D2 vs A2

They are both excellent steels!I use both almost exclusively. With out breaking down and discussing the "ingredients" of these steels let me just say, I like D2 for my smaller knives and A2 for the larger ones. As a tool maker I picked the 2 steels because of their performance I've seen with different types of dies I've made, and I have years of experience heat treating them. As far as knives, for any small hunting or utility knife, I feel D2 is tops. It has good corosion resistance and excellent edge holding qualities. I use A2 on the larger fighters that I make because it has better shock resistance than D2. The negative side of these steels are, D2 is more expensive and it's tough on belts, A2 requires care to prevent rust!
Neil


------------------
http://members.aol.com/blademakr/BlackwoodWP.html
 
Dr. Lathe, what you said exactly! A-2 is my very favorite for big knives that will have to take a beating. D-2 as you said is a great edgeholder and fairly corrosion resistant. I have gone back to D-2 for a lot of my utility knives and use less and less ATS-34, to the point I dont have any in stock. Not that properly heat treated ATS is bad, just that D-2 is better in a lot of ways.

------------------
www.simonichknives.com
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top