26C3, Spicy White for a hunting knife?

[Tom Lewis]

I have made several kitchen knives out of 26C3 steel. They were tempered to a RC of 64. They have held up very well. My Wife is very impressed with them.
How would this steel work for a hunting knife? Would you recommend a lower RC hardness of maybe 62 for a hunting knife?
Anyone had experience along these lines?

 

[DeadboxHero]

I have made several kitchen knives out of 26C3 steel. They were tempered to a RC of 64. They have held up very well. My Wife is very impressed with them.
How would this steel work for a hunting knife? Would you recommend a lower RC hardness of maybe 62 for a hunting knife?
Anyone had experience along these lines?

Keep it hard, supplement with geometry if you want durability.

 

[HSC ///]

I think that steel for an outdoor knife might be better suited as a San mai blade giving you the core supported with softer cladding.

 

[DrHenley]

I have made, and used a few hard use hunting knives out of O1 over the years, and last year I used a USMC Ka-Bar just to see how well it would work skinning deer (I was impressed!) The two most demanding things I have found is cutting through the rib cage without rolling or chipping the edge, and cutting hair without wearing down the edge (animal hair often has dirt in it, so it's very abrasive). And maybe using the tip to pry apart vertebrae. So you need both edge stability and edge retention. And of course toughness. Going from a kitchen knife, you need more robust blade geometry. Thicker behind the edge - no need for fine slicing. Higher bevel angle, thicker spine.

I think the steel would be fine. 62-63 should be good for a skinner but with that steel I think you can safely keep it at 64-65.

You probably want to put a forced patina on it because blood is very corrosive. My only gripe with O1 was that if you inadvertently left a drop of blood on it, it would quickly pit.