Queen cutlery steel (d2,1095,420hc)

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lonestar1979

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Mar 2, 2014
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How is the heat treatment that Queen does for their steels stated above?Ease of sharpening and edge holding,edge stability,etc?
 
I have a 41L in D2. The heat treat seems amazing. The edge it holds is almost unbelievable. It was a beast putting the initial edge on because the angles had to be reprofiled (was way too shallow an angle for a super sharp edge). Once the edge was created the way I wanted it...wow! The Queen 1095 seems on par with my GEC 1095 blades.
 
I've never used Queen's 1095 but I've used their 420HC and D2 enough to have an opinion.

Their 420HC is decent steel. I've never had a problem with it but I'm not real picky about blade steel. I would rate it a step above Case's Tru-Sharp. Easy to sharpen, decent edge retention, and excellent corrosion resistance.

Their D2 on the other hand, just about cannot be beat among most steels offered on traditional knives. Edge retention is very good. It's tough to sharpen and you'll need diamond stones or the equivalent but that just means it has good abrasion resistance which is mostly what is needed for good edge retention. If you haven't tried Queen's D2 I highly recommend you consider it if you don't mind a little extra work on the stones.

I know that Queen uses Peter's Heat Treat services for their D2. A reputable service provider. I suppose they use Peter's for all their steels but I don't know that for a fact.
 
Their D2 is pretty amazing, holds an edge like S30V. It will help help to have some DMT combos to set the edge when sharpening.
 
Queen has their D2 hardened to a 58-59, which is several points softer than what some makers of modern knives typically run that alloy at. But even at that hardness, it will outperform 440C.
 
I have several Queen D2 bladed knives, and it is among my all time favorites! A beast to sharpen but holds an edge forever:thumbsup: Their regular stainless is fine, it takes a good edge and is easy to sharpen but is nothing special.
 
I have small belt sander,and will first thin it out little.I touch up most of my pocket knives on folding DMT extra coarse ,and have no porblems with harder steels.
 
I have 2 Queens in D2 that have become regular users. One is a #99 Scout, and one is a #3 Mountain Man. Both blades are surprisingly thin behind the edge. The D2 seems to hold an edge like crazy, far outperforming any of my other traditional folders. Much better than my Queen ATS-34, Case 154CM, and Camillus 154CM. I think that Queen's heat treatment is pretty darned good. No edge rollover as yet, and the blades haven't chipped yet either.

I use DMT diamond bench stones to sharpen my D2, so it's not all that tough. I wouldn't even bother trying it with an Arkansas stone. If I want a more polished edge, I'll finish up with a Spyderco fine ceramic bench stone.

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Hopefully not a complete thread dredge, I'm looking at getting my first queen (and first traditional outside of a SAK), because of the D2, and I'm curious if everything else about the knives are doing well. I'm specifically after a large trapper in D2 (especially after reading this thread about good heat treat) but am curious if everything else is good. I'm hearing they have some QC issues but if I get it from a reputable dealer should I have any real worries?

I tried searching "queen cutlery" and this thread seems to have the most experience with the newer D2 knives.
 
My latest model Queen in D2 is a three blade Railsplitter from 2016. That particular example is one of the good ones. A very well made knife in both fit & finish and in my opinion, blade grinds. It still has that incurable rough blade action that Queen is notorious for but it was pretty easy for me to get used to it considering that the knife is fantastic otherwise. And the blade action isn't terrible. Just a little bit rougher, or less smooth, than most other brands.

I bought a 2017 two blade Railsplitter a month or so ago in 1095 carbon steel with a Keystone shield on each side of the knife. Both shields are pinned and this knife is well made also although not quite as stellar as the aforementioned knife.

I think Queen is getting better with their QC but I only have those two to compare. All of my other Queen knives were made several years ago with the exception of a Tuna Valley Cattleman.
 
bikerector said:
...but am curious if everything else is good...
Click to expand...

Disclaimer:
I've only had limited experience with recent (Daniels family ownership) Queen made knives.... three... and they were all short runs and factory prototypes and factory seconds. They had problems but I don't think they are representative. Be wary of one of a kind, prototypes and seconds. I suspect they may have been parts knives made to keep the lights on. I have owned a LOT of Queen made knives made prior to Daniels family ownership.

Now that the disclaimer is made...

Mechanics and blade grinds are two things to pay particular attention to. Blade grinds often get confused with edges. They aren't the same thing. Most traditional knives have full flat grinds (there are some with saber grinds, etc.).

In the past, there has been a lot of variation with Queen's knives of different steels. I made a post about it. Here's a link: http://www.bladeforums.com/threads/queen-grinds-on-1095-420hc-and-ats-34.1297249/ The edge is important of course but it is not the only thing that matters. The grind also has a big impact on the performance.

This seems to be something they are trying to improve on. Personally, I would skip anything with 420 HC. In the past the grinds on 420HC were not good. In the past, the 1095 is usually pretty good. The D2 grinds range from super thick to normal to super thin on different patterns. In the past, the ats34 was a bit thick behind the edge.

If possible, I'd try to find something at brick and mortar store and look over the knife, examining the mechanics and the grinds--they can be difficult to judge from standard sales photos.
 
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Thanks for bringing that up about blade grinds, Jake. They are indeed often confused with edge grinds.

I should clarify for bikerector that when I mentioned blade grinds in my post above I was referring to that very thing, not edge grinds. Both of my later models have blades that are ground thinner than what I've seen from Queen in the past. Could be just a fluke but I have some comparison photos if anyone cares to see them.
 
Thank you for the quick input. I guess I'll have to rethink ordering the queens online as I was about to order them.

Unfortunately, I don't think there is a shop near me that carries queen. The only shop that carries a fair assortment of knives by me is an army surplus store and they stick to tactical and mall-ninja cutlery. None of the gun shops seem to carry queen from what I was able to find. Finding a place that carries higher end traditionals has been unsuccessful so think I'm stuck to online ordering for now. Case is an exception but I just don't get excited about case knives for some reason.
 
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Good posts, Rick. I hadn't seen your post previously since we posted around the same time.

bikerector, you might see if an online dealer is willing to accommodate a few concise questions about a particular knife before you purchase it.
 
I think Queen is really pushing to change a lot of their past reputation. They hired a new Master Cutler to oversee all stages of production, and the President and Sales team has also been replaced.
 
Good to hear that about Queen. They make great stuff but it's been about the fit and finish and now it will get fixed. Yea !!! I need a Senator from them that's in the vein of an old Eisenhower and made in the Tuna Valley line. That would be sweet. I get a feeling the younger Daniels are going to make sure the ship gets righted and change everything for the better. Now to get Jr. Howard to get GEC in the modern age with upgrade materials. Oh Yea !!!
 
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