question about sr-101

rodriguez7

rodriguez7

Gila wilderness knife works
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Feb 1, 2009
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Im putting this question here because I know I'll get more responses. Just wondering why swamp rat chose to use 52100 steel? Whats so special about it? And what rc do they run it at? Im asking because I just bought my first busse kin the other day, which is an hrlm. For a hunting and survival knife I can depend on. Are they really that tough of a knife for the money? I know not quite infi. Thanks
 
Excellent edge retention (better than INFI IMO) and almost as tough as INFI (so I've heard). It rusts easily though... you did good.
 
They are tough. You would have to be a machine to really notice the difference. What you get is a great steel! Great edge retention! Pretty close to on par with Infi. Where you loose out is in corrosion resistance. Sr101 is pretty rust agressive. Most tool steels are. No biggie. It is coated. When the coating finally wears off just do a forced patina. Or you can maintain it with oil.


Either way they are a great value. Well worth the price point!
 
To find some good info on 52100 google "Ed Fowler". He is a mastersmith, editor of Blade magazine and has written at least a couple books on the subject. His knives are 52100. He has written extensively on the properties of the steel.

Just one word of advice Rodriguez7... The steel used in a knife is far less significant than the heat treatment process. It isn't the type of steel (within reason) that makes the blade perform at a high level. It is the heat treatment given to the blade. Busse does it right and you can expect fantastic performance from your SR101. And, yes... is is extremely tough stuff!

See link... http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=731929&highlight=ratmandu
 
Asstated above.

52100 takes an exceptionaly keen edge, holds it exceptionaly well, and yet sharpens easily in the field. It is also a tremendously tough steel which makes it one of the best for hard use blades. Of course all of the above are totaly dependent on a proper heat treat which Busse/Swamprat have down to an art.
 
I use a Marine Tuff-Cloth on mine and have zero rust issues. Great steel!
 
Thanks everyone for your responses. I have researched a lot, but still want to know as much as possible.
 
So how tough will a through hardened blade like an hrlm be compared to a differential heat treated blade? Is it still relatively flexible?
 
I beat the living (insert bad word here) out of my Ratmandu every weekend at my firepit and elsewhere and it wont break, fail or Rust. Trust me I have tried to get this blade (SR101) to fail and it is as tough as nails. I batton full sized logs with it and sometimes go through the log and into rocks and the edge is perfect. I have not sharpened it yet and I have owned it for many years, I kid you not, edge retension with SR101 is amazing as the others have said. I have also purposly tried to rust the blade and could not get it to rust. I have an HLRM also and I have full faith in it as I do with my other Busse/Kin blades. The HLRM is going to be my deer blade this year.
I will post pics of my RMD so you can see how hammered it has been and it still handles like new.
Being a shorter blade it still will flex but probably not as a longer blade might, again I have tried to get some flex pics of mine but the flexes were not camera worthy, I'm still trying :)
If you pair that HLRM with a larger blade you will have yourself a killer combo worthy of any task. The things I love about the HLRM are the steel, full size handle, the blade width and shape.

Nice score on the HLRM :thumbup: ......now go out and whittle a stick and get some pics for us
 
SR101 gives a better price point than INFI,
and is no slacker after the Busse heat treatment.
It will oxidize in a heart beat though...
 
wildmike said:
52100 takes an exceptionaly keen edge, holds it exceptionaly well, and yet sharpens easily in the field.
Click to expand...

And this quote, which I have found to be accurate, is why the SR101 (52100 from Swamp Rat) to be so near-and-dear to my heart. I've had no problem maintaining against corrosion in the field and resharpening to be a breeze with primitive methods.
 
SR 101 is very easy to sharpen, and very tough. It's one of those steels that I can put an atom-splitting edge on it in no time at all. I love it.

I have the same comments on INFI. I honestly can't hardly tell them apart. I suppose if I was to get medieval on my knives, the INFI would last longer, but I'm not. I do thin my edges out a LOT more than your typical Busse user, and they get the occasional ding in them, but are very strong and stable. I'm one of the dark siders who love them thin, and they hold up just fine.

Both great steels. I can't comment on SR 77, as I have never tried it. Yet.

The one thing that impresses me about both INFI and SR101 is the consistency of the heat treat. You can't say that about a lot of knife companies, I've had quite a bit of variation with other companies, but Busse and Swamp Rat are remarkably consistent. And that's a GOOD thing!

Edited to add: check out this thread

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=776029
 
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