newb question

[foxbat34]

Hey guys as a newly addicted (and i do mean addicted!) knife maker i have been reading about edge quenching, hardening. I am wondering, other than having a hard edge while retaining a somewhat soft spine, what is the practical benefit? Thanks. BTW this is a great forum but my wife hates it.

 

[Will Leavitt]

Looks.... people will say that it allows for a knife that will bend under stress rather than snap but in reality the cutting edge is going to snap if it's bent. You'll wind up with a blade that is bent with a cracked in the cutting edge.

Most of us (if we're honest) do it for the looks. Claying a blade and finishing it where you can see the temperline or hamon or differential hardening line can be an added asthetic dimension to a knife.

 

[Ramsey]

I still have the knife I made using 5160 at the ABS school almost twenty years ago and I pulled it down to almost 180 degrees twice after doing all the other test required for the JS and the edge didn't crack, still has a good sharp edge to this day. Jay Hendrickson taught the two week class. Even after I decided to bend it beyond 90 degrees twice it still ended up at a 30 degree angle. I have made many knives using the same method since that time. I think cracking is permissible in the test now as long as the knife stays in tact. It does make a good strong camp knife.

Ramsey