Favorite Steels

[Bloke]

As far as an all time favourite steel? To me it’s a bit like asking what’s your favourite food? All I know with certainty is, it wouldn’t be my favourite for long if I had to eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day.

Well put Alex. :)

Ah, hahaha, Thanks Connor! :)

It’s a hard question to answer.

[Zenith]

Still Nitrobe-77. For years now.

[Thunderpants]

I know it's nothing special but N690 is good enough for me! Sharpens easily, doesn't rust, and does what it's supposed to do.

[GarageBoy]

I could deal with m4 as my only steel. Hope Rex 45 becomes a non Sprint steel - would like to try it

[TomAiello]

Still Nitrobe-77. For years now.

I wish it was more widely available. I have a custom Nitrobe-77 slicer (Big Chris) in the kitchen and it's been pretty impressive so far.

[BigKenbo]

Honestly after a few months, i want a maxamet version of pretty much every Spyderco! I have "tough knives" i got some A2 and a couple bos treated bucks. But this maxamet is almost unnatural in the fact it is easier to sharpen than my S110V but it just freaking cuts forever! Maxamet is my favorite. ZDP-189 and HAP40 are close behind because they just get world endingly sharp. Accidently whittling a wifes hair with an endura impressed even her.

[Bloke]

Not sure how it slipped my mind ... ? :rolleyes:

Vanax SC would have to certainly be the most balanced steel I’ve played with to date. I’ve tried to rust it to no avail, it’s way tough, sharpens with ease to hair whittling and holds high end sharpness for extended periods.

Wish I had a series of fixed blades in Vanax SC.

Thanks again Luong (Bluntcut)! :)

[Wartstein]

To be honest, compared to I'd say most people who participate frequently on this forum I know very, very little about steels.
So for me it is hard to say exactly to what extent the performance of a particular steel is due to the steel itself, and what is due to blade geometry, grind etc.

Having said that, I really came back to liking VG10 for some time now. Especially how incredibly fast it sharpens again on the SM, even when it's too dull to cut printer paper at all before sharpening. And the only time I ever had any rust on a VG10 blade was when I did cut sheeps cheese that was kept in a quite salty liquid with my Delica, forgot to wipe of the knife and put it away for a month or so.

I also enjoy HAP 40 on a Stretch and an Endura a lot. Stays working sharp for a very long time and still does never chip on me, even in harder wood work.

The steel that amazed me the most lately is CTS HXP: I wanted to test how usable (or not) my little Chap is in bushcraft / woodworking tasks, and really put it to work. Whittling, carving, twisting the blade, forcing it through knots... Primarily I wanted to test the KNIFE itself (so in it's design and shape.. and it did better than I expected for such a tiny thing). But as a "sideproduct" I discovered, that the CTS HXP after all that work was still really sharp.

Again, I don't know how much that was due to the steel itself and how much to certain properties of the bladeshape, grind or whatever

One of my smaller fixed blades is made out of N690, which I also really like. Feels a lot like VG10 for me, but maybe holds an edge longer. But that's hard to say, cause my fixed blades see different use than my (VG10-) folders.

[brainfriction]

204P is one of my favorites, sharpens easily and takes a nice polish. 20CV is about the same, Pepsi vs. Coke I guess.

After that I'd go with something like S35VN, I find it's pretty similar to 204P and 20CV in practice.

As far as semi or non-stainless I'd take Rex 45 or M4 anyday of the week. Good edge holding and toughness.

[ladybug93]

i’ve got folding knives in 440c, 8cr13mov, aus8, d2, h1, s30v, cts-xhp, and lc200n. i like them all. i’ve found that it matters more what the intended use of the knife is than which steel is best. different knives and steels are better for specific types of work.
that said, since i live in hawaii and value knives that are corrosion resistant, easy to touch up, and maintain an edge for a reasonable amount of time, i wish all my favorite models were made in lc200n. i think it would be amazing if spyderco would use lc200n on all their colorado production line like they do with s110v. they don’t have to be full salt versions (although that would be much appreciated). i would buy a manix, yojimbo, and li’l native immediately if they were lc200n. maybe a para3 too.

[steelcity16]

Not sure how it slipped my mind ... ? :rolleyes:

Vanax SC would have to certainly be the most balanced steel I’ve played with to date. I’ve tried to rust it to no avail, it’s way tough, sharpens with ease to hair whittling and holds high end sharpness for extended periods.

Wish I had a series of fixed blades in Vanax SC.

Thanks again Luong (Bluntcut)! :)

Im really hoping to see some Vanax folders soon! I wonder if a Native Salt sprint in Vanax is doable?? That would be incredible!

[Xplorer]

I love all sorts of steels for all sorts of reasons. It's really hard for me to keep the list short. Here's my top 3..

Although it's technically a total of 3 steels, my first choice above all others at the moment is ..

Damacore DC18N (Vanax core with RWL34/PMC27 damascus patterned outer layers).
https://damasteel.se/damacore-dc18n/

After that..
Vanax SC for stainless.
Vanadis 4 Extra for carbon steel.

CK

[Spook410]

Maxamet. Because I seem to have misplaced my sharpener. And it doesn't matter.

[Hnenny]

LC200N for stainless and super stainless
K390 (?) for non-stainless

I used to be an S30V guy but LC200N is so much easier to sharpen, never rusts, and doesn't seem to be anywhere near as chippy.

I don't own any non-stainless knives at the moment as I'm somewhat of a paranoid guy when it comes to knife maintenance, but that P4 LW in K390 seems right up my alley in terms of performance.

[Danvp]

I like steels that are easy to sharpen. The feeling of having a really sharp knife on me makes me spent a little time each day with the sharpmaker.

Steel of easy to sharpen users currently are vg10, xhp, n690co, LC200n and s30v.

I suspect that also the geometry of the blade plays a big role in why i like these steels. The vg10 rides on my delica, the xhp on my Chapparal, n690co Urban, LC200n Spydiechef and s30v on my brand new Ikuchi. All little slicers of their own.

That said i also like H1 serrated for the suspected reason and the m390 family for their wear resistance. In fact i like most steels for their characteristics. As Sal once stated one is not better than the other just different. I think i show all the signs of a steel junkie.

[Crux]

CPM s90v
LC200n

[jpm2]

Pretty much anything with less than 6% cr. Spyderco favorites are rex45, k390, maxamet, cpm-m4.
I really like m2, but can't get it anymore in a production knife.

[Dingo]

SGPS
(I’ll get my coat)

[wrdwrght]

I don’t have favorites yet (once thought I did), and may never have.

I can extol the virtues of VG10, or K390, or any other steel among the 15 or so different ones I have in my Spydies.

And I’m not nearly finished getting other steels Spyderco will offer, or indeed still offers.

I have come to conclude that Spyderco does not intentionally offer bad steels, or, rather, steels out of whack with their price point. Spyderco gives meaning to “You get what you pay for”, and even if you pay little, you get a lot. I remember my Tenacious fondly.

I have also come to conclude that whatever designer steel is in vogue in the knife industry, Spyderco will most likely subject it to a heat-treat that brings out the steel composition’s best. I don’t have the impression that Spyderco is second to any of the production companies in choosing the right heat-treat.

These conclusions make favorites almost impossible to choose, but, oh, is it fun trying.

[BigKenbo]

Maxamet. Because I seem to have misplaced my sharpener. And it doesn't matter.

Lmao!