Steel for Serrations?

cerulean

cerulean

Joined
May 26, 1999
Messages
1,964
I'm considering getting a fully serrated blade and I wonder if I should think about the steel. Do I want a hard steel, so I don't have to go to the trouble of sharpening them frequently? Or should I be more concerned with brittleness, since serrations seem to be more prone to chipping and breaking?
 
I would consider the Spydie Military in 440V in a serrated model. I have had mine since Novemeber and it has required only a single touch up on the Sharpmaker. I heard about the steel's brittleness, but I haven't had any problem and I haven't read anything about it, either.

I would tend to think that AUS8 would be a good steel for serration since it's an easy steel to sharpen. I have a Spydie Viele in serrated version and I find it's easy to touch up without causing any damage to the blade. Also all of Cold Steel's Voyagers are in AUS8.

Not too sure if I would want a fully serrated knife in ATS34. i have a partially serrated BM Stryker but I haven't used it yet so I can't comment on it.

Regards,

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~Greg~

 
Cerulean, it depends on what you intend to cut. The softer steels like AUS-8A are hard to break serrations out of, but they wear down really quickly. The ones with much higher wear resistance like 440V will break off easier but wear down much slower. Note Spyderco has recently changed the serration pattern on the Military to better suit the 440V.

EDI has a genesis in A2 coming out, and Mission also has an A2 MPF. I would seriously look at those for a high performance folder. I know Mission will do a fully serrated model if you are interested - and you get a really strong lock as a bonus.

-Cliff
 
Lakota makes a good liner lock with serrated edge - 40%. It's called X-Hawk. Good knife . . .good price.
 
I own a fully-serrated Spyderco Delica '98 in ATS-55, and so far it's performing very well. I haven't yet heard about brittleness in this steel, but it does hold its edge better than AUS-8. According to the Spyderco catalog, the 55 is hardened to Rc 59-61, which is comparable to Benchmade's Rc for ATS-34. Strange, but I have heard the 55 is a little softer and is less brittle than 34. Not to change the topic of this thread, but can anyone explain this?
Jim
 
I wouldn't worry about sharpenability of serrations, they're easy to sharpen (IMO) with the Sharpmaker, regardless of steel.

I've broken off serrations with gin-1 and ats-34 and aus-8. Even with the tougher steels, you're talking about a thin chisel-ground serrated edge, they can chip.

 
cerulean -- Welcome to the wonderful world of BF!

Regardless of what serrated steel you choose, you can't go wrong with a Spyderco serrated folder as they know how to serrate a blade!
 
Thanks for the responses...I think I will get some type of Spyderco. It's hard to find fully serrated folding knives outside of Spyderco's many offerings, although I see that Benchmade is now offering a fully serrated AFCK. Also, Spyderco uses so many different steels that I shouldn't have any trouble finding something what works.
 
Joe :

I've broken off serrations with gin-1 and ats-34 and aus-8.
Click to expand...

AUS-8A breaking off is interesting, what were you doing when that happened? Was its CS's serrations? Even though they are in AUS-8A they can be broken off easily, but those little teeth have a radically different geometry than most.

Which reminds me, the serration pattern is very important as well as the steel. The more durable the pattern the worse it performs on normal cutting tasks, get the one that is just durable enough for you.

-Cliff
 
Cliff --

Yeah, my only 8A serrated knives are my CS's. The pattern is very different from teh usual Spyderco or Benchmade patterns. I don't know what I did to chip 'em. I do know that I did some really hard chopping with my Vaquero Grande, and even through that the serrations did okay. The pattern seems tougher than spyderco serrations.

Joe
jat@cup.hp.com
 
Just another shameless plug for the Military in 440 V.
wink.gif
You won't regret it.

------------------
God bless!

Romans 10:9-10

"Military" Fans Unite!!

 
Ahh... maybe i can find an answer to a question here... Ive had an Endura(G2 comboedge) for about a year and a half... i dont do much heavy duty cutting with it but the serations are looking pretty ragged.. i wouldnt call them chipped but as i havent been sawing through the heads of hammers(ala ginsu) i couldnt figure out why this is. Is this normal wear for a daily used serrated G2 blade??

DCM

------------------
One with the Force you must be...

WISH NOT TO BE A JEDI!!
NO PENSION YOU SAY!!

Hmph! a Jedi desires not these things.

 
Titan:

My Spyderco serrations get pretty beat up -- I tend to break the points off many of the teeth. The rounded but less aggressive Benchmade serrations do a tad better. The CS serrations not only do even better, but can stand up to hard power chops (with the Vaquero Grande) that I'm pretty sure would bust the Spyderco serrations to pieces. Course, *that* is just speculation, since I don't have a Spyderco with a blade long enough to chop with.
 
Yoda4561, yes. I have seen the exact same thing. After reading Joe's post I have decided to never lend him one of my serrated knives
smile.gif
. I have given some of Spyderco's serrated blades a good going over without breaking them off. I have worn them out though as the steel is rather soft. I would be curious to see how the Military in 440V holds up.

-Cliff
 
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