Spyderco's Gin 1

johnwaynesandw

johnwaynesandw

Joined
Mar 18, 2005
Messages
2,753
I am getting an older Spyderco Police PE with Gin 1 steel in it. I have never had a chance to use it and wanted to know what the spydie users think about it.


Thanks,
John
 
Hi John,

Gingami I is a steel that was made by Hitachi. When we first began making knives (1981), Gin I was the best available production knife steel. (and the most excpensive). ATS-34 was available, but still difficult to get and use in production.

It's a very nice blend of alloys and produces a tough steel with very good edge holding and very good corrosion resistance.

We've recently considered using the steel in low cost models. Hitachi is no longer making the steel at this time.

sal
 
Reading the steel chart that came with my first G2( Gin 1) endura opened up a whole new branch of knife collecting and using for me.

Before that stainless steel in a knife? I don't think so! I avoided stainless knives like the plague.

I still like alloy steels, carbon steels but yes, I admit there are really great stainless cutlery steels.

From Sal, from a long ago post about Gin 1, and where it placed test wise in comparison to other then commonly available steels:

In terms of steel. Gingami 1 (silver paper in Japanese) was a premier steel only 10 years ago. And is still better than (in edge retention):

Surgical steel (the worst - actually a "throw-a-way" steel [304])
420
420J2
425 modified
AUS-6
AUS-8
440A
440B

It yields to;

ATS-34
ATS-55
154CM
AUS-10
VG-10
BG-42
CPM steels

the above is for comparisons of common stainless knife steels.
Click to expand...


Thanks Sal for well over 20 years of great knives, and for feeding my steel junky side. Joe
 
I found it pretty user friendly. Is a good steel for intro level knife buyers and casual users especially.
 
One of my favorite EDC Spyders was an older Spyderco Seki Japan "Renegade" model which had GIN-1 blade steel. Now the GIN-1 was not as good as the newer VG-10, ZDP-189 or CPM-D2 steels but it was a great blade steel for everyday working and sort of easy to sharpen. I actually regret trading that knife away after I had switched EDC Spyders.

But GIN-1 is better than most any other production knife blade steel during that time period. I had knives made by Buck, Case and Boker that didn't have as good of blade steel as the GIN-1.
 
I agree with the list posted by The Mastiff. Gin-1 is still better than half of the blade steels being used today. Use the heck out of that Police and let us know how it goes!
 
I found an old Renegade for sale the other day and remarked on not having seen a GIN-1 stamp for a long time....on a side note, how much do NIBs Renegades go for these days?
 
Artfully Martial said:
I found an old Renegade for sale the other day and remarked on not having seen a GIN-1 stamp for a long time....on a side note, how much do NIBs Renegades go for these days?
Click to expand...

Not to try to derail the thread by any means but I traded my Renegade for another used Spyder which I think would have easily been worth around $90 or so. I got a plain edged Merlin model in return and I've had many people wanting that one.

I think the GIN-1 was very comparable to AUS-10 and/or 440C as far as endurance goes and I didn't have to sharpen it as often as I do my S30V blades. Although S30V does develop a lot more of a wicked edge than did GIN-1 did. I would love to have a fixed blade knife with GIN-1. Maybe Spyderco could reintroduce the not so popular Vagabond fixed blade with GIN-1. Just an idea :)
 
Well, I thought SG said that GIN-1 isn't available anymore?

There's something about the acronym, GIN-1, that sounds awesome. Like, this is some sort of top secret alien technology.

As per the renegade's price, I always wanted one, but never could find one. A local B&M has one for like...190 now...thought about picking it up but definitely wanted to double check the price.
 
My Dad bought this Police at a gun show for 75 nib about 12 years ago and now it's mine.
2yjx275.jpg
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Jill,That looks like the generation 2 model,Looks like it was well cared for.It was real kind of your father to give that to you.:)
 
Is there any major difference between Gin-1 and Gin-2? Is one preferred over the other?

My Gin-2 Police:
260zzis.jpg
 
Wavester said:
Is there any major difference between Gin-1 and Gin-2? Is one preferred over the other?
Click to expand...
Thy're one in the same.....GIN-1 is aka as G-2.

Now that I've used Spyderco's VG-10 and S30V....I think the G2 blade on my old Endura to be just OK. Not bad.....but, just OK. I don't mean that pejoratively; the nature of Spyderco is evolution. I think of that as complementary.

- regards
 
I used my first generation Endura with G2 steel every day for about 7 years before it felt blunt enough to need sharpening!!!
 
GIN-1 according to what I read in the "Spyderco Story" book had a very long tenure as their main blade steel. I know it's long gone as a steel they would use in a folder but I still wonder how it would stack up against the steel that they are using in those Hossum models of hard working fixed blades.

If they would bring back the Vagabond and the FB-08 Lum fixed blade in GIN-1 I would sure like to give them a try. AGain I sure miss my Renegade model with GIN-1. I still like it better than AUS-6 or AUS-8.
 
I've never had any experience using Gin-1. If Spyderco brought it back, which I doubt, I'd try it.
 
For a long time this old school all black fully serrated Police was my only Spyderco. That changes Monday when I unbox a Delica HAP40 and an Endura HAP40.





 
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