Jack Wolf Knives and S90V: What to Know About This Steel

Many Jack Wolf Knives command premium prices for their unique designs and rare workmanship. They’re also made largely with super steels, notably S90V, which is one of the most sought-after steels in the knife industry. 

Let’s take a closer look at this alloy and what it offers. 

High Carbon and Vanadium Content Equal High Carbide Concentrations

S90V was first created by Crucible Particle Metallurgies in the early 2000s as an alternative to CPM-440V, an alloy that was rich in vanadium and which therefore offered really solid wear resistance and edge retention.

However, partially as a result of its very high vanadium content and carbide distribution, despite the fact that CPM-440V offered excellent edge retention, it was also a fairly brittle steel that was prone to chipping and other similar issues if it was abused. 

S90V wasn’t just about high vanadium concentration, however, though that is one of the keys to its performance. Utilizing their proprietary process, CPM improved the grain structure and carbide distribution. This resulted in a steel that not only was very wear resistant, but which was considerably tougher and more shock resistant than other steels that were also very hard. 

S90V contains 9% vanadium and more than 2% carbon. These are exceptionally high figures so it should come as no surprise that there is a rich mix of carbides in the alloy that make the steel very hard. This in turn makes the steel very wear resistant which means that it can hold an edge for a long time.

However, unlike other very hard steels, S90V’s fine grain and even carbide distribution gives it relatively uncommon toughness. There are other tougher steels, for instance, CPM-3V comes to mind, but S90V is no slouch when it comes to toughness, either. 

The long and short of this is that S90V can take a very sharp edge (mostly as a result of the fine grain) and hold it for a long time (as a result of the high concentrations of vanadium and carbon). This is, however, if you can excuse the pun, a double-edged sword. 

On the one hand, you don’t need to worry about resharpening a knife that’s made with S90V very often. It will stay sharp for a long time even when you use the blade frequently and are somewhat less than judicious about how carefully you apply it. 

On the other hand, when it does come time for you to touch up the edge, that will prove to be a labor of love. S90V is not just hard to sharpen, it is very hard to sharpen, and the rich carbide concentration in this alloy resists many standard stones. You will spend a long time trying to get the edge back, and it will be slow going. You will also incur an uncommon degree of wear on the stones you use as well. For this reason, some users prefer to use diamond stones to sharpen knives made with this steel, rather than conventional natural stones.

Be that as it may, this is still an excellent steel alloy and for what it’s good for, in this instance, holding an edge, it makes for a great knife.

No Small Part in Chromium, Either 

The other majority element of S90V steel, such as that used in many Jack Wolf Knives, is chromium, the primary benefit of which is that it makes the steel that bears it much better able to resist corrosion. 

At 14% chromium, this super steel alloy offers much better corrosion than many other tool steels that are also renowned for their toughness and edge retention. It will rust if you try to get it to, or if you neglect it, but the same could also be said of pretty much any other steel alloy. 

So this is a super steel not just in the sense that it is tolerant of abuse and will hold an edge (to a fault) but because it is pretty resistant to corrosion as well. 

Other Notes for S90V

There are just a few more things that make S90V steel unique which we will touch on here. One of them is that this alloy contains about 1% of molybdenum, which also makes the steel tougher and more wear-resistant, making it a solid counterpart to vanadium and the carbides that form with it. 

Another note is the relatively low concentration of chromium, which, though high enough to endow the steel with relatively high corrosion resistance, would benefit if it were higher. CPM, the company that developed this steel, noticed that the wear-resistance improved if the chromium concentration was lowered, which enabled the formation of a higher concentration of vanadium carbides in the steel.

Shop Jack Wolf Knives (and Other S90V Knives) Here

You can read about S90V all day, but the best way to truly get a sense of what this steel offers is to get a knife with a blade made of it. Check out our collection of Jack Wolf Knives and contact us directly if you want a recommendation, because we sell other knives made with S90V as well.