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The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is$300$250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
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12C27 Steel
- Thread starter ScottHere
- Start date
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2000
- Messages
- 3,625
Fighting knives require a tough and strong steel, preferably with good rust resistance as you don't want to baby it. 12C27 fits this bill PERFECTLY! Great rust resistance and a fair edge. In a fighter edge retention is not the top need. Ka Bar went to this steel for the KA Bar stainless fighting knives and BM use it in the famous BM42 Balisong knife.
Same goes for a utility knife, however as tough and good as 12C27 is as a steel, it does not hold an edge amazingly well. With a good heat treat it can work very well (so I have been told none of mine were better than 440a or 6m/6a steel for edge holding, but tougher) My blades in this steel were mostly small folders (Big Swede, super Swede etc) Sorry bout the spelling! I also used a 12C27 Ka Bar knife as well. I tried it next to me 1095 steel Ka Bar knife and to be honest the 1095 steel knife held an edge about 40-40% longer for me in chopping and cutting boxes. However as both are primarily a FIGHTING knife I would prefer the rust resistance of the 12C27 over the 1095 steel. I as a result of trying the 12C27, went for the D2 tool steel model blade, as I liked the ergonomics of the knife, but wanted a better performance steel. Rust is a problem with D2 though
For a utility blade I would look at a steel like 440C or 10A as a good start, with ATS-34 BG-42 et al as a more advanced and high end user steel.
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Wayne.
"To strive to seek to find and not to yield"
Tennyson
Ranger motto
A few useful details on UK laws and some nice reviews!
http://members.aol.com/knivesuk/
Certified steel snob!
Same goes for a utility knife, however as tough and good as 12C27 is as a steel, it does not hold an edge amazingly well. With a good heat treat it can work very well (so I have been told none of mine were better than 440a or 6m/6a steel for edge holding, but tougher) My blades in this steel were mostly small folders (Big Swede, super Swede etc) Sorry bout the spelling! I also used a 12C27 Ka Bar knife as well. I tried it next to me 1095 steel Ka Bar knife and to be honest the 1095 steel knife held an edge about 40-40% longer for me in chopping and cutting boxes. However as both are primarily a FIGHTING knife I would prefer the rust resistance of the 12C27 over the 1095 steel. I as a result of trying the 12C27, went for the D2 tool steel model blade, as I liked the ergonomics of the knife, but wanted a better performance steel. Rust is a problem with D2 though
For a utility blade I would look at a steel like 440C or 10A as a good start, with ATS-34 BG-42 et al as a more advanced and high end user steel.
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Wayne.
"To strive to seek to find and not to yield"
Tennyson
Ranger motto
A few useful details on UK laws and some nice reviews!
http://members.aol.com/knivesuk/
Certified steel snob!
Arthur Washburn
Knifemaker and AMC Freak
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2000
- Messages
- 1,653
you might look into 19c27 also made by Sandvik it has .95 carbon instead of .65 contained in the 12c27. the rest of thier composition is exactly the same.
Arthur D. Washburn
Arthur D. Washburn
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2000
- Messages
- 3,625
Sorry; I intended to say fair edge retention. Often the lower end stainless steel take a far keener edge than some of the high end steels, take CPM 440V for example it takes a very nice toothy edge, but no where near the vorpal edge my 6m Kasper takes (440V is different in it holds that edge however
)
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Wayne.
"To strive to seek to find and not to yield"
Tennyson
Ranger motto
A few useful details on UK laws and some nice reviews!
http://members.aol.com/knivesuk/
Certified steel snob!
------------------
Wayne.
"To strive to seek to find and not to yield"
Tennyson
Ranger motto
A few useful details on UK laws and some nice reviews!
http://members.aol.com/knivesuk/
Certified steel snob!
Arthur Washburn
Knifemaker and AMC Freak
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2000
- Messages
- 1,653
I was in a hurry last night and should have commented a bit more. 12C27 and 19C27 are both used as scalpel steel. They hold a very good edge when heat treated right.
Arthur D. Washburn
ADW Custom Knives
Arthur D. Washburn
ADW Custom Knives
One of the "better" medium carbon content stainless steels. A good compromize between edgeholding, toughness and stain resistance.
(There is NO best steel, there are just good ones for the purpose, less good ones and crap)
Happy sharpening
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Ted
(There is NO best steel, there are just good ones for the purpose, less good ones and crap)
Happy sharpening
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Ted