knife for a friend.

J

Jeremie H-W

Joined
Apr 18, 2015
Messages
24
Hello everyone.

I juste came back for a trip in Peru, and a guide I had in the amazon was really friendly and went out of his way to get me some special wood for this region that I thought would be nice to incorporate in the handle of my next knife. He ended up giving me more than enough for two knife handles, so I thought that I would make one for him the thank you gift.

I was just wondering if any of you had any advice fore me regarding the type of steel I should use since he works as a guide in the Amazon (95 to 100% humidity and lots of rain). I was thinking stainless but since I am a novice, I don't know lots alloys or their properties.

Thanks a lot in advance.
 
So you're making the knife for the guide? Or are you making it for yourself? If for the guide....he might like stainless....working in an environment like that. AEB-L or S35VN would be my stainless top picks.
 
I agree on the Stainless, but also consider the ease of sharpening - how would S35VN work there? I like 14C28N SS steels, but AEB-L seems to be also very good and easy to sharpen.
 
AEB-L sounds like a good choice. If you don't have the equipment to HT it properly, send it out. Not sure how thick you want to make it. The thickest Aldo has is .130" but that should be plenty thick.
 
I think stainless is a must for your friend working in the Amazon. But as someone already pointed out, you might want to consider ease of sharpening. You might want to ask your friend about what they like in a steel. If they are spending a long time out in the jungle they might want something that is a little softer and easier to sharpen than some of the very hard super steels popular on this forum. I know that for myself, I am pretty new to te super steel game, and I am still learning how to get my S35VN knives as sharp as I like, conversely, I have no trouble getting my 440C knives just as sharp as I want.

One particular alloy you might want to look at is N680, it's rated for saltwater, and it apparently holds a pretty good edge.
 
ABE-L would be a fine all around choice. It works well, stays sharp and is as easy to sharpen as any good steel.
Frank
 
I made a knife for my brother-in-law that works in and around water all day and everyday. 440C with canvas micarta and it works very well. I can only speak for 440c as I haven't used any other stainless steels. It sharpens easy and holds a pretty good edge.
 
Thanks a lot for all your advice!! I think I will go with AEB-L, since it seems to be the most recomanded. After looking around a bit it looks like the best steel for what I want to make.

I can't wait to get started on it!!! I'll post some pictures on this thread so you can see how it goes :)

one small question : is it easy to forge?
 
Maelstrom78 said:
Do you think it will be easy to forge?😀
Click to expand...

I know that it is never easy to forge anything, at least not yet for me. All I'm asking is if it gives good results when forged compared to stock remove.
Sorry to have asked this question wrongly earlier.
 
You don't forge Stainless. Personally, I build almost everything in S35VN and don't find it any harder to sharpen than other Stainless steels. The vanadium in S35VN will make it hold an edge longer than AEB-L so for a woods knife I would go with that.

Tim
 
Jeremie H-W said:
Out of curiosity, why can't you forge Stainless?
Click to expand...

you CAN forge stainless... but it might do more harm than good. I'd second AEB-l as well if you can find it in the size you want for your blade. if not, 13C26 is as much as makes no difference identical from another source, but again usually very thin. that being the case, I'm going to throw in 12c27 into the mix... depending on what you are looking for. it may not be the best edge holder in the world, but it's a fine carbide steel and as tough as a boiled boot. much tougher than most stainless cutlery steels (including CPMS30V and competitors) and gets extremely sharp due to it's fine carbide structure. As I said, it's not going to set any records for its edge holding, but it's pretty easy to resharpen, which is usually more important to people who aren't steel snobs like us, lol
 
After looking around, I'm going to go with CPM S35VN. it seems to be the best choice for what I want to do.

Once again, thanks you so much for all your help.

To M.Roberts, what kind of harm are we talking about? would it damage the structure of the steel or it's composition?
 
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