Need a little help selecting steel.

[ciliatus]

I'm about to start my first knife project, a small kitchen knife, very soon. Thanks to these forums I've decided on using .060 AEB-L for this one. After that I intend on making some knives for myself, my brother and my dad for deer hunting. At this point I'm pretty undecided on the specific design, but I'm thinking something in the same vein as a Spyderco Moran. That being said, I wanted to go ahead and order my steel for both projects to save on shipping.

I don't intend on tackling heat treating myself for a while so everything will be sent out for that. Also, I'll be doing most of the work by hand, with a hacksaw and files/jig. Given these pretty broad details, is there a good direction for me to go, steel-wise?

Also, my first design is only 1" wide but I was curious if I should order a piece wider than that just for more options in the future?

 

[A.McPherson]

Hey there! Welcome to bladeforums! So the wisdom that I got, and that is told to most is get some 1084 from Aldo (newjersey steelBarron.com) If you are interested in doing your own heat treat. If you are sending it off to get heat treated by a pro, get what ever you want! Look through the stickies up at the top of the page for more info than you could ever want!

 

[ciliatus]

I'm a little confused by the thickness information, at least on Aldo's site. Several of the steels, including 440c, have two thicknesses displayed. For example, 440c in .140" / .156". What exactly does that mean? Does 440 not come in .125" thickness?

Also, why is it that some of the steels ask about "removing decarb", again, for instance, 440c. However the AEB-L does not ask about this option. And why does it come in .070 thickness rather than .060?

 

[M.FREEZE]

I'm a little confused by the thickness information, at least on Aldo's site. Several of the steels, including 440c, have two thicknesses displayed. For example, 440c in .140" / .156". What exactly does that mean? Does 440 not come in .125" thickness?

Also, why is it that some of the steels ask about "removing decarb", again, for instance, 440c. However the AEB-L does not ask about this option. And why does it come in .070 thickness rather than .060?

The .140/.156 is a measurement that displays "working tolerance". For instance, if you wanted a knife to be specifically .140 and purchased a piece of steel .140 thick, it would be thinner after surface grinding etc... So if you buy a .140/.156 piece of steel, you can remove steel and still have a true .140 piece of steel. At least that is how it's been explained to me.

The "decarb" is an option that you have to buy steel that has had the top layer ground off and is a cleaner piece.

 

[ciliatus]

The .140/.156 is a measurement that displays "working tolerance". For instance, if you wanted a knife to be specifically .140 and purchased a piece of steel .140 thick, it would be thinner after surface grinding etc... So if you buy a .140/.156 piece of steel, you can remove steel and still have a true .140 piece of steel. At least that is how it's been explained to me.

The "decarb" is an option that you have to buy steel that has had the top layer ground off and is a cleaner piece.

Thanks. That makes sense. So within the stainless section on Aldo's site, it seems like all of the steels have the decarb option other than AEB-L. Why is that? Also, ultimately what I'm trying to figure out is where, or how, to get 1/16" AEB-L and 1/8" 440c. I've spent many hours over the last month or so reading and re-reading stickies, watching and re-watching videos, trying to figure out the basics and not screw up my first knife. Now that I'm to the point of ordering steel, I'm thoroughly confused.

 

[Brian.Evans]

Thanks. That makes sense. So within the stainless section on Aldo's site, it seems like all of the steels have the decarb option other than AEB-L. Why is that? Also, ultimately what I'm trying to figure out is where, or how, to get 1/16" AEB-L and 1/8" 440c. I've spent many hours over the last month or so reading and re-reading stickies, watching and re-watching videos, trying to figure out the basics and not screw up my first knife. Now that I'm to the point of ordering steel, I'm thoroughly confused.

After I take kids to school I will try to find some steel to take pictures of to show you. If you have the option to have decarb grind off, do it. That crap eats belts. If there isn't an option listed, the steel doesn't need it. Pictures make it easier. Give me a couple hours.

 

[Robert Erickson]

The 0.070 AEBL on Aldo's site is 1/16 essentially (only 75 thousandths difference). You can get 440C from Aldo as well but you'd have to surface grind the 0.140 stuff down to 0.125. Other sources for 440C are knifemaking.com, texasknife.com, usaknifemaker.com, alphaknifesupply.com. Sometimes you have to get something close and either just use it a little thick or grind it down to the size you want.

 

[Darrin Sanders]

HRA=hot rolled & annealed and will have mill scale.
CRA=cold rolled & annealed and will not have scale.
That's why some of the steels listed have the grinding option and some don't.

 

[jdm61]

Why not use AEB-L for everything? The .130 stuff would be almost perfect for a riff on the Spyderco Moran design. From what I understand, AEB-L other than the very rare 3/16 size, comes on big spools and is fairly clean and decarb free so that it can be fed right into stamping presses.

 

[ciliatus]

After I take kids to school I will try to find some steel to take pictures of to show you. If you have the option to have decarb grind off, do it. That crap eats belts. If there isn't an option listed, the steel doesn't need it. Pictures make it easier. Give me a couple hours.

I see. I've seen videos of people removing it with a belt sander, which I don't have the option of doing since I only have hand tools at the moment. I didn't realize that the lack of option meant that it didn't need it. Thanks.

HRA=hot rolled & annealed and will have mill scale.
CRA=cold rolled & annealed and will not have scale.
That's why some of the steels listed have the grinding option and some don't.

Good to know. Thank you.

Why not use AEB-L for everything? The .130 stuff would be almost perfect for a riff on the Spyderco Moran design. From what I understand, AEB-L other than the very rare 3/16 size, comes on big spools and is fairly clean and decarb free so that it can be fed right into stamping presses.

So does this mean that it wouldn't require any surface prep before I'm able to start filing? The only reason I was leaning toward 440c was based on a Walter Sorrells video recommending it as a good steel for a beginners knife project. This would probably be the perfect solution, especially considering the price of AEB-L. Thanks for the recommendation.