carbon VS stainless

After a good part of a lifetime making and using knives I've probably made more
stainless than carbon. I'm always carrying one of my stainless slipjoints and it
would be hard to say one is better than the other. Now the kicker- my deer hunting
fixed blade is cold blued 01 and I love it.
Ken.
 
In terms of slipjoints I feel that there are a disproportionate amount of good carbons vs good stainless, and I think that the lack of high end steels in commonly available knives may sway this thread. In general I like the carbon choices better than the stainless (mostly Case, SAK's), but if given a choice between 1095 and CPM154 in the same knife then I would choose the CPM as I like it more based on my day to day uses- it fits me better and I feel that the edge is held longer, even if it does take me longer to sharpen- but diamonds work well on everything and I like sharpening.

My Opinion only.
 
dawsonbob said:
In my humble opinion, there is no best steel. They all have uses for which they're suited, and other uses for which they're not. What do you want your steel to do?
Click to expand...

I have to agree. The best steel is the one that works best for you.
 
dawsonbob said:
By the way, knarfeng, I tracked down a Vorpal blade for you. They're only made by Charles Dodgson somewhere in the Tulgey woods. Sorry, I don't have a URL or a price.
Click to expand...

:D:D Tulgey Woods is too far from IB to do me any good. :D:D


CUTS LIKE A KRIS said:
In terms of slipjoints I feel that there are a disproportionate amount of good carbons vs good stainless, and I think that the lack of high end steels in commonly available knives may sway this thread. In general I like the carbon choices better than the stainless (mostly Case, SAK's), but if given a choice between 1095 and CPM154 in the same knife then I would choose the CPM as I like it more based on my day to day uses- it fits me better and I feel that the edge is held longer, even if it does take me longer to sharpen- but diamonds work well on everything and I like sharpening.

My Opinion only.
Click to expand...

I tend to agree with Mr. KRIS. While I like both carbon and high end stainless blades, high end stainless will hold an edge longer than carbon steel.

As far as traditional pocket knife blades goes:
(which caveat I add because I don't usually know the hardness of the blades. Blades of most traditional style pocket knives have to be annealed [softened] at the base of the blade to allow them to be bent so they fit. A flat area is required for the hardness measurement, so there is no flat area on most pocket knife blades that is at full hardness. Testing the edge retention of an alloy without knowing the hardness means you only know part of the answer, since, the harder the alloy, the better the edge retention.)

Buck 420HC at 59HRC will usually outperform any of the carbon steels I have tried. But it is probably the closest stainless to carbon as far as edge retention.
AUS8 blades will hold an edge much better than the 1095 and CV knives I have tried.
440C is better than AUS8 for edge retention
154CM holds an edge better than 440C.

It is difficult to find well-made affordable traditional knives in high end stainless.
Canal Street has made some trappers in 14-4 CrMo, the Latrobe equivalent of 154CM. I have one and it performs about as well as 154CM. Canal Street has some new knives out in 440C. I've not seen any on the street (internet stores), so I don't know what street price will be.

Queen does provide knives with D2 blades. The Queen D2 holds an edge on the order of 154CM. (haven't done a direct comparison.) Whether D2 is a stainless alloy or not is up for question. Not really stainless and not really carbon. I only have one Queen. I may have to get more. But then I want more of everything.:D
 
I would think that the slippies with D2 would be the best of both worlds. In general, I think people prefer high carbon blades to a SS in their slipjoints. While D2 is kind of inbetween, it isn't a stainless, but has great edge holding, so I would think that one would be ideal.

That said, I do really like the ATS-34 in my Case/Bose Dogleg Jack. I have seen some Cases in barnboard red bone with 154CM. While I haven't heard anything about them, I would think that would be a nice choice, too, although it's at the higher end of cost vs good ole high carbon blades.

I don't know if it's their heat-treat or what, but I felt that GEC's 1095 was/is better than 440C. It seemed to hold its edge very well. Maybe it's me, but their 1095 seemed harder (& longer edge holding) than others' 1095 & similar steels, including Case's CV.

Of course, all this makes me all the more excited about the '09 BFC knife & when it's done. D2 blades in a great package...:D
 
I'm not a metallurgist so can only base my opinion on experience. I like to carry vintage pocketknives and I have many - Schrade, Case, Ka-Bar, Queen, Robeson and others. I've been much happier with the edge-holding of the carbon steel knives than the stainless. Blade discoloration never bothered me and you can keep it to a minimum by just wiping it down regularly. Don't carry many modern knives so don't know if newer technology would change my mind about this. Best of the bunch is a Case XX (pre '64) 6308 whittler. It's awesome . . .
 
The steel question is something that will never end. It doesn't matter what style of knife your using either....
The modern knife guys argue about which of the latest super steels is superior,some of the Buck guys prefer the earlier steels while others are perfectly happy with the current offerings.
And here in traditional we have the carbon vs. SS question.

I think most companies do good heat treat on all their steels these days, so it really boils down to corrosion resisitance for the most part....

Personally, I make my decisions on what to buy, based on the condition of the knife and how well I like the looks. It just makes life much more simple for me YMMV
 
I really like D2 in Queen as a working slippie.

It is much harder to sharpen than carbon or a simple SS.
But it holds its edge for so much longer. it is worth my while to deal with the initial sharpening

And it slowly takes a patina...
 
Last edited:
338375 said:
The steel question is something that will never end. It doesn't matter what style of knife your using either....
The modern knife guys argue about which of the latest super steels is superior,some of the Buck guys prefer the earlier steels while others are perfectly happy with the current offerings.
And here in traditional we have the carbon vs. SS question.

I think most companies do good heat treat on all their steels these days, so it really boils down to corrosion resisitance for the most part....

Personally, I make my decisions on what to buy, based on the condition of the knife and how well I like the looks. It just makes life much more simple for me YMMV
Click to expand...

Oh yeah? Well, what about a pre-modern, post early-traditional guy like myself?:mad: I pretty much agree with 338375, I like what I like, and that is what makes me happy.:D I am sort of brand loyal. I buy the names I trust, I attempt to do some homework if not familiar with the manufacturer. I would rather buy a low end knife from a high end manufacturer, than a high end knife from a low end manufacturer. :confused: I hope that makes sense.:)
 
cj65 said:
Oh yeah? Well, what about a pre-modern, post early-traditional guy like myself?:mad: I pretty much agree with 338375, I like what I like, and that is what makes me happy.:D I am sort of brand loyal. I buy the names I trust, I attempt to do some homework if not familiar with the manufacturer. I would rather buy a low end knife from a high end manufacturer, than a high end knife from a low end manufacturer. :confused: I hope that makes sense.:)
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, well I'm kinda pre very early non modern traditional :confused:
Wait a minute, that doesn't even make sense to me :D
I have to agree with you. I have stayed away from buying lower end stuff, even though I'm sure some of it is fine.
I'd rather have an older experienced Schrade or Case, than a new in the box brand X.. jmo

BTW cj, thats a good lookin dog in your av pic
 
Last edited:
Personally, I tend to stay away from carbon blades. I like tool steels, those with enough alloying to provide good toughness and abrasion resistance. A dash of C for cementite and Mn to deep harden alone just don't do it for me on anything outside of a watch pocket resident. I'm not huge on stainless either, no need to throw that much chromium into the matrix on my fixed blades, though I do collect a few knives with stainless CPM blades because of the tons of V.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top