Recommend a steel for my custom blade

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nealf5

Joined
Jul 14, 2011
Messages
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Hi All,
I am shortly placing an order for a custom fixed blade and have selected a knifemaker already.
My issue is the type of steel to be used.

Initially I was totally for Stainless Steels as I don't want to have to keep oiling my blade etc and want a no fuss, go anywhere, knife.
I love my Swiss Army folders, but they are a pain to sharpen and most don't hold an edge very well either.

I understand that carbon steels are easier to sharpen and retain an edge longer.

So I turn to the wise folks on here and ask the follwing:

1. Is there a best of both worlds out there? The corrosion resistance of stainless and the the ease of sharpening an edge holding of carbon steels?
2. Do any of the carbon steels have corrosion resistance?
3. Or should I go with a San Mai style with a SS outer and a carbon edge?

The knife will be used for camp style duties, so everything from wood to food.

I have limited funds and can't buy different knives so I am trying to get this right the first time.
Thanks for reading.
 
The Sandvik steels are both easy to sharpen and hold an edge well. They are nothing fancy but they work well. I have knives in 14C28n, 12c27. Both are among my favorite knives. 3V is also popular for user knives. As is 154CM. I also have a custom fb in D2 that is very good. D2 is a little harder to sharpen some say- I've never had any problems with it. It holds an edge very well.
 
Well a tool steel combines the stain resistance of stainless steels and the edge retention of carbon steels. The only problem is that they're a PITA to sharpen. A San Mai style knife could be an option, but honestly I would just go for a carbon steel blade. I have a 52100 blade and with no chromium and a high amount a carbon it rusts easily. To resolve that issue I simply force a patina and keep a light coat of mineral oil on my blade. I haven't had any issues with rusting and as long as you take care of your knife and don't leave it wet, it should rust. But if you really don't want a carbon steel blade then just get a tool steel blade and grab some diamond hones to sharpen it.
 
nealf5 said:
1. Is there a best of both worlds out there? The corrosion resistance of stainless and the the ease of sharpening an edge holding of carbon steels?
Click to expand...

Maybe look into some of the tool steels? A2, O1, D2.
 
D2 tool steel seems to work well as a all around good steel, just keep it whipped off
when not in use. I like CPM 154 blade steel, it is easy to sharpen and holds an edge,
but you want have to worry about it rusting! Another good blade steel is S35VN it
is not that hard to sharpen and holds a good edge, but you don't have to worry about
it rusting.
 
D2 is a good steel, but from what I've read, its rather hard to sharpen. I haven't tried s35vn but I have a s30v blade. Is it significantly easier to sharpen, or only by a marginal amount?
 
SAKs are almost as easy to sharpen as carbon steel. If you're having trouble sharpening one of them, there's no way you'll be able to get results with any of the steels listed in this thread.
You've also said that they don't hold an edge very well. While SAKs don't have the edge holding capability of modern powder metals, they're not crap, either. It could be that you're not sharpening them correctly. Either not removing the burr, or using too high an angle.
 
So who are you ordering from???
Cost is another thing to consider, some of the super steels are quite a bit more.......
I really like cpm 154. Holds a great edge and not too difficult to sharpen. D2 sounds like the perfect steel for what you will be doing but as several people said, it is a pain to sharpen!
 
I wondered the same thing, that is why I have at least 10 different types of steel:)
I forgot to mention that I have 1095 and carbon Damascus blades, and live in southern Texas. I have not had a problem with rust and they are easier to sharpen. Take care of your knives and you wont have trouble.
Alabama Damascus cuts well and looks great for about the cost of the entry level super stainless steel- just another thought!
 
Cts bd1 I have that steel on my manix 2 lw. It has very good rust resistence and is very easy to sharpen. I'm not very good at sharpening but I have been able to put a very fine edge on it. It also holds an edge very well. I have cut atleast 100 yards if cardboard with it and was still able to shave hair off my arm. Good luck with your new knife!
 
nealf5 said:
Hi All,
I am shortly placing an order for a custom fixed blade and have selected a knifemaker already.
My issue is the type of steel to be used.

Initially I was totally for Stainless Steels as I don't want to have to keep oiling my blade etc and want a no fuss, go anywhere, knife.
I love my Swiss Army folders, but they are a pain to sharpen and most don't hold an edge very well either.

I understand that carbon steels are easier to sharpen and retain an edge longer.

So I turn to the wise folks on here and ask the follwing:

1. Is there a best of both worlds out there? The corrosion resistance of stainless and the the ease of sharpening an edge holding of carbon steels?
2. Do any of the carbon steels have corrosion resistance?
3. Or should I go with a San Mai style with a SS outer and a carbon edge?

The knife will be used for camp style duties, so everything from wood to food.

I have limited funds and can't buy different knives so I am trying to get this right the first time.
Thanks for reading.
Click to expand...


Have you spoken with the knife maker yet on the choice of steels as he would be the one you should be talking to at this point?

He would give you choices of steels he works with and recommend one or two that might fit into what you want.
 
I havnt tried Elmax but I hear its great stuff. S35, s30v,cpm 154cm, top stainless for me. Cpm d2 and d2 are my top choices for high carbon some makers consider d2 a semi stainless but it will rust if not taken care of, as with all metals it just takes longer for some to develop rust. Good luck with your choice there are so many quality steels available.
 
For a fixed blade, IMO, you don't want large carbide structures. Especially if what you want is something with toughness. So forget the high wear steels with large amounts of Vanadium. So no D2, REX, S90V etc unless you want to do cutting and a lot of it.

Given the properties you want I would say RWL-34/CPM-154 is a well balanced steel between all the properties. You can google RWL-34 knife and see some of the youtube videos. Some interesting stuff.

S35VN from its properties look good and then Elmax. Elmax from what I have read offers significant toughness above something like M390 but you lose around 20 percent in edge retention (still significantly more then 1095 or your SAK steel, comparing it to a high wear steel here).

Also. If you want a high toughness but decrease edge retention you would be surprised at what some custom heat treat can do to 420J or 440B steel. 12C27 is another ingot steel that surprises if done right.

Ankerson however makes a valid point. What does the maker suggest?
 
if you"re getting an inside line with a custom maker and have a direct link to his/her ear then just ask them what steel they are most comfortable with. chances are they have a favorite, and they will put out the best product with that particular steel
 
everything I have read or seen about elmax shows both its incredible toughness easy to work with sharpens like 1095 and has one of the best edge retensions on the market go to you tube and look up survive knives or equip2endure and also gavkoo it really holds it edge like crazy and is easy to put back on. Guy from survive knives drives a skeletonized blade into a tree then uses it as a repel anchor, Adam beat the heck of of the edc-4 elmax and it was still razor sharp and took arm hair off like crazy. hes been around allot and see his oct 6 2012 video he is like a kid in a candy shop when he got the new edc-4.1 elmax coming soon to a website near you I do not make comission but am really excited about these knives and some I have being made from othe blade makers, also picked up a zt 0561 elmax and it really is crazy sharp and great edge retension really happy with it.....
 
look at the knives that he has and choose from the steels used in his knives should probably be a good guide for what the maker like to use the most. Your best option would be to ask the maker and tell them the intended use and that you want it to be easily sharpened.
 
If you find the swiss army knife steel hard to sharpen then it could just be a lack of practice issue or a setup issue i guess. What sort of sharpening setup are you using right now? SAK steel is some of the easiest stuff I've sharpened before, sandvik 12c27 is also pretty easy to sharpen and it's a decent steel you can get at a good price. It may be what you're looking for.
 
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