AEB-L Urban Performance Reviews

[Skywalker]

For those characteristics - easy to sharpen, taking a keen edge, tough at thin bevels, corrosion resistant - how much of an advantage does AEB-L offer over VG-10 (which I think the Police 4 LW will be offered in, and if not would probably to be easier to procure in Japan)?

I can't speak to the toughness at thin bevels but for the other three VG-10 already seems to do well in my experience

I can't quite speak to this comparison myself. That said, I think this is the central point of sprint runs. You are not releasing a new steel because it is "better" in some form or fashion, rather you are introducing the steel to an eager audience. If you play the "Do we really need Steel-X when we already have Steel-Y?" game, then you would see a rather static lineup of Spyderco knives. It may very well be that VG-10 gives you 90% of AEB-L (I'm just making this number up), and it the knife might even cost less with VG-10. But that's not the point. Give users the steels they like in the knives they want. This is easier said than done. Especially with a steel like AEB-L. It is similar enough to a variety of already available steels that it may not make financial sense. A steel like K390, however, is a different story. I've come around to seeing posts on this forum asking for a particular steel in a specific model as wish casting. We like what we like. But if you want to argue that we need Steel-X because it is superior than Steel-Y, I'm not going to get invested in the debate. Is AEB-L better than VG-10? Who cares. I want more AEB-L and the model I have my eye on is the Police 4 LW.

Sorry, I'm not trying to argue that we don't need sprint runs because something else is already "good enough" or "close enough.". :)

I like the steel sprints because they give me the opportunity to try something new, broaden my horizons in a subject/hobby I'm interested in, and maybe help me find something I like even more than my current favorites.

I didn't get one of the AEB-L Urbans so I'm just curious how much separation there is between AEB-L and VG-10, since I've already been happy with VG-10 as a easy to sharpen, corrosion resistant, relatively tough stainless - and AEB-L seems to be praised for the same.

[p_atrick]

Sorry, I'm not trying to argue that we don't need sprint runs because something else is already "good enough" or "close enough.". :)

I like the steel sprints because they give me the opportunity to try something new, broaden my horizons in a subject/hobby I'm interested in, and maybe help me find something I like even more than my current favorites.

I didn't get one of the AEB-L Urbans so I'm just curious how much separation there is between AEB-L and VG-10, since I've already been happy with VG-10 as a easy to sharpen, corrosion resistant, relatively tough stainless - and AEB-L seems to be praised for the same.

I wasn't trying to imply you were saying we don't need more AEB-L because of VG-10. If it came across that way, I'm sorry for putting words in your mouth. This Urban was my first small Spyderco, first Spyderco slipjoint, and my first time using AEB-L. The knife impressed me on all three accounts. If you are interested in the knife for those reasons, I highly recommend it. As for your original question, I can't answer it with any real insight.

[ZrowsN1s]

Seems a little easier to get very very sharp over vg-10. I think you can also go thinner on the edge angle than you can with vg-10. VG-10 probably has slightly better wear and stain resistance. I have pretty limited experience with both steels, so don't take my opinion as gospel.

[Cambertree]

So for everyone that's been playing around with this knife....

Would you be for more Spydercos being run in AEB-L?

I think I would, Vivi. I personally don't think it would have the popularity to sustain a full Seki run, but depending on the model, I'd certainly be interested in another release that plays to AEB-L's strengths.

Given the solid respect there is in the bushcrafting community for the virtues of properly heat treated 12C27, there might be some interesting candidates for AEB-L, with its similar properties, but higher hardness in that line.

The Nilakka, Bushcraft, and Ray Mears' Wolfspyder would all be interesting in AEB-L, and it cleanly fits their philosophy of use, in that it is a 'traditional' steel, is easily sharpenable to a fine edge, is relatively tough, and holds that fine edge fairly well.

If I could choose a model, I'd want one with a thin blade which could be used as a glorified utility scalpel, or a kitchen/camp food prep slicer.

The Chaparral FRN, UKPK, Endura (both regular and wharncliffe versions) or a Caly 3.5 would all be pretty cool.

Also, I think this steel would be a good performer in SE - I'd probably try it out on a serrated Jazzlica, if I could choose a trial model.

And Alistair Phillip's slipjoint version of the Kapara could work well with AEB-L.

If I could make one comment based on the existing AEB-L Urbans - grind 'em thin! The Urban could have gone at least as thin as the K390 version, and probably even a bit thinner. It's easy to regrind and thin out the edge. Thinning out the blade flats cleanly and symmetrically by hand is a little more work.

As to what advantage AEB-L offers over VG-10, it depends on your uses, but basically it should be a bit tougher in thin edge cross sections, it seems to be run a bit harder, it has a finer microstructure, and should take a finer edge with a bit less work.

Advantages would be in high sharpness applications - wood whittling, slicing fish and other food etc. Honestly, if I had to choose between the two steels for a 'one knife for the rest of your life' scenario, I'd go with VG-10, but I'm still getting great enjoyment out of playing with AEB-L, and having it in my 'bladesteels' toolkit.

Spyderco deserve high credit for making this steel available in a quality heat treat, as a kind of gift to the knife afi community.

I'm loving having this steel available as a test bed and reference knife in my collection.

[Woodpuppy]

So for everyone that's been playing around with this knife....

Would you be for more Spydercos being run in AEB-L?

Probably not. I prefer the tool steels in my collection. But I do very much like the Urban! I think I need to hunt up a K390 version.

[Nemo3000]

Late at the party?



My two cents.
Easy to convex and to bring to razor.

Very very very nice in whittling. Same 'oily' feelings than 52100
Exactly the opposite experience than with my old ats34 Sebenza which 'stutter' when cutting wood.


The easy to reach razor factor makes it fun to use on anything...

More pictures on 'nemo knives review'...

[Doc Dan]

I would like to see more models in this steel but it would depend on the model. I think something that would bring out the toughness of this steel would be worth considering. I wonder if a fixed blade like the Bow River or Bushcraft would be good choices.

[Cambertree]

So I’ve been using the AEB-L Urban for the usual kind of EDC chores - opening packages and envelopes, cutting bits of loose thread, trimming dead leaves off of plants etc., and enjoy the smooth cutting, extremely sharp edge a lot.

I’ve also been giving the Urban a run on some food prep in the kitchen, and it performed very well (for a pocket knife), paring and peeling neatly and slicing very smoothly on a board.



But I think the point of this AEB-L Urban is that it performs well when ground thinner, so every now and then, like Nemo, I’ve been grinding back the shoulders - I use a Venev 1200/2000 bonded diamond pocket stone.

The edge gets super crisp and sharp. Basically I’ve been going between the Ultrafine stone/rods and a 1 micron, 0.25 micron, 0.1 micron diamond/CBN strop progression for touch up sharpening.

Occasionally I can feel slight apex rolling when doing touch up sharpening on the UF rods at 15dps. I mean very slight, in that it usually sharpens out in 3-5 light passes.

I thought I’d experiment with changing the colour too. I didn’t have any strong preference for another colour, so I chose a blue synthetic fabric dye.

It turned out pretty nice - a very dark purplish or blurple colour in the light. In low light it just looks dark and low key.



One other comment about the steel in this knife, is it’s definitely a ‘sharpeners steel’ - but a steel that can appeal to all sharpeners, from novices wanting to learn, all the way to experts.

I would definitely recommend this knife to a Spydie fan who wants to practice and refine their sharpening skills on an inexpensive knife.

More advanced sharpeners who thin out the edge area and who already do frequent touch up sharpening and stropping as part of their routine will appreciate having that screaming sharp AEB-L edge ready at hand.

Spyderco’s characterisation of this steel in their product literature is pretty spot on when they compare it, performance wise to a stainless 52100.

It’s basically like having a carbon steel that has a very fine microstructure like 52100, V-Toku 2 or Superblue, and having the added benefit of stainlessness.

Now I don’t mind maintaining a non-stainless knife, but where I do appreciate the extra corrosion resistance is in fine edge retention. I find carbon steels can sometimes get a little ‘furry’ at the apex, from atmospheric corrosion even without being used. AEB-L is also resistant to that fine edge degradation from acidic and alkaline fluids in fruit, vegetables and meats.

I enjoy this knife a lot. If you like carbon steels and enjoy sharpening, you’ll probably get along with this knife too.

[ZrowsN1s]

Great reviews Camber and Nemo!

[attila]

I've also been surprised by how easily I get a crazy sharp edge on my Urban. I especially like that I now have a steel that can put my Arkansas stones back to work and can strop back from kinda dull to mostly shaving sharp.

Although it's early for a verdict since I'm only one full sharpening in, I am liking AEB-L. At roughly 15° per side, it doesn't dull upsettingly quickly like H1, but after cutting cardboard or anything else abrasive, I do find what feel like tiny apex chips that are perceptible by running my finger nail across the apex. It seems like it micro chips a bit too easily on cardboard (at this stage), and it's weirdly easy to sharpen steel. I'm curious to see how it behaves after some more sharpenings. I'm enjoying this new experience. Just last night, I was thinking they this super easy to sharpen steel would be a nice option in the PM2 platform.

Also, the Urban is a fascinating platform. I was surprised by how much I like it. I have been toying with the idea of getting an N690Co basic version of the Urban to take the edge super acute (<10° per side) as an experiment.

How acute has everyone else set their AEB-L Urban to?

[Woodpuppy]

15dps. Sharpens up quickly and easily on a handheld Doublestuff 2. Yes it gets wicked sharp, but requires more frequent attention to keep it there. Not always a bad thing I guess. Helps keep the skills up!

[Cujobob]

I love AEB-L and would love to see it catch on, but it can be wasted if one were to leave the edge at an angle over...12 or so degrees, maybe? It can take extremely fine edges. It also requires being hardened to near maximum hardness or it ends up with terrible edge retention. I didn't read through every page of this thread, but was the target hardness range stated?

No it was not. No idea what the hardness is. I may be leaving some performance on the table until I go down to 12 or 10 dps. But at 15dps, I'm able to get an impressively sharp edge off of fine ceramic. Easier than I can with other steels (except H1). With more skill and better abrasives, I could probably do the same with other steels, but with my modest set up I like the ease of sharpening. Edge retention seems no worse than PE H1 at the moment, but I'll need to use it a little more before I have a firm opinion on that.

I would expect edge retention to be a tad less than VG10 with most materials, but better than AUS8 or pe H1. It will be far tougher than all but H1 (about which I cannot speak as yet from experience). We just need to realize what this deal actually is. It is a very tough stainless steal with edge holding that is decent but not stellar.

VG-10 is not a low carbide steel and should have better edge retention, however, I've found Spyderco to run it a bit soft on the examples I've had. AEB-L, as a low carbide steel, can actually perform really well with edge retention, but it falls off horribly if the steel isn't taken hard enough. AEB-L under 60 HRC is not very impressive at all with regards to that. I've had a lot of AEB-L (fixed blades, kitchen knives) and performance is all over the place.

[Cambertree]

I've also been surprised by how easily I get a crazy sharp edge on my Urban. I especially like that I now have a steel that can put my Arkansas stones back to work and can strop back from kinda dull to mostly shaving sharp.

How acute has everyone else set their AEB-L Urban to?

Nice one, yeah I enjoyed bringing out one of the Naniwa Choseras too, hadn't used those stones in a while.

I'm running the backbevel at about 10 dps, measured with a phone app, and the microbevel is at 15 dps.

Great reviews Camber and Nemo!

Thanks!

[Woodpuppy]

I haven’t used my Arkansas stones for knives in quite some time. I mostly use them on my hatchets & axes.

[Drasticoy]

Late at the party?



My two cents.
Easy to convex and to bring to razor.

Very very very nice in whittling. Same 'oily' feelings than 52100
Exactly the opposite experience than with my old ats34 Sebenza which 'stutter' when cutting wood.


The easy to reach razor factor makes it fun to use on anything...

More pictures on 'nemo knives review'...

Thank God, I think your pic may solve my problem with my Urban, here's my post viewtopic.php?p=1353967

[Cambertree]

Thank God, I think your pic may solve my problem with my Urban, here's my post viewtopic.php?p=1353967

Hi Drasticoy. I saw your original post. None of the things you pointed out as being possible signs of a fake, would have led me to that same conclusion.

I hope you get much enjoyment out of your Urban. It's a great little knife. I'm thinking I may need to add that N690Co version to the stable soon.

[Drasticoy]

Thank God, I think your pic may solve my problem with my Urban, here's my post viewtopic.php?p=1353967

Hi Drasticoy. I saw your original post. None of the things you pointed out as being possible signs of a fake, would have led me to that same conclusion.

I hope you get much enjoyment out of your Urban. It's a great little knife. I'm thinking I may need to add that N690Co version to the stable soon.

Thanks man! Urban indeed has a great edc size!

[Someone1]

Long time lurker. Glad to see certain people being brought up to speed. Long overdue. Happy to see misinformation being dispelled.

[Calicoast]

It would be nice to see a new run with this steel: Urban, UKPK, Mule, PM2.
Thin @ 61-62HRC.

[Doc Dan]

Well, UKPK would be a good choice, but a fixed blade might be better.