My on going salt steel comparison journal

[RugerNurse]

These threads add more with real world experiences vs the traditional YouTube videos that say “H1 sucks”
I might grab a pacific salt or stretch in H2. LC200N is great for everyday carry for me due to the plain full flat. I’m still curious about serrated H2 but most of what I cut doesn’t need serrated

[Windward]

This is a great thread. Related to the knife and not the steel, is there blade play or lock rock?

Thanks, no blade play on any of them. I also leave my pivots factory tight. The only one that even has a touch of lock rock is the atlantic. Its so minor though, that od have to point it out for most to nofice. That knife also has exponentially more carry the rest, and it hasnt got any worse. It gets ton of cutting but also lots of barnacle scraping on the back. Maybe i've been lucky in that regard, especially since i order my knives, so its truly luck of the draw, but everythings been solid.

May as well just make a quick note on the whole knife construction..
When i got my first one, i looked at the handles and was thought "these cheap plastic handles wont last a month. There isnt even a metal liner". Fast forward a few years, and still havent broken a spyderco, or wore won out. Ive actually come to prefer linerless frn. Grippy, strong, and lightweight. Plus less to go wrong. I get that in theory models with liners, or another mandle material should be stronger, but in actual practice it doesnt matter one bit.

[cabfrank]

Thanks. I am also a big believer in the linerless Salts. I love them. I asked because vivi's sample has play/rock. My Pac Salt doesn't. It can be luck of the draw, I guess.

[Michael Janich]

Dear Windward:

Thank you very much for your real-world insights and experiences with our steels. And thanks to everyone for sharing theirs as well. Awesome thread...

Stay safe,

Mike

[JoviAl]

Having come at this from the opposite end - Magnacut, then LC200N and finally buying some H1 and H2, I really wish this thread had been around when I first started buying knives for working outdoors in the tropics. I don’t dislike my Magnacut or LC200N at all, but I passed on the opportunity to buy some really ace SE H1 fixed blade knives at stupid prices that I now kick myself for. Salt knives have become my go-to for work over all the other fancy-pants high edge retention steels as you can just use them, and use them, and use them, and not be constantly dealing with rust whenever you forget to wipe the blade down or get sweat all over it.

A brilliant thread. I wish there was some way of increasing its visibility for folk new to the knife world (especially folk using them for their living). I would (and still do) buy and enjoy other steels, but I wouldn’t have shunned H1 out of ignorance for so long if I’d seen this sort of real world usage from the off. Sterling work

[Windward]

It's mooring building season here, so ive had plenty of time to really put the knives through some nasty stuff. We had a bunch of mooring gear that someone else built to swap out, so a lot of cutting up of old stuff was in order, for recycling....

The test media, barnacle crusted, sand, salt, mud infused rusty 3/4-1" nylon with wrapped up in steel thimbles.....



Keep in mind, I'm working so i wasn't super scientific with this. When one knife slowed me down i switched, and just used a couple a day, switching throughout the week. All that said, nothing overly surprising here. Serrated H1 was the pretty clear winner as far as durability and number of cuts was concerned. Not surprising given the difficulty of cutting. H1 PE on the other hand, was pretty much spent after a couple lines, but the edge came back virtually damage free, and sharpened back up with ease. Overall the atlantic salt H1 SE was my best performer. One thing to note, i was cutting directly up against the thimbles, and the blades got really scratched as ive seen before.

The PE LC200N and Magnacut honestly did about the same. Roughly a dozen cuts before they really struggled. I know this seems super low, but the nature of the rope is pretty harsh. LC faired slightly better on durability though, it really just dulled. No chipping or severe rolling and came back to life with a couple minutes kn the sharpmaker. Magnacut i did get a tiny chip or 2, and a little more edge deformation, but really did well. Any variation could have simply come down to one rope being worse than the last.

Ive also been cutting a lot of new rope too. 3/8"-1 1/4" double braid and 3strand nylon, braided dyneema, and poly. As far as getting clean cuts the longest, magnacut pe took the crown. My native lived with a roll of nylon all week, and while its not "hair popping" sharp, its still totally servicable and cuts nicely. LC was second, and while it did need a touch up it, far from bad on edge retention. Many many cuts, of new rope. H1 PE gave me a lot of cuts too but the serrated blew it away. PE absolutelt lasted more than a day and if it was all i had, id be more than happy. The plain edge blades just made much cleaner cuts, even when dulling. Serrated tends to want to pull strands a bit. Not a big deal generally, but im splicing this rope, so the cleaner the slice the better.

Overall kind of what ive always seen with tjse, and expect to see. SE h1 is a durable workhorse. Magnacut SE holds the best edge and LC is kind of the most balanced of the three in my world. Kind of weird to say, since magnacut is often considered the king of balanced steels, but just what im seeing in my world. All 3 are fantastic. Water is warming too, and in a few weeks, ill be back on the water everyday so ill have more chances to test the corrosion resistance....

More to come....

[cabfrank]

Excellent. It sound like any one of the three is a great choice. I still have only H1 of the three, and I have been very pleased.

[tzirconia]

Thanks for sharing your real world use experience, it's interesting to hear how these steels respond to your use cases. Looking forward to future updates in this thread.

[Manixguy@1994]

Very nice read , I took the Vivi tips about two years ago with H1/ 2 going 15dps coarse and never looked back . I want to explore SE sometime this year just need to decide the model . Salt knives are a big favorite , really doesn’t need wet weather to throw in pocket , especially the Siren . I have limited experience with Magnacut just waiting for the right folder , must be patient .

[zuludelta]

This will be my ongoing experiences with all 3 salts as my work steels...

Thanks for sharing your observations, I love seeing real-world accounts of steel/knife performance in work conditions.

[Airlsee]

I missed this thread the first go-round...an excellent write-up, I look forward to seeing more.

[wrdwrght]

While I much like LC200N (more for its toughness than edgeholding), and am still waiting on MagnaCut in a model I want, I’m gladdened to hear that an H1 Pacific Salt SE remains the king of nasty cutting. I imagine my new H1 Jumpmaster2 SE will perform similarly.

I regard my Pac Salt so highly that I bought a pre-need replacement. At the rate things are going, my grandson may end up being the first to use it.

[Scandi Grind]

Overall kind of what ive always seen with tjse, and expect to see. SE h1 is a durable workhorse. Magnacut SE holds the best edge and LC is kind of the most balanced of the three in my world. Kind of weird to say, since magnacut is often considered the king of balanced steels, but just what im seeing in my world. All 3 are fantastic. Water is warming too, and in a few weeks, ill be back on the water everyday so ill have more chances to test the corrosion resistance....

More to come....

Nice write up again, Windward. As far as what is most balanced in your world, I can't say I'm surprised it's not Magna-Cut. What your knives have to handle on a regular basis would typically be considered abusive in my environment, so H1 and LC definitely seem more optimal for your uses. I imagine for what I do on a regular basis Magna-Cut would be closer to the happy medium, boxes, tape, bushes, vines, wood, and the like, which I expect is closer to the average users tasks, hence the typical impression it will be better balanced for most users tasks.

This thread has been a good read, curious to see what you have next.

[cabfrank]

Marc, just wait until you cut stuff with your Jumpmaster. You are in for quite a treat. It is amazing, the best I've had.

[bleasure]

Great thread windward, super fun to read and learn from. I was interested in understanding more about your opinion of LC200N vs. H1/2 in SE. Is the key difference that you've found H1 cuts longer in SE, setting it apart as the better steel? Or is it that plus the small amount of rust you found once, or is it a more overall picture?

I ask because on paper, LC200N is likely in a similar toughness ballpark as H1, and has significantly higher edge retention. This would lead me to think that LC200N should match or more likely exceed H1 in most dimensions of cutting performance. Yet you are not alone in commenting on the ability for H1 to hold an edge in SE beyond its supposed limitations and even in comparison to other steels.

Larrin Thomas has noted this empirical/anecdotal evidence about H1 and expressed difficulty in locating any metallurgical reason for it. H1 is not yet incorporated into the steel data he provides, so apples to apples with LC200N and MC is difficult. Can you comment any further on the differences you've found between H1 and LC200N that set the former apart, or is what you've already written more or less the whole story already? Thanks!

[Windward]

Great thread windward, super fun to read and learn from. I was interested in understanding more about your opinion of LC200N vs. H1/2 in SE. Is the key difference that you've found H1 cuts longer in SE, setting it apart as the better steel? Or is it that plus the small amount of rust you found once, or is it a more overall picture?

I ask because on paper, LC200N is likely in a similar toughness ballpark as H1, and has significantly higher edge retention. This would lead me to think that LC200N should match or more likely exceed H1 in most dimensions of cutting performance. Yet you are not alone in commenting on the ability for H1 to hold an edge in SE beyond its supposed limitations and even in comparison to other steels.

Larrin Thomas has noted this empirical/anecdotal evidence about H1 and expressed difficulty in locating any metallurgical reason for it. H1 is not yet incorporated into the steel data he provides, so apples to apples with LC200N and MC is difficult. Can you comment any further on the differences you've found between H1 and LC200N that set the former apart, or is what you've already written more or less the whole story already? Thanks!

Thanks bleasure, and great questions. So i probablly could have been more clear here but the SE h1/2 is the only SE option ive been testing. I really need to add an LC serrated (maybe an atlantic) to the field. In PE i am seeing a noticable improvement in edge retention with LC over H1. In SE i really think the teeth more so than the steel give it the over all edge. Id suspect LC would surpass it in SE. Then again, SE H1 lasts so long for me, any gains there would sort of be of little consequence compared to what im losing, which brings me to durability and rustproofness. H1/2 is just really really strong stuff. Ive straightened small prybars on stuff ive pryed with my atlantics blade. The tips on these things look new where as ive broken tips off just about every steel ive had including LC. That said LC is really strong too. Takes insane amounts of abuse, more than almost everything.... except H1 or H2. The rust end is really just being nitpicky and is to me the closest. Theyre both extremely rustproof, h1 is just the smallest amount more.
To break it down this is just how i grade them.

H1/2 PE
Toughness A+
Edge Retention C
Rust Proof A+

H1/2 SE
Toughness A+
Edge retention A
Rust Proof A+

LC200N PE
Toughness A
Edge Retention B
Rust Proof A

Its really close, honestly any if the 3 would work for me, and on a lot of my opinions im just being nitpicky. We are truly spoiled for options as spyderco fans. Really need to add a SE Lc blade to the mix though.

[Chinstrap]

Thank you to all for your accurate descriptions of these great tools and your experience(s) with them.

My own experience with Spyderco has been limited to a rotating field of H1 Atlantic Salts, and until quite recently an addition to my quiver with the H2 variety.

For over 25 years I've worked as a commercial diver, and as such have had the pleasure in experiencing a myriad environments subsea; cold, hot, clear, black, and all manner of conditions and job requirements. My knives of choice are the Atlantic Salt and for cold work with limited hand dexterity a fixed blade of Victorianox steel. Ultimately, I prefer the Spyderco for safety and durability and on all dives I carry two knives; one is utility, the other emergency. Over the years, a few have been lost to the bottom and a number have been passed on as gifts.

Abuse of the knives comes with being alone on the bottom in a harsh environment.

My current setup is as pictured with the warrior 2010 H1 beside a 2013 H2.

This leads me to my point, and is clear in the photo; my last saturation job left the H2 with considerable corrosion. And the corrosion began immediately after my first dive out of the system. It was a real surprise since I'd gathered the H2 was an upgraded alloy from the old H1 alloy. The H1 has been all over the map with me and never corroded even during cutting, burning, welding jobs. Post job, when I get home, I maintain my small selection of personal dive tools with silicon spray and silicon grease, and when required the blades get professionally sharpened.

Has anyone experienced such corrosion on their H2 steel? My imagination places my particular blade amongst a flawed batch at the foundry, but my ignorance of production and manufacturing of these tools is surely misguided here.

Any insight is appreciated.

Thanks.

[Michael Janich]

Dear Chinstrap:

Welcome to the Spyderco Forum and thank you for your detailed post.

Could you please explain a "saturation job" and what, if anything, might be different about the underwater environment of such a job?

Thank you.

Stay safe,

Mike

[JoviAl]

Thank you to all for your accurate descriptions of these great tools and your experience(s) with them.

My own experience with Spyderco has been limited to a rotating field of H1 Atlantic Salts, and until quite recently an addition to my quiver with the H2 variety.

For over 25 years I've worked as a commercial diver, and as such have had the pleasure in experiencing a myriad environments subsea; cold, hot, clear, black, and all manner of conditions and job requirements. My knives of choice are the Atlantic Salt and for cold work with limited hand dexterity a fixed blade of Victorianox steel. Ultimately, I prefer the Spyderco for safety and durability and on all dives I carry two knives; one is utility, the other emergency. Over the years, a few have been lost to the bottom and a number have been passed on as gifts.

Abuse of the knives comes with being alone on the bottom in a harsh environment.

My current setup is as pictured with the warrior 2010 H1 beside a 2013 H2.

This leads me to my point, and is clear in the photo; my last saturation job left the H2 with considerable corrosion. And the corrosion began immediately after my first dive out of the system. It was a real surprise since I'd gathered the H2 was an upgraded alloy from the old H1 alloy. The H1 has been all over the map with me and never corroded even during cutting, burning, welding jobs. Post job, when I get home, I maintain my small selection of personal dive tools with silicon spray and silicon grease, and when required the blades get professionally sharpened.

Has anyone experienced such corrosion on their H2 steel? My imagination places my particular blade amongst a flawed batch at the foundry, but my ignorance of production and manufacturing of these tools is surely misguided here.

Any insight is appreciated.

Thanks.

Wow, now that is a real corrosive environment! I thought I had it bad outdoors in the tropics, but it doesn’t hold a candle to what you are doing.

On a sort of related subject, have you considered the Jumpmaster 2 (or OG Jumpmaster) for a fixed blade dive knife? I bought one recently for work and it is absolutely fantastic - utilitarian, well made and in H1.

[Naperville]

Dear Chinstrap:

Welcome to the Spyderco Forum and thank you for your detailed post.

Could you please explain a "saturation job" and what, if anything, might be different about the underwater environment of such a job?

Thank you.

Stay safe,

Mike

I looked it up, hope that I am correct, but I think that he means "saturation diving" job.

From Google: "How long do saturation divers live underwater?
28 days
SAT divers live for up 28 days in a small topside chamber that is pressurized to the same level as the underwater construction environment, so divers do not have to decompress after each shift."

and.... "Saturation systems are often used in deep-water situations (below 200 ft) in order to reduce the time lost to decompression, the slow ascent to the surface required for preventing decompression sickness, also known as 'the bends.'"

This is an excellent thread and I look forward to buying all of the Spyderco Salt Native Chief knives!!!