Gerber LMT II- Purpose, and maintenace questions

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philly b

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Dec 24, 2008
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Hey guys,

I have had my gerber LMT II for a while, and i really dig this thing. It is my first big survival knife, so i really dont know anything about maintaining a blade like this that is so THICK.

Should i be able to shread through paper with this big survival knife? Or is it unreasonable to think that this knife should be so sharp... is it just supposed to be used to whack at stuff? :confused:

How sharp should i be able to make it with my sharpermaker, and how should i sharpen it on it (for ex, 30 deg or w/e)... i have been grinding the crap out of this blade on the 30 deg and its still not getting sharp.

Please help!

-Survival knife newbie
 
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I assume you are referring to the LMF II Survival or Infantry knife. I checked the steel on this knife out on the Gerber Gear website and it states that it is 12C27 Sandvik stainless steel. This is a pretty good steel. It should take a decent edge. Just keep grinding a little more until you get it.

Another problem you may have with slicing thin or light materials with the LMF is the bevel angle. I am assuming that the blade is fairly thick. Thick blades with thick bevels do not tend to be the best slicers for light materials like paper. The LMF should work fine for the survival and outdoor utility tasks it is designed for. It should be able to slice paper and other thin materials. But do not expect it to be optimized for paper cutting. If you do a lot of paper cutting, I would suggest a thinner blade like an Opinel something along those lines. Get a Opinel #12 if you like a larger blade.
 
30 degrees is also probably thinner grind than the knife came as, so it will take a while to even the edge up.
 
Philly B, congrats on a great knife, I think you mean the LMF II. The LMF 2 is on my top 5 favourites in it's class. It's a very versatile knife made of good materials.

I'm assuming by shreading paper you mean testing it's sharpness? Yes, it should do it easily if it's sharp enough. Mine does. Just to check I did a minute ago. Went through like butter.

The LMF 2 edge bevel I have is 0.0325 inches thick at the shoulders and roughly 35 degrees inclusive. That's not too obtuse or thick in my opinion. I would however recommend that you switch back to the slightly more robust angle, 35 should be quite efficient in most tasks that are to be expected with such a knife. I have been impressed with mine. And no reason why it couldn't be shaving sharp.
 
I ordered an LMF II yesterday, you folks have me really looking forward to getting it!

I plan to use it in my emergency bag in my car, I searched around for awhile, and it came close to all the things I wanted in a BOB knife.
 
Bear Claw Chris Lappe said:
I ordered an LMF II yesterday, you folks have me really looking forward to getting it!

I plan to use it in my emergency bag in my car, I searched around for awhile, and it came close to all the things I wanted in a BOB knife.
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Congratulations. :)

It is not at all unreasonable to expect this design to shave paper, and do it well.

On the note of the Sharpmaker, it can be amazingly easy in some applications and a bit more stubborn on others. The 30-degree angle will take the bevel down to 15 degrees each side; 40 degrees is the recommend setting for knives that have yet to be really well used and sharpened numerous times. Start with the coarse, as directed, and work through the four steps. With a little time and patience, your knife should get very sharp with this system.

Good luck.
 
A great knife that I'm surprised came out of Gerber's factory. I haven't had any problem sharpening mine yet. I usually touch mine up after every use on a pocket DMT. I keep mine at about 40 degrees. Quick Question. TheDrifter said on the Gerber website that the steel used is 12C27 Sandvik stainless steel. I dug my box out and it says mine is 420HC. Did Gerber make some changes? I not much for steel lore yet. Which one is better? Or are they relatively the same? Thanks, Mora.
 
Since it is a utility/survival knife, I wouldn't recommend putting too acute an angle on your edge. I keep mine relatively close to the factory edge - more obtuse. It better lends itself to chopping and field work without worrying about deformation of the edge.

The sheath does have a built-in sharpener that will put a very "workable" edge on your blade (not the serrated part, of course). 12C27 doesn't take an amazing edge easily, but, with a bit of work and a stone, I'm sure you could put a shaving edge on it... I can't get one yet though... but I'm close... I think... :rolleyes:
 
I've got am LMF II and I really like it. When I got mine the straps that hold the handle were super tight. I emailed Gerber about replacing just the nylon part of the sheath with one that would fit a little looser. They said no problem so I sent it to them. They sent me a whole new sheath,every piece! So now I have 2 sheaths,and 4 leg straps. Nice to have a spare I guess but I thought that was pretty good customer service from them.

If Gerber would only make an LMF II with a plain edge I think they would sell them like crazy.
 
Morablades said:
A great knife that I'm surprised came out of Gerber's factory. I haven't had any problem sharpening mine yet. I usually touch mine up after every use on a pocket DMT. I keep mine at about 40 degrees. Quick Question. TheDrifter said on the Gerber website that the steel used is 12C27 Sandvik stainless steel. I dug my box out and it says mine is 420HC. Did Gerber make some changes? I not much for steel lore yet. Which one is better? Or are they relatively the same? Thanks, Mora.
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I went and found one website selling 420HC LMF 2's. Interesting. I guess it makes sense to find a domestic alternative to 12C27. According to one source (I bow in your general direction Cliff :D ) 420HC is quite close to 12C27. If Gerber makes the heat treat well I'm sure there's very little difference most users would notice between the two steels.
 
My source on the steel in the LMF II was the Gerber Gear website. This is the first website that comes up if one searches for Gerber knives on Google. There are (I think) 4 models of the LMF II though they all look like basically the same knife to me. I looked on the tech specs section for each one. Three were listed as 12C27. The fourth had no steel type listed. There may be some newer or older LMF II's around with 420. I do not have the knife, so I do not know. Just going by the website. I think Gerber Gear is the corporate website for Gerber, but am not entirely sure.
 
The place I ordered mine from advertised 12C27, and that's what I hope I get.

Gerber's website only gives 12C27, I did some googling and only found 1 site saying they were 420HC.

??????
 
Got mine today, initial impressions are good, VERY sharp out of the box, in fact the plain edge section, will shave hair easily.

The sheath is wild, they put in every carry option how to mount it on an airplane!
 
Man you guys are making me miss mine. It was one of the first knives I bought after getting back into knives early last year. I ended up trading it but maybe I'll pick up another one at some point. Especially if they make a plain edged version! Speaking of the sheath, I used the the three smaller straps at the bottom to hold one of those magnesium/firesteel blocks. It fits perfectly and the little ballchain can be attached to another hole on the sheath.
 
Some pics. I think I got a little extra, I ordered the "Infantry" model, which is supposed to come with just one leg strap, but mine has two, which is the "survival" sheath.


DSCN4559.jpg


DSCN4561.jpg
 
smcclown05 said:
Speaking of the sheath, I used the the three smaller straps at the bottom to hold one of those magnesium/firesteel blocks. It fits perfectly and the little ballchain can be attached to another hole on the sheath.
Click to expand...

That's a good idea.

One of the first things I want to test, is the "hammer" feature. I'm curious to see if I can actually drive a nail with it and how good/bad is does.
 
I have had a LMF II for a while. I did not like it at all. I guess I am traditionally used to smaller knives. The first thing that annoyed me was the force needed to get the knife out. At one time it generated seven stitches in a finger. To me it feel that you need to apply so much force, that when it comes out, you have no control where it ends up (across the pizza guy's finger). I only kept the upper retaining strap around the handle and bent the flap holding the knife. Now it is easier to get out of the sheath.

About chopping with it. Yes it might be a bit small, but I use batoning instead and that works really well. However i need to practice because I dont really feel that I have control of the knife, maybe I am holding it wrong.

I had mine sent away for regrinding so the serrations are gone. I might buy myself a new one someday.

It is a pure "combat" survival knife compared to knives like Fallkniven F1 or S1 which are more "outdoor" survival knives.

The LMF II might be a good "rough use" knife when complemented with a smaller folder, multitool or neck knife for pure "cutting".
 
I have had a LMF II for a while. I did not like it at all. I guess I am traditionally used to smaller knives. The first thing that annoyed me was the force needed to get the knife out. At one time it generated seven stitches in a finger. To me it feel that you need to apply so much force, that when it comes out, you have no control where it ends up (across the pizza guy's finger). I only kept the upper retaining strap around the handle and bent the flap holding the knife. Now it is easier to get out of the sheath.

About chopping with it. Yes it might be a bit small, but I use batoning instead and that works really well. However i need to practice because I dont really feel that I have control of the knife, maybe I am holding it wrong.

I had mine sent away for regrinding so the serrations are gone. I might buy myself a new one someday.

It is a pure "combat" survival knife compared to knives like Fallkniven F1 or S1 which are more "outdoor" survival knives.

The LMF II might be a good "rough use" knife when complemented with a smaller folder, multitool or neck knife for pure "cutting".
 
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