I recommended AUS8. Did I...

E

Edged_Obsession

Joined
Sep 30, 2009
Messages
150
So did I make the right choice? I recommended it for a good all around steel. I have a nice knife SOG Seal Team with AUS8 steel and it's been nothing but joy...What do you gents recommend?
 
Last edited:
I'm an S30V guy through and through. There's nothing wrong with AUS8, but it just doesn't have the edge-holding ability that S30V does.
 
AUS8 is a good steel for EDC if it is heat treated right. I have an older Cold Steel med. voyager in AUS8 steel and it takes a scary sharp edge and holds it well.

If you are looking for more top of the line, I would look at S30V, BG 42,154CM, CPM154,

Tool steels A2, and D2 are really nice.
 
AUS-8 is a great steel. Not what we'd call a supersteel, but it takes a wicked edge with very little practice. It is relatively stainless. It is inexpensive. Many reliable manufacturers are familiar with it, so the heat treat is generally done well.

Once knife knuts have gotten a decent collection of user knives, we tend to look at semi-custom and custom work. It makes no sense to do so without having worked through cheaper users to learn what knives can do. Only then can we take proper advantage of higher-end materials and craftmanship.
 
There are many sources for the better steels. I like to look through the Kershaw and Spyderco offerings, since both companies do a variety of blade styles and experiment with different steels. Both companies also have good variety at lower price ranges.
 
Takes an extremely sharp edge but dulls relatively quickly.
Generally equivalent to 440B.
 
For the average Joe, it is a perfectly serviceable steel. For the hard use guy and the steel snob, it probably won't cut it. Pardon the pun! :D
 
I'm a steel snob! No less than 154CM for me, sorry.

I have had, and my friends have had, bad chipping experiences with AUS-8, on SE and PE blades from both Spyderco and CRKT.

I mostly like s30v, but the occasional s60v or ZDP will do. And one of these days I'll pick up a tool steel other than D2.
 
Roger that! The SOG Seal Team is quite nice though. Do you have any experience with the SOG? Is AUS8 good for slicing though?
 
None with SOG, but the AUS-8 I still have and use lighter (fruits, and all around kitchen duty) work great when razor sharp. Its a good steel for the money, as long as your not chopping cars in half :D
 
Just a bit of a warning here...

The AUS-8 blade on my Ka-Bar/Dozier Folding Hunter is the worst steel I have ever used. It burrs like mad, holds its edge for beans, and is easily prone to rolls and nicks (I should probably increase the edge angle from 30 to 40 degrees inclusive). Although it does take a wicked sharp edge. I am not saying all AUS-8, or even all Ka-Bar AUS-8, is like this. It might have just been a badly heat treated batch. However, it is enough to put me off AUS-8 in general for good.
 
KarlMaldensNose said:
Just a bit of a warning here...

The AUS-8 blade on my Ka-Bar/Dozier Folding Hunter is the worst steel I have ever used. It burrs like mad, holds its edge for beans, and is easily prone to rolls and nicks (I should probably increase the edge angle from 30 to 40 degrees inclusive). Although it does take a wicked sharp edge. I am not saying all AUS-8, or even all Ka-Bar AUS-8, is like this. It might have just been a badly heat treated batch. However, it is enough to put me off AUS-8 in general for good.
Click to expand...

I recently acquired a Ka-Bar Dozier folding hunter and so far my experience has been different from yours. I've used it to cut/whittle wood and it performed very well and held a good edge. There was a slight amount of rolling in places but it cleaned up beautifully with just a few passes on the Sharpmakre.

In fact it didn't seem to be any more prone to rolling than knives with 154cm or VG-10 that I tested alongside it. Those knives also had some very minor rolling that cleaned up quickly.

I know that AUS-8 is softer steel than 154cm, VG-10, or S30V, but I still think it is a good quality steel for general purpose use. I'm not sure having a super hard steel is all that advantageous. They are hard to sharpen and more prone to chipping. It's a lot easier to clean up a rolled edge than it is to fix a chipped one.

For the $21.95 I paid for the Dozier I think it is a good knife. Sorry you aren't pleased with yours.

BTW, the edge on mine is 40 degrees.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top