Luke,

The CS True Flight Thrower is made of Carbon V steel. Have you seen Cold Steel's video: "More Proof"? It seems like great steel. Takes a very sharp edge. I use a Ragnar diamond plate to get a sharp edge and then I use a leather strop from Sportsman's Warehouse to get a polished edge. I can hold the knife and pull paper through it. I have whittled wood and it still cut paper smoothly. I'd rather have steel that is easy to sharpen than one that is super hard and then a pain in the butt to sharpen again. I haven't seen where 154CM holds an edge a lot longer than Carbon V. But it sure is a lot harder to get a paper cutting edge. It is not stainless so it does not stay petty. It is also good around the camp kitchen. There is no finger guard to get in the way of a cutting board. It slices tomatoes and bread easily. You can hold the top of the blade and use it for chopping vegetables.