D2 Steel

D

dog boy

Joined
Jul 15, 2013
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61
I have a BM 710 with D2 steel and I recently bought several Queen knives with D2. When the 710 is submerged in vinegar for about an hour there was no change in blade...none. I tried the Queens anyway, and some Canal Street D2, and they all developed what appears to be a "natural" patina which is shiny light grey. When I do the same with 1095 they get almost black and have no sheen. I think I'm gonna stick to D2 now or at least give it a preferance.
 
I'm very partial to Queen D2.

Technically speaking, D2 actually qualifies as "stainless", barely. But it isn't very stainless and will corrode much more easily than 420HC, 440A, or even 440C. (440C being another alloy which falls in the "stainless" category, but has been known to corrode.)
 
I could be wrong but I have always been under the impression that D-2 lacks about one percent enough chromium to be considered stainless. That is what I have been telling my customers anyway. I have forced a patina on D-2 before but the major drawback is that if you scratch it the scratch will stay shiny. When you scratch 1095, it doesn't take long for the scratch to discolor thus blending in and hiding the scratch.
 
I've got a Queen trapper, that's barely developing a hint of a patina, on the tops of the blades by the thumb nicks, after 2-3 years of off and on use. The patina, isn't black, but grey, and quite subtle. I like the edge retention, and feel it's good steel, but a pain to sharpen, if you're only into traditional folders in traditional steel. People in this part of the world still think Bucks are hard to sharpen. Diamond hones solve that though.
 
genewiseman said:
I could be wrong but I have always been under the impression that D-2 lacks about one percent enough chromium to be considered stainless. That is what I have been telling my customers anyway. I have forced a patina on D-2 before but the major drawback is that if you scratch it the scratch will stay shiny. When you scratch 1095, it doesn't take long for the scratch to discolor thus blending in and hiding the scratch.
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I never thought of that! I like d2, but it tends to spot in my use. I can't get a patina, just random specks. It is also difficult to sharpen. Great edge holding, not bad overall steel.
 
Steel generally has to have 10.5% chromium to be considered stainless. D2 calls for 11-13%, but, most stainless steels have quite a bit more than 13. The 400 series has 16-18. So it does kind of have the bare minimum of chromium. I do see it kind of making a patina, I have never seen orange/red rust spots, but I have on more stainless stainless steels, but they dont pit or stain, maybe just some free iron molecules.
 
It's right on the borderline. In order to be called a "Stainless", a Martensitic steel has to contain 12% Chromium. Per AISI definition, the chromium range for D2 is 11-13% . That makes the nominal amount 12%. So, technically, you could call it stainless. But, most people don't, because it still corrodes pretty easily. From a performance viewpoint, you might call it "semi-stainless", except that there is no such formal term.

Carbon steel, it ain't.
Low Alloy steel, it ain't (such as 1095 CroVan or Case CV).
 
I cut up a single orange with my Canal Street D2 pinch and immediately developed a grey patina. None of my queens have ever gotten a patina though.
 
I have a knife on order in CPM-D2 that I'm looking forward to trying out.
 
The reason that D2 tarnishes despite having 12% chromium is that much of the chromium is bound up in carbides and can not contribute to the passivization process that gives stainless steel rust resistance.
 
After using a new knife with CPM-D2 the last several days, I'm really impressed. Being a CPM, it has none of the 'toothiness' I've experienced with standard, larger-grained D2. It takes a very fine edge, is almost as easy to touch up as A2 (though definitely not as hard to sharpen as CPM 3v), and holds an edge better. I'm sold.
 
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