I searched for this knife and the steel but couldn’t find much information about it’s performance. Does anybody have any experience with it? Specifically compared to S30V, 154CM, and/or D2?
The knife industry is constantly pushing the envelope searching for, and testing, higher performance blade steels. ZDP189 is rapidly asserting itself as an up-and-coming steel. It’s a powdered metal made by Hitachi that has phenomenal chemistry with 3% carbon. The hardness is around 64Rc and edge retention is exceptional. This solid ZDP-189 steel blade is the hottest, hardest and highest performing steel in the knife industry today.
zdp is generally used in a laminate as the middle layer, at least in the Spyderco knives. It is a highly sought after steel, and performance reports are that it gets very sharp and stays that way.
I have and use s30v as my EDC. I find it gets sharper than 154cm and holds its edge better in daily use. It also resharpens easily enough to not be a problem. I’d love to add a zdp blade into the family, but so far they have been outside my budget.
I use a ZDP-189 Endura every day. I have carried S30V and CPM-M4 also; ZDP’s performance is in between those two. Holds an edge very well, but it is HARD (65-67 Rc) and can be brittle. Once you sharpen it the chipping seems to be minimized.
One of the better steels I’ve used, but nowhere near Spyderco’s CPM-M4.
It was best summed up with “Gets sharp, stays sharp”.
I have a ZDP Delica as my image-conscious EDC knife. I had it thinned out to a narrow full-flat grind by Brad Southard, and it cuts like a laser. This is one of the strengths of a “super-steel” like ZDP-189 or CPM-M4; you can have a blade with a very acute angle and have it hold up in a way that would not be possible with something softer.
As has been said, it is a PITA to sharpen. It takes -forever- with the hard stones on my Spyderco Sharpmaker; you really need the diamond stones. That being said, I rarely need to sharpen it.
It is the perfect knife for someone to buy, and send back to Spyderco once a year for -them- to touch up.
Thanks guys, I appreciate the responses. I’m not putting in an order until in the morning but after some consideration I think I am going to just go with the delica VG-10 instead of the harder blade steel. I would prefer a blade I can sharpen myself instead of having to send it back to Spyderco. The hardness of the ZDP-189, and its dificulty to sharpen, was the reason I was hesitant to order it and the reason for my questions. While I would appreciate the better steel at times I don’t think I would be willing to send it back when it needed to be touched up. Thanks again.