It took me quite a while to actually notice a difference. I am perfectly happy with SR77. After nearly a year I did notice that the SR101 would get "scary" sharp and would hold its edge for a long time and through a lot of use. But the edge holding of SR77 is about what I had been used to in field knives, about like 1095. I have never broken a blade in either steel, but from tests I've seen, the SR77 is the toughest steel around. That makes it my first choice in a hard use blade like the DF. In the smaller knives that are used for slicing, SR101 or 154CM are great. Both those steels have very good edge retention. The new SOD is in the steel I would choose for a knife of that type. Not that Camp Tramps are shattering all over the place, but SR77 is just a bit tougher. Might as well have that little extra toughness in a chopper. My two cents.