VG-10: The Japanese Steel Spyderco Built a Legacy On

VG-10 is a Japanese stainless steel developed by Takefu Special Steel in the 1990s. The name stands for V Gold 10 — the "Gold" designation in Japanese steelmaking indicates top quality within a manufacturer's line. It became the defining steel of Spyderco's production lineup and remained so for nearly two decades, appearing in the Delica, Endura, Tenacious, Pacific Salt, and dozens of other models.

VG-10's appeal is its combination of high corrosion resistance and decent edge retention at a hardness level (60–62 HRC) that makes it practical for production manufacturing. Japanese steel producers are known for tight metallurgical tolerances, and VG-10 benefits from this — batch consistency is excellent, meaning you rarely encounter the heat treatment failures that plague cheaper Chinese stainless steels.

Composition

Carbon 1.00% · Chromium 15.00% · Vanadium 0.20% · Cobalt 1.40% · Molybdenum 1.00% · Manganese 0.50%. The 15% chromium is notably higher than S30V or S35VN, which is where its corrosion resistance advantage comes from — practically impervious to rust under EDC conditions. The cobalt addition is unusual and contributes to blade stability at high hardness. Vanadium content is low compared to CPM steels, which is why edge retention, while good, doesn't match S35VN.

What it's actually like to carry

VG-10 is an excellent EDC steel that gets undersold because it doesn't have "CPM" in the name. At 60–62 HRC, it takes an extremely fine edge — Japanese knives in VG-10 at 15° per side are some of the sharpest-out-of-box production knives available. It holds that edge well for typical EDC tasks and is straightforward to sharpen on whetstones, ceramic rods, or pull-through sharpeners.

The knock on VG-10 is brittleness. At high hardness, it can develop lateral chips under hard use — twisting or prying in particular. This isn't a daily carry concern for office and urban use, but if you use your knife as a tool in demanding environments, the CPM steels are more forgiving. It also doesn't respond as well to stropping as tougher steels — once the edge is gone, you're sharpening, not maintaining.

Where it sits in the hierarchy

VG-10 is a legitimate premium steel, not a compromise. In some respects — particularly corrosion resistance and out-of-box sharpness — it outperforms S35VN. Where it loses is toughness and macro-chipping resistance. Spyderco has gradually shifted newer models to S35VN and MagnaCut, but their VG-10 lineup (particularly the Salt Series and Pacific Salt, which are specifically engineered for VG-10's corrosion properties) remains excellent. Any Spyderco in VG-10 is a quality knife.