- Joined
- Jun 22, 2009
- Messages
- 1,735
I could break a cardboard box with S110V and 154CM and they would be equally dull. The more boxes you break down, the duller 154CM would get, but S110V will reach an “ok” plateau and stay there forever.
The difference is after one box, 154CM will strop back to its original sharpness in about 20 seconds, whereas the S110V will never return back to its original sharpness unless you put it on the stones for 20 minutes. Now imagine how much work would have to go into sharpening a truly-dull S110V blade... That’s why 154CM is a better user steel (for me). I carry a small strop, so when it loses its bite, it’s ready to rock in less than a minute. If S110V gets dull in the field, you better have a backup knife.
Additionally, I’ve said this before on here, but S110V will go dull just sitting there. Others have said this as well, and it’s surmised that it is due to the poor edge stability. It’s a great steel for someone that needs an “adequately sharp” blade for a long freaking time and doesn’t mind spending hours sharpening it when it finally gets unbearable.
Personally, I’m not ok with “adequately sharp” so I run 154CM and am now hugely impressed with the S35VN put out by Chris Reeve. Both can get gnarly sharp, stay that way for a long while, then get brought back to life on leather with 1-micron diamond compound.
The difference is after one box, 154CM will strop back to its original sharpness in about 20 seconds, whereas the S110V will never return back to its original sharpness unless you put it on the stones for 20 minutes. Now imagine how much work would have to go into sharpening a truly-dull S110V blade... That’s why 154CM is a better user steel (for me). I carry a small strop, so when it loses its bite, it’s ready to rock in less than a minute. If S110V gets dull in the field, you better have a backup knife.
Additionally, I’ve said this before on here, but S110V will go dull just sitting there. Others have said this as well, and it’s surmised that it is due to the poor edge stability. It’s a great steel for someone that needs an “adequately sharp” blade for a long freaking time and doesn’t mind spending hours sharpening it when it finally gets unbearable.
Personally, I’m not ok with “adequately sharp” so I run 154CM and am now hugely impressed with the S35VN put out by Chris Reeve. Both can get gnarly sharp, stay that way for a long while, then get brought back to life on leather with 1-micron diamond compound.