CPM SPY 27 Long Term Use

[JSumm]

I, too, love VG10, but with some rumored reduction in fracture-resistance, SPY27 will not be VG10. I suspect that that Sal regards it as close enough, and maybe something more in its own right that will find a following.

I remain interested.

Where did you hear that? I find it to be the opposite at least at the edge. Never pryed with a knife, so I couldn't testify to fracture resistance in use. Just being a PM steel with a fine grain structure gets it pretty far, but the heat treatment seems to be spot on. I have cut some nasty stuff with it and it has held up much better than VG-10 at the edge. And I like VG-10.

I know Larrin has SPY27 in the S35 XHP area, maybe slightly below. VG-10 is a point below those 3. He may just be calculating it. Not sure if he did an actual fracture test on SPY27 yet.

[wrdwrght]

I, too, love VG10, but with some rumored reduction in fracture-resistance, SPY27 will not be VG10. I suspect that that Sal regards it as close enough, and maybe something more in its own right that will find a following.

I remain interested.

Where did you hear that? I find it to be the opposite at least at the edge. Never pryed with a knife, so I couldn't testify to fracture resistance in use. Just being a PM steel with a fine grain structure gets it pretty far, but the heat treatment seems to be spot on. I have cut some nasty stuff with it and it has held up much better than VG-10 at the edge. And I like VG-10.

I know Larrin has SPY27 in the S35 XHP area, maybe slightly below. VG-10 is a point below those 3. He may just be calculating it. Not sure if he did an actual fracture test on SPY27 yet.

Thanks, Jeff, for waking me up. I must have misconstrued something I read a while ago. Larrin’s testing shows SPY27 5ish foot-pounds to the better than VG10. This correction has me more than interested now. Just need it in the right model.

[Bolster]

...SPY27 ... Just need it in the right model.

There are a number of us who think the Manix is almost always the right model, but we're open-minded, so...what model would you like to see it in?

[wrdwrght]

...SPY27 ... Just need it in the right model.

There are a number of us who think the Manix is almost always the right model, but we're open-minded, so...what model would you like to see it in?

A Manix2 would certainly appeal to me.

But, then, Sal does spring entirely new models on us from time to time. I could like Sal’s new steel in one of his new models, for the poetry of it.

[WyoJon]

I recieved my native lightweight in spy27. Excellent steel. Profiled quickly and took an wdge easy. Was wgery bit as easy to sharpen as vg10.

[WyoJon]

Absoloutely happy I did. The frn is a gorgeous color. The frn is rock solid, zero flex. The action is buttery smooth. There is zero blade play in any direction, the scales dont even flex away from the blade slightly with horizontal pressure the way a frn handle on a salt will.

Excellent little knife. Not sure why but the frn just feels denser than seiki city models. Might be front the height of the handle. Really love my seiki frn knives, but this has a rewarding feeling to opening it.

[WyoJon]

So I spent some time with this edge.

Native 5 lightweight Spy27
From the factory, the bevels were 9 degrees and 22 degrees, with the apex of the edge .6mm to the left of the center of the spine.

I used the sharp maker to set the bevel, with 120 grit sand paper, cleaned it with 220 and then hit the progression with the medium stones. The pictures show how it finished on the ultra fine, a perfect mirror. I profiled the bevels to 15°

The bevel setting was easy and quick. This steel works atleast as easy as vg10. Was very quick to polish. Off of the medium stones, it was starting to slice rolling papers. After the ultra fine, it will shave designs into free hanging rolling paper. Had great feed back on the stones, and sharpened well, with burring being rather minimum, yet easy to burr. I did not put a 20° microbevel on the edge. Deffinitely a world of difference from sharpening s30v, and s35vn, since i keep reading people comparing the two. Under the loupe, I did not see any of the microchipping that those two steels tend to do on coarser bench stones. I tested this on a coarse aluminum oxide stone, where it cut quick and easy without any edge deformation.


I will continue texting this on a variety of stones, likely silicone dioxide next, with cut tests in between.


Cleaning the stones with alcohol and simple green, and letting them sit over night, I did not get any detectable oxidization of the steel particles, such as many steels will do.

Highly recommend this steel so far.

[WyoJon]