SE performance is more than simply teeth vs no teeth.

[SpydieCollector]

I made a meme for you: (and sorry I misspelled it)

Haha! Love that. So true.

Serrations forever lol!

[Bill1170]

Hi!

It took quite some effort, but I've damaged the blade myself, so there's no need to complain. K390 is an excellent steel, and there are still K390 SE Enduras available at Knivesandtools. I can highly recommend it if you're not planning on using the knife in a moist environment - basic care as wwith all carbon steels and I have no issues at all. K390 is much more resistant to rust or patina compared traditional carbon steels.

I guess my next order will include the Delica Wharncliffe SE in VG10, my guess is it will be a great working knife.

Don't get the wrong impression here, I had to put in quite a lot of work because I have damaged the blade, other than that K390 never caused me any troubles getting it razor sharp ond the Sharpmaker, it's a fantastic steel.

Here's a picture of pull-through cuts with the K390 SE, keep in mind this has been my first attempt at sharpening a serrated edge, and it has been damaged. I'm quite happy with the performance.


20241219_131500.jpg

Concerning K390 / tool steels: I actually really like when blades get a patina or spots (black or even red), makes the knife more personal and indistinctive, more interesting and beautiful and shows its "life".
And/but for whatever reason it is not "easy" for me to rust knives anyway (despite using them, also with tool steel, in moist conditions or on food (fruits..) a lot, carry them iwb when running (and sweating) and so on.
So no worries here anyway.

Yes, K390 SE Enduras are still to be found - even for good prices.. I am really tempted. especially so that I could find out myself how the durability / resistance to chipping of very hard SE is compared to the SE in VG10, LC 200N, H1 I am used to and especially how much harder it would be to sharpen.

Vice versa I am also very interested in YOUR findings on this (sharpening SE in K390 vs SE in VG10)!

/ I´d also like to once more highly recommend getting the Chaparral SE, especially for the great prices it can be had right now here in Europe (see my post here viewtopic.php?p=1811245#p1811245)... it is amazing, really highlights what SE can do, and I am sure you´d also be impressed with its fit, finish and quality (not that Seki FRNs would be "bad", actually most of my Spydies are just that and I love them, but the Chap still is on another level)
You can also browse through this viewtopic.php?t=96972 thread in order to see how much people like its performance

Hi Wartstein,

Don’t think of sharpening K390 SE as “harder” than doing the same on VG-10. It’s not harder to do, just slower. Reprofiling is much slower, yes. Vanadium carbides will have that effect. But it takes a wicked edge and keeps it a longer time than most alloys. I have found it to be very durable in the teeth when profiled to 15 degrees on the scallop side.

[Wartstein]

Hi Wartstein,

Don’t think of sharpening K390 SE as “harder” than doing the same on VG-10. It’s not harder to do, just slower. Reprofiling is much slower, yes. Vanadium carbides will have that effect. But it takes a wicked edge and keeps it a longer time than most alloys. I have found it to be very durable in the teeth when profiled to 15 degrees on the scallop side.

Thanks, Bill!

I guess I should really get a K390 Endura SE, as long as they can be found...

What held me back so far?

Well, to me (personally!) generally stuff like S30V, HXP or REX 45 are high edge retention steels already, never felt the need to move up the ladder for the price of more time consuming sharpening.

Now SE holds an edge a lot longer than PE ime, so this made me even less interested in super hard steels when it comes to teeth.

And, last but not least: For SE I almost exclusively use the SM, so the corners of the rods, and thought they could wear out really quick with those "supersteels" (especially on the CBN rods).
But: While steels like K390 must be hard on the corners of the rods indeed, on the other hand one does not have to sharpen the knife as often, which should make up for this...

[Wartstein]

I made a meme for you: (and sorry I misspelled it)

Haha! Love that. So true.

Serrations forever lol!

Just kind of true for me personally...

The thin red line Endura (ffg) really brought me back to appreciating a good combo edge.
I´d probably still take a fully serrated Spydie over that (if the serrations are how I like them), but definitely take a good combo edge over a plain edge any day of the week. Even more so on a long blade like the Endura offers.

[Bill1170]

Increasingly I’ve taken to carrying a SE Spyderco locking folder plus a SAK for plain edge and “other tool” duties. Cargo pants make this a reasonable option and I carry a 100mm Knipex adjustable pliers in rear pocket, too.

[Wartstein]

Increasingly I’ve taken to carrying a SE Spyderco locking folder plus a SAK for plain edge and “other tool” duties. Cargo pants make this a reasonable option and I carry a 100mm Knipex adjustable pliers in rear pocket, too.

Yes, if I think of ideally pairing SE and PE for EDC, my main blade certainly would have to be the serrated one..

[Evil D]

Increasingly I’ve taken to carrying a SE Spyderco locking folder plus a SAK for plain edge and “other tool” duties. Cargo pants make this a reasonable option and I carry a 100mm Knipex adjustable pliers in rear pocket, too.

Back in 2017 when I started carrying SE exclusively, this was my mentality but with the PE blade on my multitool. It very rarely got used but it was reassuring to have. In my day to day it's more rare than hen's teeth that I find myself cutting something that necessitates a PE to do it. We can sit and debate it out and come up with scenarios where that may be the case but I just never come across them.

Even now after carrying almost all PE in 2023 and most of 2024 (due to a couple models that I could only get in PE) it's not like those PE knives can't get the job done, but recently after finally getting some of the SE options I've been waiting for, the difference for me is still very clear. I find myself using the scallops themselves like individual little cutting tools.

[Bill1170]

Increasingly I’ve taken to carrying a SE Spyderco locking folder plus a SAK for plain edge and “other tool” duties. Cargo pants make this a reasonable option and I carry a 100mm Knipex adjustable pliers in rear pocket, too.

Back in 2017 when I started carrying SE exclusively, this was my mentality but with the PE blade on my multitool. It very rarely got used but it was reassuring to have. In my day to day it's more rare than hen's teeth that I find myself cutting something that necessitates a PE to do it. We can sit and debate it out and come up with scenarios where that may be the case but I just never come across them.

Even now after carrying almost all PE in 2023 and most of 2024 (due to a couple models that I could only get in PE) it's not like those PE knives can't get the job done, but recently after finally getting some of the SE options I've been waiting for, the difference for me is still very clear. I find myself using the scallops themselves like individual little cutting tools.

Your point is valid. I use the other tools on my SAK much more often than I use the actual blades. Like you, I can use an individual scallop as a precision knife for certain tasks, and the SE is just better for most matter separation.

[Wartstein]

Your point is valid. I use the other tools on my SAK much more often than I use the actual blades. Like you, I can use an individual scallop as a precision knife for certain tasks, and the SE is just better for most matter separation.

100% agreed!

[KeepCalm&Carrion]

Like you, I can use an individual scallop as a precision knife for certain tasks, and the SE is just better for most matter separation.

I've been using the first scallop (right behind the PE tip) on my SE Chaparral as a mini-hawkbill for opening packages and it's surprising how precise and controlled the cut is.

[Evil D]

Like you, I can use an individual scallop as a precision knife for certain tasks, and the SE is just better for most matter separation.

I've been using the first scallop (right behind the PE tip) on my SE Chaparral as a mini-hawkbill for opening packages and it's surprising how precise and controlled the cut is.

Yes! Exactly this, I just opened a bunch of Milwaukee battery clamshells at work and this is how I used it, it's so easy to control. Most of my other SE have a longer PE section at the tip and I'm finding that this smaller section makes it easier to use like this.

[olywa]

Try using that first scallop on the Rescue models for opening packages, boxes, clamshells, etc.. It's bomb.

[KeepCalm&Carrion]

Yeah, with how easy that first section of the blade (PE tip + first scallop) is to control, plus that thin chisel-ground tip, the Chaparral is so good at precise pierce-and-pull cuts.

Now my problem is that I wish my Sun & Moon Chaparral was serrated, too. I know most would argue that PE is better-looking, but for me the pattern and high level of finishing on these Taichung serrations are visually pleasing -- to the point of being preferable. In short: Taichung serrations are effective and purdy.

[katguy25]

I just wanted to thank everyone for this information!

I've been collecting knives for years. I have way too many, but I always avoided serrated blades... until recently. I have stopped collecting knives now, but I ended my collection with all serrated edges (folders and fixed blades). I now own about a dozen SE knives (mostly Spyderco) and I carry and use them more than any of my plain edge knives.

Learning how to sharpen them was the key for me. Before I got a Sharp Maker, I used the edge of a flat bench stone to basically do the same thing the Sharp Maker does. I still carry a few small Arkansas stones for field touch ups. The edges of those are my 'portable' Sharp Maker. In reality, I hardly ever need to touch up a SE though. They stay sharp and usable for a very long time.

If you actually use your EDC knife to cut stuff all the time, buy a SE (anything from Spyderco) and a Sharp Maker and you have all you need for years of hard use cutting. Thank you Spyderco!!!

[Evil D]

Yeah, with how easy that first section of the blade (PE tip + first scallop) is to control, plus that thin chisel-ground tip, the Chaparral is so good at precise pierce-and-pull cuts.

Now my problem is that I wish my Sun & Moon Chaparral was serrated, too. I know most would argue that PE is better-looking, but for me the pattern and high level of finishing on these Taichung serrations are visually pleasing -- to the point of being preferable. In short: Taichung serrations are effective and purdy.

Kinda funny, as soon as I got my SE Chap I immediately thought about getting a Sun & Moon version and blade swapping them.

[Wartstein]

I've been using the first scallop (right behind the PE tip) on my SE Chaparral as a mini-hawkbill for opening packages and it's surprising how precise and controlled the cut is.

Yes! Exactly this, I just opened a bunch of Milwaukee battery clamshells at work and this is how I used it, it's so easy to control. Most of my other SE have a longer PE section at the tip and I'm finding that this smaller section makes it easier to use like this.

I´ve been wishing for a Chap SE for so long and musing about what good serrations could do in that thin blade - so glad that Sal made this happen and how it turned out !!

[srivats]

I've been using the first scallop (right behind the PE tip) on my SE Chaparral as a mini-hawkbill for opening packages and it's surprising how precise and controlled the cut is.

Yes! Exactly this, I just opened a bunch of Milwaukee battery clamshells at work and this is how I used it, it's so easy to control. Most of my other SE have a longer PE section at the tip and I'm finding that this smaller section makes it easier to use like this.

I´ve been wishing for a Chap SE for so long and musing about what good serrations could do in that thin blade - so glad that Sal made this happen and how it turned out !!

I got myself a SE Chaparral for Xmas. My god .. now I understand this entire thread.

[Michael Janich]

Dear katguy25:

Welcome to the Spyderco Forum.

Stay safe,

Mike

[Wartstein]

I just wanted to thank everyone for this information!

I've been collecting knives for years. I have way too many, but I always avoided serrated blades... until recently. I have stopped collecting knives now, but I ended my collection with all serrated edges (folders and fixed blades). I now own about a dozen SE knives (mostly Spyderco) and I carry and use them more than any of my plain edge knives.

Learning how to sharpen them was the key for me. Before I got a Sharp Maker, I used the edge of a flat bench stone to basically do the same thing the Sharp Maker does. I still carry a few small Arkansas stones for field touch ups. The edges of those are my 'portable' Sharp Maker. In reality, I hardly ever need to touch up a SE though. They stay sharp and usable for a very long time.

If you actually use your EDC knife to cut stuff all the time, buy a SE (anything from Spyderco) and a Sharp Maker and you have all you need for years of hard use cutting. Thank you Spyderco!!!

Welcome to the forum!

While I am not so sure I´d want all kinds of fixed blades in SE, when it comes to EDC folders and "good" serrations: I am 100% with you!

And like you the knowledge and input from folks here (especially vivi and David/Evil D) helped me a lot in learning how to really enjoy serrations!

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Wartstein my friend I do prefer combo edge.