Knife XRF & HRC Test Results ! These results really blew my mind !!

If you want to contribute to the cost of testing
My Cash App is: $luvthemknives

Batch 2 Test

LTK Rezult (20CV)(Yes)
V 4.42
Cr 19.47
Fe 73.78
Mo 1.06
W .437
60.1 HRC
20CV

TwoSun Vandal (M390)(Yes)
V 4.69
Cr 19.74
Fe 73.83
Mo 1.03
W .454
59.2 HRC
M390

Microtech MSI (M390)(Yes)
V 4.51
Cr 19.76
Fe 73.15
Ni .307
Mo 1.08
W .377
58.7 HRC
M390

XTOUC SX603 button lock (14C)(Yes)
Cr 14.13
Mn .655
Fe 84.71
Ni .217
Mo .126
59.8 HRC
Aeb-L

14C28N composition
Carbon C 0.62%
Chromium Cr 14.00%
Manganese Mn 0.60%
Nitrogen N 0.11%
Silicon Si 0.30%
Phosphorus P 0.02%
Sulfur S 0.01
** 14C vs AEB-L These steels are nearly identical. If anyone can tell the difference between these two steels based on performance, it has less to do with the difference in chemistry and more to do with the different HT protocols being implemented, which would be true if you compared 13C26/AEB-L against itself with two different HT protocols - one to maximize hardness, the other to maximize corrosion resistance. 14C28N swaps out some carbon for nitrogen and adds more chromium to get a tiny bit more 'stainless'.

Kizer Clairvoyant (S35VN)(Yes)
V. 3.47
Cr 14.26
Fe 78.84
Nb .595
Mo 2.18
59.6 HRC
S35VN

Vosteed Thunderbird (S35VN)(Yes)
V 3.64
Cr 14.32
Fe 78.57
Nb .616
Mo 2.02
61.0 HRC
S35vn

Todd Begg Bodega (D2)(Yes)
V .733
Cr 11.81
Fe 83.86
Mo .892
62.1 HRC
D2

CJRB Pyrite (AR-RPM9)(Yes)
V .106
Cr 17.46
Mn .593
Fe 80.53
Mo 1.14
59.9 HRC
440c or similar (I’m calling it AR-RPM9)

AR-RPM9 (Published Composition)
C 0.90
Cr 18.00
Mo 1.0
V .10
Co .30
Ni 0.00-0.40
Mn 0.45
Si 0.20-0.80

Civivi Sinisys (14c28n)(Yes)
Cr 13.71
Mn .754
Fe 85.24
Mo .128
60.0 HRC
Aeb-L (I’m calling it 14C28N)

Kizer Sheepdog (154CM)(Yes)
V .285
Cr 13.42
Fe 81.29
Mo 4.15
59.6 HRC
154cm

Fat Dragon Divinity Tree (M390)(Yes)
V 4.38
Cr 18.93
Fe 74.17
Ni .274
Mo 1.08
W .598
58.2 HRC
M390

Remette Peacock (9CR18MOV)(Yes)
V .084
Cr 16.68
Fe 82.00
Mo .455
61.7HRC
9cr18mov

Sitivien ST996 (M390)(Yes)
V 4.01
Cr 19.72
Fe 74.34
Ni .269
Mo 1.03
W .452
58.2 HRC
M390

Protech Rockeye (S35VN)(Yes)
V 3.24
Cr 14.04
Fe 79.32
Nb .596
Mo 2.06
59.9 HRC
S35vn

HUAAO (M390)(Not)
V .171
Cr 13.93
Fe 85.04
Mo .565
61.3 HRC
Aeb-L (but maybe 14C28N)

SMKE Arius (clone) knife (M390)(Yes)
V 4.80
Cr 20.03
Fe 72.63
Mo 1.04
W .420
60.2 HRC
M390

Olitans (M390)(No)
V .088
Cr 17.01
Fe 81.29
Mo .649
58.4 HRC
440C or similar (maybe 9cr18 ?)

Kunwu Pulsar (Elmax)(Yes)
V 3.47
Cr 18.58
Fe 76.54
Ni .353
Mo .922
60.3 HRC
Elmax

[LuvThemKnives]

If you want to contribute to the cost of testing
My Cash App is: $luvthemknives


Batch 2 Test

LTK Rezult (20CV)(Yes)
V 4.42
Cr 19.47
Fe 73.78
Mo 1.06
W .437
60.1 HRC
20CV

TwoSun Vandal (M390)(Yes)
V 4.69
Cr 19.74
Fe 73.83
Mo 1.03
W .454
59.2 HRC
M390

Microtech MSI (M390)(Yes)
V 4.51
Cr 19.76
Fe 73.15
Ni .307
Mo 1.08
W .377
58.7 HRC
M390

XTOUC SX603 button lock (14C)(Yes)
Cr 14.13
Mn .655
Fe 84.71
Ni .217
Mo .126
59.8 HRC
Aeb-L

14C28N composition
Carbon C 0.62%
Chromium Cr 14.00%
Manganese Mn 0.60%
Nitrogen N 0.11%
Silicon Si 0.30%
Phosphorus P 0.02%
Sulfur S 0.01
** 14C vs AEB-L These steels are nearly identical. If anyone can tell the difference between these two steels based on performance, it has less to do with the difference in chemistry and more to do with the different HT protocols being implemented, which would be true if you compared 13C26/AEB-L against itself with two different HT protocols - one to maximize hardness, the other to maximize corrosion resistance. 14C28N swaps out some carbon for nitrogen and adds more chromium to get a tiny bit more 'stainless'.

Kizer Clairvoyant (S35VN)(Yes)
V. 3.47
Cr 14.26
Fe 78.84
Nb .595
Mo 2.18
59.6 HRC
S35VN

Vosteed Thunderbird (S35VN)(Yes)
V 3.64
Cr 14.32
Fe 78.57
Nb .616
Mo 2.02
61.0 HRC
S35vn

Todd Begg Bodega (D2)(Yes)
V .733
Cr 11.81
Fe 83.86
Mo .892
62.1 HRC
D2

CJRB Pyrite (AR-RPM9)(Yes)
V .106
Cr 17.46
Mn .593
Fe 80.53
Mo 1.14
59.9 HRC
440c or similar (I’m calling it AR-RPM9)

AR-RPM9 (Published Composition)
C 0.90
Cr 18.00
Mo 1.0
V .10
Co .30
Ni 0.00-0.40
Mn 0.45
Si 0.20-0.80

Civivi Sinisys (14c28n)(Yes)
Cr 13.71
Mn .754
Fe 85.24
Mo .128
60.0 HRC
Aeb-L (I’m calling it 14C28N)

Kizer Sheepdog (154CM)(Yes)
V .285
Cr 13.42
Fe 81.29
Mo 4.15
59.6 HRC
154cm

Fat Dragon Divinity Tree (M390)(Yes)
V 4.38
Cr 18.93
Fe 74.17
Ni .274
Mo 1.08
W .598
58.2 HRC
M390

Remette Peacock (9CR18MOV)(Yes)
V .084
Cr 16.68
Fe 82.00
Mo .455
61.7HRC
9cr18mov

Sitivien ST996 (M390)(Yes)
V 4.01
Cr 19.72
Fe 74.34
Ni .269
Mo 1.03
W .452
58.2 HRC
M390

Protech Rockeye (S35VN)(Yes)
V 3.24
Cr 14.04
Fe 79.32
Nb .596
Mo 2.06
59.9 HRC
S35vn

HUAAO (M390)(Not)
V .171
Cr 13.93
Fe 85.04
Mo .565
61.3 HRC
Aeb-L (but maybe 14C28N)

SMKE Arius (clone) knife (M390)(Yes)
V 4.80
Cr 20.03
Fe 72.63
Mo 1.04
W .420
60.2 HRC
M390

Olitans (M390)(No)
V .088
Cr 17.01
Fe 81.29
Mo .649
58.4 HRC
440C or similar (maybe 9cr18 ?)

Kunwu Pulsar (Elmax)(Yes)
V 3.47
Cr 18.58
Fe 76.54
Ni .353
Mo .922
60.3 HRC
Elmax

[moss]

I find myself all giddy with coffee sippin' anticipation whenever these show & tell steel videos drop. It's like tabloid tv for knife addicts. You, sir, are a gentleman and a scholar.

[Hungrybird]

Thanks for taking the time LT 😊. Still liking the Vandal .

[shawnmaginness]

Mr LTK, the main reason I subscribe to you is BECAUSE you show knives no one else does! Also, the fact that I can actually afford a good many of them is a factor. That and your personality and wisdom is appreciated. 👍👍

[Elmax.dps]

I'm happy to see the rezult test so well. I'm getting one this week, you did a great job on the design

[LonestarTaoboy]

Some shocking results both positive and negative. Some pleasing results as well. Now I am left with an empty feeling when I look out among my collection with a sad wondering.

[Matthew-wnoq]

I don't know what my malfunction is but I enjoy these testing vids 😊

[Knifeaddictdillon]

Italian knives are notoriously known for low hrc. Giantmouse, Lionsteel, Fox, and MKM are all good suggestions

[DeerUNIT]

Mad respect for the transparency on your own product.

[blueswan]

Ltk is the best, I wish you had a million subscribers, best of luck hermano...love your content

[byronkennedy]

Very interesting results. Thanks LTKLee.

[gregvanderlip]

Ltk knives are still just awesome designs 👏 👌 😍

[khakicampbell]

I love how your tested your own knife! Kudos on the integrity 👍
Thanks for another exciting round of test results! Read em and weep lol

[mikereese]

Love these videos. Thanks for doing these.

[zade]

Doing the lords work out here. Can’t wait for your new website to launch!!!

[chronovore]

Great job! Thanks for doing these! I'd love to see more hardness testing on Kizer's N690 and 154CM.

[benand-rd]

Great video and information. I always appreciate your hard work on your content. 👍🍻

[patrickvanovermeeren]

Great video ! Thank you so much for your work on the testing 👍👍

[hector_dom]

Wonderful video. I love it when you get down to numbers and objectivity. Cheers!!

[RobNC-OG]

Thank you for doing these tests. It keeps the companies honest and us buyers well informed. HRC is very important to buyers like myself. If they claim a certain hardness range it should be within that range. To me, HRC is more important than what kind of steel it is. The "best" knife steel is worthless if it's too damn soft and won't hold an edge. Thank you again!