fallkniven vg10 question

[Mountainwalker]

Thinking of buying a Fallkniven S1, according to the vendor the knife is a discontinued model and is a solid VG-10 as opposed to the current laminate.

Does anyone know if fallkniven made solid vg-10 knives?

 

[sapper1]

Yes they did.

 

[Mountainwalker]

Yes they did.

Thanks for the info. Are there any known issues with solid vg-10? Did they move to the laminate version due to ease of sharpening?

 

[sapper1]

Vg 10 is a very hard and expensive material,I assume that the sides of the knife don't need to be as hard as the edge as they dont get used.So possibly it is cheaper to use a laminate of a cheaper steel on the sides.The steel used on the sides is 420j2.This is still a very strong steel but not as expensive as vg10.
I have an A1 in vg10 and an A2 in vg10 laminate,both are 6mm thick.The A2 has a 2mm vg10 core and a 2mm laminate on each side of 420j2,There is to much difference in the dimensions of the knifes to make a weight comparison but the edge of both is made from the same steel so there is no difference qualities there.
Here is a link to different types of steel this should help your decision a bit.
Myself ,in use,I can see no difference between plain vg10 and laminated vg 10.If you go to youtube and search fallkniven destruction test you'll find a very good demonstration of how strong these blades are.Bear in mind the videos are for a laminated blade,Iwould think a plain vg10 blade wouldn't fail in the same way.After watching these videos you'll see that there is no way these blades will ever fail in normal use.

http://www.zknives.com/knives/articles/knifesteelfaq.shtml

 

[Mountainwalker]

Vg 10 is a very hard and expensive material,I assume that the sides of the knife don't need to be as hard as the edge as they dont get used.So possibly it is cheaper to use a laminate of a cheaper steel on the sides.The steel used on the sides is 420j2.This is still a very strong steel but not as expensive as vg10.
I have an A1 in vg10 and an A2 in vg10 laminate,both are 6mm thick.The A2 has a 2mm vg10 core and a 2mm laminate on each side of 420j2,There is to much difference in the dimensions of the knifes to make a weight comparison but the edge of both is made from the same steel so there is no difference qualities there.
Here is a link to different types of steel this should help your decision a bit.
Myself ,in use,I can see no difference between plain vg10 and laminated vg 10.If you go to youtube and search fallkniven destruction test you'll find a very good demonstration of how strong these blades are.Bear in mind the videos are for a laminated blade,Iwould think a plain vg10 blade wouldn't fail in the same way.After watching these videos you'll see that there is no way these blades will ever fail in normal use.

http://www.zknives.com/knives/articles/knifesteelfaq.shtml

Thanks sapper1. I'm not very brutal with my knives so should be fine. It will be my first Fallkniven!

 

[sapper1]

After you see the videos you'll have a whole new understanding of brutal!
A few wxamples ,all with the same knife.
Turning patio slabs into gravel
cutting 1/8 steel bars
Blade held in vice and sledgehammered
plunging through car bonnets
I recommend them.

 

[rg598]

VG-10 is very hard. The reason it is laminated is because if the blade was all VG-10, it would be much more brittle. The 420 gives it flexibility, while the VG-10 provides the hard edge. It is the same way Japanese swords are made.

Keep in mind that VG-10 is more brittle than 1095 (all things being equal), especially at very low temperatures. Therefore the edge would be easier to chip than on a 1095 blade.

That being said, it is a very strong knife. I have a S1, and it has taken some serious "abuse" without a problem.