Can Someone Please Explain Damascus?

[rwiggins]

Alas, true Damascine (Damascus) steel is lost to the sands of time. What we have today is actually, as mentioned above, pattern welded steel. There has been considerable research gone into recreating it (research Wootz steel and similar). Steels and metals are chosen for appearance mostly, in today's pattern welded steel. Sometimes nickel is used to create bright bands which are usually kept away from the edge of the blade as nickel is non-hardening.

Also, as stated above, Damascus is used more for decorative reasons than anything else. I have a few blades in Damascus and they are very pretty, but I wouldn't really use them for any real work - even though they are fully capable of it, to be certain. With use, the pattern becomes less distinct requiring re-etching or refinishing - which isn't particularly difficult, but time consuming nonetheless.

In researching Damascine (Damascus), Wootz and similar steel, I have concluded that they are a byproduct of ancient material refinement more than by design. Modern steels far outperform any ancient steels, as far as I know. But, it is a fun and exciting area of research!

 

[CUTS LIKE A KRIS]

I am often flabbergasted at how expensive Damascus knives can be. I suppose they are tapping into the collector market, but for a few hundred bucks, I would want super steel.

One of the reasons modern damascus is expensive is the work that goes into making it. The maker has to set up a billet of alternating steel types, affix it together, bring up to welding heat, weld the entire billet. Then they have to bring back up to heat and manipulate; grind and manipulate; cut and weld until they get what they are looking for in a pattern. There is a lot of material waste as well as time put into the steel. I don't make damascus so others can be more specific as to techniques, but there are work in progress threads about the subject on the Custom Forum as well as the Makers Forum. As well look up Ariel Salaverria as he has great tutorials about how he does things.

I agree. After all knives ultimate purpose is for use. I rather have a plain looking blade than one that might fail on me.

Many of the steels used in modern Damascus are used in "plain looking blades" such as 1095, 1080, 15n20, O1. If these are combined properly they are no more prone to failure than the homogenous steel. The ABS Mastersmith test utilizes only Damascus knives and must still pass their tests. I use my damascus as they are meant to be and have not had any problems yet (not that keeping knives pristine is wrong, just not my thing).

Damascus Case Stockman hunting last fall.

Making Christmas cookies and camping with a Damasteel Elishewitz custom:

This is the most used utility knife in the kitchen (next to the most used kitchen knife):

 

[mete]

Don't confuse terms !
Damascus - folded steel .
The Mcusta and similar knives have a VG-10 core with "damascus" on the outside .This "damascus" is made from powdered steel ,not true damascus
Wootz or the Russian word Bulat] is made in a crucible and forged directly from there ,not mixing it with other steel.Yes it has Vanadium .
Both damascus and especially wootz are very labor intensive !!!

 

[Ed Fowler]

The definition for Damascus is pattern.
Wayne Goddard wrote about discussion Damascus as:
Wire Damascus
Folded Damascus
Twisted Damascus
Multi Twist Damascus
Wootz
now there is
Mosaic
Powder
but the word Damascus only refers to the fact that there is a pattern.

Those who think it cuts well have not done much comparison testing.

 

[me2]

Maybe not. Do a search on Russian bulat wootz. It seems they may have recreated the original Damascus.

I have not looked into this, but have read Verhoeven and Pendray's paper where they manage to recreate the surface appearance and the internal structure of a meuseum piece donated for study. They used Pendrays forge and some iron from a specific mine in Canada to get the proper concentration of Vanadium, which is very low. Other strong carbide forming elements would work as well, such as Nb and Ti. Cr, Mo, and W will also work, according to the paper.