Custom slip joint in carbon steel?

VCM3 said:
Eric,
When the Earth,Moon & some stars are lined up just so,I could sell you a Lloyd and a Chamblin :) Just sayin'
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I can vouch for the Lloyd stainless and non-stainless knives that Vince can hook you up with at a good price. As they are reasonably priced as compared to some other makers, it may be a good way to get your toe in the water to see how you like a custom. I've purchased a couple thru Vince and they're good quality knives, good steel, top notch fit and finish.

And should it not be for you, you can likely recoup most your money on the exchange a little easier than say a $700 knife would sell. Dunno.
 
sierra11b said:
Who are you using for the A2 knife if you don't mind?

I'm certainly not opposed stainless and do maintain my knives with various rods, fine sand and jewelers papers, and strops, so that's never been a real problem, but carbon just seems to be slightly better for that hair popping edge. I must say that the idea of a knife that ages uniformly is also appealing... I've been in this game long enough to know what I like in a knife so am confident I wouldn't get hosed by flipping.
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Reese Bose suggested A2 when I asked for O1 or 1095. I didn't argue.
 
Of course not. Who would in that case?

I've sent Joel another email and linked this thread so maybe he'll participate...? If not, and he told me to swallow a type of steel, I would in a second, given the fact he too has remained at the absolute top of the slipjoint food chain for many years. Maybe it'll come to that...
 
I'm not a big fan of the high carbide steels. A knife edge needs to be keen and big lumps of carbide don't help.
Cpm154 is more fine grained than simple d2, nevertheless a slipjoint blade edge will never fail for lack of wear resistance, and as has been pointed out, if stainless is desired there are a couple of steels that excel in fine edge stability, like 14c28n and aeb-l.
I would leave the hyper wear resistant trendy steels to the tacticool fans and choose an hair popping razor's edge for a traditional slipjoint folder ;)
 
stezann said:
I'm not a big fan of the high carbide steels. A knife edge needs to be keen and big lumps of carbide don't help.
Cpm154 is more fine grained than simple d2, nevertheless a slipjoint blade edge will never fail for lack of wear resistance, and as has been pointed out, if stainless is desired there are a couple of steels that excel in fine edge stability, like 14c28n and aeb-l.
I would leave the hyper wear resistant trendy steels to the tacticool fans and choose an hair popping razor's edge for a traditional slipjoint folder ;)
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It is acceptable to state why you like something. It is not acceptable to denigrate those who like something else by labeling them with insulting names. What works for you may not work for someone else.
 
I now owm several slip joints by John Lloyd thanks to Vince. About eight of them are 52100 steel one is a composite steel and one is damascus. The 52100 get very very sharp and easy to sharpen. BTW, John makes a great slip joint for a very resonable price.

RKH
 
My first custom slip joint was done in D-2 steel. No issues with it at all. It was made by Brent Cramer, who is a super maker IMO. His user name here is blades and grace. Drop him a line about the D-2.
 
My only custom slipjoint is a J. Oeser XL gunstock. I got it in stainless, but always second guess that decision.

I do love an honest patina.
 
knarfeng said:
It is acceptable to state why you like something. It is not acceptable to denigrate those who like something else by labeling them with insulting names. What works for you may not work for someone else.
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I apologize if i came across as insulting, definitely not my intention.
Please bear in mind that english is not my language, add that typing on a monitor miss to deliver the tones; The key is that for me this subjects are interesting but i do respect others opinion and take all this stuff very lightly.
If i dared to make a little fun of the tactical area i didn't mean actually making someone sad about it. It is just how i see things....we are a bunch of fanatics for knives ;)

Since the OP asked about steels for a slipjoint i was pointing out that he was right about his concerns on sharpenability and keen edge angles, suggesting "traditional" steels for a traditional knife as appropriate...leaving the new super abrasion resistant carbide steels to other kind of knives which "may" take advantage from that kind of features, even if i don't think so.


Stefano
 
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I would definitely get a "carbon" custom in D2...it's the best of both worlds.
 
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Knarfeng, i don't want to take issue with you, i just want clarification to help me stay out of 'trouble' and it might help others as well.
I can see nothing in Stezann's post that is "to denigrate". And Stezann your english is perfect and grammatically correct.
kj
 
Thanks Kj, i believe that my expression "tacticool fans" was a bit unfortunate (i came across as a jerky-snob) and the supposed light humor by my side of the internet had been filtered out by the cold web :p
 
I have seen "tacticool" used many times here on BF but never felt anyone was intending to insult. The "cool" modifies the word "tactical", meaning that they are 'hot' right now. Both cool & hot are used to mean popular, which they certainly are.
Even the high end Art knife dealers are now bringing in Tacticals almost exclusively. I feel badly for the knifemakers who specialize in Traditional style knives as there are so few new customers. This can affect pricing and i don't think they make much when you figure out the hourly rate.
kj
 
stezann--welcome to the porch! :) I don't think I've read your posts before so you are "new to me".

I'm mostly with you about traditionals, carbon steel and fine edges going together. I appreciate thin blades, thin grinds and blades that are pure slicers.

On the other hand. one place that carbides excel is cutting fibrous materials like cardboard or rope. As long as the steel matrix is strong enough to support the carbides embedded in it, high-carbide steel will outperform carbon steel by a wide margin.
 
If anyone has an issue with me, take it to PM. Do not disrupt the thread.
 
I've got a few customs. An Oeser Zulu in CPM154, a Dr T LC in ATS34, a Wiseman barlow in D2. All great knives. I also have a few customs in O1 from Tracy Larock, one smaller LC and one a large dog leg jack. I carry a Case Tribal Spear and a Case damascus peanut every day, but I've been taking the Wiseman and Larocks along with me every day, and using all of them for different tasks. For my custom fixed blades, I have mostly A2.
 
Talking with Joel now via email about the prospect of carbon and he's more than up for it. Waiting on his return email now to see if there are other carbon alternatives to 1095 I may be missing that might out perform 1095 and that he had access to at this time. Don't get me wrong, 1095 is a great steel we can all agree on, but when you're spending this much it's best to weigh your options, especially when 1095 is cheap to source. IF there's an better performing alternative that raises the price 10-15%, then you bite the bullet this one time.

Otherwise, he seems to enjoy using CTSXHP now and has made a couple with great feedback. I love D2 so my interest in peaked in its stainless version.
 
If I were commissioning a custom folder and could have any carbon steel of choice, I'd choose L-6 or 52100 with a high hardness.
 
RobbW said:
If I were commissioning a custom folder and could have any carbon steel of choice, I'd choose L-6 or 52100 with a high hardness.
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L6 is tough and is a good alloy, but edge retention is a bit less than other steels. 52100 is very good if it is heat treated right. For me it's a super fine grain W2 heat treated to 62-63 Rc. In my own use & tests W2 wins. :cool:
 
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