Damascus - good for anything other then looks?

corwise

corwise

Joined
Nov 10, 2006
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I as understand the concept of damascus steel, what you're trying to do is mix two seperate steels together. When you use the knife, the two steels wear at different rates (microscopic level) giving you micro-serrated edges, therefore cutting much better then a normal knife. Several questions:

1. Is this correct? Or am I confused?
2. Does this actually work?
3. Does the damascus done by most companies actually accomplish this, or is it all for looks?

I read somewhere that one of the problems with making "good" damascus is that the heat treat can be vastly different for the two metals, so actually making a good knife (opposed to one that just looks cool) can be very difficult if you don't know what you're doing. So lastly and most importantly:

4. Can you tell "good" damascus from "looks good but poor steel"? Or do you have to go by makers reputation?

Thanks much.

Dave
 
I go by the maker. I have a small three-finger skinner from Chris Peterson (Utah knifemaker). He's an avid hunter and this little 640 layer knife cuts like a demon.

DancesWithKnives
 
I have some knives with Damascus blades from Bear & Son. They seem very well made and they hold their edge quite well. That steel is 512 layers, but it's not the most beautiful Damascus I've ever seen. As far as Fox 'n Hound and other inexpensive brands, I can't tell you what the verdict is, but I wouldn't buy it unless I wanted a display knife, or one just to fool around with.

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Pattern welded blades can be excellent, but I personally have not found them to cut better than an equally good homogeneous steel.
 
Damascus is not better then monosteel, if it was made by very skilled smith it will be as good as monosteel, but not better. There is nothing but decoration in damascus. Problem is that this patter seen only after etched and it will lost look after use - scratched out, etc...

Here is very informative article about Japan steel and why it was layered.

http://www.ksky.ne.jp/~sumie99/steel.html

Thanks, Vassili.

I suspect that Alabama Damascus is from Pakistan or India or something - they also sell bleached camel bones and I am not aware of how many camels are in Alabama if any.
http://www.alabamadamascussteel.com...ory=Knife+Making+Supplies:Bleached+Camel+Bone
 
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I have spoken with Alabama Damascus in the past about their products to get more information than the website had listed.
Here is some info that they now have on the website.
We proudly forge our damascus with the use of large air hammers and have a variety of patterns and blends of steel available.
If we dont have it, we can custom make damascus or blade blanks to fit your needs.
Click to expand...
I've been happy with their products thus far for normal use.
Their most common combination is:
Material = (4) layers 5160, (3) layers 203E, (3) layers 52100, (3) layers 15N20 folded 5 times for 416 layer damascus
I wouldn't compare it to the sharpness or durability of S30V, S110V or D2 but I do find it works very well.

OP
1. Is this correct? Or am I confused? Sounds plausible, but I'm not sure.
2. Does this actually work? Don't know
3. Does the damascus done by most companies actually accomplish this, or is it all for looks? I've purchased some of the Bokers just for looks alone.
Nothing wrong with using a Damascus bladed knife for EDC.
4. Can you tell "good" damascus from "looks good but poor steel"? Or do you have to go by makers reputation?
I think you can. Good makers tend to make eye-catching patterns.
And of course this can be seen with the eye. :)

It still comes down to what you want or are willing to spend and carry.

mike
 
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