DLC on 4V?

MikeKu825

MikeKu825

"The Enthusiast"
Joined
Aug 27, 2014
Messages
918
The idea popped into my head to send a 4V EDC out for a DLC coating.. Thoughts?
 
Personally i prefer satin/stonewash but to each their own. DLC would add to the cost and will only wear out anyway
 
Shelf queen, sure. User, nah. I'd go D3V instead. The exact reasoning behind the 4V EDC is a little lost on me. Doesn't seem with the compromise.
 
Sure, why not? Let us know how much Ionbond wants for a single knife of this size, I am curious...
 
I was reading some posts in another area by a user who sent a few folding knives out for DLC. I didn't see a price estimate per knife. I can't imagine it's the cheapest thing to do.

If I learn anything I'll post it.
 
ExtraBaconPlease said:
Personally i prefer satin/stonewash but to each their own. DLC would add to the cost and will only wear out anyway
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Generally I agree on the aesthetics, as I uuuuuusually prefer bare naked steel. My experiences with DLC wearing out have been pretty darn good. I have a ZT0350 that I have really used a lot, and you can barely see marks on the DLC when it's cleaned. Mostly what looks like scratches ends up being on top if the DLC. That's not to say It's invulnerable, because obviously it's far from that.

JustinFournier said:
Shelf queen, sure. User, nah. I'd go D3V instead. The exact reasoning behind the 4V EDC is a little lost on me. Doesn't seem with the compromise.
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I was actually thinking of it in the opposite sense, to keep moisture off the blade on sweaty, super humid days out in the woods. For me I think 4V is about the fun factor. My D2 and D3V versions have never let me down, so realistically, the 4V version is superfluous.

I don't have any sort of real plan to do this DLC coating.. it just popped in my head while I was doing some reading about M4 and thought of the time my BM810 rusted in my pocket one afternoon. That got me thinking about the 4V.. one thing led to another..
 
Sounds like a good idea. Why not? I got a DLC coated M4 Ban Tang. Although I usually prefer uncoated steel. I also just got the 4V version for fun. I wonder how well Nathan's 4V takes a patina.
 
MikeKu825 said:
Generally I agree on the aesthetics, as I uuuuuusually prefer bare naked steel. My experiences with DLC wearing out have been pretty darn good. I have a ZT0350 that I have really used a lot, and you can barely see marks on the DLC when it's cleaned. Mostly what looks like scratches ends up being on top if the DLC. That's not to say It's invulnerable, because obviously it's far from that.



I was actually thinking of it in the opposite sense, to keep moisture off the blade on sweaty, super humid days out in the woods. For me I think 4V is about the fun factor. My D2 and D3V versions have never let me down, so realistically, the 4V version is superfluous.

I don't have any sort of real plan to do this DLC coating.. it just popped in my head while I was doing some reading about M4 and thought of the time my BM810 rusted in my pocket one afternoon. That got me thinking about the 4V.. one thing led to another..
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I understand the concern.

I have previously gone the same way with 3V, industry standard HT as I live up in the Pacific North West and most days am close enough to the Ocean to throw a rock into it. Things rust fast here.

But what I found was the inevitable imperfections in the DLC drove me nuts. Fasteners scraped the tang and I got a bunch of rust under the scales etc.

Going forward I decided to stick with steels that could handle what I needed them to do.

I realize the D3V isn't a stainless but with good care it has been really good for me. I think going forward I'll remove the handles and heat up the tang. Rub a little beeswax into it coating the surfaces then reassemble while warm. Wipe the handles down carefully and then see how long that can last. Wipe the blade dry when done and see how it holds up.

Patina is totally OK for me.

So long as it isn't spotty and gross looking like A2 can get with fingerprints etc.
 
JustinFournier said:
Patina is totally OK for me
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I agree. I love patina.

My only concern is actual rust. I was framing out a house in Virginia on a hot summer day.. back a few years now.. and I had my beater 810 Contego in my pocket. I had stripped off the DLC with a heavy stonewash, which looked cool, but exposed that M4.

Everything looked fine all morning because I was using it to cut pretty much everything I could think of. As the day went on it lived in my pocket.. Let just say complete disassembly was required.

The situation with this EDC is different, and now I'm aware of how quickly sweat will rust a blade. I think a higher level of care would suffice, but hey..
 
Are we sure DLC protects from corrosion?
I don't know the answer here, i have read differences in opinion on this topic. But in past threads I have read, a lot of users/members seem to say DLC doesn't add any corrosion resistance.
 
XtianAus said:
Are we sure DLC protects from corrosion?
I don't know the answer here, i have read differences in opinion on this topic. But in past threads I have read, a lot of users/members seem to say DLC doesn't add any corrosion resistance.
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Well.. I'll give you my understanding, but if anyone with deeper knowledge wants to correct any indiscretions.. please feel free.

Diamond-Like-Carbon has been around for a while and is applied in many industries. It is ionically bonded to the metal and has very high wear resistance. The carbon is very hard, so the likelyhood of scratching it is fairly low. (This stuff it applied to engine pistons and drill bits) Technically, it doesn't add corrosion resistance, it is bonded to the surface, keeping anything from getting through. It will protect the metal.. for a looooooong time. That's a drastically oversimplified explanation.

Generally, when I read posts from people who claim that it rubs off or is scratched easily, they are either talking about some other material and didn't realize it, or they think they scratched it, but didnt.

Not to say it doesn't happen.
 
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Mike, I would add that in my experience it wears from the edge of the DLC where it was ground off the steel by the creation of the edge. I think it's weaker there.

Also I've dropped a knife with DLC through an engine bay and when I picked it up from underneath the car, off the asphalt it had some dents in the DLC where it landed. I assume this is because of the softness beneath the DLC.
 
JustinFournier said:
Mike, I would add that in my experience it wears from the edge of the DLC where it was ground off the steel by the creation of the edge. I think it's weaker there.

Also I've dropped a knife with DLC through an engine bay and when I picked it up from underneath the car, off the asphalt it had some dents in the DLC where it landed. I assume this is because of the softness beneath the DLC.
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I wonder if the bonding is weaker once the surface underneath is eroded. The drop scenario would make sense since the DLC is bonded to the metal.. since the DLC is only about 2 micron thick, if you impact the metal to the point where it dents in, I can imagine the DLC would do the same. At that point the surface area of the metal will change, and the DLC won't be able to cover it.
 
As bad as it sounds, dropping a knife is something I hate to do, but have done before. Including my current Shiro EDC.

Was carrying a large heavy object and as I lifted it into a vehicle it caught the pocket clip and pulled it up and out of the pocket and I didn't realize till I heard it hit the ground.

After my previous experience I wouldn't want to do anything that could potentially change the shape of the blade. Not sure about bending but for sure wouldn't want to baton etc.
 
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