realworld usability of damascus?

bladefan

bladefan

Joined
Dec 14, 2000
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Has anyone had experience using damascus ie. Dunkerly, Norris, or Meier on a daily basis? How does it compare with let's say D-2 or ATS-34?
 
Boy that is tough one. I have a small Dunkerley damascus knife and it has held up great. It holds an edge really well and is an aggressive cutter. As far as how it compares to the other steels you mentioned, I don't know. I don't have any similar knives with the same edge geometry that use these steels to be able to compare for you. All I know is the Dunkerley has a heck of a great blade.


Edited just to tidy up a bit.
 
I use some regularly. Probably the one I use most is a Christoph Deringer, who's a Master Smith out of Quebec Canada. It's superb. Cuts incredibly well, and holds a great edge. I baby it, though, to guard against rusting and spotting. I'm not sure what the component steels are.
 
Damascus is still steel. It all comes down to the steels used in the damascus, their end carbon content, and the skill of the maker in terms of the integrity of the forge welds, heat treat and edge geometry. If all of these come together it is every bit as good as any other material out there.

John
 
thanks for the information, I will continue research as to which
steel will suit my purposes best.
 
One thing to emphasize is that ATS-34 is obviously stainless, and D2 has so much chromium in it that it is "nearly" stainless. Most damascus you'll find is made of non-stainless material, so it will rust if you don't take care of it.

JD
 
On Saturday I skinned and butcherd a moose with a knife with a damascus blade made by Corbin Newcomb.I did not have to sharpen it and it is still sharp.I think it depends on a lot of factors but this is the best using knife I have ever had.It is a ivory (blue of corse)drop point hunter.I lost it and found it in the dirt by my shop the next year.With a little steel wool and some oil to the ivory it is as good as new.It seems to have a natural saw tooth edge that stays sharp.
Chuck
 
Originally posted by Joss
...ATS-34 is obviously stainless...
Click to expand...

Don't be so sure. I've had two blades in ATS-34 "stain". One literally rusted in the cutout area of the thumb hole and one had some unknown substance (most likely glue from tape) left on it which left tiny pit marks and stains. Both cleaned off with a little work but it happened none the less.

All common "stainless" steels can rust, just to varying degrees.

Jens Anso uses 2 stainless steels in his Damascus, RWL-34 and PMC27 (similar to 12C27).

One drawback I have seen is if the etching of the damascus is not very deep it can wear off, then it needs to be etched again if you want the look of damascus.
 
Cpirtle is right. I had that happen to me in 154CM, ATS34 and D2...all fine steels - but one must know their limitations.

had better experience with 12C27 - but this too can stain..

I think some are more sensitive to the Heat treat process. with D2 - its a major factor.
 
At the Scagle hammer about a week or so ago, the cutting contest was won by Kevin Cashen with an O1 and L6 damascus blade and fourth place went to Tim Foster using a 1084 and 15N20 damascus mix. Both mastersmiths and both with good steel mixes. I like 52100 and 15N20 and will use some in a couple of cutting contests before I use it for my MS test. I have been using it lately to check the edge holding abilities and so far, it has held up very good.
 
@ blaefan: If you did choose a maker, it might be a good idea to ask him about the performance of the blade-material he uses.

hope this helps

red
 
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