CTS-XHP: wondering about differences between brands.

[attila]

Hello everyone!

I was curious if anyone has done a comparison of the current CTS-XHP offerings of Spyderco and Cold Steel.

The only pertinent data I've found so far was in Ankerson's rope cutting test:
http://www.bladeforums.com/threads/rank ... pe.793481/

From the above test it would seem that Cold Steel's implementation is a significant improvement (in at least this test) over Spyderco's. Of course, this isn't the whole picture, so there may be worthwhile benefits to Spyderco's process (toughness, ease of sharpening, etc.). More testing would be really nice, but I don't own and can't afford another of each brand.

This all makes me wonder if Spyderco has updated their XHP heat treatment, and even if not, how their offerings compare in various comparative scenarios. I'd be glad to hear anyone's experience in this matter. Thank you.

[dplafoll]

The CS version is 3.0RC harder, which means (generally) that it'll hold the edge longer but that it'll be harder to sharpen back to that edge. Plus the comparison there doesn't tell us the measurement behind the edge on the Military. Also it's a Military which probably wouldn't be as great for a cutting test like that compared to something like a Domino/Dice or Foundry, or especially the Chaparral which has a blade stock literally half that of the Millie. I'm guessing that Spyderco's XHP is a bit softer on purpose to ease in sharpening and/or minimize chippiness. But this test isn't really comparing apples to apples. For comparison as well, the CS UH has a blade stock that's .05in less than the Millie, but .05in more than a Chaparral. A better comparison at the CS UH's .13in would be the Foundry with the same blade thickness, though I expect the Foundry to have a slight advantage with it's FFG over the UH's sabre.

[D-Roc]

Perhaps we will see cold steel doing a comparison video and posting it on their site about how "superior" their XHP is....

[tripscheck'em]

The CS version is 3.0RC harder

Source?

[attila]

[quote="dplafoll"][/quote]

Thanks for the detailed response. I understand that there will be differences in material properties depending on heat treatment schedules, but XHP should be as tough as any of the other very high alloy stainless steels at a given hardness. For example, I wouldn't expect it to be any chippier at 63 HRC than something like S110V (also around 63 HRC I believe). S110V has a lot more C, V, Nb, and Mo but less Cr, likely making it less tough for a given hardness. Therefore, if fear of chipping were the only reason to tame XHP to just 60 HRC, I'd question the decision. It seems that ease of sharpening was likely a consideration as well, since XHP is used on regular production knives that aren't all wielded by knifenuts with CBN/diamond sharpeners. All of the above is unfortunately just curious supposition, making such non-empirical nitpicking inconclusive. :rolleyes:

[spyderwolf]

Dont get me started on CS.If you want a reasson never to buy a knife from them again,i have 2 words:Golden Eye.

[dplafoll]

The CS version is 3.0RC harder

Source?

The link in the original post. Each tested knife has a hardness next to it; the Cold steel is at 63.5 and the Military at 60.5.

The only pertinent data I've found so far was in Ankerson's rope cutting test:
http://www.bladeforums.com/threads/rank ... pe.793481/.

Thanks for the detailed response. I understand that there will be differences in material properties depending on heat treatment schedules, but XHP should be as tough as any of the other very high alloy stainless steels at a given hardness. For example, I wouldn't expect it to be any chippier at 63 HRC than something like S110V (also around 63 HRC I believe). S110V has a lot more C, V, Nb, and Mo but less Cr, likely making it less tough for a given hardness. Therefore, if fear of chipping were the only reason to tame XHP to just 60 HRC, I'd question the decision. It seems that ease of sharpening was likely a consideration as well, since XHP is used on regular production knives that aren't all wielded by knifenuts with CBN/diamond sharpeners. All of the above is unfortunately just curious supposition, making such non-empirical nitpicking inconclusive. :rolleyes:

Yeah, and I'm no expert and making no claims to know all that much about what I'm talking about. :D