Favorite steels to work with?

Tait

Tait

Joined
Sep 26, 2009
Messages
576
Hi all,

I'm currently making pocket tools, kitchen knives, and (soon!) folding knives. I'm working with stainless for corrosion resistance. Any of the high-alloy stainless steels would probably work fine.

But I've noticed that different steels grind differently. I don't like the gumminess and heat retention of 440C and AEB-L. On the other hand, regardless of function, I do like how ATS-34 grinds, and I like S30V and S35VN even better.

I know we all have favorite steels for function; and now I'm curious:

What are others' favorite steels to work with, (and, why)?
 
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I agree 440C seems kind of mushy on the grinder. I like CPM-154 much better once you get past the mill scale (pickling in vinegar helps loosen that up) and it's an excellent steel overall. I recently ground a test blade of Carpenter CTS-XHP and that worked really nicely, too.

Overall my favorite to grind is precision ground O1. Starts flat and clean and stays that way. It's like butter to grind and polish, especially after working up a batch of CPM-3V.
 
Don, I'm beginning to get the impression that you prefer the low-alloy steels ;) Don't be skeert, chromium can be your friend!
 
Don,

I'd love to learn more.

Is there a particular reason you don't like chromium?
 
Tait,

I really debated on replying to this as I don't want to open a "can of worms" on opinions. The more that you get into knife making then the more you will find that there is no perfect steel for making all types of blades for all people. There are simply steels with known strengths & weaknesses.

There are countless threads talking steels and their qualities. Spend some time searching (and experimenting) and find the one that works best for your own techniques & expectations. Test your blades steel vs steel. What works best for me (or others) isn't necessarily what will work best for you.

Good luck & welcome aboard.
 
Depends on the knife and the customer for me. W2, 1087 (Just a small amount left) 01, 5160, 52100 and ATS-34. 15n20 when making Damascus.
 
Tait said:
Don,

I'd love to learn more.

Is there a particular reason you don't like chromium?
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Tait, it's just a personal preference. I grew up using carbon steel knives and can remember not liking stainless blades from a very early age. I really like simple carbon steel blades at a fairly high Rc hardness, ground very thin, they're just a pleasure to use.

When I started forging 20 years ago and making damascus a few years later, chromium was the cause of most of my problems. One can learn to work with it, but I chose to avoid it, makes my life mo better.

Gary, don't worry, I opened the can... :D :p :D
 
I grew up on a farm. In the house we used mostly stainless because they could be thrown in the dishwasher. For cutting meat (over a ton a month) we used high carbon because performance counted, they are easier to sharpen and stay sharp longer.

This is just my limited experience and I haven't really used any 154cm or any of the better stainless steels.
 
I really like CPM-S30V, however, hand sanding on it is almost useless. I look forward to working with some CPM-S35VN. I just forged a box cutter blade the other day out of 1080/15n20 damascus. Start of forging to mirror finish before etching was about 2 hours. I could spend 2 hours just on 220 grit with S30V. Still, I like knowing that if I throw it in the junk drawer or tackle box it won't be rusty next time I see it.
 
While I agree that different steels grind, well, differently, I think that if you don't like the heat retention of 440C then you just don't like steel. The difference in alloys between these things are quite minute and they will all retain about the same amount of heat. It's kind of like talking about weight differences between stainless and carbon steels. Yes, there are some, no you won't be able to tell the difference in the sizes and quantities that we use.
 
I appreciate all the thoughts!

As to specific replies, here are a couple:

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Acridsaint

Thanks for the comments. Contrary to your speculation, I truly love working with steel. The first few times I ground, I couldn't get the grin off my face, I look forward to it most of the day. (If only I liked making handles as well...)

As for the 440, I don't know what it was, but my *subjective* experience with grinding 440C was that it was much easier to burn my fingers than with O-1 or A-2. And it's gummy - it just doesn't seem to grind cleanly. You're right, it shouldn't be all that different.

Maybe the problem isn't *retaining* heat so much as *generating* it with slightly or overly dull belts?

I may be wrong about the heat generation - that's just my impression.

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Gary,

Thanks for the comments, and, thanks for the welcome!

I have spent hours - make that many hours - reading about the qualities of various steel and the use in different knives, and how different steels work differently at different hardnesses (for example, I have concluded the holy wars over S30V micro-chipping are impossible to sort out and will have to do my own testing to satisfy myself as to whether it's an issue in S35VN).

In fact, that's one of the things that prompted this question - I KNOW my heat treating techniques do not justify working with S35VN versus other less expensive steels. It just feels comfortable to grind on.

When searching what steel people *like* to work with, I got few relevant hits and no threads. I was hoping avoid a holy war by specifically asking what people liked *working with*, and why, rather than what the best steel for a particular application might be.

Speaking of which, I notice you didn't quite answer the question: is there a favorite steel you enjoy the process of *working*? (Some guys like carbon just 'cause it makes more sparks...).

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zaph1

With my vast experience of ONE knife in S30V, I'd have to say I can't tell a big difference versus S35VN, except possibly S30V grinds down just a bit slower and belts don't last quite as long.

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Don

I appreciate your comment. Perhaps I'll try some carbon steel again. I have some 1084 from Admiral that I had trouble working with - now that I have a kiln, I can try (re)-annealing and see if that makes it more usable.

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Thanks again for the thoughts - I appreciate the time it takes to read the inquiry and to reply.
 
ATS 34 is a nice one to grind and easy to heat treat but I like BG42 even better. It grinds well, polishes easily to a very high finish and holds a good edge. It's drawbacks are cost and the fact you haveto take it to a higher heat before quenching, 2100 f. but it is so clean I just love it.
 
Tait said:
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Gary,

Thanks for the comments, and, thanks for the welcome!

Speaking of which, I notice you didn't quite answer the question: is there a favorite steel you enjoy the process of *working*? (Some guys like carbon just 'cause it makes more sparks...).

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Don
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For me I believe that it would be 1084. ;) Very forgiving & makes a quality blade.
 
Try grinding the 440 after you harden it, it'll feel different with the belts. Dull belts may generate more heat, they may also generate more heat if they are loaded up, so I can see that some steels might seem to get hotter faster than others. I've never noticed much with any of them, I just dip it when it gets hot.
 
I really like 1095, and W2. If I use stainless I use ATS34. These are the steels I learned on. I have had good results and have found no reason to change.
 
Personally I prefer the carbon steels, 1084,5160, 9260, 1095, and 15N20 with 1080 or1075 for damascus. Just personal preference. I have made and will make some knives out of stainless, mainly 154CM, but like 95% of my knives will be forged and out of carbon.
 
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