I'd put money on it not having a steel insert. As the Techno shows, Spyderco doesn't add its innovations to collaboration knives (the Tuff was a knife Spyderco asked Mr. Schempp to design so isn't a collab in the same sense), and I don't see any mention of inserts on Brad Southard's page and don't see them in pictures.
You could easily be right - it'd be too bad if it didn't, though. This is the kind of knife that would really benefit from that.
It will not have the lockbar insert as the Tuff or Ti military.
I'm looking into if it is carbidized or not. I can say the production prototype has been flipped thousands and thousands of times, by many different hands. I saw it when it was new, which was many many months ago, and I saw it just a few days ago. Lockup hasnt moved at all, nor is it sticky in any way.
I'll see if I can get a solid answer for ya.
The definitive word on the insert:
I'm just glad I didn't take Kreole up on a bet!
+1 I'm REALLY looking forward to this one. Last I heard though it was looking more and more like early 2013.Updates!?!?!
Flipper + Spydie-hole + CTS-204p...