CPM 154 or 3v for deer

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bludog2

Joined
Sep 4, 2018
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I think I have it down as far as CPM 154 will be slightly more stain resistant, and 3V will be slightly tougher. Other than that, is there any appreciable difference in edge retention, ease of sharpening, and any other characteristic I'm missing? We gut, skin, de-bone and trim all of our meat ourselves before we take it for grinding, sausage and brats. Would one steel handle this task better than the other assuming equal quality ht, etc?

Thanks from a newbie,
bludog2
 
I tend to agree with the above poster. I mean if you think you'll be needing that extra toughness from hitting bone, 3V should win out, but after so many deer you tend to avoid such instances. That's not to say CPM 154 couldn't handle it, just that 3V can withstand it better. I've never blooded any 3V so I don't know how well it reacts to it, so maybe that could be a deciding factor(someone else should have that information).
 
I don't know which way the deer will lean but I say CPM 154 is good enough but if you can get 3V in a knife you like I think it is no contest. Get the 3V.
As my bottom line says "Good enough is good enough, but better is better" ;)
 
I can field dress 2 deer with my 420HC Buck 110. I can butcher that same deer with a 'whatever stainless' F. Dick or Chicago Cutlery boning knife and a honing steel. I don't think you'll have a problem with 154CM or 3V. Personally? I'd pick whatever was easiest to sharpen.
 
Thanks for the replies, both of these steels seem to be really close to what I'm looking for. Is there a significant difference in ease of sharpening?
 
If you go 3V you might consider a DLC coating on the blade.

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bludog2 said:
Thanks for the replies, both of these steels seem to be really close to what I'm looking for. Is there a significant difference in ease of sharpening?
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Depends on the heat treat and other variables. I've had 154cm that was a brute to sharpen. My only 3V knife is a Cold Steel master hunter, and it sharpens easily for me on a good stone. Hasn't been exposed to blood, but hasn't had any problems on the salty/rainy coast here.
 
Megawatt308 said:
If you go 3V you might consider a DLC coating on the blade.

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Not real sure coated blades are very food safe, but both steels will do the job just fine. I would go the stainless route when dealing with edibles. Those choices both sharpen up fairly similar and have good edge retention for this purpose.
 
If I already had some stainless blades I would choose 3V. If this was my only knife I would probably lean toward the CPM154.
I’ve only owned, and still own, one knife in 3V. It sure better actually be tough because I find the edge holding fairly lack luster. But it is really easily sharpened. I’ve had at least one folder in CPM154 and several knives in 154CM and it has been outstanding.
 
It doesn't take a super steel to gut and skin deer. I used to use an old school Schrade Sharpfinger that worked like a charm. Not sure of the steel, but I could process a deer, resharpen and be ready to go for the next one.
 
buck 420HC for me in the field, for dressing, skinning and quartering - I use a buck packlite skinner most of the time

once that part is done, its a whole new set of knives for deboning, etc back in the "shop"
 
91bravo said:
Where the hell did you get a 3V Hinderer???
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It is kinda hard to find. Internet search hinderer sparrow and you will find the dealer that commissioned them. Spear point + arrow grind on upper swedge = sparrow. When viewed from above you can see the arrow. The dealer has very specific “one sparrow per customer” and don’t try to get around this rule.

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Nice logo on the clip.


I been running across a few internet postings on how dlc does nothing for rust prevention. Firearms have been using DLC for a very long time and they don’t rust. I know for sure firearms without DLC will quickly develope rust. I am not even saying DLC will help prevent rusting. So I will just leave it as IMO a DLC surface can’t hurt. I am not going to try to get into the discussion of metallurgical science of steels and rust reactions. If others want to believe a DLC will not help protect their blade steel, that is a discussion I will stay away from. But IMO I have a much different view on that subject.

As far as DLC not being food safe? That is a new one one me and I will just stay away from that argument also. I can say I have been using my knife every time I go camping and use it for food prep and eating for the past two years since I got it. Zero issues so far. I am sure people said the same thing about Teflon coated pans at one time so this is another internet thing that doesn’t surprise me too much.
 
91bravo said:
It doesn't take a super steel to gut and skin deer. I used to use an old school Schrade Sharpfinger that worked like a charm. Not sure of the steel, but I could process a deer, resharpen and be ready to go for the next one.
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Yeah, but we didn't know any better then, right? LOL... I am there with you. When I was out on a working ranch (working) we were allowed to hunt deer, rabbits, and encouraged to shoot all the jack rabbits we could. We cleaned everything we shot either to eat ourselves or to feed the ranch dogs (that's where the jacks went!) and all we had were carbon steel knives. I didn't know about 1095, 1084, 1055 and all their cousins. And we called choppers made from 5160 "a leaf spring knife". They were badass! We never had any problems breaking down animals with carbon steel knives. These days, I do prefer stainless.

As a sidebar, I remember when I first saw one of those around the mid 70s. Thought it was a strange and foreign looking knife. Didn't want anything to do with it. Then I saw a professional hunter/guide pull that little knife out and take apart a large buck. Wow... it was like watching a surgeon with a scalpel. Don't know about today's version, but that knife in its day was the real deal!

Robert
 
I would go with cpm 154 for its well rounded properties. Stainless, holds and edge well and is tough. Maybe not as tough as 3v but still good.
 
I'm sure DLC coating is food safe. It isn't put on with chemicals and solvent it is transferred to the blade similar to plating but in a plasma stream (think controlled lightening bolt). Super high tech stuff.

Here is a vid on knife coatings by a knife maker including testing the protection from corrosion etc.
DLC most definitely protects the sides of the knife. Of coarse it isn't on the edge but you sharpen the edge and renew that area from time to time. Just dry the blade after washing and you'll be good to go. 3V isn't all that vulnerable to corrosion and plenty of people just use full on plain high carbon for this purpose and have since steel knives were created.
 
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