Does a higher heat treatment reduce s45vns corrosion resistance? S35vn has been being put into high end folders ($300-700) Chris Reeves, Sparta blades ect…, and I don’t understand the reasoning, The M390 steel is one of the best steels used today to make premium knives and blades, it was presented and manufactured by BOHLER-UDDENHOLM, using a 3rd generation technology. The goal with developing S45VN was to improve corrosion resistance relative to S30V and S35VN. Composition Comparison Graph For The Knife Steels Bohler-Uddeholm M390, Crucible S90V Version 4.36 Edge retention is covered later in this article. Lol. The carbide volume is somewhat higher than calculated in ThermoCalc, shown previously in the article. You can read more about cryo treatments here: Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. Instead, the nitrogen promotes the formation of vanadium and niobium carbide which also decreases the amount of chromium carbides. The BÖHLER M390 MICROCLEAN Is martensitic chromium steel, that offers an extremely high wear resistance and high corrosion resistance, So it’s simply a great combination for a knife or a blade! Why didn’t you temper at 1000F?  Originally developed by both Chris Reeve (a world renowned knife maker) and Dick Barber of Crucible Industries, S30V is a martensitic powder-made stainless steel. Due to how well rounded it is. Find out how you can achieve more! My understanding is that ELMAX is a highly corrosion resistant steel that exhibits great edge retention. Hardness is the measure of a material resisting a scratch, wear or abrasion. One of the Marine Approved top recommendations for a knife encompassing CPM-S90V steel is the Benchmade Nakamura Axis 484-1 found here. As noted in the niobium article, small additions of niobium can also improve toughness by refining the microstructure as a whole by changing the sequence of solidification. It was found that in both cases the retained austenite content was relatively low, so even higher austenitizing temperatures would be required to start to see a divide between freezer and liquid nitrogen. S45VN is a new powder metallurgy stainless steel being produced by Crucible that has just been announced. 1.9% of Carbon: Carbon is essential in all blades and knives, it gives more toughness, durability to the blade/knife, but the carbon as a component is susceptible to corrosion. Final refinement of the chemistry and Mill Production methods were developed by Bob Skibitski of Crucible. Required fields are marked *. However, the high chromium content of S60V (17%) reduced the amount of vanadium carbide that was formed. The results of these experiments (minus S45VN) were previously shown in this article. So using niobium instead of vanadium should lead to a refined microstructure in general in part because of modifications to solidification as well as reducing the amount of chromium carbide. It will not be as easy to finish as something like CPM-154 which is a favorite among custom knifemakers putting on hand-rubbed finishes. S45VN has slightly less edge retention than S30V but better corrosion resistance. S30V is a knife steel produced by Crucible, released at the end of 2001 [1]. Become a patron and gain access to awesome rewards including early access to articles or a Knife Steel Nerds mug! The result is that the overall carbide content is not increased much when compared with S30V, though still a bit higher than S35VN. S45VN has only slightly reduced toughness when compared with S35VN, and S45VN is an improvement over S30V, particularly when hardness is factored in: Elmax had somewhat better toughness though at lower hardness, when hardness is considered the toughness of S45VN is better. from carrying it for a couple weeks and not disassembling and cleaning it off (sweat I’m guessing). In all this steel is just perfect for the outdoor activities, if you are camping or hunting, having one of the M390 knives would give a great plus to your experience. Powder metallurgy steels generally have at least 0.05% nitrogen in them from pickup from the atmosphere and the nitrogen gas atomization process [2]. Also from reading it’s seems S45vn’s performance is HIGHLY dependant on its heat treatment. The Benchmade Barrage 581 Knife is a Drop point Knife with Satin finish, belt with the M390 Steel, its a standard Clip type, with a reversible Tip-Up clip position, unfortunately, it’s not belt for glass breaking, its has a beautifully designed G10 handle (You can buy it with an aluminum handle), its has no sheath, no lanyard hole and it’s not Molle compatible. My recommended heat treatment for S45VN is 2000°F austenitize along with a fast quench and a cold treatment followed by a 300-400°F temper depending on desired hardness. As I understand it some companies switched to S35VN from S30V because they were unhappy with the grindability of S30V. “Quick Stop” If you have no idea about “Rockwell Hardness” You must read this post then comeback! The S45VN chemistry was first introduced by Niagara Specialty Metal’s Western Sales Manager and Knife Steel Specialist, Frank Cox. In the article I wrote about nitrogen-alloyed steel I focused primarily on nitrogen “in solution” which increases hardness and to some extent corrosion resistance. Both terms have different meanings check them! I tested S45VN in my 1% saltwater spray corrosion test. I had a Cru wear pit at the Tang under the washers(somehow?) In choosing the best pocket knife you should pay particular attention to the type of steel used in the blade. 4% of Vanadium: During the process of powder metallurgy, Vanadium is crucial to guarantee a correct distribution of grain, it has also the potential to increase the wear resistance of the knife. Toughness is the maximum amount of energy a material can handle before braking. It seems to be a popular opinion among some enthusiasts that S30V and S35VN are now old hat, so perhaps this new grade will attract them again. According to @BOHLER the Rockwell hardness of the M390 STEEL is 60-62(HRC). So we expect better edge retention than S35VN but where it sits compared to S30V is hard to predict with certainty. The peak in hardness is generally seen around 15% retained austenite. S45vn has the edge retention of s30v. A material with higher hardness usually has a lower toughness and vice versa. It features a 3.5" VG-10 hollow ground stainless steel blade that enjoys great edge retention and resistance to corrosion, which is further helped by the black treatment on the blade. One of the Marine Approved top recommendations for a knife encompassing CPM-S110V steel is the Spyderco Military found here. Still in the range of xhp, elmax,3v? Notify me of follow-up comments by email. From the Valet family, the 485 valet is Everyday use Drop point knife, with satin finish, made by the M390 (60-62 HRC) steel, with a standard clip type and Tip-up Position, it has a Landyard Hole and G10 Handle, but no sheath, no Molle compatibility and it’s not made for glass breaking. I saw s30v as a good mid range folding knife steel and s35 as a good mid range fixed(5-6 inch) blade steel, but nothing really stands out about them.