need to ht single cpm 3v blade

fishface5

fishface5

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I am making my first knife from scratch at last, .17 stock CPM 3v camp knife about the size of a BK-2. I need to send it out for heat treat and my understanding is that Peters is pricey for a single blade. Do you guys have any preferred ht service for a single blade, based on your experience? Should I request a particular hardness for a blade of this size/stock/intended use? Also does cryo treatment make sense for 3v? Many thanks for any input!
 
Can't help you with a source for HT'ing a single blade, but I may be able to help with your other questions.

Cryo on 3V, yeah go for it if available. There's certainly no reason not to. Even a basic cold treatment in dry ice can help complete the quench and reduce retained austenite.

Hardness really depends on your intended use for the knife, and which properties are most important to you.

3V at 58Rc has a wonderful balance of high toughness and good edge-retention, and isn't too difficult to sharpen. At 62Rc it will be a little less tough (but still pretty darn tough), but naturally have higher wear-resistance. With a knife that size, you could honestly go either way and not have a problem.

Sooo... if it's a utility/survival/general purpose knife, I'd go for 58, and if it's ground really thin to be a dedicated slicer, I'd go for 62.

Hope this helps! :)
 
Bos is probably as expensive as Peter's. Texas knife supply will do single blades for a few bucks cheaper than Peter's.

As far as hardness, I like 60 rc as a good balance but like James said, it depends on what you're building it for. Also, have it cryo treated if its an option.
 
I just sent one off to Texas knife supply. It was $27.95 total + $3.65 to ship it to them USPS. Yours would be $5 less if its under 10 inches, and an additional $4 less if you don't request a specific HRC (I wanted several points harder than their default).
Personally I think I'm going to stick to stuff I can heat treat myself until I can work up enough bulk to bring the price per blade down.
 
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