Being new here (rookie) I'm sure this has been covered......but maybe one more time in short. Your opinion on the 3 best hi-carbon steels, not Damascus? With a finished blade, the toughest and sharpest tool for hard use? Stainless or non-stainless that doesn't matter, function does. Thanks for your opinion.
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Has this been covered...3 best steels.
- Thread starter Codegra
- Start date
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- Oct 3, 1998
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Oh boy, now you've got a tough arguements with no good answer going here. I'd just like to add what Kit Carson told me once when we were talking about steels. It was something along the lines of "Not good, not bad. Just different"
That being said, IMO the 3 best steels are O1, D2 and 5160.
Sincerely,
Adam
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Self improvement is a hobby of mine
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That being said, IMO the 3 best steels are O1, D2 and 5160.
Sincerely,
Adam
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Self improvement is a hobby of mine
.
- Joined
- Dec 14, 1998
- Messages
- 4,870
Stainless 420v 440v hands down 10v and 15 v in even tougher . Havent tried them yet.
Carbon 3v semi carbon, 52100, a2,01
These are steels that are avaiable on the market not special mixes ect.
There are many opinions here. Some of us make a stand and stick to it. Client reporting along with testing and the tech sheets are the way to figure this one out IMHO.
Some figure the steel that is getting cheaper is the one to choose here. I refuse..
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Web Site At www.infinet.com/~browzer/bldesmth.html
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Carbon 3v semi carbon, 52100, a2,01
These are steels that are avaiable on the market not special mixes ect.
There are many opinions here. Some of us make a stand and stick to it. Client reporting along with testing and the tech sheets are the way to figure this one out IMHO.
Some figure the steel that is getting cheaper is the one to choose here. I refuse..
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Web Site At www.infinet.com/~browzer/bldesmth.html
Take a look!!!
totally agree with the above....cpm V steels are leading the pack.....i still like D2 a lot...but i dont use it any more....and BG 42 is looking great.....have made quite a few knives out of it....as for the 3v... have heard it rusts while you look at it.. no good for my environment, have only made one 420v knife...more coming...but i am sold on 440v for many many applications..... (not camp knives etc though) funny how some top name makers are still using 440C etc... maybe cause its $4.oo a lb???? darrell is right...buy the best and forget the rest...
[This message has been edited by tom mayo (edited 02 July 1999).]
[This message has been edited by tom mayo (edited 02 July 1999).]
[This message has been edited by tom mayo (edited 02 July 1999).]
[This message has been edited by tom mayo (edited 02 July 1999).]
L-6, D-2, CPM3V
Actually, the list is longer, and one of these steels I personally don't use (L-6), but I want to!
Why those three?
D-2. Edge holding rivaling any other tool steel, almost stainless, tough, and 'relatively' easy to work....at least in comparison to 420V. Not the king in edge holding, or the best for a very large blade, but very consistent results in heat treating, and my customers keep coming back for it even if it isn't high tech.
CPM3V. Tough like 5160, edge holding (in my experience) on par with D-2, and 'some' corrosion resistance due to its chromium and vanadium content. It does not rust like A-2 or 5160, at least in drier climates. It also works very easily annealed, similar to 5160, so you don't use up your budget in grinding belts getting to something that resembles a knife! It shows promise, even though it hasn't been out for very long.
L-6. Very flexible in how it can be hardened and at what hardness you can use it. Its tough enough to be left full hard Rc63-64, for a thin, small utility knife, but with a bainite temper and flame hardened edge it is also almost indestructible. Howard clark had some big chef's knives of L-6 at the last show I was at that were ground impossibly thin, (tapering from 1/10" at the spine) and showed a temper line in the polish. Sitting alongside them was a similar thickness test blade that had been bent completely around in a 'U' shape without the edge cracking or the blade shattering.
YMMV
madpoet
Actually, the list is longer, and one of these steels I personally don't use (L-6), but I want to!
Why those three?
D-2. Edge holding rivaling any other tool steel, almost stainless, tough, and 'relatively' easy to work....at least in comparison to 420V. Not the king in edge holding, or the best for a very large blade, but very consistent results in heat treating, and my customers keep coming back for it even if it isn't high tech.
CPM3V. Tough like 5160, edge holding (in my experience) on par with D-2, and 'some' corrosion resistance due to its chromium and vanadium content. It does not rust like A-2 or 5160, at least in drier climates. It also works very easily annealed, similar to 5160, so you don't use up your budget in grinding belts getting to something that resembles a knife! It shows promise, even though it hasn't been out for very long.
L-6. Very flexible in how it can be hardened and at what hardness you can use it. Its tough enough to be left full hard Rc63-64, for a thin, small utility knife, but with a bainite temper and flame hardened edge it is also almost indestructible. Howard clark had some big chef's knives of L-6 at the last show I was at that were ground impossibly thin, (tapering from 1/10" at the spine) and showed a temper line in the polish. Sitting alongside them was a similar thickness test blade that had been bent completely around in a 'U' shape without the edge cracking or the blade shattering.
YMMV
madpoet
R
Ruppe
5160 - Its so nice and shiney! Flexible.. forge it , grind it anneal it heat treat it do it all over again. Nice shower of sparks, sets your gloves on fire. Selective temper works great. Shows a temper line. My favorite to work with for my own knives.
ATS 34 Holds an edge all month, easy to grind and heat treat (if you have a furnace).
440 -C old stand by not the best at any one thing, but nice to work and looks pretty.
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Ron Ruppé
www.ruppe.com/Knives/index.htm
ATS 34 Holds an edge all month, easy to grind and heat treat (if you have a furnace).
440 -C old stand by not the best at any one thing, but nice to work and looks pretty.
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Ron Ruppé
www.ruppe.com/Knives/index.htm
- Joined
- Dec 14, 1998
- Messages
- 4,870
For a big straight I like the 5160 also Forgot it. It chops like a mother and heat treats well. Great to forge also
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Web Site At www.infinet.com/~browzer/bldesmth.html
Take a look!!!
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Web Site At www.infinet.com/~browzer/bldesmth.html
Take a look!!!
#1095
#1084
#5160
O-1
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Regards,
Desert Rat
#1084
#5160
O-1
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Regards,
Desert Rat