Before I order my Rat-7

M

Mountainwind

Joined
Mar 13, 2006
Messages
980
I know this has been beaten like a dead horse, but I am rather dense.
I am going to use this as a hunting knife and small cutting tasks.
As the posts have mentioned, the D2 metal is hard to sharpen, but is good for chopping and such, but since I am not using it for that, would I be better off with the 1095 blade? No, I am not a good blade sharpener, so eaiser, is better.
 
D2 is good for chopping?

I do not see how that is so, since D2 can be pretty brittle. 1095 would tend to be the better steel for chopping. D2 has a more toothy edge and high edge retention at the cost of toughness during chopping.

If you are not going to do any chopping, then perhaps you would be better off with a RAT-1 or TAK-1 in D2?
 
D2 is one of the worst steels in regards to grindability, if you are not comfortable sharpening then it isn't something you would generally look to. If you are not chopping though that basic design is an odd choice.

Hair said:
D2 has a more toothy edge and high edge retention at the cost of toughness during chopping.
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High wear resistance for impact toughness, yes, but is it promoted heavily as a chopping steel, mainly by those who consider stainless steels suitable for that as well. This issue is very old, it was heavily discussed on usenet over 10 years ago and Bob Engath, who ground more than 50 000 blades in his lifetime, openly declared he didn't consider stainless suitable for such work.

-Cliff
 
Well, it is a little odd for a hunting knife, but I like the design, full flat grind and the length of the blade. I wanted a BK5 that I could turn into a drop point, but they are really hard to find, so the Rat-7 is my next choice.
 
There are a couple of reasons why the military still use's ( and why you should also ) 1095HC. It is super easy to sharpen and takes a wicked edge as opposed to the D2. I personally would rather have to touch up a 1095HC blade more often in order to keep the super sharp edge than having the perpetually crappy edge of the D2. 1095 is also more leniant than the D2. 1095 is not going to chip on you as D2 might. The only upside to D2 for outdoor type activities is that it require less care than the 1095. So if you are lazy about blade care then go with the D2 otherwise get 1095.
 
Have you considered Ranger RD6 or RD7 ? (5160 steel)

RD6-
IMG_3156.jpg
 
I have one and in my opinion it's not the best for a hunting knife (rather large). Take a look at the TAK or RAT 5.
 
Redhat said:
I have one and in my opinion it's not the best for a hunting knife (rather large). Take a look at the TAK or RAT 5.
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I have a RAT-5 and for a all around all purpose knife you cannot beat this knife imho. Small enough to do fine work but large enough to handle bigger chores.
 
I have a RAT-7 in 1095 and a TAK-1 in D2. Both are wonderful tools but I do find the TAK-1 more useful due to the smaller blade size. I don't have one (yet) but I suspect the RAT-3 would be a great user as well. Handles are such a personal issue, but I really like the RAT/TAK handle feel.
 
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