M4 knives

[gull wing]

Pulled out a couple of my M4's last night (only have two). I want to renew my familiarity with this great steel. I like the great edge holding and the thin edge it allows.
I have a GB2 and a homemade linerlock.
Going to have some fun with these.
ANYONE?

[JARHEAD]

Howdy!
I have a few; Native Chief, 2 PM2 good stuff.

[Wandering_About]

It's a bit of a sleeper favorite for me... In non stainless I tend to like steels with all the carbide volume but every time I get an M4 knife out I am impressed.

[u.w.]

I have a few as well.

The first one I got was the Jade BHQ PM2 w/coated M4 blade. That thing (the steel) was horrible. When I say horrible, it seem(ed) like that steel was annealed, but then never got heat treated and/or tempered. Would not hold an edge at all.
7075T6 Aluminum would hold a better edge than that thing did.
I thought everyone on the internet was completely full of you know what, IRT singing the praises of M4.

And Then,
I bought a Gayle Bradley 1....
Talk about a night & day difference! That seems to be not quite doing it justice even.
Holy crap that GB1 was, and is, amazing. I am referring to the edge holding I was getting (continue to get) with that hollow-ground M4 blade. MAN! So Good! when compared with a lot of other knives, and especially that PM2.

And Then,
I bought one of the Mint BHQ Enduras w/ M4 blade steel.
Oh Man!! Amazing!!
Like the GB1. So Good!
Then BHQ knocked that price down to ??? I wanna say ~$94 for those M4 Enduras (may have been a touch less). So,
I of course bought a back up of that fantastic knife & steel! Eagerly & Happily so!

And Then,
Some other knife shop (I don't recall which one ATM) had a crazy good deal on the GB2,
So of course I grabbed one of them too. (it was posted in the CrazyGoodDeals2 thread)


They (except that PM2) are Exceptional in their edge holding. I have zero complaints with them, would be sad if I lost one, and would replace quickly it if possible.

M4 is not the only steel I love, but it certainly is one of the steels I love.

u.w.

[da1cyclist]

I own a couple of (non-Spyderco) M4 knives; IDK if it’s just bad luck or the relatively low grit edge they came with out of the box, but they seem SO SHARP, I’ve cut myself a few times on each knife. And they seem to hold that edge well too.

[Danke]

Love M4

[Paul Ardbeg]

I have a couple! M4 holds an edge well and is easy to sharpen. I have the GB1, GB2 and Mantra 2, but most miles on the GB2. The combination of the hollow ground blade and M4 steels works out great, maybe because M4 is a bit tougher?

[TkoK83Spy]

Have to agree with most here in my own experiences. I'm still partial to M4 for all it's properties, as corrosion and/or patina has never been an issue for me. Something I don't worry about and actually like a nice patina.

Being around here for quite awhile now, I think it's also a steel I've read about people having first experiences of achieving a great edge while sharpening. More than most that I can recall. That will always bring that nostalgic feeling as we've progressed on our journey's. I'm happy to see it still being offered.

[gull wing]

Thank you for sharing.

[Skywalker]

One thing I've appreciated about Spyderco's M4 is that they've always run it hard. I think other companies have caught up now but 15 years ago, there was a noticeable difference in M4 from e.g. Benchmade and what Spyderco was doing with the Bradley.

These days when looking for non-stainless tool steels from Spyderco I confess I've usually gone more towards CPM Cruwear/PD#1 or K390 or 15V, but that's not a knock on M4 - just too many good options.

The Bradley 1 and 2 remain standouts in every aspect of design and execution and the M4 is definitely a significant part of that.

[abbazaba]

I hope by now you know I'm a fan.




It was the first steel I truly enjoyed using and sharpening, and still one of the best IMO. Learned a lot from the GB1.

[Ramonade]

I love M4 as much as I love K390 and 15V.

The edge you get at low, medium and high grit all show a very clear difference, which is very nice when you set an edge for a particular task.
And these 3 steels keep a really aggressive "bite" even with a highly polished edge.

[Sharp Guy]

I love M4! I have my Mantra in my pocket often. I don't carry my GB (1 & 2) as much as I used to but still love them

[kennethsime]

Been carrying the M4 Shaman this week. Cleaned up some rust spots this weekend on some of the tool steel knives that haven't been carried, and remembered how much I love this knife. M4 keeps a great edge and is still pretty easy to sharpen. Really good stuff if you can keep it clean.

[skeeg11]

M4 is so easy to sharpen and maintain. Edge retention of K390 May be ever so slightly better, but it's so easy to get a sticky grabby edge on M4 that I prefer it over K390 a bit.

M4 Mantra 2 is my favorite EDC and a K390 Ladybug is on my keychain.

[Brock O Lee]

Good timing for this thread. I made a mental note last week to give M4 another try.

Over the years I've come to prefer Cruwear for its improved toughness and corrosion resistance, and K390 for its improved wear resistance. M4 sits somewhere in the middle and for me is overshadowed by both.

[ChrisinHove]

I have the Jade N5 in dlc M4 that its previous owner ritdyed 4v red.

It’s my workhorse knife on household and yard projects, and it’s excellent in all respects for that.

[The Mastiff]

I pretty much like all the HSS's in knife blades. The only one I didn't care for was Rex20 (IIRC it's a 10% moly HSS) and that was mostly the platform it was in.

M4 is a darn good knife steel and when it first came out in a knife I liked I bought like 3 of the same ones. The Bradley never got enough use to wear out and I still have two like new in box waiting. They will likely outlast me because of the mint green M4 Endura along with the Rex 45 Enduras ...etc. just seem to last and last. They are easy to make sharp and don't corrode badly for a non stainless steel either.

[anycal]

Yes! There is a reason why I have few models in this steel. Edge holds up great and I really like how it patinas.

Now, where is the Bodacious?!

Couple of my favorites.

[kobold]

a happy gb2 user