Top 10 Toughest Knife Steels Explained + MY TOP 5 Favorite

[@timtitus2532]

3V is absolutely everything you are saying, my Bailout is in 3V, I tested it on my arm hair and it wouldn't shave, ran it on the kitchen steel 2 swipes each side and it was back to hair popping sharp. Really good video, Jerad, and thanks to your better half, I haven't seen her in a bit.

[@NeevesKnives]

Grab yourself a Ceramic rod it works incredibly well. With very little effort

[@timtitus2532]

@NeevesKnives I have that as well and will use it when the steel isn't doing the trick.

[@ministrychannelsa4216]

A South African knife maker with the name of George Britz (Britz Knives) has developed a hardening process to give 52100 an unbelievable edge retention.

[@gjkymsafishing45]

That is true, Britz Knives is one of the best knife makers in South Africa, and the craftsmanship that he puts into his knives is amazing.

[@gatsbysgarage8389]

Has he shared his method?

[@pitdawg6418]

​@@gatsbysgarage8389why should he share his methods? It's HIS to keep and make money off of, NOT to give away so everyone like you can steal his methods and claim is yours and make money off of. You just want it handed to you and spoon fed into your mouth so you don't have to do anything to try by trial and error and time and money invested.

[@SuperSteelSteve]

I'm sure the man makes a great knife, but unfortunately for him we are all limited by physics and chemistry There is only so much alloying elements and only so much hardness every steel has given its composition. There is nothing he does that isn't being done or hasn't been done. I'd be more than happy to do a head to head competition with him using 52100. I can show you my exact heat treat while doing it. Every now and then makers come out and claim they have some secret to make a simple carbon steel amazing. AEBL will out cut and be tougher than 52100 at any hardness with any heat treat so no need to try amd make 52100 any better than it already is anyway. It's also nearly the same price

[@ministrychannelsa4216]

@@SuperSteelSteve right you are. Still, Buck hardens their 420c better than other companies. There are those people that just manage to do a better job.

[@bobrutledge54]

Very informative video. Thanks, Jared!

[@SkunkPunch73]

As always you have done a fantastic job with this upload Jerad really interesting getting your insights into how you personally view the steals. Nice to see Kara making an appearance on a none live video ( even if it has brought out some of the oddballs in chat😂) that number 4 card shot nearly took her head off!! I can just imagine you laughing in the background. As always hope you two are staying safe and healthy and hope you have a cracking weekend ahead 🫵🏻😘👍🏼

[@emesser7087]

Thank you very much for all the work and effort you put into your videos. And thank you for sharing. Also props to your wife to support you. You're one of my top 3 knive channels

[@NeevesKnives]

I appreciate that! 👊

[@schizophrenic_AI]

@@NeevesKnives I second that comment but I got lost scrolling through the links in description, and was wondering if you have a link to the infographs that you reference re: ratings? I respect and appreciate people who reference verified data (salute for taking the time) bc that’s the kind of stuff that interests me but I couldn’t find the link. I like to be able to check primary or secondary sources and see how the data is compiled and tested for accuracy. Appreciate the help and thanks for the good video.

[@elde667]

Excellent! Plus it’s great to see Kara again. Terrific vid y’all.

[@CaseySackett]

Awesome video! thanks for explaining your opinion. I appreciate it!

[@velvetine74]

Jared, your experience and confidence when speaking about things like this is great. I learned something new today about grits and angles in relation to the steels you talked about. Thanks man.

[@NeevesKnives]

👊

[@jkn2k]

Take s coffee man!! Greetings from Mexico ! This was an awesome video man , BANG !!

[@NeevesKnives]

Hey man thanks for the support I greatly appreciate you 🙏

[@Sway1177]

Just wanted to say thank you for your sharpening vids and content. Took me a while but I can finally free hand sharpen with vertical passes and my off hand thumb supporting the spine of the blade.

[@NeevesKnives]

That's amazing man good for you keep it up, i have some great sharpening and steel videos otw

[@brian041270]

Thanks for this video. Very informative.

[@RABBIT-EDC]

Neeves thanks for all the info. None of the other reviewers fill us in.

[@jimmycricket7946]

80crv2 in the Finnish rokka pukka is 63hrc and done so nicely. It's still very tough steel because some parts of the blade are heat treated differently sort of like a laminate steel, I swear you'd think it's as good as 3V, I was absolutely blown away by it.

[@llamawizard]

That sounds like a great knife recipe and a good are for testing. What’s better, a tougher steel at higher HRC, or less tough steel at slightly lower HRC

[@the_knights_edge]

Always enjoy a Neeves steel video! 🙌🍻

[@11saje82]

Even the inventor of the Magnacut, Larrin Thomas, measured the toughness of the Magnacut as inferior to that of the cpm-3V, ditto for the 4V.

[@NeevesKnives]

It was his studies I referred to

[@JamesTaylor-fr4nt]

Very good video learned alot, thanks

[@windowbreezes]

I wish LC200N and Vanax had more knives available.

[@chrisdubois7688]

I like my salt

[@allthingsfighting4518]

Kizer drop bear titanium has LC200N and I love it.

[@chrisdubois7688]

@@allthingsfighting4518 damn

[@aussiehardwood6196]

I've got some fancy artisan hand made Japanese kitchen cutlery. But I've also split all my kindling for 10 years with a $10 Taiwan made hatchet. I'm on my 3rd handle.

[@mikeboyce21]

I love my benchmade bailout in 3v, nice and thin but very tough so it doesn't matter. I also have a swamprat free rein 12 in 3v and its hrc is 61-63 all my other 3v is 61 or less.. most at 58-60 and with that extra hrc it actually makes it keep an edge noticeably longer. And its still plenty tough.

[@KnifeLife116]

Very cool & extremly informative 🤙🏻🔪

[@Donnie_JackWolfKnives]

Excellent video! Very educational 🔥

[@RespectfullySubmitted]

Fantastic video, perhaps your best ever! If you make a similar video in the future, perhaps also discuss the general cost and weight of the steels, please.

[@jufuh1503]

If i may suggest, nitro-v and aeb-l and 13c26 should have been together and 14C28N should have been in it's own class, since it has way better corrosion resistance and the other ones are almost the same on every levels.

[@jdisdetermined]

Hey! Very cool to see Mrs. Neeve looking happy and healthy.

[@tmille10]

Love an old school steel video J Rad! BANGGANG‼️ Spydercos 4v on the St. Nicks Manix Xl may be top of the pops 😮

[@D00MTR33]

One steel I'm interested in is cpm 9V. Its like cpm 10v but with high toughness. Though I hear it's not easy to heat treat to make it perform well. But that was a while ago and there's been advancements in HT protocols. Cpm 440v was thought to be a disappointment because it could only do well at 58hrc but not makers are running it at 62-63hrc and it's been doing great. I wonder if the same can be done with cpm 9V.

[@stephan123321]

Great video, thanks! Stay sharp & Peace, Stephan

[@glenbalbin81]

So informative. Thanks!🤙

[@mattakudesu]

No wonder Larren Thomas said 14c is the best budget steel. Magnacut is basically the edgier nephew of 14c.

[@Barleh]

i havent watch the video yet, but i had to drop a shoutout for my beloved k390

[@henryg683]

Thanks for sharing this information with us and I’m sure it’ll be useful to look back on if I need to know anything about the steel game on the knives!!! It was great to see your lovely assistant in this video and miss seeing her in the videos!!! Take care Jared and Kara and I’ll see you guys in the next video or live show!!!!

[@christianbureau6732]

Great video

[@tmille10]

I carry a maxamet manix 2 lw everyday or a stretch or Endela in k 390 even in a swampy environment they will be the toughest daily users 😏 great video man 👍

[@Tom-cp6yj]

How's Spydercos SPY27?

[@shanejones849]

Love this content. Wish you would make a spread sheet for us with blade steels and best angles and grits to use.

[@NeevesKnives]

I do have a video on that

[@greekveteran2715]

52100 and Vanadis 4 Extra, are my favorite tough steels.

[@robthompson8285]

Wow, Kara's still a smoke show 😮

[@pmHondaSzybszaNizWyglada]

Nice video Jerad👍

[@Dreoilin]

Great video! Your choices are definitely well thought out. We are all knife fans here and love a variety of steels. For me it's all specific to operation. Wood, food, tactical, butchering, etc. Plus I think some fix blades serve me better in steels that don't work well for folders.

[@Cannons_N_Cutlery]

Great video. Awesome info.

[@josephr2766]

Ok I will be that guy. I love buck 420hc. I hate sharpening out nicks and chips, much rather just touch up a blade. My sharp maker stays on my reloading bench with the stones installed. When I’ve used my knives and I come home I just swipe it a few times on the Spyderco rods and I may or may not use a strop. Yesterday was the buck 112 today is a benchmade 940 s30v so I’m not absolutely dedicated to 420 but I do enjoy how easy it is to maintain.

[@gatsbysgarage8389]

I recently had the chance to make a magnacut knife for the first time and it was impressive to say the least, although for some reason it loved to snap my drill bits, even fully annealed and on a drill press. After the heat treat I was using it as a template to drill the pin holes and the bit snagged and sent the knife, wood, and vise edge first into the drill press stand, basically just a ~2.5” steel pipe. Not even a scratch. The blade was dull which definitely helped but still

[@atishch]

Great list! Will you do the one on sharpest?

[@jatencio8362]

Heck yeah ! Thanks for the content bro. I would definitely carry the Odenwolf or keep it close by either on me or maybe in the bathroom by my shower 🗡

[@lonetrader1]

3v M4 Cruwear Magnacut 4v I am curious to where 80crv2 and s7 would rack up? But you can always get into the weeds when it comes to steel.... Vg10,h1,h2, zdp stuff, xhp,sus410, n690 n690 m390...., acx390?!? Crazy world of steel! 😅

[@D00MTR33]

What's acx390? There's k390, m390 and s390. And sus410 isn't a knife steel, it's used as a outside layer laminate for san mai.

[@passionscouteauxnature9019]

Very good 👍😊

[@deadvikingtrolls]

Cruwear, magnacut, 1095 all day.

[@bryaninphnx]

It’s crazy to me that Dr. Larrin Thomas basically took 4V and made it stainless

[@timwagster9458]

OH MY GOSH!!! When your beautiful wife showed the card like a ring girl, I almost spit out my snack. 😂😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣 Please don't take comment the wrong way. Comment clarification: This is a knife steel ranking video. I was surprised by having a "cue card assistant" like when at the raslin' match. That was unexpected and hilarious. 👍😁

[@kaizen5023]

She stole the show! 😊

[@codygreen2804]

Cutting that hair is absolutely insane. Ive cut hairs like that before but not by just touching the hair. My gawsh. I recently just got a 1"x30" belt sander and I cant find any belts for sharpening. Any suggestions on where to get high grit belts and what brand?

[@ashsmall8103]

vanadis 4 extra is certainly up there in the all time great steels

[@ecotec4]

The way your wife was looking at you Jared looks like she found you irresistible 😂. Shes gonna tear you apart my friend lol. Finally a video on your favorite tough steels from a knife steel expert in the field.

[@D00MTR33]

A steel i recommend you check out is CPR. Its kinda like a stainless non PM cruwear going of performance and composition. I have a custom fixed blade in it at 64-65hrc and it performs great. The maker (Mr. Akimdim) did tests with it and it's really tough with good edge retention. Its a hidden gem steel imo. I can send it to you if you want to check it out.

[@jamellelangfordiii3586]

I have an LT Wright in AEBL and it is a razor.... I cut through a thick rubber/fabric pool side and it was literally a hot knife through butter feeling. I tried it again with almost no force and same effect.

[@jonduncansakurawallknifegarden]

(440c user): “Ive been using 440c for years! I’ve never even sharpened it..!” Jerad: (I know you haven’t…) 😂😂😂

[@NeevesKnives]

😆

[@BDevi0us]

Recently bought a Demko/Cold Steel 3V ad10 with Titanium scales for $225. I don't edc big knives, but I love it in my truck just in case...

[@mikereese15]

Bang!

[@jasonlewis6914]

I got the cold steel 4 max scout at tractor supply for only 39$ the thing is build like a tank.

[@clavididk1236]

I like k390 alotttt

[@nunyab8394]

Thanks for another great video! This has been very helpful. Can you please tell me what site/s you get these rankings from. The graphs like at 1:59 and the bars like at 2:09

[@NeevesKnives]

Knife steel nerds and blade hq steel chart, the link to blade hq is in top of description

[@nunyab8394]

@@NeevesKnives Cool thanks Jarred.

[@shawnsadventures2852]

Why does miguron struggle with 14c? If it's so easy for them, low heat treat

[@Obsidian-One]

I have a cruwear spyderco I put a 15dps edge and the other day it cut through something so easy i went through and hit the edge on a peace of eighth inch bar stock and it didn't care!? 😮

[@JimMcPartland]

Great video! Which steel has THE BEST EDGE RETENTION??

[@NeevesKnives]

Rex 121 i showed graphs multiple times with a rating of edge retention charts where all the knife steels were on, it was the o e i scrolled from top to bottom on

[@kmoney9374]

What is that green handled knife that he is using 2:35 into the video?

[@cemetarygates2800]

The Price Is Right feels...

[@LiamRedmill]

What happened to rex 45,last year's steel I suppose,and just to confuse everything a little,which are CPM,,,,And which low corrosion steel mixe's best with the new black mirror DLC coating,because that companie's knife makes sense(who ever they may be....

[@NeevesKnives]

Rex 45 is amazing one of my favorites

[@irenastoyanova2790]

Jared could you tell me something about the Niolox steel because I liked one fixed Fox knife in this steel?I don't know is it worth.

[@NeevesKnives]

I honestly don't know much about that steel sorry

[@IDKReviews-db9xf]

How do u feel about RWL34? I know it's comparable to 154CM but u see it on a lot of premium knives and I didn't see either on the list

[@NeevesKnives]

Yeah it's cpm154 that it's most similar to which is the powdered version. That's also what's used in DAMASTEEL, it's a steel that doesn't hold a polish at all for bite, it will get very slick. In fact you really don't want to even take it very high, I personally like it around 400 grit to 600 personally

[@emanuelmartinez9796]

I was curious on tour thoughts on Oz Machine Z - Finit blade steel, on mine it's listed as 61 HRC and was just curious to your opinion on it.

[@jayytee8062]

What happened to Rex 121 ??

[@NeevesKnives]

That's not a tough steel it's a hard steel

[@kaizen5023]

Can we get Kara more involved with the show / more screen time? She's such a gem!

[@gregvanderlip7726]

BANG BG great vid j😊

[@alexandregraulle607]

You don't speack about the Vanax and the Elmax ..! ^^

[@NeevesKnives]

Because they didn't make the toughness list

[@alexandregraulle607]

And your famous Rex 151 ..? ^^

[@tomlevasseur8550]

I just bought my first knife in MagnaCut, a Benchmade 945. I got home, checked the mail and decided to swipe at some goldenrod that was growing up in front of my mailbox. I checked my factory edge blade after each cut. I got to a slightly woody stem and my blade was damaged. I couldn’t remove the thumb studs to sharpen on my TS prof and had to freehand to get the heel. I brought it to 16 degrees each side and sharpened to 1000 grit. It shaves hair easily. Any idea on why it was damaged and how the hell do I remove the thumb studs? Heat with a soldering iron on the thumb stud didn’t work.

[@Circa1664]

I put a toothy edge on all my knives/steels.

[@jeffscalfano3100]

Yayyy! Your wifes face was such a pleasant change of pace. No offense to your face. Well... maybe a little.

[@realbroggo]

By excluding carbon & low alloy tool steels you really have left out some very tough steels. Having said that, these options are also only useful on mid-large sized fixed blades so they are also limited that way too. However, based on your criteria, you pretty much nailed it. (If focusing on toughness I think you have overrated Magnacut - but that's just me.) I've been collecting knives for 35+ years now & modern (or reasonably modern) high alloy tool & stainless steels now allow us to choose steels that closely meet our individual requirements. Cruwear/3V/14C28N for me. Sharp blades all.

[@tmille10]

Well said, I love a lot of different steels on fixed blades but this is a fine list for folders …..

[@DinoNucci]

pizza

[@michaelbloomston1770]

New to knives and sharpening. I have learned so much from you. Thanks for sharing your knowledge. Couple of questions: 1. Can you trust the manufacturer when they stamp a steel name on the blade, ‘Magnacut’. 2. I would like to purchase the TSProf K03 Pro Hunter. Which additional clamps would you purchase to have the most flexibility to sharpen the folding knives you review. I was considering the Double Fillet (not whole milled), Single Clamp (not fillet), L-adaptor and Ultra 8mm. I know it comes with diamond stones but I also purchased the KDTU Pro-Set. 3. I have seen the list of steels you were using in the video. Is there a list showing which angle to use for each type of blade or do you just copy the angle when you go to sharpen it? Thanks in advance for your responses.

[@rshear618]

Makes a video about toughness and talks about edge retention the whole time….

[@gway9226]

i wish i could get some vanadis 8

[@NeevesKnives]

Giant mouse is using it on Jutland

[@gway9226]

@@NeevesKnives I can only find the vanadis 4 model

[@NeevesKnives]

@gway9226 oh yeah that's right, check my polish custom knives link there's some makers in there using i believe

[@dylandoherty2681]

Is the kizer smolt not a fixed blade?

[@NeevesKnives]

Yes it is

[@alexandregraulle607]

Do the S45VN is better than S35VN ..?

[@NeevesKnives]

Yes by like 10 % I believe

[@MikeJ602]

Idk man the nitro v on my vision fg is chippy as shit. At work I don’t treat it any different than any of my other knives and it’s awful. Cruwear though man is the shizznizzle bam bizzle.

[@Tatterdsoul]

Bang. I’m gonna get a kiss. Thanks. A Kara Thumbnail might get me my favorite soup. Thank…Kara and some Teach.

[@Tatterdsoul]

Pt 2. Great Teach. In my Kara joy I texted seconds in. Can’t wait til my Darling gets home. The teach ones are gonna be forever. Put them in a clump n sell…I say. Like a visual book. Check out Masterclass. Might be too high brow. But you’re a climber. Cheer de cheer.

[@Tatterdsoul]

14C. 👍👍👍

[@TexAZ261]

What a confusing presentation! I would assume 420 HC at the bottom, and cruwear at the top. No idea what you did in-between. Can you just list 1 -10?

[@NeevesKnives]

Toughest steels, i went from the 10th Toughest to #1 Toughest Knife Steels then gave my own opinion on what I like most in the top 5. I'm confused why you would think a 9 on toughness would be less tough that a 7 on toughness. I did do 10 - 1

[@TexAZ261]

I get it. Had to watch it again and take notes.

[@shawnfromportland]

jared the type of guy to marry a baddie

[@Knivesarelife]

What about valyrian steel in game of thrones I hear about it any thoughts lmao get your women off that screen you know all the simps I said it lmao

[@richardhenry1969]

Basically this is just marketing nonsense. Just repeating what is claimed without any proof. Other then one person's chart. I was taught unless it is repeatable its just data.

[@NeevesKnives]

The proof is in the testing, you can go to the same site and read the testing done and all the variables etc.. i gave my own opinion on sharpening and in my top 5

[@richardhenry1969]

@@NeevesKnives so this is from sharpening these steels? How does that determine what is most useful? Ease of sharpening? I'm seriously not trolling so don't get upset. You only learn by asking questions, right?

[@Isbart7810-vn6me]

Your wife is beautiful.

[@-tzadakim-7805]

Chill

[@larshoneytoast722]

​@@-tzadakim-7805no

[@ericsprout]

Your knife is beautiful**** That darn autocorrect

[@DinoNucci]

Relax

[@coreycollum2190]

Absolutely gorgeous!!!!!!

[@mangobadger]

15:52 I agree, that would probably be a highly corrosive environment 😂 lc200n is a great performer and not too expensive, especially compared to vanax

[@krazy_roach1698]

Hey Jerad Hey Kara

[@genedeem6862]

Great video

[@alexolivarez732]

Is 440 the same thing as 440A? I would also love to hear your take on 7Cr17MoV.

[@jammbbs1688]

I have my own design in 8670 and she's a beast

[@vigilantdr.dolittle]

What sense makes a tough blade steel on a folder? The joint is always the weak point. This is why fixed blades are for me.

[@NeevesKnives]

Well toughness isn't just for hard use, it's also good for thin geometry for very slicey blades in order to have good edge stability

[@JCM-um8tx]

20cv,m390?

[@NeevesKnives]

Those are not tough steels

[@papapita4713]