage 5, Benchmade North Fork), S35VN (Native 5 G-10), S110V (PM2), VG-10 (Dragonfly 2 G-10, Delica), 440C (various Buck knives). To be honest, they all work for me. I recently (yesterday) got the PM2, so I can't comment on the S110 too much other than this quote from the legendary Vanilla Ice: "Slice like a Ninja, cut like a razor blade".

For what I use my knives for (mail, packages, tape, food wrappers, etc.) even the lowest grade steel will be fine for me. I just like having and trying different steels. For 99.99% of us out there, 440C will probably work just fine.

[Ryno]

If you haven't tried ZDP189, you probably should. It holds a thin, razor edge for a really long time.

Perhaps, but my experience with ZDP-189 has been that rusts considerably more easily than VG-10 and that any advantage it has over VG-10 in terms of edge holding is negated by the increased amount of time and effort required to resharpen it.

That makes sense.

Resharpening is usually quick for me on ZDP. I have my edge pro set up with a 400 grit diamond. I reprofile really quick to 12 dps, then do a few swipes on the sharpmaker. I start with 3 swipes on the med stones then 3 swipes on the white stones. Next sharpening, I'll up it to 5 swipes per stone, then 7, 10, 15, etc. After I find 20 swipes doesn't cut it, I reprofile again on the edge pro. Using this method, it gets sharp as a razor and stays sharp. If only the PM2 came in ZDP, since that's what I carry at work now.