hello there. a fella at work has won a couple of knives on ebay ,supposed to be damascus knives,although they look real good ,surely there is something wrong with them.one in particular is from spain ,not as sharp as ithought it should be ,but with a bit of work may come up ok.has anyone seen these knives and can you tell me anything about them.thanks.
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fake damascus
- Thread starter sqiurrel
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- Oct 30, 2005
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- 5,171
What brand, model, etc.?
Not being sharp doesn't mean it's not damascus..........
sorry no pics,i just worked the mobile phone out,then along came this computer,phew! thats a lot for this old fella to grasp.
the knives look great,and this fella has now got 4 of them (and all i told him was these knives on ebay look really good) i just got onto ebay to get more details and cant find the seller he purchased from,surprise,but damascus knives seem to be popping up all over the place ,and cheap ,yes i know if it seems to good to be true ,it probably is. any help on this would be great.regards.
the knives look great,and this fella has now got 4 of them (and all i told him was these knives on ebay look really good) i just got onto ebay to get more details and cant find the seller he purchased from,surprise,but damascus knives seem to be popping up all over the place ,and cheap ,yes i know if it seems to good to be true ,it probably is. any help on this would be great.regards.I have few cheap damascus knives like the ones you're talking about, I think.
Indeed, fake damascus exists and then it's a print on the blade. Worthless. But these days you can get real damascus for a good price on ebay, and these always seem to be blades that were made in Pakistan, probably in the cutlery city of Wazirabad (even if they are said to originate from Spain) where labour is very cheap. So yes, I have a few of these knives and if the blade has little indentations on the spine you can check if it's real damascus if the patterns continue over the indentations.
This is one of my 6 affordable ebay-bought damascus knives that originated from Pakistan (notice how the damascus pattern follows the indentations on the spine). By the way the handle is camel bone. The finish isn't as nice as a western knife but overall quality/price is really pretty good:
If people are interested I could create a post with pictures from the full set.
Indeed, fake damascus exists and then it's a print on the blade. Worthless. But these days you can get real damascus for a good price on ebay, and these always seem to be blades that were made in Pakistan, probably in the cutlery city of Wazirabad (even if they are said to originate from Spain) where labour is very cheap. So yes, I have a few of these knives and if the blade has little indentations on the spine you can check if it's real damascus if the patterns continue over the indentations.
This is one of my 6 affordable ebay-bought damascus knives that originated from Pakistan (notice how the damascus pattern follows the indentations on the spine). By the way the handle is camel bone. The finish isn't as nice as a western knife but overall quality/price is really pretty good:
If people are interested I could create a post with pictures from the full set.
I bought a Pakistan made Damascus folder knife on June.
I found the edge having a bur and I sharpened it with sharpen stone, but the Damascus pattern near the edge was gone during sharpening process.
I used a coarse sandpaper to grind the blade. the pattern is almost gone.
Only lighter pattern can be seen on the side I ground, the other side is still clear.
Should a real Damascus knife have this result by using sandpaper on blade?
Or it is a fake Damascus knife?
Any help will be appreciated.
Eric
I found the edge having a bur and I sharpened it with sharpen stone, but the Damascus pattern near the edge was gone during sharpening process.
I used a coarse sandpaper to grind the blade. the pattern is almost gone.
Only lighter pattern can be seen on the side I ground, the other side is still clear.
Should a real Damascus knife have this result by using sandpaper on blade?
Or it is a fake Damascus knife?
Any help will be appreciated.
Eric
- Joined
- Aug 27, 1999
- Messages
- 4,531
I bought a Pakistan made Damascus folder knife on June.
I found the edge having a bur and I sharpened it with sharpen stone, but the Damascus pattern near the edge was gone during sharpening process.
I used a coarse sandpaper to grind the blade. the pattern is almost gone.
Only lighter pattern can be seen on the side I ground, the other side is still clear.
Should a real Damascus knife have this result by using sandpaper on blade?
Or it is a fake Damascus knife?
Any help will be appreciated.
Eric
To me, that sounds like an acid etch, not real laminated steel.
- Joined
- Jan 15, 2006
- Messages
- 758
"Damascus" has become a very generic term for layered, forge welded steel. There can be good Damascus or bad Damascus depending on the steels used and the skill of the person who forged it.
Also be aware that there are some very cheap "Damascus" knifes that are not layed steel at all but instead just has a Damascus-like pattern etched into the blade.
Also be aware that there are some very cheap "Damascus" knifes that are not layed steel at all but instead just has a Damascus-like pattern etched into the blade.
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2005
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- 4,527
JTR357
Gold Member
- Joined
- Sep 10, 2007
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- 14,120
:thumbup:This is a good topic.
I've thought about buying these two,but was kinda turned off by how inexpensive they were.The old "to good to be true" deal.
The Browning is around $30 & the Puma's around $40.
What do you think?Think they're junk?
I've thought about buying these two,but was kinda turned off by how inexpensive they were.The old "to good to be true" deal.
The Browning is around $30 & the Puma's around $40.
What do you think?Think they're junk?
TheCarbideRat
BANNED
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- Sep 10, 2008
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- 1,510
RE: Damascus was born there -- So now they milk it for all it's worth and in a crooked way.
Thanks for your expert opinion.
I tried to remove the Damascus pattern using a coarse sharpen stone, but some marks are still there while some are gone early.
Now it becomes wierd. One side of the blade has high contrast pattern and the other side has no pattern on some spots at all.
If it is etched, that is a deep etch.
Is there any surface treatment to have the Damascus pattern looked clear?
I am confused if it's a fake Damascus.
I am trapped now.
HELP!!!Anybody call 911 please.
I tried to remove the Damascus pattern using a coarse sharpen stone, but some marks are still there while some are gone early.
Now it becomes wierd. One side of the blade has high contrast pattern and the other side has no pattern on some spots at all.
If it is etched, that is a deep etch.
Is there any surface treatment to have the Damascus pattern looked clear?
I am confused if it's a fake Damascus.
I am trapped now.
HELP!!!Anybody call 911 please.
- Joined
- Jan 15, 2006
- Messages
- 758
Even with real Damascus the pattern does not really show up until it is etched with acid. The acid reacts differently with the different types of steel so the pattern stands out. When Damascus is ground, and before it is etched, it is hard to see the layers and/or pattern but you can usually see it if you hold it at an angle in the light.
TheCarbideRat
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- Sep 10, 2008
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Call up the nearest knife shop and get down there with your knife, if they don't know the straight dope on authentic damascus they are in the wrong business.
You will need to re etch the blade now in a mild acid and the pattern will be restored.
Richard
- Joined
- Jan 6, 2009
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- 1,298
That's what I was thinking, could be the pattern is there, just not obliviously visible.
The two knives in the photo below are both high quality damascus laminated blades, one is etched, the other polished. You can see that the damascus pattern on the polished blade is not very pronounced, in fact it is just barely visible in the area around the logo on the blade.
The pattern shows up a bit better in real life, the photo doesn't capture it, but you get the idea, non acid etched damascus doesn't have a distinct pattern.
Kevin
- Joined
- Jan 4, 1999
- Messages
- 3,000
I bought a Pakistan made Damascus folder knife on June.
I found the edge having a bur and I sharpened it with sharpen stone, but the Damascus pattern near the edge was gone during sharpening process.
I used a coarse sandpaper to grind the blade. the pattern is almost gone.
Only lighter pattern can be seen on the side I ground, the other side is still clear.
Should a real Damascus knife have this result by using sandpaper on blade?
Or it is a fake Damascus knife?
Any help will be appreciated.
Eric
There is plenty of forge welded steel coming out of Pakistan. In fact the market is literally flooded with the stuff. It is real forge welded steel, although not perhaps of the highest quality. Normally damascus blades are treated with an etchant to bring out contrast between the layers. If you grind or sand the blade, you can remove this and it makes the layers difficult to see. Because you removed this doesn't mean the damascus is fake. You can restore the contrast with a little chemical application.