8670 steel or 5160 or A2 for large wakizashi or ko-kotana?

G

GrReaper

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Hey everyone, I was thinking of getting a custom large wakizashi or small katana and looking at different steels. Out of 8670, 5160, or A2 what would you recommend for a very shock resistant blade? I am thinking 5160 would probably be most shock resistant/toughest, followed by A2, followed by 8670. Any recommendations for a reliable custom or semi-custom American or Canadian maker would also be appreciated. Thanks in advance!
 
I have knives in all 3 steels. A folder in 8670 by John Greco, A large production fixed blade in 5160 by Ontario, and a small fixed wharncliffe in A2 by Daniel Fairly. The 8670 folder and A2 fixed blade are both customs, and the hardness is run on the high side as they are both smaller knives and not really subject to chopper-type duties. They do keep an edge very well and get crazy sharp and stay that way for quite a while and the 8670 seems to edge out the A2 but is noticeably harder to sharpen. The Ontario SP-51 GenII has 5160 run at a lower hardness and is quite tough, takes a lot of abuse, and takes a very keen edge but doesn't stay shaving-sharp very long at all. However, it keeps a nice working edge between touchups.

For your waki/katana application, I would lean toward 8670 if it's available as it's similar to L6 but slightly less rust-prone. I have an older L6 bainite katana from Bugei that was supposedly a Howard Clark piece, and it was amazing at tameshigiri when I dabbled in it. As for a custom maker for such a blade, Stuart Branson does some beautiful work and he uses high-carbon steels. I don't know for sure if he works with that steel though.
 
I would suggest approaching any smith/maker with what you are looking for in a sword and asking their suggestion on the steel to use. This will work for your own benefit and remove any sense of micro managing by the patron. Some may be very open to working with any specified steel type. Others may prefer to work with steel favored by them (for any given purpose)

You are bound to get multiple suggestions in this thread but keep in mind a "flavor of the month" may well not be what might best suit both patron and maker.

8670 looks like the best bet for corrosion resistance. A2 will have entirely different heat treat methodology than 8670 and 5160. What are you looking for in a blade? L6 is another saw steel and if heat treated correctly can reach banite as like the Howard Cark blades, otherwise it is just L6. 5160 is a spring steel and loved by many for making longer swords. Its cousin 6150 used a great deal by makers (Albion, Arm&Armor, Del Tin, etc) Both 5160 and 6150 are generally going to be in the low to mid 50rc range, even after marquenching. Some do take/leave 5160 a good deal higher with some touting 60rc.

What are you chopping and what are your sharpening skills like?

Cheers

GC
 
Any of those would be a good choice IMHO. A2 is an air hardening steel requiring a more complex HT process that should include Cryo. So it will cost a bit more than a 5160 or 8670m blade. On the plus side it is very tough and is quite a bit more corrosion resistant than both the other steels having about 5.5% Cromium.

5160 or 8670m would be really good choices as well, I would leave the edge at around 58-59 rc with either and spring temper the spine for extra toughness. 8670m is fairly prone to corrosion, just like L6.

I have made large blades from all 3 of those steels. My first choice would be 3V : ) , and if you want to keep your budget lower but have a super user, I would pick 5160.
 
The New Jersey Steel Baron (a steel supplier to many, many knife makers) strongly recommends 80CRV2 in place of 5160. It's the new super version of 5160, and for sword blades, will supposedly leave 5160 in the dust. I am currently making a sword in this steel, and after testing, will let you guys know how it worked out.
 
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