There Are Pandas, and Then There Are Pandas.
And this isn't either of them! The Pandas we're talking about here, are watches, not bears. And what got me thinking about them (again) was a link posted this morning by @cm.rook who pointed a few of us to the very attractive (and not terribly priced) Yema "Rallygraph" Panda which, in it's most traditional arrangement, looks like the one on the left, but can also be had in the version on the right: The model on the left is a true Panda, while the model on the right is called a reverse Panda. The reason for that distinction is clear--Panda bears, only come in the first arrangement. Now at this point, everyone should be thinking about the most well-know Panda, The Rolex Panda, which is actually a Daytona, and among Rolex Daytonas, the most famous of which is the Paul Newman Daytona, which was famous first, because it was Paul's, and second because it sold at auction for $17.8 million (US Dollars). The story of that auction is well-known so I'll only...
Nov 8, 2019
Main factors in determining how good a knife steel is are: 1) stainlessness 2) toughness 3) ease of sharpening 4) actual sharpness 5) edge retention
1) stainless is how resistant to rust/patina the steel is. this is especially important for diving, where salt water can corrode a blade really fast. Something with a high chromium content or nitrogen based steel would resist corrosion. But if you want the best corrosion, use... not steel. Aluminum and titanium doesn't corrode at all, but they can't really hold an edge, so they fail as knife steels
2) toughness is how well a knife's edge doesnt change on impact. axes, swords, and machetes that undergo a lot of stress are mostly carbon steel, since stainless does not good impact resistant (generally speaking) but they'll rust out if you don't take care of them. Many budget steels and machetes use 3cr13, which is crap in my opinion, since it cant hold an edge, but is pretty impact and corrosion resistant for a stainless steel.
3) ease of sharpening is how easy it is to sharpen a knife. this plays a lot into hardness, so higher rockwell hardness generally means harder to sharpen (although 'hardness' and 'resistance to abrasion' are also different) and also, generally easier to sharpen knives don't hold an edge as long. a lot of hunters prefer very soft and stainless steels like 420HC, so they can sharpen the knife on the go, when doing... hunting things. but for knife nerds 420HC is considered a budget steel (although quite a good one)
4) actual sharpness, which i'll define as the sharpest a steel can get (not a real term) depends a lot on the grain structure of the steel, which is dependant on the heat treat. Basically, the finer grain structure, the sharper the knife can get. But also this plays into steel composition, so for example D2 can never really get as sharp as many other steels. Actual sharpness is also dependant on the blade shape. Razor blades are extremely sharp, but they can range from disposable to thousands of dollars. The sharpenss has more to do with the thinness of the blade. So if you want super super sharp blades, just get a really thin knife. You may not be able to do anything with it though, since it'll probably chip itself to death with any use
5) edge retention. the holy grail and most hotly contended property. this is pretty much how long a knife edge can hold that edge. here's the secret though, there are really awesome steels out there that can hold an edge much longer than all of these super steels. look up stellite6k or talonite. It's crazy stuff, but you can't sharpen it unless you have some pretty special machines. Or if you want to re-cast your blade again.
Since knife steel isn't magic, you want to get a good balance of all of these properties. And also figure out what you like. Generally speaking the 'better' steels are going to cost more, so you do get what you pay for. Also keep in mind, steel is not everything, blade geometry is a huge factor of how that knife will perform. Try using a 1/4in thick survival knife for cooking, and you'll quickly notice the difference. All in all, just try them all out to gain experience. You'll eventually find a good balance of what blade steel fits your lifestyle. But don't buy into the hype of 'you have to get this steel' unless you actually have the experience, and the appreciation, of certain knife and steel properties.