Magnamax Mule chippy?

donnord

donnord

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Dec 22, 2007
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I had a bunch 0of cardboard laying around from projects and decided to test some Mules and other knives. I don't want to get into too much detail now but the magnamax has much better edge retention than Magnacut, S45Vn, D2 and 440C. However the Magnamax developed a noticeable chip cutting cardboard. Some double layer reinforced cardboard included. Good news is the chip was easy to get rid of with a 450 diamond matrix stone.
 
donnord said:
I had a bunch 0of cardboard laying around from projects and decided to test some Mules and other knives. I don't want to get into too much detail now but the magnamax has much better edge retention than Magnacut, S45Vn, D2 and 440C. However the Magnamax developed a noticeable chip cutting cardboard. Some double layer reinforced cardboard included. Good news is the chip was easy to get rid of with a 450 diamond matrix stone.
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Was at the factory edge?

Did you test it again to see if the behavior was consistent or if it was an outlier?
 
It was the factory plain edge. Which was still sharp after a large number of cuts. For giggles I went and got my buck 119 with a resharpened edge to compare. For the first 5 cuts the Buck was smooth and cut a little better, but the edge went away very quickly after that. The magnamax has since been resharpened at 19 DPS pretty close to the factory angle. So far no chips.
 
I didn't have chipping with the factory edge, but I didn't keep that for very long. I took the angle on mine way back, probably around 12-13dps, to see how it would behave, and got some visible chipping pretty quickly while cutting cardboard. I got the chips out with a small 16dps bevel but left it pretty thin behind that, and it's held up better. I can see a little bit of microchipping when I blow up a close-up photo with my phone, but it's still cutting well and smoothly. I'm going to try a more obtuse angle next time around. I also want to get something in between a 600 grit diamond plate and the ceramic I've tried for polishing.

I'm not surprised or complaining about the chipping BTW. I know this isn't the toughest steel. Just wanted to push it a bit and see what happened.
 
Same here I'm not complaining just providing feedback. I thought about taking it to 17.5 DPS but I did not want to spend the time.
 
InThePocket said:
I didn't have chipping with the factory edge, but I didn't keep that for very long. I took the angle on mine way back, probably around 12-13dps, to see how it would behave, and got some visible chipping pretty quickly while cutting cardboard. I got the chips out with a small 16dps bevel but left it pretty thin behind that, and it's held up better. I can see a little bit of microchipping when I blow up a close-up photo with my phone, but it's still cutting well and smoothly. I'm going to try a more obtuse angle next time around. I also want to get something in between a 600 grit diamond plate and the ceramic I've tried for polishing.

I'm not surprised or complaining about the chipping BTW. I know this isn't the toughest steel. Just wanted to push it a bit and see what happened.
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I'd be curious if you tried a bonded diamond/cBN stones and stropping compounds on leather.

Ceramic is not going to be ideal for edge stability with a material like this.
 
donnord said:
Same here I'm not complaining just providing feedback. I thought about taking it to 17.5 DPS but I did not want to spend the time.
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What abrasive are you using to sharpen? Are you using a system?
 
DeadboxHero said:
I'd be curious if you tried a bonded diamond/cBN stones and stropping compounds on leather.

Ceramic is not going to be ideal for edge stability with a material like this.
Click to expand...

The only diamond sharpeners I have are the 320/600 plates on my Worksharp. What would you recommend after the 600? Should I stay away from ceramic entirely? I'm just jumping in with what I have right now, and this is the first time I've used a steel with this level of wear resistance... I really appreciate your input.
 
InThePocket said:
The only diamond sharpeners I have are the 320/600 plates on my Worksharp. What would you recommend after the 600? Should I stay away from ceramic entirely? I'm just jumping in with what I have right now, and this is the first time I've used a steel with this level of wear resistance... I really appreciate your input.
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Yes, avoid the ceramic. Look up "gritomatic" they have the largest selection of bonded diamond and cBN stones.

The stones you are using now are electroplated so they leave a deeper scratch than a bonded stone.

Finish with diamond/cBN loaded on leather.

1um size is the best one to use.
 
DeadboxHero said:
Yes, avoid the ceramic. Look up "gritomatic" they have the largest selection of bonded diamond and cBN stones.

The stones you are using now are electroplated so they leave a deeper scratch than a bonded stone.

Finish with diamond/cBN loaded on leather.

1um size is the best one to use.
Click to expand...

Thanks very much. I did see scratches on the small bevel when I zoomed in on my pic of the edge, but had assumed I just didn't spend enough time with the fine ceramic. I'll get a different stone and some of that compound.
 
DeadboxHero said:
What abrasive are you using to sharpen? Are you using a system?
Click to expand...
I use a fixed system, a Xarilk, with diamond stones, and edgepro water stones. For the Magnamax I used a cheapie Xarilk 300 to start then stopped with the Edgepro 450 diamond matrix. It seems to me to take a little more time to sharpen than most steels I have but not much. The burr took the most time to get rid of. I have not tried the waterstones on Magnamax yet. I finished it on a horsehide strop loaded with 6 micron DMT paste.
 
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