all these darn knife threads..blade material?
 

i have been casually shopping for knives. i looked, and it has been 11 years since i bought my last Benchmade..and that is unacceptable!! :D

i started looking.

here is where i am down to.

Benchmade 755 MBR $200
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1340986074.jpg
ZT 0350 $140
http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1340986210.jpg

the first knife is M390 steel, the other is S30V.

all my knives are 154CV steel. so the two new materials are unknown to me. input? how does a manufacturer choose material anyways..seems very random to me.

my current daily carry is to large, and my other benchmades. have narrow short blades..i just want something short and stubby.

i like how the ZT has the serrated option, and is cheaper (by a huge margin)

i have played with the benchmade, and i have never felt a sturdier folder. IMHO, that silbert guy is one of the best knife designers..this one is cool!! i would have to get used to the lock mech..but it is the sturdiest lock. but $200 would definately register on the wife-radar.

Go with the ZT. You have a benchmade. S30V is great steel. ZT is bulletproof, and worst case, if you do not like the ZT (which I highly doubt), it has still been 11 years since you bought a benchmade and you are due :)

Vash,

They both look like good knives to me. I hate cheap knives with blades that just won't keep an edge. But I definitly look for more inexpensive ones than you. My problem is loss, I once found one of mine in a junkyard laying on the frame of an International Truck that I had gotten a part off of years earlier.

Just keep them away from your eye

Decisions, decisions. Sometimes carry two but always have a low cost >$20 micro box-cutter like the Gerber folder. Formal or field use little knife. So small and light but utilizes much of the razor blade, and never need sharpening. I use the thicker replacement blades from Stanley... 100 pack for $10.

S30V is a lot harder to sharpen than 154xx. Don't know about that M390 stuff. The Benchmade is cute but I would look for something a little more contoured (and/or a little less bulky) in the handle for carry comfort.

I have a benchmade with a CPM-M4 blade, and I'm pretty sure I could hack through a tree and it would still be sharp. Which is good, because I don't want to put in the time with that steel. One downside is it gets surface rust easily, nothing a quick wipe can't handle though.