1095 as a Wonder Steel?

SALTY

SALTY

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1095 has been around for a while - a good long while; and for good reason; it works.

There are other carbon steels and higher chromium so-called Stainless Steels out there. Over the years new and exciting steels come out and the prior iteration of an identical knife in the former steel becomes passe, bit like yesterday's newspaper - of value, but less so than before.

Without getting in over my pay grade on the molecular composition of today's steels that are used in knife making, or even pretending to fully understand all of the subtle nuances of heat treating, would I be completely out of line to call 1095 a wonder steel?

Think about its edge holding, ease of sharpening, relative cost and time honored reliable functionality and it gets me thinking of aspirin - taken for granted for so long that it lost its deserved wonder drug status.

Aspirin is good, very good in fact and has been for a long time - not unlike 1095.
 
So ... you're implying that BK's should be made of 1095 instead of 1095CroVan?
 
For me? No. In the outdoors 1095 can be really good, and it can do a very respectable job in the kitchen where you don't encounter much abrasive media, but when you throw cardboard, rope, carpet and plastic in the mix? It just doesn't have the carbide content and wear resistance to hang.

I'm no steel expert, but the more I use knives the more I find that the qualities that give good edge retention vary broadly depending on the kind of cutting you do.
 
TravisH said:
So ... you're implying that BK's should be made of 1095 instead of 1095CroVan?
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No, not at all.

I was merely using "1095" to describe the 1095 family of knife steels certainly to include our beloved 1095CroVan.
 
I think that 1095 is a very good steel and with the right heat treatment it can border on greatness. But not a wonder steel. The phrase wonder steel or super steel seems to me to indicate something that is better than all that came before it in some way.
IMO 1095 does many things better than most but nothing better than everyone else. It's a fantastic steel for many reasons but not the best ever at anything.
 
Ethan has explained that 1095CV was selected for our beloved Beckers because it has a really nice balance of affordability/availability, ease of manufacture/HT, it's tough, it takes a fine edge easily, and it's not difficult to maintain. If that spells "wonder steel" to you, by all means call it a Wonder Steel :)
 
james terrio said:
Ethan has explained that 1095CV was selected for our beloved Beckers because it has a really nice balance of affordability/availability, ease of manufacture/HT, it's tough, it takes a fine edge easily, and it's not difficult to maintain. If that spells "wonder steel" to you, by all means call it a Wonder Steel :)
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All of those characteristics make it a Wonder Steel to me. Embedded in my use of the term was some friendly sarcasm given that so many of these new and exciting steels that are touted as Wonder Steels may be wonderful a certain things yet should not overshadow time-honored (Old School) steels with attractive characteristics - such as the very steel in Becker Knives.
 
SALTY said:
All of those characteristics make it a Wonder Steel to me. Embedded in my use of the term was some friendly sarcasm given that so many of these new and exciting steels that are touted as Wonder Steels may be wonderful a certain things yet should not overshadow time-honored (Old School) steels with attractive characteristics - such as the very steel in Becker Knives.
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I understand. There's a good reason it's so popular. As you said in your first post, it just works. :thumbup:
 
There is a seemingly-subtle, but significant chemical difference between "industry standard" 1095 and the 1095CV that KA-BAR uses for current Becker knives.

That difference is a bit of extra chromium and vanadium. As I understand it, there's not enough of either element to form a whole lot of carbides. But there is enough to help the steel harden all the way through, remain stable at high temperatures and most importantly, resist undesirable grain-growth during the heat-treating process.

So what?

Well, deeply-hardened carbon steel with fine grain makes for tougher blades that can be brought to crisper edges. :thumbup:
 
Seems to me that it really depends on what your intended uses are, and how important materials cost is to you. 1095 is a versatile steel, and performs very well across a wide range of tasks, but I'd venture to say it's the best at none. Jack of most trades, master of none, as it were. Most steels can do a very good job if they're heat treated well, however. What makes a steel "super" to my mind is that it's the best at something, and competent or very good at most everything else. There are plenty of steels that can do everything that 1095 can do, and do them better. But all of those are at a much higher price point (and rightly so). If cost is important to you, you'll be plenty happy with a simple carbon steel, like a 10- series steel, or 52100, or 5160, depending on your desired task. But if you don't mind paying a little more, you can do better.

I guess it comes down to this: What makes a steel "super" to you?
 
A quick note...... 1095CV as heat treated by KA-Bar has repeatedly, out of the box, made over a hundred and fifty push cuts using two inches of the blade thru new Manilla rope..... Greg Phillips has done this repeatedly...... THAT really impresses me.....Very few steels will accomplish this.....And very few steels will come even close and then take so little effort to regain a fine edge........ I think it is a wonderful steel...... I have seen 1095 and 1095CV blades do incredible feats....... The blades that I am most proud of owning are mostly in the 1095 family...... Fisk and Crowell knives come instantly to mind....... The longer I use these wonderful tools we call knives the happier I am with the 1095 steels....... You can spend a LOT more and get less performance ........

Ethan
 
Has anyone had any issues with stripped blades (1095CroVan) rusting?? Are they fine with just drying after use and occasional oiling??
With all the standard BK&T blades being coated, I assumed it rusted pretty easily. That, and mentions of using forced patinas to help prevent rusting.
 
Ehh, call it want you want...... would I call it a wonder steel? No. I'd call it "old faithful" JT and of coarse Ethan said it best...... to Ethans point, you can spend more for less. But you can spend more for more too. 1095 has been around for a long time and its not going anywhere anytime soon because its just good stuff, easily worked, heat treated, inexpensive. I think of 1095 like I do a good old work truck. Sure you can shell out a lot of cash for a Cadillac SUV, or a Porshe sports car that might get you laid, but when it comes to something thats gonna work hard, be inexpensive, be reliable and get stuff done, you cant go wrong with a good old beater work truck. 1095 is like that.
 
Blades&Bullets said:
Has anyone had any issues with stripped blades (1095CroVan) rusting?? Are they fine with just drying after use and occasional oiling??
With all the standard BK&T blades being coated, I assumed it rusted pretty easily. That, and mentions of using forced patinas to help prevent rusting.
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Of coarse they have. 1095 is not a stainless steel. but heres the bad news, there really isnt any such thing as a 100% stainless steel, all metals will corrode in one way or another, some just more resistant than others. As far as 1095 is concerned, its corrosive resistance is close in comparison to 01 tools steel, which if your not familiar with it, its not that great in the grand scheme of things. But the toughness, edge retention, and durability are off the charts compared to most what the masses call "stainless steel". Everything is a trade-off when it comes to blade steels. As far as witch one is the best. Everyone is right, and everyone is wrong.
 
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