Opinion of titanium coated knives

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winchester73

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Jan 6, 2008
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What's your opinion of titanium stainless and 1095 coated pocket knives. I have also wondered how you would sharpen them or would the titanium go with the underlying steel too.
 
Sounds a little less then traditional to me. Let's move this to the General Knife Discussion forum.
 
winchester73 said:
What's your opinion of titanium stainless and 1095 coated pocket knives. I have also wondered how you would sharpen them or would the titanium go with the underlying steel too.
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Titanium is corrosion resistant. More accurately, like aluminum, it forms a stable oxide on the surface and quits corroding. It is soft, but light. Therefore, about the only thing it offers is corrosion resistance on a carbon blade. It will grind away with sharpening and use and lose its ability to provide corrosion resistance at the edge and wherever else it scratches through to steel, which I would think would be all over the place in pretty short order because it is soft.

It strikes me as nothing more than a gimmick really. Others may know something I don't.
 
TiN (Titanium Nitride) has a Hardness Rockwell C of 82. The HRC of ZrN (Zirconium Nitride) is 85. The HRC of TiCN (Titanium Carbonitride) is 87. The HRC of TiAlN (Titanium Aluminum Nitride) is 92. All of these coatings are used to coat drill bits and other cutting tools to extend the life of the microedges.
I use the flats of coated blades to steel the edges of uncoated ones.
 
Actually, I think the OP is referring to the Ti coated blades of the Colt series of pocketknives. You're correct about the TiN coating, but nowhere does the advertising of the Colt knives say anything but "Titanium."
 
From he responses, I'm not sure if it would have any benefit but Colt does have: " Titanium coated carbon steel blades
·Black G-10 handle. This series of Colt® knives resolve that issue with a titanium blade coating that adds protection against rust!." in the ad
 
Using the Physical Vapor Deposition process, it is easier to apply a Titanium salt (compound) to a blade than to apply raw Titanium metal. If you heat raw Titanium up to plasma temperatures, it starts to react with everything in sight. If you could apply a thin coat of raw Titanium to a steel blade, it would be soft and dull looking.
 
rajincagin said:
Negative
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Dude, do you ever offer a real opinion or are you building your post count?


To the OP, I'm not a fan of the coating. I like the powdered coats on most 1095, and the DLC coating. I've had knives with Cerakote that worked pretty well. I think Spyderco is coming out with some similar coating to replace their DLC, which is as big of an endorsement for wear and tear as I can think of. However, I usually buy uncoated stainless or strip and patina my carbon. No coating means less drag through materials. :)
 
I don't have any Colt knives, but a decent Titanium salt (ceramic) coating cannot be scratched with a file. Most organic coatings (paint, Teflon, etc. can.
 
I just picked up 2 of those Colt carbon steel slipjoints, got them in last week. I did the normal throw them in the ultrasonic to clean them routine like I do with almost all my knives. I found that the Trapper had some of the Titanium Nitride coating removed form that, as the Canoe coating remains intact. I've sent through a few other of my titanium nitride coated knives through the ultrasonic numerous times with no ill effects, so this surprised me. And the coating seems to have only came off slightly in a few areas and remain intact everywhere else, in fact I sent that Trapper through a few more times hopping I found a way to strip the coating but no luck.

This may be way outside of normal use, but I feel safe to say that the coating process isn't perfect on these knives. So well it may help with corrosion, it will help and not prevent it. I would still treat it like any other carbon steel blade and take care of it.

Oh and a little heads up the 2 I have the trapper and canoe have some pretty thick blades to them that is closer to what you find on a modern folder than the thiner blades I usually see on a traditional. And these things are built like a tank.
 
RemyKaze said:
To the OP, I'm not a fan of the coating. I like the powdered coats on most 1095, and the DLC coating. I've had knives with Cerakote that worked pretty well. I think Spyderco is coming out with some similar coating to replace their DLC, which is as big of an endorsement for wear and tear as I can think of. However, I usually buy uncoated stainless or strip and patina my carbon. No coating means less drag through materials. :)
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While I see the advantages of coatings for some knives, I still don't like them. I have camped with guys that like their carbon and have coated camp knives from carbon steel. I has been great for them to have their knives be free from rust after getting caught in rain, or having their gear take a quick swim in the river. Ditto when cleaning game since blood starts to work corroding a blade so quickly. My problem with coatings are that they don't last.

The only coated blade I have used that actually had less drag due to its coating was a teflon coated kitchen knife. It was thin and would glide through its cuts. Being real teflon and also having the advantage of being carefully washed and stored, the coating lasted for a while. But it didn't last that well, and if the knife hadn't been babied, the coating wouldn't have lasted well at all.

As far as Colt and their Ti coatings on stainless, this is a head scratcher for me. I can kind of understand coating the carbon blades as the do with some of their offerings now, but have no idea at all why they would coat their stainless models. I can't imagine the advantage, and when that dull grey coloring gets scratched and worn it will probably make those knives look like the old powder coated gas station knives.

It's a shame because the Colt knife I have (more on the way) is as good as knife as I have ever bought. Non coated, polished and swedged perfectly, it is a knife I am glad to own. I am thinking that should I fall in love with a pattern of Colt's that is offered in Ti coating only, it should be soft enough to buff off.

Robert
 
I have personally sold a number of Ti-Coat ed blades, usually the Time is over either I mirror finish, gold plate, or rainbow. I have noticed it's anti corrosion ability but does the Ti coating help the gold plate at all? Thanks
 
The natural color of a Titanium Nitride (TiN) coating is Gold. It is used on drills, milling cutters and tool bits. It is much harder than Gold plate. I have a Gold plated Swiss Army Knife. The plating is applied over the stainless steel handle, but there is no Gold on the blades.
 
MarkPinTx said:
Titanium is corrosion resistant. More accurately, like aluminum, it forms a stable oxide on the surface and quits corroding. It is soft, but light. Therefore, about the only thing it offers is corrosion resistance on a carbon blade. It will grind away with sharpening and use and lose its ability to provide corrosion resistance at the edge and wherever else it scratches through to steel, which I would think would be all over the place in pretty short order because it is soft.

It strikes me as nothing more than a gimmick really. Others may know something I don't.
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It's just that. I bought some "titanium coated" machetes and knives when I didn't know better, now they're all stripped, worn or just scratched and abraded after not much action at all. It's typical from Chinese junk and pot steel cheapos

IMG_20160328_085747_836_zpshxjkarrb.jpg


Just wording to appeal to younger audiences

DSC03255_zpsb07b8223.jpg


The true good Titanium coating is the TiN that Spyderco and others use, that's a true winner IME and I love it!

CAM02018_zps9tmi4exy.jpg


I've only managed to put a tiny little scratch on my Aqua Salts' coating

CAM04161_zpsxgl76dpl.jpg
 
I'm sure there are some cheap options out there. But something like Titanium Nitride should hold up fantastically. It is a hard wearing and corrosion resistant surface. You see it in drill bits and in many firearm parts.
As for a Ti and 1095, I assume it is some cheap "titanium" coating that probably isn't really titanium. It is a high end coating on a mid-low end steel .
 
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