Hi my name is Yaldua and currently I'm in a bit of a pickle on deciding what type of steel to buy for a knife that a friend of mine isbmakimg for me. I need it to be durable, have excellent edge retention ,and to be able to deal with the extremes of usage by a soldier.
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Need some help
- Thread starter Yaldua
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I'm new at this myself so I'll defer to more much more experienced makers. However, some more information will be useful in answering this question.
- Is corrosion resistance a concern? If not some may suggest stainless. Will it be in a salt water environment?
- Does your friend have the ability to heat treat stainless steel or will it be sent out?
- Edge retention is good but some steels can be very difficult to next to impossible to sharpen in the field. Is field sharpening a must? There's a trade off here that you need to be aware of.
- Do you know what kind of edge profile or grind you want? Do you know how thick you want the knife?
You may want to have a look at this link.
http://knifeinformer.com/discovering-the-best-knife-steel/
- Is corrosion resistance a concern? If not some may suggest stainless. Will it be in a salt water environment?
- Does your friend have the ability to heat treat stainless steel or will it be sent out?
- Edge retention is good but some steels can be very difficult to next to impossible to sharpen in the field. Is field sharpening a must? There's a trade off here that you need to be aware of.
- Do you know what kind of edge profile or grind you want? Do you know how thick you want the knife?
You may want to have a look at this link.
http://knifeinformer.com/discovering-the-best-knife-steel/
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I'd say some of your choices may be limited by what your friend can comfortably heat treat, unless he's sending it out for heat treat, in which case he's limited to what the heat treaters are set up for.
That said, one of the most common military issue blades, the USMC Kabar is simply 1095 high carbon spring steel. While some of the latest and greated "super steels" are all well and good, when they do go dull, you'll have a heck of a time sharpening them without special equipment.
That said, one of the most common military issue blades, the USMC Kabar is simply 1095 high carbon spring steel. While some of the latest and greated "super steels" are all well and good, when they do go dull, you'll have a heck of a time sharpening them without special equipment.
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith
ilmarinen - MODERATOR
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Have you asked the smith what he recommends. It is good to choose the steel together and be sure it is one he is familliar with and can properly forge/grind/HT.
I agree with KTaG that simple is often the best choice. 1095, 52100, L-6, O-1 all make very good combat knives. In stainless, CPM 154 is great.
I agree with KTaG that simple is often the best choice. 1095, 52100, L-6, O-1 all make very good combat knives. In stainless, CPM 154 is great.
It will be in the elements in general