O-1 vs A-2

W

Will Kwan

Joined
Nov 23, 1998
Messages
1,594
A lot of people report starting with O-1 and then switching to A-2. What advantages (edge retention, toughness, abrasion resistance, etc.) does A-2 have over O-1 in the compromise blade size of 6-9".

Will
 
A-2 is considered an "air hardening" steel
which meens just that. It can be dificult to
control the hardening rate in large blades
or odd shaped ones. It will be consideribly
harder than an 0-1 blade and alot more durable. Some times A-2 is called "Hi-speed" steel and it is often used in
cheap drill bits which is a good source of
useful material. When using A-2 I would not allow for more than about a 10" blade.
 
Cat_x29 :

When using A-2 I would not allow for more than about a 10" blade.
Click to expand...

So would it be safe to assume that since A2 is more durable than O1 you would not use O1 in blades nearly that long?

Are there any makers here who use A2, and if so why do you chose that. Or does anyone use O1 and prefer it over A2?

-Cliff
 
For starting out IMHO 5160 is a better choice
ITs alot more forgiving than either of these materials .

O1 will work fine as a oil quench type material.

A2 is air hardening. Once its air quenched its harder to control warp ect.

Both make great blades for certain purposes.
A2 holds a great edge but is a bit brittle .
I would temper it down a few RC points when making a big blade .



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Although I'm not sure how, A2 can be diffeentially hardened, leaving an edge about 63 and a spine about 42. Sean Perkins does this to his knives, and they hold an edge better than anything short of CPM that I have ever seen
Aaron

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aaronm@cs.brandeis.edu
I like my women like I like my knives: strong, sharp, well-formed and pattern-welded!
 
A-2 is my favorite steel for large survival and combat type knives. If heat treated properly that is. It is a bit more corrosion and wear resistant than O-1 im my opinion, and makes a very tough blade. It can be somewhat differentially heat treated by keeping the edge under water and heating the back of the blade but this is touchy and not for someone not familiar with the process. I agree with Darrell in drawing it down a point or 2 for big blades. I have no trouble with warpage as I have made a jig out of a couple of pieces of angle iron that I clamp just the back of the blade in when air cooling. This and even grinding and I have no warp. I am about to start on a 23" short sword in A-2, and previous sword are still out there chopping away, as well as a bunch of my Nordooh design. A knife that comes to mind with a reputation for toughness is Jerry Busse's Steel Heart, Badger Attack's etc. These are A-2 knives. A-2 takes about the scariest edge of any material I have ever worked with.

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www.simonichknives.com
 
I couldn't have said it better myself, Rob!
A2 is a wonderful steel, far superior to 01, IMHO. I consider the Air hardening to be a big PLUS in heat treatment, as it permits me to protect the steel using foil, and still get a proper quench rate. I have no problems holding my blades dead flat, and I'm generally doing a highly unsymmetric chisel grind.
I have never had an A2 blade fail, at any length, and wouldn't hesitate to use it for a really long blade. 58-60 is a fine hardness.
If I wanted more toughness still, I'd use 3V.

and, YES, A2 can be brought up to the scariest kind of sharp

RJ Martin
 
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