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- Aug 1, 1999
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- 3,036
There is one major difference in ATS-34 from various sources. Some is hot rolled barstock. That's usually what you get when you order from a knifemaking supply house. The other is what Admiral sells, which is shear plate. It is produced in plate form and Admiral shears off strips which is what they sell you. I've found the sheath plate to be very uneven in its consistency, with a fairly large amount of inclusions and very visible grain. It does not polish well either. And yes, all ATS-434 is produced by Hitachi, but not necessarily at the same location or of the same quality.
154CM from Crucible, while of about the same composition as ATS-34 is noticeably different. It is produced in sheets, but the sheets are cross rolled (rolled then rotated 90 degrees and rolled again) to produce a finer grain. Crucible then saws it into strips as opposed to shearing, which eliminates the rounded edges you see in the Admiral AST-34. (I also think the shearing may produce some stresses in the steel which accounts for the uneven grain you see in the Admiral material) 154CM is cleaner than the ATS-34 I was getting plus it takes a much better polish.
154CM from Crucible, while of about the same composition as ATS-34 is noticeably different. It is produced in sheets, but the sheets are cross rolled (rolled then rotated 90 degrees and rolled again) to produce a finer grain. Crucible then saws it into strips as opposed to shearing, which eliminates the rounded edges you see in the Admiral AST-34. (I also think the shearing may produce some stresses in the steel which accounts for the uneven grain you see in the Admiral material) 154CM is cleaner than the ATS-34 I was getting plus it takes a much better polish.