Small Sebenza Insingo 31 in MagnaCut for about 9 months

[WedgeAntilles]

Great write-up!

Magnacut seems to have the potential to become an enduring knife steel. I always liked CPM-154 because of its solid rounded performance with a good HT and everything I am reading about Magnacut suggests it more or less improves upon CPM-154 in every way. And if Reeve is using it, that says to me that even basic sharpening equipment will be sufficient to maintain it considering they've always placed a high value on steels that the user is able to maintain without having sharpening equipment that costs as much as a Sebenza.

I wish there was an option to get my KnifeArt 21 Insingos upgraded to Magnacut, but given their backlog on orders, I highly doubt they will do this.

Tim Reeve said recently that Magnacut relates for 21s would eventually be available for order. When it opens, get in line.

 

[panthro1980]

Nice review and write up, DLT just got tanto with ebony inlays, anyone familiar or have exp with ebony inlays?

 

[DocJekl]

Nice review and write up, DLT just got tanto with ebony inlays, anyone familiar or have exp with ebony inlays?

I bought one of those a couple of months ago in magnacut from DLT and it’s pretty nice, but I don’t know how it would hold up to regular use. I’ve read that bog oak is more water resistant than other wood and pretty dense. But this one I got is going to be a gentleman’s knife and I like ebony. Mine is a solid dark brown.

 

[panthro1980]

Very nice, I ordered one and will get here next week so I’ll see how it goes.

 

[Slice O Life]

Nice review and write up, DLT just got tanto with ebony inlays, anyone familiar or have exp with ebony inlays?

I don't have much experience outside of GEC's ebony. It did fine, I would just maybe wax it once.

 

[pnsxyr]

Tim Reeve said recently that Magnacut relates for 21s would eventually be available for order. When it opens, get in line.

Oh wow! That is crazy exciting! I cannot wait to get one. I guess it is going to be a long wait?

 

[pnsxyr]

I think you should call Chris Reeve about that, I know they do re-blades for older models and did indeed use the more modern steel for it. I think maybe since the demand of Magnacut is so high right now, and the fact that they are still running S45VN, they will probably use S45VN for re-blades for the time being. I do think in the future you will absolutely be able to re-blade for Magnacut. This is Chris Reeve we're talking about, they will take care of you one way or another.

As for the sharpening, I did sharpen S45VN and Magnacut on a Spyderco Sharpmaker, and it was easier to get a nice edge with the Magnacut steel. I have never owned Cruwear but I've heard it sharpens similarly to that, which is that it sharpens very nicely and easily. S45VN was slightly harder, but not a burden either.

Does Magnacut take an aggressive cutting edge like some tool steels?

 

[Slice O Life]

Does Magnacut take an aggressive cutting edge like some tool steels?

I'll be honest the only tool steel I've sharpened was 1095 on a GEC slip joint. I think if you sharpened at a low grit with Magnacut you would get a toothy edge though.

 

[Joeshmoyo]

I cut a decent amount of packaging, cardboard, box tape, on a regular basis. The craziest cut with this knife was accidentally on some metal straps that was holding a speed rack to a wooden pallet. Surprisingly, no edge damage from that. The edge seemed to last longer than S35VN, but not as long as S45VN in the CRK I've tried.

MagnaCut was easier to sharpen for me than S45VN however, about how S35VN is for ease of sharpening, maybe even easier. I did not re-profile the edge. I only honed the edge on fine stones on a Spyderco Sharpmaker. In the 9 months I've owned it, I felt like I needed to sharpen it about 8 months in. The edge still had a good working edge, but the fine edge was reduced and could not cut paper easily and quietly.

I've experienced no rust on any CRK I've owned, so I cannot say how good the corrosion is, but supposedly it is almost LC200N in terms of resistance. I've accidentally dropped the knife, hit the edge on metal, and other things that would dull S35VN or S45VN, but no rolling has ever occurred, or chipping.

This is in Bog Oak, which I did not buy purposefully. To tell you the truth, I saw this in stock on REC and saw that it was a MagnaCut Sebenza in Insingo blade shape and it was an instant buy. I've done a fair bit of research on Bog Oak, and so this is what I can tell you about carrying it. It is quite hard and strong, you can get density numbers if you google it but with Bog Oak it is very dependent on the specific cut of wood you have. Every piece of Bog Oak is going to be different, and sometimes it's not even Oak. CRK might get their Bog Oak from a specific supplier who makes sure it's Oak or something, but I don't have any idea how that works on their end. Bog Oak are mummified trees that have been preserved in lake beds or rivers for thousands of years. The water seeps into the wood and turns the wood black from the outside in. To get really black Bog Oak (aka the type CRK uses), the wood usually needs to be in the water for about four to five thousand years. This might be why Bog Oak is so water resistant. I have had no problems with swelling or cracking from moisture. I would not use a wood knife as a salt water or dive knife though. For EDC however, it's great. So it is water resistant, has a good story behind it with thousands of years backing it, and it is quite hard to resistant to damage. I would suggest putting a very light coating of whatever you like to put on wood, I personally put a very small amount of beeswax and I think it works well. Do your own research though, maybe beeswax is bad for Bog Oak. Anyway, the inlays are still wood and wood is still prone to damage, especially pocket damage. The wood is a warm feeling and provides better grip because of the inlays protruding from the frame. So for the most part I do like to keep it in the leather pouch unless I know I'm going to be using it a lot, in which case I clip it to my pocket.

This Sebenza was apparently Glass Blasted, as opposed to their regular style of Sand Blasting. Or is it Bead Blasting that they do regularly? I don't know. This one is Glass Blasted however, and in comparison to the norm this is much smoother. I actually don't like the normal blasting so much, unless it is carried extensively and worn down so it is not so rough. The initial finish that CRK does usually has a sandpaper feeling to it. Very grippy and functional, but I just don't like it as much as the Glass Blast. The Glass Blasting leaves the lock bar very smooth so disengaging is very pleasant. Traditionally, CRK used a polished handle to compliment their wood inlays which is very shiny, or use their traditional blast finish which is darker. Visually, Glass Blasting is somewhere between the polishing and traditional blasting. Shiny, but not overly so. I prefer the Glass Blasting finish in every way, outside of the fact that the traditional finish is grippier slightly.

Lastly, I think the gold thumb studs are done differently because there has been no fading on the gold anodization even after a lot of openings. It also can freely drop if you give it a wiggle and open the lock bar, but I don't really like doing that because I don't like having a sharp knife dropping onto my finger. I've not used locktite. I opened it up and put grease on it and cleaned it at the start of my ownership like I do with all my CRK. The pivot hasn't backed out at all, and the knife has no play. Very nice.

Did you notice it gets thick behind the edge quickly? I bought one that was like 30 thou crazy I sold it but might get another. Hoping it was a one off

 

[jjg6319]

OP, thanks for the detailed write up. I really like the Insingo blade.

 

[StuntDouble]

I have to admit that I've had to sharpen my Small 31 in Magnacut quite a bit the few months I've had it. I managed to cause a couple of small chips in the edge, too. Admittedly I haven't really been gentle with it and it's been used to cut dirty Nitex, and probably hit a few bolts in the process. I was also having some issues with a stubborn burr, but that may have been due to the reprofiling I did. It could also be that my Sharpmaker stones are clogged, and they're just not able to abrade the burr off. I gave it another resharpening last night on some diamond plates last night, removing the convex profile, and it seems that may have solved my burr problem.

Interestingly enough, the large Inkosi in Magnacut didn't have that problem after I reprofiled it. A quick touch up on the Sharpmaker stones is usually all I need to bring the edge back.