Benchmade M390 knifes?

[ScaryFatKidGT]

What is this? "Better" than 154CM or SV30? For the price they want it better be folded hand pounded Katana Steel lol

 

[wavicle]

It isn't just Benchmade. Spyderco, Kershaw, and others have made M390 knives. The stuff is difficult to grind at high hardness, i.e. costs more to manufacture.

If you don't cut a lot of abrasive materials, and if you're not a collector, then M390 might be an unnecessary expense.

 

[ScaryFatKidGT]

It isn't just Benchmade. Spyderco, Kershaw, and others have made M390 knives. The stuff is difficult to grind at high hardness, i.e. costs more to manufacture.

If you don't cut a lot of abrasive materials, and if you're not a collector, then M390 might be an unnecessary expense.

So it has a lot better edge holding? Is it brittle and am I going to be able to sharpen the thing?

 

[Leadsender]

It will hold an edge a lot longer than 154cm and s30v. Depending at what hardness the manufacturer set the steel at will determine how brittle the steel is most are run around 58-60 rc. They can be harder to sharpen then other steels but I've found with a quality diamond stone they don't take much longer than less expensive steels

 

[SFfanman]

The M390 is my favorite steel. I believe IMHO that its tuffness is unmatched. Those I have with stonewash show little to no scratches and holds an edge longer than any other steel I have come across. Hope it helps.

 

[ScaryFatKidGT]

Ok cuz I love my Mini Barrage and was thinking about a Barrage M390

 

[ZNickey]

M390 is a very good steel. Rockwell Hardness makes it appear as nothing special, but it is incredibly wear resistant, and not all that bad to sharpen. M390 is like taking ELMAX/S35VN (similar in great & balanced performance) and pushing wear resistance up a few notches. At 62 HRC, it will give edge retention better than CPM-M4 @ 64-65, ZDP-189 @ 65 under heavy cutting, and will be close to CPM-S90V. Unlike S90V, it's possible to keep up with a basic but good sharpener (SharpMaker), arguably making it better-suited for daily and heavy usage.

With that said, S90 is generally superior to continuous cutting of fibrous objects which tend to rapidly deform edges, such as cardboard. S90V @ 60HRC outperforms M390 @ 62 and virtually all other common steels and most exotic steels...but M390 comes pretty close to the ridiculously wear-resistant S90. The biggest issue with S90V is that it is a nightmare to upkeep.

Arguably the biggest drawback of M390, however, is its price. I have a Paramilitary 2 in M390...when I got it, I paid like 50% more than the standard (and already great) S30V Para2. Now, people are paying 500%+ for a M390 Para over the standard S30V Para...to me that is insane given steel 'upgrades' today are relatively incremental!!!

Between upkeep, price, and toughness, I personally like ELMAX/S35VN/CPM-154 and steels in that range over the more exotic steels tho.