What steel should be alright on a rainy day in your pocket?

[tacticooledc]

Today was raining moderately so I decided to be better safe than sorry so I took my tasman salt to work instead of the usual police....then the sun showed and i felt naked at my security job without the police =(.

My question is: is vg10 steel alright if you're not gonna be doing cutting in the rain, rather just carry it in a pocket? If not, is cpms30v better at that? I like the salt series but i see no tactical knives in h-1

[bowarrow2000]

Just about any steel you want to carry will do fine in moist situations, Stainless or carbon and I have carried a lot of carbon blades. Ture, carbon tends to rust if you don't care for it properly, wipe it down once in a while and keep clean don't worry about patina. Stainless can pit just by being in your pocket on a hot day depending on your body chemisty, salt in your sweat. If you are really worried about rust in moist situations there are the blades that have no carbon, instead nitrogen, called H1 etc.

That about sums it up. Keep blades clean and wipe down once in a while with a lubricant.

[Blerv]

Keeping knives dry and clean whenever possible is prudent ownership. However stainless steels are much more resistant to staining/rusting than typical non-stainless.

Salt is the great humbling element. It eats up stainless metals (like exhaust systems) like Pac Man.

If you look after your Mili after work with a little cleaning it *should* be fine. Blow the water out, work some proper oil in, swab out grit, repeat. If you prefer to not (like many people) Salts are a great solution.

Oh and while the Tasman/Spyderhawk aren't tactical folders they are deadly against organic materials (especially PE). Janich is quoted in a vid favoring the Tasman as a gun retention tool or backup defense piece. I bet even at 3" of blade they thrust/slash better than many competitors with an extra inch.

Ps: vg10 is very resistant to corrosion among normal stainless blade steels.

[SpydieDelica4]

Security jobs require tactical knives? I love my H1, you're missing out on H1 over this whole tactical business.

[flash900]

I've had pretty much the same question as the OP: Should I get a Salt just so I won't worry about all my other Spydies on rainy days?

Yes, I do wear rain gear, but that's not to say that a knife clipped inside a pocket won't get damp.

You hate to think that your knives could be this vulnerable and yet, maybe they are.

I'll ask the question this way: Would you take your Sage out in the rain?

[tacticooledc]

Security jobs require tactical knives? I love my H1, you're missing out on H1 over this whole tactical business.

No, i'm sure they discourage them or even have a rule somewhere saying no knives period, but every so often especially on holidays we get illegals driving around in pickups, stealing company property.

Last week on presidents day we had 2 instances, one of which a guy brought his 5 year old daughter as a lookout while he was digging around the back of our main building.

If someone is willing to commit a felony, bringing their child to the scene, i want to at least have a blade on me, whether they potentially have a gun or not.

[JacksonKnives]

I'm not sure what "tactical" means anymore WRT knives, but there's the Superhawk in H1 if you're into hawkbills.

Stainless is, IMHO, overrated if you're landlocked. Sea water (or a climate with heavy rainfall) would probably make me re-evaluate my steel preference, but I have no trouble carrying tool steel on an everyday basis. VG-10 will be fine in your pocket, probably even if you run it through the washing machine or leave it damp in the hamper.

[tacticooledc]

Generally speaking tactical is a vague general term. My definition of it is a blade that has better than average reach, penetration, slicing ability, and quickness of deployment. Something like the police3g10 or military are my spyderco definitions of this term.

Clearly spyderco focuses more on accessibility to users for ease of use, and edc-ability, but I like them over other companies because they tend to use the higher end steels and the designs are more compact and lightweight. Plus the spyderhole offers quick deployment to bare hands, gloves, and even an optional zip tie wave feature on any tip up spyderco blade

[JNewell]

salt

There is one thing worse: chlorine. If you work in/around, say, swimming pool chemicals, be careful...

[Corvid1]

Ditto to recommendations listed above. I recommend having at least one :spyder: with an H1 blade. I carry a Pacific Salt - C88PYL.

tim

[dbcad]

I don't think the weather really makes a difference for the stainless steels such as vg-10,S30V or even ZDP189. It would for O1 and the Super Blue. I've never had any problems with Spyderco's most commonly used stainless steels.. The 3 I mentioned have been immersed in fresh water more than once and have not always been promptly attended to. Salt water would be a different story.

[Creepo]

I think VG10 is more corrosion resistant than S30V, by how much? I don't know.
As long as you periodically wipe the blade with oil it should be fine even on a rainy day, and after a wet day, just make sure to dry the insides.

The Salt line is great if stainless steels prove not to be enough.
Have a look at the Tasmans and Spyderhawks, the Pacific Salt is also a good choice, it's nor very pointy but that could easily be fixed with the right tools and skill.

[Paradiggum]

Just to give you an idea of how little rain should have an effect, a friends father lost his Delica with a VG10 blade in the yard in the summer. He didn't find it until the next summer when working in the yard. So it sat half the summer, all winter and at least through spring out in the rain, snow and anything else nature threw at it. When he found it, all it needed was wiped off. Now this was an unlined version so it didn't need to be taken apart and cleaned but the blade held up nicely and from what I've read, the liners are even more corrosion resistant.

Another story was another friend lost his Byrd Meadowlark in December. He found it last week in the driveway. It was more rusty than the Delica was but after about an hour cleaning it, it was back looking almost like new. It wasn't pitted or anything like that. Just discolored. We're in Ohio and it snows pretty good. He was surprised it wasn't destroyed considering how many times it must have been run over.

So I wouldn't worry too much about rain. Even if you got soaked. Just dry it off, oil it and you should be good. :)

[Lord vader]

I personally have not experienced any problems even with carbon steel blades as long as I keep a light coat of oil on the blades,sometimes I use a light coat of food grade silicon on the blades.

[Tsujigiri]

Carried my Phoenix through the rain yesterday with no issues. Actually, I've never had issues with rust.

[flash900]

So no one here would buy a Salt I just to replace the equivalent VG10 Delica for pocket carry on rainy or humid days in the Midwest?

[Blerv]

So no one here would buy a Salt I just to replace the equivalent VG10 Delica for pocket carry on rainy or humid days in the Midwest?

A Salt1 is very similar to a D3. Unlined and hollow ground. If you like that kind of knife it's a perfect replacement. Serrated h1 will last longer than serrated vg10; PE h1 not so much (more like AUS8).

[Creepo]

So no one here would buy a Salt I just to replace the equivalent VG10 Delica for pocket carry on rainy or humid days in the Midwest?

These things are rather subjective really, it's all about how people take care of their blades how your own sweat for example might affect it.
I wouldn't sweat about it unless I actually experienced actual problems with corrosion.