Best steel for toughness and a reasonable hamon

Sando

Sando

Knife Maker
Joined
Jul 4, 2002
Messages
1,148
I was contacted by a dad to make a b-day present for his teen-aged son. The son wants a carbon blade with a hamon, about 5". That's all cool.

But, dad explained to me that the kid is hard on knives. Apparently what Sid is in Toy Story, this kid is in the knife world.

Ideas?
 
I've used a number of large chopper type knives of W2 pretty extensively, and that material holds up well. Makes for a great hamon, but I don't know how it would work out in a super thin blade.

Would he consider san mai?
 
How is the kid hard on knives? Dishwashers or does he use them as cold chisels?
Maybe you can do a thicker convexed edge. if you can find a low manganese ~1080 that would be a good option
 
Lorien Lorien San mai would be a good option. Dunno about price. I don't make it and it's pretty $$ to buy.

Alex Topfer said:
How is the kid hard on knives? Dishwashers or does he use them as cold chisels?
Maybe you can do a thicker convexed edge. if you can find a low manganese ~1080 that would be a good option
Click to expand...

Alex, good question. Seems he likes to hack and bash at trees. He's broken quite a few blades. Doesn't strike me as the type that uses a dishwasher <hahaha>.

Joshua Fisher Joshua Fisher I have 1075 on hand and have done clay-backed knives. Maybe that's the best. I was also wondering about 1095 tempered back to 58hrc?
 
Any simple alloy steel from 1070 to W2 will work fine. You want low manganese and as little alloying as possible. 26C3 works well.

Geometry is a lot of what makes a knife tough. Added to that, the pearlite spine on a hamon blade will make it tougher. Make the knife a robust camp style blade with a convex edge and it should be fine.

As Sando suggested, san-mai is another option, as it somewhat mimics a hamon. I like a strip of .004" pure nickel between the core and the cladding. It makes a whitish hazy area that looks a lot like a hamon.
 
What did you decide? I was thinking about resharpening which seems like a logical thing to bring up with your customer, a less patient person would have suggested an axe, machete, or different parenting strategies.
Would a high carbon steel resist chipping, be easier to sharpen, and when rust appears remind the user to take care of the tool?
 
ElementalBreakdown said:
What did you decide? I was thinking about resharpening which seems like a logical thing to bring up with your customer, a less patient person would have suggested an axe, machete, or different parenting strategies.
Would a high carbon steel resist chipping, be easier to sharpen, and when rust appears remind the user to take care of the tool?
Click to expand...

Well, I went with 1075. It's tough and I did get a hamon of sorts. Super easy to resharpen, as you suggest.


IMG_7130.jpeg


Parenting? hahaha. Actually he wanted an axe, which makes sense, but I don't make those.

I am finishing out a bushcraft knife in 8670. Chuck over at AKS suggested that. It'll be a TOTAL BEATER! I'll see if he wants one of those, too. It'll be a great knife for hacking in the woods.
 
Send a $30 axe as a "gift" and save yourself some headaches lol. We were just talking on another thread about some of the Stihl axes being decent at that price.
 
Absolutely, creating a knife for a teenager who's a bit tough on blades requires some consideration. For a balance between toughness and a nice hamon, you might want to consider using a steel like 1095. It's a high-carbon steel known for its durability and ability to hold an edge well, which is perfect for someone who uses knives vigorously.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top