High Carbon or Stainless

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MrTroubleSnake

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Hey guys, in my last thread i made a few mistakes that violated bladeforum but i also learned a few things. First and foremost thanks everybody for teaching me alot about the different types of steels and grinds, it has helped me in choosing my next blade. I own several stainless steel blade, but no high carbon. Im debating if i should buy one from Tops or Esee. What about you guys, do you prefer high carbon blades or stainless steel blades, & WHY? THX Everybody and Happy Holidays.:thumbup: BTW some photos wouldn't hurt:D
 
Carbon in "traditional" slipjoints and fixed blades for the ease of sharpening and patina.
Tough carbon like 5160 in big chopper/basher/smashers.
Stainless in "modern"/"urban"/"office" folders that may be called upon to cut a meatball parm sandwich or other food.
 
marcinek said:
Carbon in "traditional" slipjoints and fixed blades for the ease of sharpening and patina.
Tough carbon like 5160 in big chopper/basher/smashers.
Stainless in "modern"/"urban"/"office" folders that may be called upon to cut a meatball parm sandwich or other food.
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You seem to know alot about steels my man, can i ask you, whats the difference between 1095 & 5160. Some people say 1095 are one of the toughest carbon steel
 
MrTroubleSnake said:
You seem to know alot about steels my man, can i ask you, whats the difference between 1095 & 5160. Some people say 1095 are one of the toughest carbon steel
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Hardly. zknives.com is a good source of information. I do know that 1095 and 5150 differ in compostion, the 10XX series of steels might only contain iron and different percents of carbon. 5160 has other "stuff" in it. I believe 5160 is known for its strength (or toughness, I always get the two confused). I do know it is very often used as spring leaf steel in vehicles, so if it can stand up to that, it can probably stand up to being used to bash/smash/chop stuff with. That's good enough for me.

All that said, 1095 is no "slouch" either. Its going to work very well in a wide range of applications as it has for years and years. It's "classic" and but as sexy as some of the new "super" carbon steels.

All that said, I am in no way a steel junkie. Heck, AUS-8 makes me perfectly happy.
 
Stainless.

Even in my outdoors knife.

My F1 does not know it isn't carbon, and thus can't be a hard use knife.;)
 
I usually carry both. endura (stainless) then a smaller carbon blade for my finer slicing needs (opinel) or h1 and carbon, where the h1 blades takes the abuse and dirty jobs
 
i prefer high carbon to stainless, more of outdoor knife steel. "i think" however you will have to worry about rust. but it makes you feel more attached to your knife if you have to care for it more, at least for me. i have esee 4 and i prefer it to coldsteel srk sanmai. it just doesnt have that wilderness look to it, probably cuz of lack of coating. but if you want a knife you can just use and keep in its sheath without care, then you'll want stainless. but it all depends on how you plan to use it, like what mrtroublesnake said, high carbon more outdoor knife not for say a marine tactical knife, or for boating because of salt water"althoug all it takes is some wd40 on blade to keep away rust". but stainless will do well wherever you may use it and you dont have to worry bout rust, althoug not as well outdoors as most high carbon. specifically 1095 found in most survival outdoors knife. so you wont find as many outdoor survival knives in stainless as in high carbon. at least thats my interperetation, correct me if im wrong
 
dbrakers said:
i prefer high carbon to stainless, more of outdoor knife steel. "i think" however you will have to worry about rust. but it makes you feel more attached to your knife if you have to care for it more, at least for me. i have esee 4 and i prefer it to coldsteel srk sanmai. it just doesnt have that wilderness look to it, probably cuz of lack of coating. but if you want a knife you can just use and keep in its sheath without care, then you'll want stainless. but it all depends on how you plan to use it, like what mrtroublesnake said, high carbon more outdoor knife not for say a marine tactical knife, or for boating because of salt water"althoug all it takes is some wd40 on blade to keep away rust". but stainless will do well wherever you may use it and you dont have to worry bout rust, althoug not as well outdoors as most high carbon. specifically 1095 found in most survival outdoors knife. so you wont find as many outdoor survival knives in stainless as in high carbon. at least thats my interperetation, correct me if im wrong
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:thumbup::thumbup:
 
i don't have any carbon blades, the steels i have right now are 154cm, n690, s30v, and m390. been itching to get some 1095 though. and i liked d2 when i had it. wouldn't mind a cpm d2 leek
 
i would have to say i really like my esee, plus the unlimited warenty is a big plus, i think that esee are more practacle compared to tops, wich seem to be geared majorly to military, you dont get any solid simple blade options, at least in most catagories with tops. as far as i can tell, but youll want to look for yourself, i am by no means an expert at all, but ive looked around and was considering anaconda, but decided not to because i didnt feel sure about the batoning capabilities what with those teath on the top, so i went with junglass, since i already know esee is great brand. but youll have to make that decision for yourself, overall they both seem to be great knives to me, with my experience with esee, and what ive read and heard about tops
 
MrTroubleSnake said:
Hey guys, in my last thread i made a few mistakes that violated bladeforum but i also learned a few things. First and foremost thanks everybody for teaching me alot about the different types of steels and grinds, it has helped me in choosing my next blade. I own several stainless steel blade, but no high carbon. Im debating if i should buy one from Tops or Esee. What about you guys, do you prefer high carbon blades or stainless steel blades, & WHY? THX Everybody and Happy Holidays.:thumbup: BTW some photos wouldn't hurt:D
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One thing you should keep in mind is that when the phrase "high carbon" is used in relation to steels, it means any steel with more than 0.5% carbon. A more accurate description for steels like 1095 would be "simple carbon" steels. For example, most of the "common" (at least to us knife aficionados!) stainless steels would all be considered "high carbon" steels. And even the phrase "stainless" simply refers to any steel with a minimum of 14% chromium.
 
I don't want to be a PITA, but nowadays you can have both high carbon and stainless at the same time. The advances in metal and steel production in the last 40 years are really amazing. Most of the popular stainless steels are also high carbon steels (greater than 0.6% carbon by weight). I'm pretty picky though, and there are certain steels I'd never choose for certain applications if performance were what I wanted. If somehow I got the steel for free, well that becomes a different matter. I am a certified steel junky, and there are uses where I'm perfectly happy with AUS-6 and 440A steels, though these are generally considered low quality. They aren't, but you have to match application to steel, and use a manufacturer known for quality.

To more directly answer the question, if you don't have a knife in good basic carbon steel, you should at least try one. Personally, I'd love a Case stockman or trapper traditional knife in Case's CV carbon steel. If you want to go ultra cheap, try an Opinel or Svord knife, or a carbon steel Mora for a fixed blade. Both come in fairly simple carbon steel and have excellent geometry for pure cutting.

Edited to add: +1 to Cynics post. It really is considerably more complicated than just "carbon and stainless". That's what makes it so much fun for me. Also, most steels were intended to perform in specific applications, and are at their best when used in similar circumstances.
 
dbrakers said:
not as well outdoors as most high carbon. specifically 1095 found in most survival outdoors knife. so you wont find as many outdoor survival knives in stainless as in high carbon. at least thats my interperetation, correct me if im wrong
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My laminated VG10 FI "survival" knife works just as well as any carbon knife out there.

Just as "tough", edge retention is great.

Batoned through a 3 1/2" diameter log

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No chips, fractures, rolls, and would still shave hair.
 
My laminated VG10 FI "survival" knife works just as well as any carbon knife out there.

Just as "tough", edge retention is great.

Batoned through a 3 1/2" diameter log
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wow nice, i guess i just i was mistaken about that, it was just in my experience i guess i wasnt as pleased. i was just wondering if they make any large 9' stainless steel survival knives, i know cold steel has some but i wanted to know about anyone else, cuz i might consider it later
 
I'm no expert on steels, but I have learned a few things from experience.

First, there is no such thing as "perfect" or "indestructible" or "never needs sharpening", so all steels and knives have some good/bad aspects to them, depending on your point of view and what you use them for.
So then, it's a matter of what suits you the best, for your needs, and your price range.

For me, something like 1095, or 1075 or 5160 are all what I consider great knife steels that have been getting it done for a long time.
They are not expensive super-steels, and they need regular sharpening with use, and they need to be cared for so they don't rust.
But they will do most any job you ask of them, for a very reasonable cost.

The rest of it is all about preferences for edge-holding so you don't have to sharpen as often, or stainless because you don't want to worry about rust, or whatever "special attributes" you think are worth paying a higher price for.
But in the end, a good 1095 knife with a good blade geometry for my tasks, and a quality heat treat, that is kept sharp is all I ever need. Anything else than that is a step toward some specialty that I might WANT, but not necessarily "need".
 
dbrakers said:
i prefer high carbon to stainless, more of outdoor knife steel. "i think" however you will have to worry about rust. but it makes you feel more attached to your knife if you have to care for it more, at least for me. i have esee 4 and i prefer it to coldsteel srk sanmai. it just doesnt have that wilderness look to it, probably cuz of lack of coating...
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Interesting stuff in that post. :thumbup:

I wouldn't worry too much about rust. Even on an uncoated "carbon steel" blade. Wipe it off before putting in in its sheath, keep a light coat of oil on it, and don't store it in its sheath for the long-term. Outdoorsmen have been using uncoated carbon blades for a long, long time and they did just fine.

I also find your "wilderness/coating" opinion interesting. Certainly, its all a matter of opinion, but I find nothing particularly "outdoorsy" about a black coated, gray micarta handled tactical. To each his own! But when I think "woodsy" I think natural handle materials and uncoated.
 
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