For the most part the high performance steels are made for industrial use, tool and die work, etc. They aren't made for knives because the knife market is too small. Knifemakers have picked through the different offerings of the steelmakers and chosen steels to try in knives. Spyderco for instance chooses a lot of steels to try that nobody else has tried in knives.

The Hinderer edging is relatively obtuse for holding up to hard use, and also left a relatively rough finish. Rick explained why in an anecdote from years back, making knives in a chicken coop. He wanted to do an ultimate sharp edge, able to literally split a human hair, and he succeeded, using a microscope...and that fine polished thin edge would cut nothing else. So, he leaves the production knives edges toothy, for best general purpose hard use cutting.

While again discussing design, the mindset behind his knives arises from an anecdote of trying to free a trapped woman in an auto accident, cutting free chunks of seat for clearance for one reason or the other, and the rescue knife lock failed, and the genesis of his stabilizer idea, and his knife builds, in general. His motto is dependable knives....not best, not ultimate weapon carried by ultimate warriors, no blasting of names of who uses them and where (and quite a list that would be)....simply, dependable.

The plastic is slicker, very low compressibility, while bronze adds friction, and lasts longer. Both can be swapped for other, with zero problem, and easily found.

And in machinery, BOTH are considered consumables to be replaced periodically. To me, arguing over them is akin to arguing over trash, and whose trash takes longer to hit the trash can.

Use whatever pleases you. I was a fan of bronze, until I saw how frictionless this knife is, with MY set-up just enough detent pressure to hold blade closed, but can be shaken open with a flip, and normal opening simply boosting blade open with flipper and finishing with a light flip, and blade falls closed when lock disengaged. And all frictionless.

And Rick sells an $8 package of what I assumed was a set of washers and clip screws, but which turned out to hold circa 4pr of them, and about a dozen small clip screws, none ever actually counted. And original installed washers holding up fine. If I were low crawling anymore, it would be different, I am sure.

Rick's handy $75 field tool a great gadget, as it has the non-marring perfect fit pivot spanner, and equally perfect slotted bit for pivot cap, along with a proper hex drive for handle screws. You need more than than for total teardown (such as a 0.050 hex for stabilizer and #1 phillips for clip), but for field cleaning, an excellent gadget.

I have yet to find a single problem with the washer choice, and have yet to find a single thing not perfectly executed on the knife. The Ti scale a late addition, and is perfection when installed as for spacers circumference inside knife the same paper thickness from scale edge on either scale, screws install seamlessly but without marring sides of screws, lanyard holes precisely aligned. THIS is modern manufacturing.

Much of the new stuff shows owners finding their new latest greatest chips even cutting cardboard, unless polished to a mirror finish. Just look up any steel and go to Spyderco forum to see owner experiences, and see what it takes to even make the stuff work for them, and it will leave you aghast. Am referencing Spyderco as they put out near every steel possible, and heat treats are normally exactly as specified. Simply search steel name plus spyderco forum. Reeve was instrumental in the first wondersteel, S30V, and had to both go to S35Vn, and thicken blade profiles, due to blades not holding up.

Likewise, would love to put a production knife such as those made of old 0170-6 Sharon, or 0170-6C Crucible/DM-1 , either given Dan Maragni heat treat with marquench/martemper in molten salt baths as used on Cold Steel Carbon V, early Beckers and a few large Blackjacks, and same steel in the old Case and Western 1095CV blades, against any modern particle metal with blades of same profile and size, and sophisticated heat treat.

If you look at any comparison charts of powder/particle steels, you will find their origins with the company making the stuff, with comparison metals not taken to optimum performance levels in heat treat nor hardness, the charts a very stacked deck, as knife owners have discovered.

I would love a Hinderer, original topic, and as already mentioned, in 80CrV2 chrome vanadium silicon heavy duty spring steel, as blade could be lightened quite a bit over current profile. Winkler and the Navy SEALs are quite pleased with his hard use Belt Knife for whom it was developed as an issue item for Red and Blue squadrons in Afghanistan as a hard use utility knife of same purpose as the Hinderer.

But, the market would not buy it....

Guess I'm jest too old-fashioned.......

However, the new wondersteels still are far less giving and far more breaking when stressed, whether at edge or entire blade, than tradition steel, in whatever wording you care to use. Folk trying to make swords of the stuff know its limits, nobody uses it for lawn mower blades, or trustworthy machetes, and if you want a hard use knife of the stuff, it has better be beefy in every dimension, including edge and tip, especialy when it impacts that unexpected staple, black hard wood knot, misses a hit and strikes a rock or twisted to break something.

I am trying to explain the knife and the why of the design in layman's terms, and honestly really and truly not wanting a nitnoid debate over terminology. If you want to believe a large hard use PM blade is equal or superior in anything but edge holding over more standard steels given just as sophisticated a heat treat, please go right ahead, and can even go after all the top drawer smiths and explain to them they have it all wrong.

This is why there are very few, if any, powdered metal springs or hammers. And a knife often called upon to take those manner of loads, whether prying or chopping or batoning.

This is with current technology as applied to knife making today, in any case.

The stuff is great for large machine shears and cutters set up for a constant known material, where alloy can be tailor selected for use, whether paper or metal.

But, just because it is new, does not make it better, and just because a steel maker, does not make one understand knives. Folk today are addicted to flavor of month, and have adopted homemade lab techniques for proclaiming superiority, when their tests and lab tests and knife manufacturers pushing flavor of month steel tests, bear no resemblance to the real world, unless an office or warehouse worker.

Even then, when that great cardboard cutter hits a staple, it often is a very bad thing. Micro chip has entered common vocabulary, thanks to PM, and a read of a Spyderco forum on fans trials and tribuoations with latest and greatest is illuminating.

S35VN as in the first knife you showed is intended to provide improved ductility over a more standard steel such as 154CM or S30V. It provides good knife performance while still being able to be sharpened by the owner unlike some of the more esoteric steels. CRK uses it for the same reason. Elmax as used by ZT is another stainless steel that has improved toughness. The steels that I know of that have toughness beyond these such as S3V and Cruwear are only semi-stainless.

To me, it is an IWB proposition, protected from snags, clips hung and bent, knives yanked out of pocket, clothing torn. Safe and snug IWB and weight far better supported, and nearly forgotten unless needed.