Sleipner Steel: Edge Retention and other attributes in Lionsteel SR11

[@BushCampingTools]

My Sleipner blades, an M7 and a custom job from Legion 14 (I convexed this edge) stay deadly sharp on those tough Aussie hardwoods

[@andyrichardson6188]

This is tremendously helpful in terms of us helping to select steel we want for both edge retention and corrosion. Let us know what help you need either in term of donations for blades you can destroy with corrosion testing or knife donations. I'd be happy to donate a few dollars to help you get more knives to test. Please keep up the great posts.

[@BradGryphonn]

Pedant attack: 'conducive', not 'conductive'. I'm glad you're testing with different edges now. It helps us neophytes to decide what sort of edge to put on our knives...

[@improne2fall879]

Your tests just keep getting better and better!

[@ee222]

i just heard about sleipner steel and found this video hoping to learn more about it. all i can say is "shame on you!" you did such an excellent job answering **all** my questions that i don't have any unanswered questions left to post! :) keep up the good work!

[@gillbates999]

Minor point, but @ 0:58 Mn is manganese...magnesium would be Mg. Also 0.5%, not 5%... alright, carry on then.

[@TubieMcTubington]

The soundtrack is on point.

[@Moostery]

That's such a gorgeous knife. I can't wait to get one some day.

[@hcooC]

Academy Award 🥇 for the rope soundtrack!! 🎉❤

[@neilsmith6953]

Awesome video man! I like how you did the toughness test. You don't really see people doing that. I've always been on the fence about sleipner and I'm glad you did this video!

[@augustus63]

you always put the best background music

[@christamu2]

The whole time I'm looking at the fart fart fart box. Awesome video though.

[@rodrigoteresa7944]

Funny that no D2 or D2 variant has performed as well with the worksharp edge as the D2 in the Rat 1

[@longshanks5531]

Sleipner is not a D2 variant, D2 is 12% Cr class steel, Sleipner is 8% Cr class.

[@f22shift]

I have the lionsteel m7 in sleipner and it rusts easily. Maybe I have salty hands but it rusts the most out of all my steels. I had to take off the scales numerous times to sand off the rust. So it seems the niolox is a better steel with edge retention and low maintenance.

[@jasonbyu75]

f22shift I have the Lionsteel sr22 and it can also rust, seems to rust a little more than my Chinese steel will in ‘D2’. I like the knife. But I remember that I’m Leary about Italian marketing. I’m not seeing how it would beat M390. It does seem to be very sharpenable. It seems easier to get the edge hair-shaving sharp, polishes up nicely.

[@paulll47]

Honestly, I think that carbon knives are overrated, I'm not an expert by any means but I live In a seaside town in Italy and most guys I know prefer stainless steel knives over carbon. My first knife was a mora companion and It rusted very easily so I decided to get a lionsteel m4 and never looked back, its easy to sharp, keeps an edge for a long time and it requires very little maintenance.

[@PureCountryof91]

It's magnacut now..

[@subroc4]

I had a Lionsteel KUR in Sleipner that rusted quite easily. Had an easier time keeping my 1095 fixed blades rust-free than the KUR. But then again, maybe that's because I know what to expect with 1095/A2 and take the appropriate caution. Probably a good steel, but not for me. I don't think I'll go for a non-stainless steel on a folder again.

[@mackhomie6]

Other than the steel, what did you think of the kur? I've been looking at a used brown g10/ pvd black blade, but the wood handled versions are even nicer looking

[@jasonedens3778]

That was a very solid test, thanks.

[@CommonCentsOutdoorsman]

I would be interested to see how Kizlyar's sleipner fares in this test.

[@david111davies]

Slightly less wear resistance than D2 but much better resistance to chipping and cracking is what the company say.

[@Malegole]

Your placemats are so premium

[@explorerextraordinaire5472]

Great test!

[@smotpoker7110]

Would be very much interested in a rust test with D2, Sleipner, Niolox, S35vn, LCN200N, H1, etc... Sweet channel btw

[@levkvarner9865]

I loved the shockingly running kids in the back :D

[@brianfollett687]

Were have you been , Pete ? I love these edge retention videos , another good one . I've herd alot of bad stories about this steel , if I want a "tough" steel I'll stick with 3V . How about a 3V "unleashed" test, Id love to see that one.

[@phunder7120]

more similar to the dc53 I think. pretty commonly used steel in fixed blades. definitely a tough steel with nice edge retention.

[@Dblnickle]

Really enjoy your reviews recently subscribed. Keep them coming!

[@wcreview8227]

Very Impressive.. True Science.. I was in fact curious about the Sleipner, also Niolox.. I have both on different Lionsteel blades and currently await my SR11A Integral. Honestly I am interested for knowledge purposes, but I have yet to have a blade steel affect me in the field or not cut something I needed cut. Its more of a knowledge and Consumer issue to me.. I still wanna know because we do pay more for better steel so Thank you!!

[@soundknight]

Awesome backing music dude, what's it called?

[@Thexaios]

I accidentally had closed captioning turned on when I started this video. It was worth it though, because early in the video, YT's auto CC interpreted "Sleipner D2" as "Slapnut D2". Either that, or Advanced Knife Bro has been adding his own CC.

[@shuqmadick9644]

Now you have to test again all the knives that you tested so far , with the Lansky V edge on them :D That sharpening system is really great ! can't wiat to have mine .

[@kittrainbow7]

In my experience M390 was disappointing, it does not take a very keen edge at extreme levels, good only for general tasks, in my opinion it has way too much chrome. Some EU knives producers are terrorized by corrosion and average customers handling... 😑 Sleipener is way superior, for my preferences, it takes an extremely keen edge, to the max. Off course Sleipener is not stainless but experts will know it and taking care of it is very easy with modern oils, for LAND operations is excellent. Occasional contact with sweat or acidic food is not a problem with a quick cleaning and there are also protective coatings (I prefer naked blades with modern oils, no problems ever). I definitely prefer Sleipener 🥇👍👏 over D2 🥈👍 that is also very good and cost effective, both fantastic steels, capable of extreme sharpness, I have many D2 in my collection. These enriched super carbon steels (D2 is in between "semi stainless") are absolutely phenomenal in real world use. I prefer maximum keen edge with medium edge retention over mediocre edge with high edge retention. Overall quality and heat treatment is also crucial, super steels with terrible or too soft HT are useless. I tend to like 59/62HRC for folders and 58-62HRC for fixed, depending on model. Off course near sea, or with constant sweat contact, stainless is suggested, I use both steel families. Too much chrome in the steel in my experience is detrimental to performances, I prefer stainless with 13%, 15% max about. Scuba diving knives are exemptions, even there a normal stainless is fine with minimal maintenence. 🇮🇹

[@ThirdoptionJCSU]

Is it analog of DC53 ?

[@Bwbravowhiskey]

I noticed they (lion steel)say edge holding and not retention. Maybe I’m reading more generously into it but could they be referring to edge stability and not wear resistance?

[@CedricAda]

that would definitely make sense, this stuff is like, 3V levels of tough at the edge

[@RebarLad]

Edge retention depends on task, if you take Rex 121 and try to make a chopper at high Rockwell you're gonna have a bad time. Edge retention is really just a combination of task, wear resistance, and toughness. Toughness and wear resistance are a kind of two sides of the same coin, out of 100 different methods of heat treating a steel 20 will be good 5 will be great and 1 will be perfect because when you soak steels at temperatures for a given time they will form carbides more readily. Carbides decrease toughness because they are fairly large compared to the iron carbides (cementite) found in straight carbon steels and the smallest grain structure is the most ideal way of obtaining a good heat treat.

[@RebarLad]

When HRC is measured in a blade steel it is also measuring the hardness of the carbides that are present, that is one of the reasons some steels can be a higher Rockwell than others AND still be tougher. They can do that by either eliminating some carbide formation in heat treatment which will make the grain structure smaller and therefore tougher however it will effect wear resistance because you're going to be using more iron carbides on the cutting edge which are softer in comparison to carbides like tungsten, chromium, vanadium, molybdenum. HRC is a good indicator of sorts, however just because a piece of s30v is 64 HRC and another is 60 HRC, that doesn't entirely mean that the 64 will out perform the 60 in wear resistance or toughness. The 60 HRC may have a super simple grain structure for toughness and an ideal heat treat for wear resistance, and the 64 piece may have large grain structure and low carbide count and that will both decrease toughness and wear resistance.

[@RebarLad]

Steel is a very interesting material that can be manipulated during the heat treat process in amazing ways, what worries us is seeing an awesome blade steel stamped on the tang and a bad heat treat

[@RebarLad]

The heat treatment process can even effect corrosion resistance as well, it sounds counter intuitive but even if you have 20 percent chromium which should make a blade very stainless, the heat treat process could tie all that chromium up in carbides and contribute to wear resistance rather than corrosion resistance. This is seen in ZDP 189 which is an amazing steel.

[@johnhosky2931]

When are you going to test something with terravantium or dendritic cobalt?!?!

[@bradjohnson4787]

Thanks I'm looking at a knife with this steel for camping, scandi type fixed.

[@Jsloth4130]

I have a DPX HEST folder in Sleipner (made by Lionsteel) and edge retention seems really off based on how they market this steel. I have tried various edge angles, toothy vs polished, and nothing seems to make a huge difference. It will lose a hair shaving edge in just a couple passes through cardboard. Corrosion resistance seems similar to A2 , but better than M4, O1, 1095.

[@mackhomie6]

Jeez. s30v will get you a lot more than that. Hell, 14c28n, too, no? That séems funky

[@K.M925]

It is not about the steel. Lionsteel is not to good at heat treatment.

[@ozyrob1]

Cheers Pete, great vid.

[@mt_baldwin]

Huh, glad I didn't go with sliepner over 3v for a fixed blade (kizlyar Pioneer over a cold steel master hunter). And this is why plain, backyard bro science edge testing is needed, I'm not a machine in a lab, I'm bro in a backyard. Thanks and yes the vid is greatly appreciated, best vid series on KZbin for knife and steel geeks.

[@e.r9111]

You really deserve more views and subscribers, nice content as usual!

[@Helicaloptera]

Great video, thank you!

[@PaulK390S90V]

Cool you did my sleipner request! I'm.sure I wasn't the only one but cool

[@alexanderbertallo1995]

Very good video... Thanks for sharing...

[@johnsmithfakename8422]

The reason powdered steels are tougher than non powdered steels is because of uniformity (something you already said). The reason non-powdered alloy steels are not as uniform makes sense when you think about it. When the alloy steels are in a liquid state, they are the most uniform. As the alloy steels cool they start to separate and cool at their different rates. If the alloying element is in a high enough concentration it can form blobs that contain a single element in high concentration or blobs of areas with low concentrations of alloying elements. Powdered steels still have those blobs of elements but when the sample is the size of a grain that matters less.

[@fathersonsurvival]

Wow the rust talk in the end. Nice b

[@rurykow]

Quote : "It's not right. D2 is a ledeburitic steel. Sleipner is a 8% tool steel family. Finer carbide..." Moletta / bladeforum D2 comparison is a Internet myth

[@mofomartianp]

Interesting... I think the myth spread because Uddeholm said it was an evolution of the Cold Work Tool Steel, much like a more modern version of D2. IMO Sleipner tends to sharpen much easier, and feels more like a fine grained tool steel somewhere between A2 and D2.

[@markanthonystringfellow3923]

Great Format C!!!

[@frozenturtlefarts1025]

How is the Rex knife coming along.

[@CedricAda]

Gary has an ETA of aprilc and its coming with the same knife in cru-wear, too! Im hoping its a little quicker, tho!

[@bodyoftruth7766]

I thoroughly enjoy your videos. Thanks for cranking these out. Question: Does your Worksharp make one side of your bevel a little higher than the other?

[@CedricAda]

nothing I can tell by the naked eye but its not a super precise instrument so it could well do

[@bodyoftruth7766]

Cedric & Ada Gear and Outdoors Thanks for the reply. Every time I use mine it's like the belt is tighter on one side which results in a slightly higher bevel line. It's not a big deal but I don't feel comfortable putting my nicer knives through it. Cheers!

[@lorisb1513]

Was waiting for this!😊

[@pyrosis08]

hello ! wouls you pick slepneir or niolox for a fixed blade from lionsteel : M5 vs T5 ? for camp use

[@jasonburns956]

Is that a pig the pug book box?

[@bpfohio]

You should put a counter up during your cut tests.

[@CedricAda]

Brandon Purcell i cant find a good widget to do that on imovie, but i like the idea. I usually count out loud in case the camera stops and i lose my train of thought. I sound like a chipmunk at 8x speed

[@UpsideDownCanoe]

u got a license for that?

[@tacticalcenter8658]

According to lionsteel, sleipner cuts at least twice as much rope as there m390 does. And your tre test showed higher results than sleipner. Then the cardboard cut testers show sleipner does better than Italy m390. So not sure what's going on in your tests that go against the grain of the other two tests done on these steels from LionSteel.

[@praetor47]

the tests confirm italians suck at doing m390 heat treats even more than the average chinese company that isn't one of the big 'uns (we, reate...). m390 won't be "good" until companies figure out how to heat treat it properly on a bigger scale, 'cause right now in production folders it's just a more expensive s35vn (if not worse). hell, just doing what spyderco is doing would already improve the situation by some 50% if not more. it's sad what they're doing with this great steel :(

[@jslaughterofthesoul4939]

They clearly aim for 58-59, there must be some quality or idea they are going for, possibly delusionally. I have a G10 Viper Italo in M390 that kicks much ass, though. But Viper, MKM and Lionsteel have definitely had some underperformers. M390 is probably the foremost underpotentiated supersteel, it's ridiculous. Heard anything about Rike's M390? Haven't put mine much to use, but their 154CM is top notch

[@tacticalcenter8658]

@@jslaughterofthesoul4939 all the Italian m390 is done by the same heat treatment facility, Trattamenti Termici Todesco S.a.s.. The heat treatment protocol was chosen to intentionally be easy to sharpen, not edge retention. The protocol they use skips the important liquid nitrogen step. They also burn the edges when grinding them dry after heat treatment. Hence why it performance worse than all m390 on the market. And in the same category of budget steels. Your viper m390 is the same. If you want to compare, get a spyderco USA m390 knife and you'll see it will extend sharpening times by a large amount. Iirc spyderco aims for 60-62 and use liquid nitrogen. Some spyderco models use water cooled sharpening and are longer lasting, because they don't burn the edges. There's a thread on bladeforms with information about lionsteel steels.

[@tacticalcenter8658]

@@praetor47 we knives heat treatment is not good and I don't think they used water cooled sharpening like Reate does. Their crutch is being thin behind the edge.

[@VincenzoNero94]

Really good video tho. Thanks for doing this!

[@gmotionedc5412]

Cool vid.!

[@wtfmrb293]

Sleipner is the horse of Odin isn't it. What it has to do with steel I really don't know.

[@MatyasTurk]

The Uddeholm part of Böhler-Uddeholm is Swedish, and some of their steels were named after Norse mythological and historical figures.

[@Xyrium]

Spends 3 hrs sharpening, goes back behind scenes and orders a Worksharp superfine belt.....

[@Pjotr1982]

Good steel for wrenches, maybe.

[@francescomotolese4644]

Yeah finally tnx

[@TheKimjoh560]

I dont get SR-line of knives at all. They patina terribly but are suposedly built for heavy use. For light use they are to thick and bulky. I guess they took home blade show mainly aesthetics and design. But why then make a pretty collectors couch-flipper out of a tool steel? Anyway, that lansky edge is a nice touch to these vides. Those WorkSharp edges leave alot to be desired and WorkSharps are especially terrible for certain supersteels lile k390 and s110v aswell.

[@CedricAda]

yeah. My review of the knife is just uploading now, and I think you’ll agree with a bit of it 😂 and also yes, the worksharp is only chosen cos its so fast and fairly repeatable

[@bp-hx9ts]

hi pete love your channel what knife do think is beter for a genral use camp knife a bark river bravo 1 3v lt or a lt wright outback pls reply

[@CedricAda]

bp69 I would take the Outback, only because the handle is a little grippier. Both are among the best options, though

[@bp-hx9ts]

thank you it would be cool for you to do a falkneven vs lt wright vs bark river vid they are like some of the best fixed blade companys that i know you have expireince with

[@Lucatellion]

So it's like CPM S30V

[@CedricAda]

hmmm nah I would liken it more to 80crv2 or 1095 Cro Van, or even O1 with how it performed. S30V is a fair bit longer lasting in the edge test numbers and is stainless

[@Lucatellion]

Cedric & Ada Gear and Outdoors I mean this 20° Lansky Mirror edge

[@Lucatellion]

Cedric & Ada Gear and Outdoors You said once, that u like N690co but some knives with this steel are overpriced, what u think about getting 50 US$ knife with that steel? Is it worth the money?

[@alexgempfer937]

@@Lucatellion No its like Daido's DC53. Awesome steel if HT'ed properly. Good to work with...

[@MatyasTurk]

Wow... That's disappointing. Not a great choice for a folder. It being non stainless, I would have hoped, it was great in every other way... It's very popular among custom makers around here, so many people rave about it, and it really goes to show, You can't just go by feel, You need to test, and thank You for doing that! Based on what Lionsteel said and all the positive feedback I've heard I would have expected/hoped for 3V-ish numbers, maybe somewhat less... But not half of that. Very underwhelming. And I knew that Lionsteel was using high edge angles, but over 20 dps is crazy... If I reground it to something I like (around 15-17 dps) it'd probably look like a scandi :D

[@Bwbravowhiskey]

Chemically sleipner seems closer to 3v or cruwear

[@MatyasTurk]

Yepp, I've noticed the similarities as well, and I was hoping for similar numbers to 3V... Not half of it :/

[@athanasioslianoudakis9119]

YOU ARE GRATE CEDRIC

[@jagersilva2169]

one thing i think we over look is the fact that the edge hits the wooden board

[@CedricAda]

true, but its universal across the test. So yeah, I guess the result is ‘how many time can it cut rope on a wooden board’

[@adrianmarcelovillarruelcue6995]

Y el nieto bosque?

[@guanghaoxu6983]

Mn is manganese, Mg is magnesium

[@Surago]

I love seeing how crap that work sharp edge is compared to a lansky.

[@tonycanniffe2360]

Surago it’s fast though.

[@TheOneAndOnlySame]

Tony Canniffe A guy is being interviewed for a job. The HR person is looking at his candidature and says "you've written here that you're "fast at maths" ? What do you mean? can you do me a demonstration? What's 6734 x 7358? " instantly the guy responds: "9563!" "But...but.... that's completely wrong..?!" "Yep, but that's fast!"

[@howardgreen9718]

Nice photo bombs

[@frankkociara4228]

I thought it was 90% methane.

[@yeaman992]

Honestly overall I'm really disappointed in Lionsteel. They've even given more than lies on bladeforums and whatnot of steel performance (for one saying sleipner wayyy out cut properly HRc'd M390) and other important variables. For the price there's much better options. Glad you did your tests though! (PS Like I've commented before, please try using diamond stones on high vanadium steels to prevent carbide tear out to get accurate results, as show by your S110v test.)

[@CedricAda]

Herb Toker all sorted now with the diamond kit for the lansky! Used them in this video; then reverted to fine ceramics to polish

[@HalfBit360]

Herb Toker what is your profile picture? I've seen it recently on a drum at the circus.

[@yeaman992]

HalfBit360 It's a Japanese mitsudomoe, you probably saw it on a taiko drum

[@alexgempfer937]

In high alloyed steel corrosion resistance depends on more elements than just chromium. So chromium content is a noob approach to such property.

[@CedricAda]

I cover many aspects of this and other steels to various lengths on my channel. Thanks for watching.

[@0zmosis2001]

aaaahhhhhh nnnnnoooooooo.... crappy work sharp on so many great knives... for the love of god man stop the madness.....

[@HalfBit360]

Where are all of its legs? Google the name of the knife for the joke.

[@VincenzoNero94]

The convex edge they sent from the factory might of been a strong edge. But it was still a shit edge 💩

[@CedricAda]

Vinny Nero yeah, good for an axe, less so for a knife

[@Pjotr1982]

Not great, not terrible 🤔

[@luger9857]

Fart fart FART!