GEC 1095 edge retention.

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SFW

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Used my GEC 71 bull nose this evening while cooking dinner. Cubed three cooked chicken breast. Before I cut the chicken, you could shave the hair off of your arm with the knife. After cutting the chicken the knife would not cut paper. Is this the typical edge retention I can expect from GEC's 1095?


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Not at all. Sounds like the blade had a wire edge which just folded over when used. I would expect a quick stropping to remove the wire edge and restore the edge.
 
So far GEC factory edges are down right terrible.... I just sharpen them as soon as I get them. Sure they might shave out of the box but the edge angles are very uneven. I see it as making the knife yours. I cut a good bit of material after sharpening them and they hold a good edge.
 
There are a few factors that could enter into the equation. You could have a fine wire edge at the apex of the blade that makes it seem shaving sharp, only to break off or bend in use. It's possible for an edge to get over-heated during sharpening, and lose some hardness. After some use and a few hand-sharpenings, you get down to the good steel. Also, some cutting boards, particularly bamboo, will dull a blade quickly, though I assume you use the same board with other knives in your kitchen.

To answer your question, I have found GEC's 1095 to keep an edge better than that.
 
I have a Northwoods Willamette - GEC 1095 - that was sharpened last August!!
I receive a lot of cartons in the mail which I cut up into rectangles, and also receive tons of snail-mail, plus try to cut up and eat a piece of fruit a day. I use this knife at least 50% of the time. I strop it once in a while - maybe once a month.
It will still shave hair off my arm!!
Unless you have carefully controlled, almost laboratory-like conditions, it is impossible to judge a blade for durability, or anything else:confused:, IMO.

Those who posted before me have proposed very plausible explanations!
The sharpening I referred to was by a professional sharpener! He knows what he is doing, that is for sure!!
 
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Did you cut your chicken on a ceramic or glass plate, or on a wooden cutting board? Cutting on a hard surface will dull any knife.
 
I'll check the edge and give it a strop. I didn't think about the wire edge aspect. That's probably it. Thanks guys!


And I cut it on a plastic cutting board.

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I really like GEC 1095, but im also like a lot of other and my knives get my own edge as soon as i decide im going to carry them, after some good use the shaving sharp goes away but comes right back with a couple strokes on the strop!
 
I've only had a handful of GEC's all of their steels were solid. Kept their edges well and even easier to touch up.

Try to take a look at the edge using a jewelers loupe it will tell you everything you need to know if it has a wire edge or not.
 
Let us know how it responds to stropping, 1095 typically will come back to life easily unless you really chewed up the edge! Like some posters above me, I always sharpen GEC knives out of the tube before they go into my pocket so maybe take advantage of this opportunity to give the knife some personalization:thumbup:
 
I was thinking the same . My new Green 71 has two spots on the blade that rolled over with hardly any use .
 
One thing I want to suggest, too, is that you sharpen all of your edge to remove a little metal and get all the factory power-sharpened edge off. I inspected the edge of my brand new 71, and there are some spots along the edge that are discolored (I'm betting) from the heat produced by the power sharpening. Doesn't take much on metal that thin to ruin the temper at and just above the apex.

I had a similar experience with a TC that I sharpened but didn't remove much metal from. I used it to cut a little bit of dinner, and it went from push cutting paper to not even slicing it. Case knives have better edge retention than that, and GEC heat treats their blades better and harder than Case does by a good bit.
 
Well, I've had to sharpen this knife three times this past week. Have have hit it with a stone and then stropped it afterward to remove any wire edge. Maybe I have grown too use to steels like S30V, but I swear that this knife will not hold a edge. Which I don't really understand, as my Northwoods Madison Barlow holds an edge very well, and it is also 1095. Maybe I just got a bad blade. It's very frustrating as I really like the knife. It is the perfects size for work. I took a good bit of metal off of the edge today, so we'll see if I got past any edge burn.


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I too am in the camp of once I decide to carry a GEC vs. holding for resale I take it to my Wicked Edge for a reprofile. Most of the time the original angle is too obtuse and not always ground well. That is the nature of any small company that puts a considerable amount of hand work in the process. All my user GECs perform on par with the other 1095 based knives I own. That is to say, soft and but easy to sharpen and touch up.
 
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