Can’t wait for new Spyderco K390 series

Okay, I know I can look this stuff up, but, in a nutshell, what excites you about Seki K390? I only ask because I am a big Seki H1 Salt fan. I assume this is very opposite, and it must have some really good qualities.
 
Okay, I know I can look this stuff up, but, in a nutshell, what excites you about Seki K390? I only ask because I am a big Seki H1 Salt fan. I assume this is very opposite, and it must have some really good qualities.

Google Spyderco K390, there is plenty of talk about the steel in previous models.

Where can I find this info?
And do you know if the blades are satin or DLC coated?

Check the most recent Reveal. They are satin AFAIK.
 
Hoping they offer the endela in it. Otherwise I'm definitely in for a delica.

The delica isn't for me, but the endela or stretch would be cool to see. My K390 PM2 is awesome; this has potential to be a really cool lineup.
 
Oof. I've never had a K390 knife. I didn't need to read this thread. I just bought a Hap 40/SUS 410 Endura off the exchange. I guess my Delica, Endela, and Endura collection will continue to grow....
 
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Well, the Dragonfly 2 in K390 is a hundred bucks. One of my favorite knives but for an additional $30+? No thanks.
 
k390 has 2.5% carbon, and a whopping 9% vanadium... which should be an amazing steel for edge retention, but at the cost of extreme chippyness
http://www.zknives.com/knives/steels/steelgraph.php?nm=k390

personally, I won't be getting anything with this steel, I expect it's toughness might be similar to maxamet (which has 2.15% carbon) ... however it's 'supposed' to be slightly tougher than m390. I won't believe that, until @Larrin says so after testing ; )

m390 sits at about 5 ft lbs, while maxamet is around 2.5 ft lbs... both are too low (imho)

for now, cpm-m4 (with toughness of 15 ft lbs) is my edge retention top steel
but I'll enjoy reading stories about k390 steel when people on bf have tested many examples :)
 
k390 has 2.5% carbon, and a whopping 9% vanadium... which should be an amazing steel for edge retention, but at the cost of extreme chippyness
http://www.zknives.com/knives/steels/steelgraph.php?nm=k390

personally, I won't be getting anything with this steel, I expect it's toughness might be similar to maxamet (which has 2.15% carbon) ... however it's 'supposed' to be slightly tougher than m390. I won't believe that, until @Larrin says so after testing ; )

m390 sits at about 5 ft lbs, while maxamet is around 2.5 ft lbs... both are too low (imho)

for now, cpm-m4 (with toughness of 15 ft lbs) is my edge retention top steel
but I'll enjoy reading stories about k390 steel when people on bf have tested many examples :)
You might want to watch this, then. There are a lot of people thinking that fracture toughness is the same thing as resistance to damage. Extreme strength of A11 class steels allows for high edge stability, and can allow those steels to shrug off damage that might damage tougher steels.

 
k390 has 2.5% carbon, and a whopping 9% vanadium... which should be an amazing steel for edge retention, but at the cost of extreme chippyness
http://www.zknives.com/knives/steels/steelgraph.php?nm=k390

personally, I won't be getting anything with this steel, I expect it's toughness might be similar to maxamet (which has 2.15% carbon) ... however it's 'supposed' to be slightly tougher than m390. I won't believe that, until @Larrin says so after testing ; )

m390 sits at about 5 ft lbs, while maxamet is around 2.5 ft lbs... both are too low (imho)

for now, cpm-m4 (with toughness of 15 ft lbs) is my edge retention top steel
but I'll enjoy reading stories about k390 steel when people on bf have tested many examples :)

K390 is supposed to be an upgrade of 10V, keeping the absurdly high edge retention while adding more toughness. In @Larrin's edge retention testing, it did slightly better than ZDP-189 at a lower hardness. ZDP-189 is probably the most appropriate comparison, since it's another high alloy non-stainless steel that focuses on superior edge retention.
 
In for a Dragonfly and Manbug! Shouldn't be long now. Interestingly the Ladybug K390 was released several weeks ago.
 
I've had my K390 Endura(s) preorder in since the end of the first week of May. Let the waiting be done.
 
Where can I find this info?
And do you know if the blades are satin or DLC coated?
I think the Reveal has this information, but it has been discussed on the Spyderco subforum, here, and on the Spyderco forum. It is very exciting. The Endura, Delica, and Dragonfly are going to drop any time now.
 
Okay, I know I can look this stuff up, but, in a nutshell, what excites you about Seki K390? I only ask because I am a big Seki H1 Salt fan. I assume this is very opposite, and it must have some really good qualities.
I generally like the way tool steels behave. This is a tool steel on steroids. It holds an edge for a very, very long time. It is a lot harder to sharpen than most carbon steels, but it is not as bad as many high end stainless steels. It is also can take a very nice thin edge for slicing without failing. This steel makes M4 class steels obsolete.
 
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k390 has 2.5% carbon, and a whopping 9% vanadium... which should be an amazing steel for edge retention, but at the cost of extreme chippyness
http://www.zknives.com/knives/steels/steelgraph.php?nm=k390

personally, I won't be getting anything with this steel, I expect it's toughness might be similar to maxamet (which has 2.15% carbon) ... however it's 'supposed' to be slightly tougher than m390. I won't believe that, until @Larrin says so after testing ; )

It is not in the least chippy, not even remotely. Larrin has addressed this steel in several articles, either directly or indirectly. It is tougher than Maxamet.
 
It is not in the least chippy, not even remotely. Larrin has addressed this steel in several articles, either directly or indirectly.

I haven't seen any toughness test of K390 in Larrin's website. In fact, in his article about the edge retention of 48 steels he wrote :

>>>I have tested the toughness for all but 7 of the steels: Z-Max, BD1N, K390, S125V, S90V, S60V, and Vanadis 8.

So we don't know what is the real toughness of K390. All we have are the values displayed on Bohler site.
In his article about How to Pick the Best Steel for Every Knife Larrin seems skeptical about the toughness claims of Bohler. He wrote:

>>>There are a few different 10V replacements including Bohler K390 and Uddeholm Vanadis 8, those steels are more expensive but they are advertised as having superior toughness. If future toughness testing confirms superior properties of K390 or Vanadis 8 I may change my recommendation.
 
In for a Dragonfly and Manbug! Shouldn't be long now. Interestingly the Ladybug K390 was released several weeks ago.

The Ladybug was announced earlier than the rest (Reveal 4 early in the year, rest were in Reveal 5).


I haven't seen any toughness test of K390 in Larrin's website. In fact, in his article about the edge retention of 48 steels he wrote :

>>>I have tested the toughness for all but 7 of the steels: Z-Max, BD1N, K390, S125V, S90V, S60V, and Vanadis 8.

So we don't know what is the real toughness of K390. All we have are the values displayed on Bohler site.
In his article about How to Pick the Best Steel for Every Knife Larrin seems skeptical about the toughness claims of Bohler. He wrote:

>>>There are a few different 10V replacements including Bohler K390 and Uddeholm Vanadis 8, those steels are more expensive but they are advertised as having superior toughness. If future toughness testing confirms superior properties of K390 or Vanadis 8 I may change my recommendation.

Having watched BigBrownBear's testing of edge stability of M4 vs. K390 using brass rod, I don't think it's unreasonable to say that K390 is decently tough.

I interpreted @Larrin's recommendation to be based on a value proposition, where 10V is substantially less expensive than the replacement versions, so he wants to quantify the improvement against the increase in cost. That value proposition only really comes into play when you've got the option between 10V and one of the replacement/improvement versions. For the knives that Spyderco will offer regular-production K390 versions, you don't have a 10V option (for several of them, this will be the first non-Japanese steel they're offered in). Compared to your regular production options of VG10, ZDP-189, and H1 (depending on whether you count the Salt as a variant or distinct model), K390 has definite advantages over ZDP at essentially the same retail price.
 
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