CQI and heat treat

[EngDevGr3]

Does Spyderco continuously improve on their heat treat as runs progress through the years? For example, s110v from 2016 production vs s110v from the latest batch. Has there been tweaks to the heat treat to improve parameter x,y, or z?
Or is it simply the case that after the first production run or two it was dialed in?
This is asked from a curiosity standpoint, not from the point of there is an issue with this year vs that. I have many Spydercos and one of the few steels I didn't have was s110v. I purchased a new one, and it must have been a new old stock. I noticed it was a HP date, and this got me thinking about the subject. Thanks.

[The Meat man]

I don't know. I'm kind of curious about this myself.

[Donut]

That's a good question.

I bet your answer is: it varies and there's no pattern to it.

The biggest things I've heard about on the forum were:

The very first run of the Gayle Bradley had a significantly harder heat treat. Higher wear resistance, but higher chance of chipping.
The ZDP Mules were run too hard and recalled for retreating. Higher wear resistance, but much higher chance of chipping!

I traded one of the ZDP Mules away a long time ago. I warned the person about it, but he was a collector also and he accepted the warning.

[sal]

Usually they're dialed in after protos are made, but we have had to make mods on some steels.

sal

[EngDevGr3]

Thanks Sal!

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Usually they're dialed in after protos are made, but we have had to make mods on some steels.

sal

sal and others, from what you know, what is the most up-to-date method of heat treating when it comes to factory knives, that is proven to give the best qualities in the final blade steel? Is it some cryogenic quenching process?

Most people whom I have talked knives with, except for true knife enthusiasts and users like people on this forum, when you discuss heat treatment, still have this image in their mind of either a blacksmith with tongs dropping a red-hot knife blade into a vat of water, or, a machine doing the same thing. They are unaware of things like sub zero degree quenching and powder steel and all that.

[pdptrow]

Is it like how you know how your own oven works, it might take a few tries to get recipe to your standard? Also I wonder does Spyderco use a contactor for heat treat or do they have their own ovens? I'm sure they are not re-inventing the HT as much when the manufacturer has done the research already. S110V for instance:
http://www.crucible.com/PDFs/DataSheets ... v12010.pdf