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In your experiences, have you ever come across a steel that can do everything as well as CPM M4? CPM M4 has good edge holding, sharpening ease, toughness, strength, and is not a rust monster people make it seem like. It gets super sharp, very easily. It will resist deformation and chipping more so then many other steels used in folding knives, while holding a great edge for a long time. If it had a weakness it would be corrosion resistance, but it really is no slouch there either. What other steels come close to doing everything as good as CPM M4 all around?

I prefer S35VN or CPM154CM for edge retention, ease of sharpening, price, and ability to get EXTREMELY sharp and still be strong.

but besides resisting corrosion, doesn't CPM M4 do literally everything better than those steels? I'm asking cause I don't have experience with those. By better I mean more tough, stronger, better compressive strength, longer edge holding, easier to sharpen? If you have had experience with CPM M4, is it easier to sharpen?

I like everything about M4 except the rust resistance, and yes it has been an issue for me. It seems I have to keep my M4 blades regularly coated in Tuf-Glide to prevent it. It does seem to perform well though.

'[ENFORCER wrote:]I prefer S35VN or CPF154CM for edge retention, ease of sharpening, price, and ability to get EXTREMELY sharp and still be strong.

You really know your steels. :D

CPM
SORRY goin' back to the good ol days when CPF wasn't full of **** :p

Do you live in a humid climate? But as long as oil is applied at least sometimes, I've found it to be an all round excellent steel

'[ENFORCER wrote:]CPM
SORRY goon back to the good ol days when CPF wasn't fill of **** :p

Still wrong. :p

And I knew you were going to go that way.

chuck_roxas45 wrote:Still wrong. :p

No, CPM-154CM is right.

Rangodash wrote:Do you live in a humid climate? But as long as oil is applied at least sometimes, I've found it to be an all round excellent steel

Californication and Arizona

'[ENFORCER wrote:]No, CPM-154CM is right.

Nope, there's no such thing. It's either CPM-154(the powdered metal version of 154CM) or 154CM(which is the ingot version).

Just for s***s and giggles, show me a tang stamp with CPM-154CM if you can. :)

chuck_roxas45 wrote:And I knew you were going to go that way.

Sentences don't start with "and", and what way is that?

chuck_roxas45 wrote:Nope, there's no such thing. It's either CPM-154(the powdered metal version of 154CM) or 154CM(which is the ingot version).

You are partially correct, although many still refer to it as CPM-154CM.

'[ENFORCER wrote:]You are partially correct, although many still refer to it as CPM-154CM.

Those that refer to it as CPM-154CM are wrong. They are either misinformed and will soon accept correction when shown proof or they are trying to claim knowledge they don't have. CPM is Crucible's patented powder metal process so I guess Crucible has the last word. Here's a link to their products page. Lemme know if you find them referring to it as CPM-154CM.

http://www.crucible.com/products.aspx

chuck_roxas45 wrote:Those that refer to it as CPM-154CM are wrong. CPM is Crucible's patented powder metal process so I guess Crucible has the last word. Here's a link to their products page. Lemme know if you find them referring to it as CPM-154CM.

http://www.crucible.com/products.aspx

Well, my iPoo hasn't any ***FLASH*** so god loo for me resignedly it...

Ugh. This thread got derailed in a hurry.

gbelleh wrote:Ugh. This thread got derailed in a hurry.

Sorry, back on topic now, I think S35VN or even S30V are the best for edge retention and corrosion restince.
154CPF comes third.

I agree with Rangodash. I love CPM M4. Takes the second best edge I've tried (close behind Super Blue) and holds it a lot longer, in my experience.

S35VN is very good and I'm completely happy with it, but it's not quite CPM-M4 in my book.

To me, both are better than ATS34/154CM etc

Ken

Ken

'[ENFORCER wrote:]Sorry, back on topic now, I think S35VN or even S30V are the best for edge retention and corrosion restince.
154CPF comes third.

Yah? Are you forgetting M390 or 20CP or S90V for a minute there?

kbuzbee wrote:I agree with Rangodash. I love CPM M4. Takes the second best edge I've tried (close behind Super Blue) and holds it a lot longer, in my experience.

I absolutely love M4, takes a very keen edge easily. Somehow though, I have problems with it when hogging off a lot of it(like when I lowered the bevel angles on my GB to 24° inclusive). However, when I have the bevels where I want them, it's so easy to get that freaky sharp edge.

I think the term "best knife steel" is so incredibly loaded anyway that it's hard to have this discussion unless you lay out the parameters you use to define "best". I love INFI steel from Busse in a huge fixed blade used for abuse, but have found it somewhat wanting in a small blade. In the same way, some of the super steels excel on small, thin, ultra-sharp folders, but their "superiority" doesn't really show unless you take them to the thin, crazy-sharp bevels that they allow compared to other steels.

To me, the best steel is whichever one is currently in my pocket.