Anyone else wish there were more modern folder designs with carbon steel?

Hawk45

Hawk45

Joined
Jan 28, 2005
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Any other carbon steel lovers out there?

Let me start off by saying I know it's not as maintenance free as a good stainless, but I'm still a big fan of carbon steel. Love a good patina (adds character) , ease of touch-up, edge taking and durability. I like spending time at the end of a day giving my edc gear a little spit-shine with a beer, so to me the little added maintenance is therapeutic.

Carbon steel is still big in traditionals (which I love), but I wish there were some modern designs offered in carbon steel from guys like Kershaw/ZT, Benchmade, etc. I'd love a carbon mini-grip in the $50 range. I think Cold Steel used to have a few, but don't much any longer. Spyderco has their Super Blue series, but how about a regular carbon in the lower price range. I'd rather have carbon over all the abc/123 steels in the $20-$40 folders. To me carbon offers great edc capability at a low price point.
 
I'd love to see this as well. A good looking $20-$50 modern folder in carbon would be pretty sweet.
 
Funny, I was just sitting here fondling...err rewrapping the paracord on my bk 11 and thinking it would be a great blade for a large folder.
 
Not me. I'm thankful for the modern stainless alloys. Never much cared for having to maintain a blade on an hourly basis for fear it was going to rust after using it.
 
Yeah I'd be into this too. I'm imagining something like a Para 2 or Manix XL with a plain old school carbon steel blade.
I really enjoy sharpening peoples common-or-garden variety carbon steel knives in the Wicked Edge, so quick, easy and satisfying to get a mean edge, compared to sharpening the higher end powder steels most of my folders have, be it stainless or even M4 or Super Blue.
 
I just love carbon steel and would be all over that in the right modern folder.

I don't care for the stainless steel cladding over carbon steel cores that are available. I have a 210 mm super blue gyuto that I use in the kitchen and although it cuts wonderfully, I found the stainless cladding scratches easily. I find carbon steel to be warmer to the touch (feels alive) and the cladding separates you from that.
 
A modern folder with a traditional steel. Sounds like an interesting fusion of two schools of cutlery thought. I'd be in to purchase one as long as it's made in U.S.A. (A patina'ed knife from china just doesn't seem right to me).
 
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Yop. D2 is my favorite by far, though it walks that stainless/non-stainless line.
 
I am with you. I would love some modern folders with 50100-B, which is tough, holds a good edge (Ask Becker). I would also like more with Aogami Super Blue.
 
I'm thinking more the basic carbon steels (5160, 1095, 10xx, 52100) to keep the prices down. As far as rust goes, as long as you aren't a "shiny" blade guy, a little time with the blade wrapped in a vinager soaked paper towel will put a nice patina on it and then you don't have to worry much about rust. And it adds that cool factor. You can also Scotchbrite off the patina 5 mins later and put on a different pattern. You can change how your blade looks every week.
 
I'm actually thinking of picking up a traditional folder to get some carbon steel. Maybe a Case trapper with their CV steel for under $50. I have several fixed blades in 52100, 1095, and 1055 that perform really well and don't need much maintenance to keep rust free. Of course I live in Phoenix so humidity is just something we hear about on the news. I'm just curious about what it takes to prevent rust on an edc folder. It is easy to wipe down a fixed blade quickly but how often will I need to clean and oil the hinge area of the blade on a folder?
 
I think it comes down to maintenance and the current market wants a knife to stick in their pocket and forget or use a folder to cut down telephone poles

1095 and 5160 aren't great on edge retention and rust. Too much work for a cheaper knife for a lot of people.
 
I do love the better "cuts." D2, CPM-M4, ZDP 189 and SuperBlue are high on my list. But I do have some fixed stuff in 1095 that is very nice. I do generally avoid the patina but one of these days, I plan to jump into it and experiment with lemon juice, mustard and all of those acids that turn my blade into artwork.
 
I am always looking for those. Sunyata, I don't consider D2 and M4 carbon steels. They're in that semi-stainless grouping to me.

Count me in.
 
Sonnydaze said:
I do love the better "cuts." D2, CPM-M4, ZDP 189 and SuperBlue are high on my list. But I do have some fixed stuff in 1095 that is very nice. I do generally avoid the patina but one of these days, I plan to jump into it and experiment with lemon juice, mustard and all of those acids that turn my blade into artwork.
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I've thought about stripping an Izula and trying it out.


I love my Izula but I find my S110v taking a lion's share of the work because it's a ridiculously hard working steel
 
Something like D2, CPM M4, CPM 10V, K294, K390, Superblue etc would be nice.....

All non stainless and good performers, other than that it would be a waste in design...

There are already plenty of cheap folders and fixed blades around in the cheap low alloy carbon steels....
 
Norse Steel said:
I'm just curious about what it takes to prevent rust on an edc folder. It is easy to wipe down a fixed blade quickly but how often will I need to clean and oil the hinge area of the blade on a folder?
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I don't use my edc for food so I just give it a hit of WD40 every so often and keep it wiped down. A Q-tip or two in the hard to get areas and all good.
If you do use yours for food, you can use mineral oil. It's not as hard as many would make you think to keep your knife in good working order. It's more cosmetic than anything.
 
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