LC200N

XtianAus

XtianAus

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I am suprised it isn't more common.
My understanding is it is practically a
stain-proof version of the beloved AEBL.

Does anyone know of/can recommend custom makers who like to use it/know what they're doing with their HT?

Thanks
 
I had it heat treated by Jarod Todd. He can get it close to 61 HRC which is about as high as it goes to my knowledge, and where it belongs, in my opinion.

MagnaCut makes it obsolete for my uses.
 
Last I checked it was nearly eight times more expensive to acquire in North America than AEB-L. One of the reasons I moved away from it.
 
No idea.
 
8x? Wow!
I guess you'd really need/want the stainlessness to go for it.

I like AEBL a lot. But I also haven't found it very stainless (I guess HT also affects this)
 
XtianAus said:
8x? Wow!
I guess you'd really need/want the stainlessness to go for it.

I like AEBL a lot. But I also haven't found it very stainless (I guess HT also affects this)
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LC200N was developed for space applications, where performance requirements are extreme and the cost of failure ridiculously high. So you are paying for that level of performance. You are also paying for it being a low usage alloy. Not many people need the specific performance that it gives. You could call it a "Boutique steel" .

What are you doing that AEBL is corroding?
I live a couple of miles from the beach, have dozens of knives in various stainless steels, and have not had any corrosion issues on any of them.
 
knarfeng said:
LC200N was developed for space applications, where performance requirements are extreme and the cost of failure ridiculously high. So you are paying for that level of performance. You are also paying for it being a low usage alloy. Not many people need the specific performance that it gives. You could call it a "Boutique steel" .

What are you doing that AEBL is corroding?
I live a couple of miles from the beach, have dozens of knives in various stainless steels, and have not had any corrosion issues on any of them.
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Man that's cool. What a facinating steel. Similarly specialized to Vanax by the sound of it.

I have only had it twice from one maker but it was corroding along the tang where the handle is. I think from my hands. I have very acidic skin. You can tell which side of the bed is mine because of the bleach like stain I leave lol.
It wasn't a big deal. I can manage it but it really annoys me. I hate rust, I have such ocd with it so merely holding a knife causing it to rust is infuriating.
 
XtianAus said:
I have only had it twice from one maker but it was corroding along the tang where the handle is.
Click to expand...

One possibility comes to mind, which is galvanic corrosion due to possible contaminant particles of a foreign alloy.
 
David Mary said:
One possibility comes to mind, which is galvanic corrosion due to possible contaminant particles of a foreign alloy.
Click to expand...
Yes it does.

Stainless steel is "stainless" because of a tightly adhering oxide layer which is only a couple of atoms thick. The layer prevents oxygen and water from contacting the iron. If the layer gets contaminated, it becomes an imperfect barrier and corrosion can occur. This can occur if tools and abrasives which have been used on non-stainless steels are subsequently used on stainless steel. Non-stainless particles can become embedded in the stainless steel surface. If they do, they create a pathway for moisture/oxygen.

So I have to wonder how the tang surface was prepared for the handle. I suggest removing the corrosion by cleaning the surface to remove any oils, then light abrasion (scuff sanding) using a new piece of aluminum oxide sandpaper (180-220 grit) which has not been used on anything else. This should remove any contaminant. If you can remove the handle pieces first, that would result in a more complete treatment.

Acids can cause corrosion, but it needs to be very acidic. If it actually is acidic skin oils, you might try cleaning the knife before you put it into storage, similar to what is done with carbon steel blades.
 
knarfeng said:
Stainless steel is "stainless" because of a tightly adhering oxide layer which is only a couple of atoms thick. The layer prevents oxygen and water from contacting the iron. If the layer gets contaminated, it becomes an imperfect barrier and corrosion can occur. This can occur if tools and abrasives which have been used on non-stainless steels are subsequently used on stainless steel. Non-stainless particles can become embedded in the stainless steel surface. If they do, they create a pathway for moisture/oxygen.
Click to expand...
This is very possible because this particular maker also works with 3V
 
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