S60V Blur?

My first Kershaw was a random task in 440V. It was dull from the factory, and I never could sharpen it adequately on old silicon carbide stones, back before I got my DMT stuff. I lost it before I bothered trying to send it in for repair (also had a lock problem)

Also had a Gunting with a large edge chip fresh out of the box. Got rid of it before bothering with mailing and waiting for work to be done on it.

I, for one, don't care for the steel at all. I'm sure something needs to be done with it, as that is a fair bit of stock left over, but generating interest might not be easy.
 
hardheart said:
I, for one, don't care for the steel at all.
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This unfortunately happens a lot to steels when they are used in the wrong knives or the heat treatment is really shifted to try to make them something they are not. S60V is a very brittle, ultra-high carbide steel. It therefore is fairly limited in scope of work for knives and will only excell in a limited number of applications.

It needs to be left with a fairly coarse finish with an acute edge (10 degrees) or a high polish at a fairly obtuse one (20 degrees). The obtuse angle refers only to the actual cutting edge, the relief grind can be much lower and it should be, or ideally the primary grind is close to optimal. For example, make a light utility knife, flat grind it Wilson style right down to a 0.005" edge which is sharpened at 16-18 degrees per side with a micro at 18-20.

As the edge is so thin then there are no concerns about grindability even though it is horrible for that steel because you have to remove so little material to even reset the entire edge. The cutting ability will also be high and the edge will be stable at that obtuse angle and the long term abrasive edge retention will be quite high.

-Cliff
 
I should state that big carbide steel is something I'm avoiding in general. Not just troubles with 440V/S60V, but I never did like working on D2 knives either. I'm looking to get one with a thin primary, just for comparison. Kershaw specific, I'd rather a JYD as Flashpoint mentioned.

The trouble with interest I mentioned, I think will come from the perception that the industry has 'moved on' from S60V, to steels like S30V or ZDP-189. Despite the fact that the majority of knives are made with steels that pre-date the CPM process by... a bunch.
 
hardheart said:
I should state that big carbide steel is something I'm avoiding in general. Not just troubles with 440V/S60V, but I never did like working on D2 knives either.
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Yeah, same thing happened with that steel which developed a reputation for being horrible to sharpen and not actually getting very sharp in the first place. The wear resistance of those steels is actually very high even when soft. For example, D2 at 48 HRC has the same wear resistance (ASTM-G65 PA) as A2 at 61 HRC. Thus there is the really horrible idea that D2 has better edge retention even when much softer, that of course doesn't happen because the edge deforms and will also be very difficult to sharpen when soft. D2 is the same class of steel as S60V and thus works well in the same types of uses. You do make a good point about S60V no longer being in the spot light, but this is mainly for a very small run which looks to be more of a focus internet piece than an actual push to put out a new line in S60V. Assuming it is in one of the more popular models it should not be difficult to sell a small amount of the knives, especially since they are going to be very rare. You could also promote them as elevated by performing a specific heat treatment or geometry to really bring out the steel, use it as an example of how the steel can excell.

-Cliff
 
I just wish that someone would make knives in something that would come back home.

Strange thing about Kershaw. I don't own one. The first liner lock went to Oz with my Brother (still in box), the next went with wifey and the Echo ....... office colleague.
 
I love the Blur and have the gray combo in S30V (I sold my 440 Blur's after I got it). For me, I'm happy to wait for the Blur S30V plain blade that's coming out early next year. That one I'll buy for sure.

Regards
 
Thanks for all the input. After further review, we have decided against the S60V G-10 Blur.
Will keep you all posted on other type projects.
 
Flashpoint said:
I may get burned at the stake for saying this, and the only reason I'm saying it is because I'm very happy with my S30V Blur, but... Why don't you just sit on the steel for a little while longer and offer one of the new models like the JYD in an alternate steel after they have been on the market for a little while? You could still offer the Blur with the G-10 grips with some of the steel you're currently using.
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I would LOVE to see a JYD in something besides 12C26.
 
If not Blur, how about S60V Leek with framelock?
I'd love it. Leek's my favorite. ;)
Or, Chive with some other steel, maybe 13C27...

Anyway, keep up the good work, Thomas. Your knives are lovely.
 
I was on the fence on the S60V Blur. It would would be similar to my S60v Avalanche. I do not like the trac-tec inserts on the 2 Blurs I have bought. I like that you are using better steel and would love it if more of your knives would be set up for left handed use. Though I am right handed, I prefer to carry knives on my left side.
 
Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly is "G-10" scales?

Thanks for helping the new guy,
Rick
 
Cliff Stamp said:
It needs to be left with a fairly coarse finish with an acute edge (10 degrees) or a high polish at a fairly obtuse one (20 degrees). The obtuse angle refers only to the actual cutting edge, the relief grind can be much lower and it should be, or ideally the primary grind is close to optimal. For example, make a light utility knife, flat grind it Wilson style right down to a 0.005" edge which is sharpened at 16-18 degrees per side with a micro at 18-20.


-Cliff
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I will admit to a certain fondness for 440V/S60V. I had the Kershaw Random Task and cut everything from cheese to baked bean cans. It did chip opening the cans, but I was able to sharpen it out and get a good edge afterward. It took a while though. I had the best results with the high polish, obtuse option above. I reprofiled it to about 15 degrees per side with SiC sandpaper, then sharpened at 20 degrees per side on the Sharpmaker to the flats of the white stones, and sometimes stropped, but not always. With this edge, it cut copper wire with no chipping problems. Resharpening seemed pretty easy to me. I would frequently stop at the brown rod flats and didnt have trouble with chipping. I sold it due to lock issues and not being able to keep it in my pocket.
 
rrog said:
Pardon my ignorance, but what exactly is "G-10" scales?

Thanks for helping the new guy,
Rick
Click to expand...

It is glass-fiber plastic, very durable material widely used on top line model's handles.

Thanks, Vassili.
 
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