So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

Discuss Spyderco's products and history.
User avatar
SolidState
Member
Posts: 1758
Joined: Fri Jan 29, 2010 2:37 pm
Location: Oregon

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#181

Post by SolidState »

awa54 wrote:
Fri Feb 28, 2020 7:59 pm
***understatement warning***

Bainitic L6 is a formidable steel!
That's my favorite backing to martensite in a sword. It literally cannot be beaten. Howard Clark is a genius.

My favorite 3 steels with a Spyderco are:
1. Hap-40 - somewhat stain resistant, and gets buttery-smooth edges that seem to bite nicely. It sharpens up quickly and easily, and maintains a working sharpness for a long time.
2. Super Blue - this only takes second because Hap-40 is more stain resistant, and I don't have to explain why patina isn't a problem to people when I use Hap-40. This one may be my favorite at-home steel, but pocket knives are what come with me to work and get shown to people. I do love Super Blue.
3. VG-10 This steel is just great all around. People poo-poo it because Spyderco made it commonplace, but it really is a among-the-best-of-most-worlds steel.

My favorite 3 to blacksmith with are:
1. 1095 - it moves nicely and takes a hamon. It's also easy to chemically modify the surface through claying to get neat effects.
2. W1 - It moves well under a hammer and takes a great heat treat that's relatively easy to perform. It's also easily available.
3. L6 - Howard Clark is a genius, and I'm trying to follow him around the nose of that TTT curve.
LouisSeacamp
Member
Posts: 80
Joined: Fri Apr 03, 2020 9:17 am

Re: OLD SCHOOL

#182

Post by LouisSeacamp »

GIN-1
CPM T440V
VG-10
User avatar
jasonstone20
Member
Posts: 69
Joined: Tue Jan 06, 2015 6:29 pm
Location: Portland, OR

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#183

Post by jasonstone20 »

52100, nice carbon steel with great edge stability
AEB-L, nice stainless steel with great edge stability
M2, wear resistant steel with good edge stability.
"Gotta love living in 2019 baby, (63rc too soft on a production knife)"
--Shawn Houston

"I am still discussing issues of steels and performance at this stage."
--Cliff Stamp, May his memory be a blessing

"Cause geometry cuts, .....steel determines the level and the duration"
--Roman Landes

"Life is GOOD!"
--Stefan Wolf, May his memory be a blessing

--Ken Schwartz, May his memory be a blessing

"But in general, I'm all about high performance, Ergos, safety. That's why I've been accused of 'designing in the dark' "
--Sal Glesser
SMNL_N73SV
Member
Posts: 3
Joined: Wed Mar 25, 2020 9:26 am

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#184

Post by SMNL_N73SV »

1. S110v - great edge retention and corrosion resistance!
1. Maxamet - insane edge retention although pretty hard to sharpen with my stock edge pro stones
1. REX45 - one of the best allrounders if you ask me!

Honorable mentions
LC200N
Cruwear
Superflex
Member
Posts: 447
Joined: Sat Dec 28, 2019 2:48 pm

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#185

Post by Superflex »

K390 - Love the durability of the edge
52100 - Just love a plain Jane carbon steel. Great patina.
HAP40 - Sharpenability and edge retention. The SUS410 clad makes maintenance a breeze
SubMicron
Member
Posts: 246
Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2020 12:55 pm

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#186

Post by SubMicron »

sal wrote:
Thu Sep 26, 2019 8:52 pm
Hi all.

Topic says it all. I'm just curious. We've built a lot of models with a lot of steels and we're still doing that as it is one of our passions. I know there will always be new steels and we're surely be working with them. But I find that myself as well as other knife afi's do have their favorites. Like you, I love them all and they are all different, but top 3 only.

sal
I love the question and I own all three on the list in knives from Spyderco.

CPM-4V is resoundingly my #1 choice. This steel sets a new benchmark for how strong and capable a folding knife steel can be. Nothing else seems to be able to deliver this level of strength along with this top tier level of edge retention. On top of all that, 4V is a treat to sharpen and the edge that comes up is amazing!

MAXAMET is my #2 choice but only as long as it remains #1 for edge retention. Edge Retention through cardboard matters and I use this this on a Native 5 LW at work.

CPM-20CV is my #3 choice... for when stainless is required. CPM-20CV seems to be more widely available than CTS-204P which appears to be more expensive for only incremental improvements in performance. M390 is a foriegn made steel and for me a domestically produced steel adds value. While the market quibbles about the performance differences between S30V, S35VN, and S45VN, it appears that the CPM-20CV/M390/CTS-204P trio rise above, only to be bested in edge retention by S90V/S110V but at the sacrifice of strength. CPM-20CV wins #3 on value and balance.
Bill1170
Member
Posts: 2770
Joined: Tue Oct 20, 2009 7:34 pm
Location: San Diego North County

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#187

Post by Bill1170 »

Looks like I hadn’t posted yet in this thread (no star in the thread icon). My 3 are:

1. M390 for the high attainable sharpness, good wear resistance, and great stain resistance.
2. S110V for the insanely durable working edge and great stain resistance.
3. VG10 for being so all around balanced. It does everything well.
User avatar
JKOLLER
Member
Posts: 12
Joined: Thu Apr 30, 2020 5:22 pm
Location: Reading, PA

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#188

Post by JKOLLER »

1 s30v (very underrated/under appreciated in my opinion)
2 s90v
3 h1
Honorable mention for maxamet, i only just recently acquired a manix 2 lw in this steel i am loving it so far but not enough experience with it to breech my top 3!
FrenchBlob
Member
Posts: 28
Joined: Fri Aug 28, 2020 7:06 am

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#189

Post by FrenchBlob »

Hi there,
a little bump to give a chance to new members to vote. :)
I only use stainles steel as I want to be able to rinse quickly my knife after use and put it back in my pocket.
I may be wrong but I afraid of rust inside the mechanism ( on the blade near the pivot...). Even if so many positive feedbacks on non-stailess steels makes me want to try some. :confused:

So my top 3 steels are :

1- CTS-XHP : easy to sharpen , medium to high edge retention, take a really reaaaly nice polished and thin edge on my Chap
2- 20CV : high edge retention, a bit long to reprofile with Naniwa stones but as soon as it is done easy to touch up, nice hardness
3- AEB-L : low alloy stainless steel, the closest to carbon steel : easy to sharpen, hard

Never had any problems of chipping or corrosion with those , for my use ..

My 2 apples,

FB
User avatar
odomandr
Member
Posts: 207
Joined: Sun Jul 26, 2020 8:56 am
Location: Fort Collins CO Earth

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#190

Post by odomandr »

VG10 cost considerations and well rounded for variety or blade shapes, thicknesses and grinds.

LC200 because corrosion and equally well rounded considering.


beyond this is just to the fancy of those who know steel composition is even different. thank you for fancying us
"Yeah? Well, you know, thats like uh, your opinion, man" - Lebowski
User avatar
Sonorum
Member
Posts: 451
Joined: Tue Dec 20, 2016 1:05 pm
Location: Sweden

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#191

Post by Sonorum »

These are the first things that come to mind when I think about the knives I have in these steels:

VG10 - gets sharp so easily, great in a serrated edge.
CTS-XHP - the sharpest I've ever gotten a knife, and strops back so easily.
CPM-S90V - stays sharp forever whilst not being an absolute pain to sharpen.
/ David
SubMicron
Member
Posts: 246
Joined: Mon Apr 13, 2020 12:55 pm

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#192

Post by SubMicron »

My 3 favorites have changed a lot over the last several months. I've gotten a lot of new knives since then.

I can no longer pick a favorite between my top 5... none are stainless.

In no particular order: Cruwear, 4V, REX-45, HAP40, Maxamet, K390... wait that's 6

Just count HAP40 and REX-45 as one and then its only a list of 5. They're extremely close compositinally.

Really though, I also like S110V, S90V, and SPY-27 a lot too... but I prefer my non stainless tool steels.

Basically I'm both steel and knife drunk.

To narrow to 3... I cant do it. Maxamet and 20CV are out of the top 3 though... they're out of the top 5 even.

It's also hard to count HAP40 and REX-45 as the same because they're delivered so differently.

The only reason for me that HAP & REX beat K390 is because they give the option of sharpening with ceramic abrasives. I like options.

Tied for #1- REX-45 & HAP40 - Wear resistance of REX-45, SUS410 outer jacket of HAP40, and edge stability + flexibility with sharpening on both.
#2 - K390 for wear resistance and durability with normal use.
Tied for #3 - 4V & Cruwear for the fine edge attributes, plus the edge stability of 4V and the additional corrosion resistance of Cruwear
User avatar
steelcity16
Member
Posts: 5351
Joined: Mon Dec 11, 2017 11:34 am

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#193

Post by steelcity16 »

steelcity16 wrote:
Fri Sep 27, 2019 7:17 pm
1. Cruwear - should be a production steel for all flagship Golden and Seki knives

2. LC200N - anxiously awaiting FFG LC200N salts

3. 3V - still waiting on some 3V folder exclusives

1 year later and nothing has changed for me. I've added a Cruwear PM2 and a Cruwear BRK Wilderness Explorer to my stable, and hopefully will have a Z-wear-carta Shaman at some point soon.

Still hoping to see some FFG LC200N Seki Salts and some 3V folders at some point.
:bug-white-red CRU-CARTA THE SEKI MODELS! :bug-white-red AND BRING US THE DODO-FLY! :bug-white-red
Bamalt1
Member
Posts: 70
Joined: Mon Jun 01, 2020 11:34 am

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#194

Post by Bamalt1 »

M4, Rex 45, LC200N not necessarily in that order. I started my collection with S35VN so I haven't used anything even close to low end in a Spyderco.
S35VN PM2, Spydiechef, M4 Manix 2 XL, Rex 45 Shaman, Kapara, M4 PM2 Tanto, Ultatech BH, Techno 2, 20CV Yojimbo 2
User avatar
xceptnl
Member
Posts: 8594
Joined: Mon Feb 21, 2011 7:48 pm
Location: Tobacco Country, Virginia
Contact:

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#195

Post by xceptnl »

Sorting them in order seems impossible so these three are almost interchangeable.

Superblue
Cruwear
K390

Edit: just touched up my Superblue knives this evening and was reminded why I love it so much. It definitely holds the #1 spot for me. That still leaves Cruwear and K390 in a tie for 2nd.
Last edited by xceptnl on Mon Sep 14, 2020 6:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Image
sal wrote: .... even today, we design a knife from the edge out!
*Landon*
User avatar
Featherblade
Member
Posts: 421
Joined: Fri Feb 05, 2016 6:15 pm

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#196

Post by Featherblade »

S35VN and now SPY27 - well balanced steels.
Maxamet - hard steel for hard works :)

but
my most used knives in the last years have blades made from :
folding - S30V, VG-10, 1.4110, H1
fixed - SK5 and Co.
User avatar
sal
Member
Posts: 16967
Joined: Fri Sep 24, 2004 12:00 pm
Location: Golden, Colorado USA

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#197

Post by sal »

Funny how preferences change over time and new information.

sal
User avatar
Abyss_Fish
Member
Posts: 811
Joined: Tue Apr 21, 2020 3:23 pm
Location: Minnesota, USA.

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#198

Post by Abyss_Fish »

easy peasy.


Stainless worker: lc200n/Z-finit.
Absolutely rust proof. Incredibly ductile and fairly tough. With edge holding close or slightly above s30v, but without all the side effects :)

Carbon worker: 3v.
Even more ductile than lc200n, you can easily strop this from dull to shaving sharp, with the added benefit of being able to use a series of 3v blades as a ladder if you really want to.

General purpose: M390/20cv/cts-204p.
Not quite as rust resistant as lc200n and probably slightly more chippy but with nearly twice the edge retention, plus just as easy to sharpen as the other two. Ideal slicey edc steel, especially when it's run at around 61 or 62 hrc.


Honorable mention to sg2/R2 since it's in all of my kitchen knives and basically preforms like s35vn but is less prone to chip and rusts a little more readily. Think of it as a harder cts-xhp. Love that stuff...
Lightly insane.

Current spydie collection: Watu, Rhino, UKPK Salt G10 bladeswap, Yojimbo 2 Smooth G10 Cru-Wear, Manix lw “mystic” 20cv, SmallFly 2, Waterway, Ladybug k390, Caribbean
Current favorite steels: sg2/R2, lc200n/Z-FiNit, 3v
OldHoosier62
Member
Posts: 727
Joined: Tue Jan 04, 2011 4:57 pm
Location: Indiana

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#199

Post by OldHoosier62 »

CPM 440V....never found it fragile or hard to sharpen
VG-10....Simple, elegant and gets stupid sharp.
CPM S90V....Edge holding workhorse
Hardbawl
Member
Posts: 89
Joined: Fri May 12, 2017 8:25 am

Re: So what's your top 3 favorite steels? and why?

#200

Post by Hardbawl »

Sal: The best steel that I have experienced in a knife is Cru-wear. In less than 5 minutes the Sharpmaker will put such an edge on Cru-wear that my little Native will sing. You make it hard enough to keep an edge through a lot of farm work, yet it is tough enough that it doesn't chip. My Native holds up better than my Native Chief in S30v even though the Chief has a better blade shape for the work we do and more edge to work with. If you ever make a Chief in Cru-wear, i will order several. Thank you for making knives that have become tools of the trade out here. They are good!
Post Reply