nOOb here - Need Stock Advice.

J

Jeff Zimba

Joined
Feb 29, 2016
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I have to say, I feel like a kid who just bought his first V8 car. I've been teaching myself (and graciously taking advice here) to grind and do some basic forging for a little over a year. I've made a few dozen knives from high carbon files, and a few from 01 Steel from Jantz. For handle material I've been experimenting with leather, brass, micarta, antler and 550-cord. Now that I have so many options with this new grinder, I want to try a few new things.

What should I start with for steel, to grind from bar stock, different from 01? I am currently quenching with motor oil and will be changing to a vegetable oil as recommended here. I'm heat treating with a toaster oven I bought just for knives, and heating with a larger "coffee can forge" gas type I built, so you know my abilities (and inabilities).

I realize I will have different heat treatment processes for each different metal type, but this is what I have to work with for now. What are the benefits and problems with making blades from;

· Stainless Steel
· Titanium
· Damascus

And what other types should I look into like D2?

Thank you in advance, for this, and all the past guidance. Making knives has gone from a fleeting interest, to a full blown passion. I hope, some day, to be able to call myself a Knifemaker, with a strait face.

Most Sincerely,

Jeff W. Zimba
Student of the knife :-)
 
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Your best choice to get started is good old carbon steel 1084. It is the best choice for the equipment you have. You can get so-so results with 5160, but most of the othe carbon steels need closer HT specs than your set-up can deliver.


Stainless steel needs a HT oven to be hardened. The temperatures and hold times are very specific. There are many types of stainless steel, so just saying "stainless steel" is sort of like saying, "I like girls" ... there are a lot of types ... some good choices, some bad. Good starter stainless steels are 440C, AEB-L, and CPM-154. Send them out for HT.

D2 is a high alloy "semi-stainless", Most high alloy steels need a HT oven to harden.

Titanium is not a good metal to start on, and only works for specialty blades. It is mostly used for frames and liners on folders.

Damascus is almost like the "girls" example above. There is an enormous choice of types. The carbon steel damascus is easy to work and can be HTed in a forge setup. Stainless damascus and other special damascus needs a HT oven. Many start with simple cheap damascus like the stuff from Thunderforged or from Alabama Damascus.

Your coffee can forge isn't a very good device for HT. When you get a bit more experience, the need for a HT oven will become obvious. A larger and better forge will work for carbon steel blades.

Sending your blades out for HT in the beginning is a good idea anyway, as it eliminates one of the biggest failure parts in beginning knifemaking. Just learning to properly make knives is enough in the beginning.
 
Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith said:
Your best choice to get started is good old carbon steel 1084. It is the best choice for the equipment you have. You can get so-so results with 5160, but most of the othe carbon steels need closer HT specs than your set-up can deliver.


Stainless steel needs a HT oven to be hardened. The temperatures and hold times are very specific. There are many types of stainless steel, so just saying "stainless steel" is sort of like saying, "I like girls" ... there are a lot of types ... some good choices, some bad. Good starter stainless steels are 440C, AEB-L, and CPM-154. Send them out for HT.

D2 is a high alloy "semi-stainless", Most high alloy steels need a HT oven to harden.

Titanium is not a good metal to start on, and only works for specialty blades. It is mostly used for frames and liners on folders.

Damascus is almost like the "girls" example above. There is an enormous choice of types. The carbon steel damascus is easy to work and can be HTed in a forge setup. Stainless damascus and other special damascus needs a HT oven. Many start with simple cheap damascus like the stuff from Thunderforged or from Alabama Damascus.

Your coffee can forge isn't a very good device for HT. When you get a bit more experience, the need for a HT oven will become obvious. A larger and better forge will work for carbon steel blades.

Sending your blades out for HT in the beginning is a good idea anyway, as it eliminates one of the biggest failure parts in beginning knifemaking. Just learning to properly make knives is enough in the beginning.
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You rock. Very helpful indeed. I'm reading, reading more, and reading again when I'm done. I understand the vague descriptions I gave, and was looking for a general explanation like yours. When shopping in the Jantz catalog, the specifics are not there if I'm not educated about what I'm looking for. You helped me a lot. Now that I have a proper grinder, an upgraded forge and oven are next. Baby steps. For now I'm having fun with turning discarded old files into beautiful knives in my workshop. Baby steps. :-)
 
Aldo Bruno (the NJ Steel Baron) has the best 1084 around. The touch of vanadium in it helps pin the grain size -- which means that even with a primitive setup you can end up with a great blade. Every test piece of Aldo's 1084 I've heat treated in a forge (by eye) has as a very, very fine grain.
 
Jeff,

If you want to get your feet wet with oven heat treating, stop by with a couple of blades sometime when you're in Bangor and we'll throw 'em in my oven.

Dick
 
Just started playing with AEB-L from Chuck. so far its been grinding nice. the price per stick is really good and from what I understand.. if the HT is done right with a cryo, the steel is capable of a very very sharp edge, with decent toughness and fair edge retention. Its not back from ht so I have no info on how it finishes or what the edge retention is, other than its not too difficult to sharpen.

I have high hopes for it to be more or less a 'go-to' steel for non-chopping knives like hunters/skinners and maybe chef type knives. (at least its cheap enough to make lots of mistakes on while gaining experience)
 
Just about every man in Europe and North America, ... and half the women ... are very familiar with using AEB-L. It is the steel in almost all razor blades, today.

That alone proves how sharp it can get.
 
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