H1 Question

B

Bax Axe

Joined
May 6, 2007
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I am sure that this has probably been discussed before, but I was just curious as to what any tradeoffs may be for having a steel like this that does not rust.

Is it more likely to chip out than other steels? Does it not hold an edge as long? Just curious as to what I should expect when I get one.

Thanks

Steve
 
I only have one H-1 blade knife. It's a Spyderco Pacific Salt Plain Edge. The knife came to me slightly used but in excellent shape. Since recieving it I have used it in my EDC rotation. Also, it has served as my 'field knife' meaning that I keep it in my left pocket whenever I am headed out for a weekor more of sleeping in mud puddles and/or sandy conditions. Thats what I did last week, and its what I'm going to do tomorrow. The knife came really sharp (as expected from Spyderco) and stayed that way after a handful of cutting chores. My understanding is that it gets hot with a lot of use and that heat makes it harder <please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong>. The first week I had it it got used to tear down a few big boxes, and it did get pretty hot to the touch. But still wasn't too dull. It sharpened up on a diamond stone and strop back to a hair-popping edge in no time.

I would say get one, any one, since you are so close to the coast...New Orleans, LA I see, you will enjoy the rust free properties.

Just my 2cents, I'm no Metallugists.
 
Bax Axe said:
Is it more likely to chip out than other steels?
Click to expand...

From what I hear, the exact opposite is true. It's more likely to roll out than chip out. So you can probably fix it up with a steel a lot of the time.

Bax Axe said:
Does it not hold an edge as long?
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Supposedly not as long as any "super steels." Probably less than 154CM? I'm not exactly sure, but I know I want one :D
 
Thanks for the imput guys. Good to know. I will be getting one, just not exactly sure how soon. I like the idea of basically a maintenence free knife, except for sharpening. I do take good care of my knives, but I have a titanium neck knife, and I would by lying if I told you that I did not enjoy ever having to wipe it down or put oil on it.
 
Initially, H-1 seems to have edge-holding similar to AUS-8 with a good heat treatment, which is pretty darn good. It will work harden with use, so it will get a little harder and hold its edge a little better with every sharpening. As far as I can tell, the biggest fault with H-1 is it scratches easily. For me, that ranks under "so what", but for some folks, appearance is everything. This is not the steel for them.

I also recall Sal casually mentioning the tensile strength of H-1 is almost twice that of VG-10. :eek:
 
From Wikipedia:
Tensile strength &#963;UTS, or SU measures the amount of stress applied to a material at its breaking point or the point at which it fails. The tensile strength of a material is the point at which a material, under the stress of an applied force, snaps, breaks or can no longer maintain its structural integrity. It is, in other words, the amount of force the material can withstand without breaking.
Click to expand...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tensile_strength
 
H1's only real shortcoming is the lack of wear resistance. So even though it will work harden to some 65 RC, the fine edge abrades faster than more wear resistant steels like 154cm/ats34 at 60rc.
 
carrot said:
From Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tensile_strength
Click to expand...

Ah, I see. I shouldn't be lazy; I should be looking it up myself lol

Thanks.

yablanowitz said:
I also recall Sal casually mentioning the tensile strength of H-1 is almost twice that of VG-10. :eek:
Click to expand...

This is what we call the "toughness" of a steel, correct?

For comparison, how does VG-10's tensile strength compare to... Say D2's and AUS8's? I've heard all about how easy VG-10 is to sharpen, how good it is at corrosion resistance, and its substantial edge holding, but I don't believe I've heard of it's toughness rating.
 
Tensile strength is a bit different, how exactly it ties into toughness is beyond my understanding, charpy C/V notch tests are more directly related. Tensile strength is basically how much force a material can support under tension/stretching loads(think steel cable). With steel tensile strength is often equal to compressive strength, so it's a really important number for structural applications. In knives, not sure?
 
The only thing I've noticed, and it has already been mentioned, is that it scratches very easily. This is not a problem for me, I could care less. The trade off is well worth it:)
 
Iv been using one in salt and fresh water cliped to the sleave of my wet
suit for a while now.

I have a full serated blade on the one i have, i havent used it as much as i would a "dry" knife but i cant say iv really noticed any thing that would sugest its vastly different, other than the fact it dosnt want to rust ;):thumbup:
 
yablanowitz said:
Initially, H-1 seems to have edge-holding similar to AUS-8 with a good heat treatment, which is pretty darn good. It will work harden with use, so it will get a little harder and hold its edge a little better with every sharpening. As far as I can tell, the biggest fault with H-1 is it scratches easily. For me, that ranks under "so what", but for some folks, appearance is everything. This is not the steel for them.

I also recall Sal casually mentioning the tensile strength of H-1 is almost twice that of VG-10. :eek:
Click to expand...

+1:thumbup: beat me to it:)
 
This all sounds very impressive. From what I have gathered, edgeholding is similar to AUS8, and it can take a good bit of hard use it seems without breaking. The one thing I dont understand is how it gets harder with use and after sharpening.

One more question. I know that benchmade uses X15 T.N for their dive knives. They say it has better edge holding, but they dont say that it will never rust. Which leads me to believe that it has great corrosion resistance, but can still rust if not maintained. It may also be more brittle than H1, but I have no idea. Any thoughts. H1 is sounding mighty good to me.
 
Bax Axe,
Just the fact that Sal picked H-1 over X15 T.N. (used by Boker and Benchmade) for use in "wet" environments is reason enough for me to pick it over X15 T.N. for a water knife. The fact that Ed Schempp saw fit to use H-1 in his Rock Salt collaboration with Spyderco just adds to my confidence in it, as Ed knows steel.

Regards,
3G
 
The only trade off that I have found is that H1 tend to show more surface scratches than most other quality stainless knife steels. This is only cosmetic.

Edge holding for plain edges is comparable to AUS6 and close to the same as VG10 in serrated.


Here's some edge holding comparisions of H1 vs VG10 that I did awhile back:


www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=372653


...and here's some of the things I did to try to get H1 to rust:

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=344293





Frank
 
Bax Axe said:
This all sounds very impressive. From what I have gathered, edgeholding is similar to AUS8, and it can take a good bit of hard use it seems without breaking. The one thing I dont understand is how it gets harder with use and after sharpening.

One more question. I know that benchmade uses X15 T.N for their dive knives. They say it has better edge holding, but they dont say that it will never rust. Which leads me to believe that it has great corrosion resistance, but can still rust if not maintained. It may also be more brittle than H1, but I have no idea. Any thoughts. H1 is sounding mighty good to me.
Click to expand...

We did test X-15TN, as well as others, they did not meet our requirements as well as H1.

Kristi
 
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