open talk toughness & edge retention of 1055 china

D

dingy

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Feb 19, 2008
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hi,you all. i have some 1055 knives & machete from CS, i really like those things , i think they are tough , is there any one uses knives made of 1055 , and what is your opinion?:D
 
I think 1055 is good stuff. Very tough and inexpensive. Easily takes a good working edge and holds it a very decent amount of time, especially when you consider that it's used mainly in machetes for chopping.

As with any steel HT is the main thing and Cold Steel nailed it again with their 1055.

I've been very happy with it in the blades I have that use it and have gotten good feedback from those that I've given 1055 blades too also.

ETA:I believe all of Cold Steel's 1055 machetes are produced in South Africa not China so I can't speak to any 1055 blades produced in China as I haven't used any. Sorry but I just noticed that part of your post.
 
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^^^This guy^^^ gave my little guy a 12" Barong Machete.

I was amazed at how easy it sharpened up with just a file and how well it performed just hacking up 2 x 4's.

Richard J taught me how to convex the edge and as a goof, I made it shaving sharp. It doesn't quite shave hair any more but easily shaves paper after several more 2 x 4's and a small bush that I dug up in the back yard and Gus hacked it up.
 
I've only used 1055 in machetes. But for a machete it works great. Takes a good edge with a fine file, and mostly stays sharp in soft wood as long as you don't hit any rocks or something.
I have a 12" sax(?) machete that I use for a pizza knife and I've never even had to sharpen it :)
I've used the heck out of a 12" barong machete and it's still going strong, lots of chips and dents though from dismantling old furniture full of nails and screws.
I also have an 18" spear point that works well enough limbing trees.
The only thing I did notice is that the steel will still rust through the black finish if you leave it somewhere wet. This only happened with my 18" machete. Which I left in my truck tool box for for a couple of years using it only rarely. Condensation me thinks.
 
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1055 from CS is actually some good stuff. My Trench hawk is made of it and it is fantastic. Will take a hair popping edge but wont hold it for awful long, BUT it will keep an edge good enough for chop work like with a machete or hawk. I have actually been really surprised at how tough it is... here is a piece of 1055 fixing my printer...

 
pbcg said:
I think 1055 is good stuff. Very tough and inexpensive. Easily takes a good working edge and holds it a very decent amount of time, especially when you consider that it's used mainly in machetes for chopping.

As with any steel HT is the main thing and Cold Steel nailed it again with their 1055.

I've been very happy with it in the blades I have that use it and have gotten good feedback from those that I've given 1055 blades too also.

ETA:I believe all of Cold Steel's 1055 machetes are produced in South Africa not China so I can't speak to any 1055 blades produced in China as I haven't used any. Sorry but I just noticed that part of your post.
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i also have 1055 machetes from South Africa , they are good.

many years ago , i got my GI TANTO , i chopped through a iron tube with 1 inch diameter two times , very tough blade and i just got a S shape on the edge ,no single chips.

i sent it to one of my friend who do a pimp to it , very sexy now.


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^^^^^^Looks great!^^^^^^

Been meaning to pick up one of those GI Tanto's for years now. I think it's about time!
 
Sharpens well and hold a decent edge, damned near impossible to break or bend unrecoverably. Rusts easily so keep it oiled, of course it is carbon steel.
 
Chris Pierce said:
I've only used 1055 in machetes. But for a machete it works great. Takes a good edge with a fine file, and mostly stays sharp in soft wood as long as you don't hit any rocks or something.
I have a 12" sax(?) machete that I use for a pizza knife and I've never even had to sharpen it :)
I've used the heck out of a 12" barong machete and it's still going strong, lots of chips and dents though from dismantling old furniture full of nails and screws.
I also have an 18" spear point that works well enough limbing trees.
The only thing I did notice is that the steel will still rust through the black finish if you leave it somewhere wet. This only happened with my 18" machete. Which I left in my truck tool box for for a couple of years using it only rarely. Condensation me thinks.
Click to expand...


I too love my now discontinued china produced machetes. Good thing a bought 3 18inch bowies and 2 spear points back then. Gave one bowie point to a friend and he completely love's it. The Chinese ones are 3mm thick too. Excellent ease of sharpening and does hold an edge well on wood.

But I too used one of mine to hack to pieces a long sofa. The small nails in the structure did leave loads of dents along the edge, that should have been expected on my part, but after 2-3 sharpening they are nearly gone these days. It's too bad CS changed manufacturer to their south Africa plant, they seems a little flimsy in comparison, but I never handled one myself to be honest and so may be wrong.
 
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