Spyderco Forums

How do Elmax and S45VN compare with each other?

I’ll be trying for one. Elmax is a steel that I have never tried. *Fingers crossed*

$179 as per their official reply on their IG

After picking up 6 of the SMKW Exclusive, I'll probably be able to pick up only 4 of these at that price.

More gifts for people I know !!

cycleguy wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 5:14 pm

How do Elmax and S45VN compare with each other?

In Larrin's Catra testing they're nearly identical given test variance. The carbide content is very close between the two so I would expect similar sharpening response.

Snacktime wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 1:41 pm

If the Elmax mark up $5-10 it will sell fast, just so few regular Spydercos in stock.

ParaMilitary2 S45VN/G-10 sells for $154.70 (in stock at several dealers now) and this similar ParaMilitary2 Elmax/G-10 sells for $179.00 which is $24.30 more.

Is it dark gray or black?

Freediver wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 10:34 pm

Is it dark gray or black?

On Instagram, BladeOps said “dark grey G10”.

If it's a PM2 I'll pass. I have the BBS one with a Krein regrind to 0.005 and it's been one of my go to EDC knives for a while. It performs great, I even chopped through some 1.5-2 inch branches (took 3 to 4 minutes with a 3 oz folder) and it still shaved. Glad to see more Elmax being used, it's such a great steel when the heat treat is done well.

RamZar wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 11:00 pm

Freediver wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 10:34 pm

Is it dark gray or black?

On Instagram, BladeOps said “dark grey G10”.

Ah Ok, thanks.

Joshcrutchley1 wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 8:20 pm

cycleguy wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 5:14 pm

How do Elmax and S45VN compare with each other?

In Larrin's Catra testing they're nearly identical given test variance. The carbide content is very close between the two so I would expect similar sharpening response.

And that's at about the same hardness, on the toughness chart Elmax has higher toughness, but at 57.5 to 59 HRC vs 61.5 HRC for S45VN. If the Elmax curve continues along the same slope up to the higher hardnesses, it looks like it would likely have lower hardness than S45VN at an equivalent HRC.... Seems like a downgrade overall.

Pass

Since there is yet to be a limited PM2 that will fail to sell out I think we can safely assume, that the this forum is not a particularly good representation of the market :)

The most recent KnifeJoy PM2 exclusive has yet to sell out. Granted there have been other versions which had the same steel, but it’s proof not every PM2 exclusive will be an instant sellout

This one will be tempting to those who didn’t get in on the BBS exclusive years back, but Elmax is old news in the knife industry. A lot of knife manufacturers have moved on to better steels awhile ago.

I think Elmax is great but it is in the same class as S30V, S35VN and S45VN. It has marginally more wear resistance than CPM154 and Super Gold2 and is just a little below the M390 family of steels.

The middle of the road stainless steels are popular for a reason. They balance a lot of qualities well and they all make good blade steels. In the end this exclusive really doesn’t offer up anything all that new.

If someone has never used Elmax then it may have appeal or if somebody wants a knife that is basically the same as the base model but a little more unique then it may be worth considering. If I didn’t already have the BBS version I might of been a buyer.

In case you missed it in the App... Here is the page for 9am MT tomorrow... https://bladeops.com/spyderco-exclusive ... max-blade/

I haven't been reading too much into any particular exclusive not selling out right away. I hope it's because companies are placing larger orders, precisely so they don't sell out in 5 minutes. Which is what I thought we all wanted.

RamZar wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 8:31 pm

Snacktime wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 1:41 pm

If the Elmax mark up $5-10 it will sell fast, just so few regular Spydercos in stock.

ParaMilitary2 S45VN/G-10 sells for $154.70 (in stock at several dealers now) and this similar ParaMilitary2 Elmax/G-10 sells for $179.00 which is $24.30 more.

MSRP actually is just $5 more than a stock PM2. It’s the smaller discount from MSRP. Just 20% off this exclusive vs 30% MAP for the stock PM2 at dealers.

Edit: Didn’t BBS sell theirs for full MSRP @ $199?
So that makes this one $20 cheaper (not including shipping) than the last time we had a chance. Even with the price increases since then.

PStone wrote: ↑

Thu Sep 09, 2021 1:15 pm

RamZar wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 8:31 pm

Snacktime wrote: ↑

Wed Sep 08, 2021 1:41 pm

If the Elmax mark up $5-10 it will sell fast, just so few regular Spydercos in stock.

ParaMilitary2 S45VN/G-10 sells for $154.70 (in stock at several dealers now) and this similar ParaMilitary2 Elmax/G-10 sells for $179.00 which is $24.30 more.

MSRP actually is just $5 more than a stock PM2. It’s the smaller discount from MSRP. Just 20% off this exclusive vs 30% MAP for the stock PM2 at dealers.

Edit: Didn’t BBS sell theirs for full MSRP @ $199?
So that makes this one $20 cheaper (not including shipping) than the last time we had a chance. Even with the price increases since then.

What matters in the comparison is the price the dealer is selling it at. Here, side by side, are BladeOps regular production PM2 next to the new Exclusive.

RamZar wrote: ↑

Thu Sep 09, 2021 5:25 pm

What matters in the comparison is the price the dealer is selling it at. Here, side by side, are BladeOps regular production PM2 next to the new Exclusive.

[img]

I get it. I’m just saying that if you compare MSRP it is only $5 extra. And that the previous Elmax PM2 was sold for $20 more than the current discounted prices. But you’re right and the comparison isn’t the same.

Still though, just a $24 surcharge over the stock version is still a great price for an Elmax PM2. They have been so hard to come across as long as I have been into Spydercos that I am pretty excited.