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L6. Please give your opinion on it's properties.

T

TheMartialWay

Joined
Jul 2, 1999
Messages
1,347

Hello all,

I am interested in hearing about the characteristics and properties of this steel. Edge retention, stain resistence, blah, blah, blah, etc. etc. Thanks.

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Louis Buccellato
http://www.themartialway.com
Knives, Weapons and equipment. Best prices anywhere.
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"only the paranoid will survive"
 
L6 is commonly known as saw steel because it is used for the making of saws, large and small. It is a simple tool steel. I have a small utility knife in L6. It is very tough, and holds an edge extraordinarily well. It seems a little harder to sharpen than O1, W2, or 5160 steels, but that may just be the heat treat on this particular knife.

L6 has No real rust resistance. Treat it like any other carbon steel: oil, wax, or tuffcloth is required. Great steel.

From Joe Talmadge's STEEL FAQ here on this site:

L6
A band saw steel that is very tough and holds an edge well, but rusts easily. It is, like O-1, a forgiving steel for the forger. If you're willing to put up with the maintenance,this may be one of the very best steels available for cutlery, especially where toughness is desired.

Hope this helps,

Paracelsus
 
Edge retention is great, stain resistance is awfull. To me it was hard to grind but made a great knife as far as holding an edge was concerned.
Dr. James Batson told me that they had made some knives for artic service and the ones made of L6 were the only ones that didn't break due to the cold weather.
I have been using it in my damascus mix with 1084 and will soon use it with 52100 for damascus. It has enough nickel in it to contrast with the other steels when etched in Ferric Chloride.

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Ray Kirk
ABS - JS
http://www.tah-usa.net/raker
 
Would you say that it is less stain resistant than 1095?

In a fairly dry climate, would Tuff-cloth be enough to keep it from rusting? Or is there no stoping it??

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Louis Buccellato
http://www.themartialway.com
Knives, Weapons and equipment. Best prices anywhere.
-------------

"only the paranoid will survive"
 
L6STEEL ??
He's a GREAT GUY! He also lives in Florida!! He makes VERY nice knives and participates in the shop talk forum often!!
biggrin.gif


Oh the steel!!! I am going to have a knife made from it so I will follow this thread with much interest.
Neil

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Knives IN STOCK!!!!

blackwoodknives.com
 
i have been using L-6 for 18 years it holds a very good edge i think 1084 will rust a little before L-6 but dont blink your eyes or you will miss it as far as rust prevention is concerened if you keep it dry it will never rust you can use anything on it if its oiley minerl oil works good never use a sheath made of crhome tanned leather use only use vegtable tanned leather

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All that is not Given Is Lost
 
I have several knives made from L6, and they are as tough as a person needs! The knives I have are made by Kevin Cashen and he used the marquenching method for heat treating these blades. I noticed they are somewhat hard to sharpen, but I dont mind spending the extra effort. Just a note, Larry Harley used an L6 blade to win the cutting competition a while back. Just make sure you wipe this steel down often.

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Danbo, soul brother of Rambo
 
I'll note that a few years back, there was a survey on the Knife List email list, asking knifemakers about which steel would you choose for your personal knife, or something to that effect. L-6 was the most popular answer.
 
One of the issues with "L6" is the variability of sources. Many people make knives out of worn out sawmill blades or other surplus sources. There are such a large varieties of manufacturers over a large number of years that saw blade steel is not a highly controlled source for L6.

I have found saw blade knives for as low as $30.00 with a crown stag handle. The design and sheath could best be described as primitive, but it's a heck of a lot of working knife for the money. See Mork:

http://homestead.com/morkltd/morkltd.html


[This message has been edited by Jeff Clark (edited 09-19-2000).]
 
"The L stands for low alloy, indicating that this steel is largely plain carbon steel, but with some refined characteristics. It is considered a nickel-based steel. Nickel enters the ferride matrix of the steel, giving it greater toughness. The wear resistance of this steel is about the same as plain carbon steel of equal carbon content, but the steel is far tougher, approaching the toughness of silicon shock-resisting steels."

-- David Boye, Step-by-Step Knifemaking (Emmaus, PA: Rodale Press, 1977), p. 258
 
Also FYI -- Running Dog Knife Co makes a number of models from a Swedish band saw steel called 15N2. They state that it is similar to L6, and use a coat that they call black Moly. (Other models are made with 1084, some with 440C and other stainless steels.)

Interesting knives -- I recall Chiro75 very favorably reviewed one in his neck knife comparison some months back. Good, minimalist, functional designs at very reasonable prices. I've been considering one for a while. Check em out at:

www.runningdogknife.bigstep.com

Glen
 
So, are we talking about plain old 7 1/4 inch skill saw blades? I have saved "several" over the years, just because I have a hard time throwing away anything that could be "someday" turned into a knife.
 
The saw mill blades that I use are the big ones (30" to 60" dia.). I tried a 7 1/4" once, when I went to show a person how flexable it was, it folded over. Best thing I know to do on any thing that is to be made into a knife, is test a small portion of it. Heat it to red and cool it quickly to see if it will harden. If it hardens, it can be made into a knife. If not, it will fold like mine did.

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Ray Kirk
http://www.tah-usa.net/raker
 
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