Steels that don't form a burr??

brando555

brando555

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Sep 26, 2018
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I read a little tidbit on Zknives about cts-204p that it doesn't really form much of a burr, so sure enough, I sharpened my 204p Southard the other day it barely formed any burr at all even with a 220 grit stone.

S30V is similar, but I did notice a small burr when reprofiling my PM2.

I'd say 8cr13mov is the opposite, it usually creates a rather large burr with a coarser stone.

What other steels in your experience are similar and don't form a burr when sharpening? Is it more the composition of the steel or the hardness that effects burr formation?
 
N690 blew my socks off. I fgured that since it was a super rust resistant steel that it would be a problem bur wise. I could not have been more wrong. It formed some bur on the first stone but it just disapeared as refinement went along.
M4 is stellar that way. I don't recall seeing much of a bur on my ZDP-189 knives but they pretty much never see a coarse stone, just a little touch up.
So yes high carbon mixed with high hardness makes this dog happy.
 
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:D :D :D

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In all seriousness, just about anything run at high hardness is going to be unlikely to form noticeable burrs.
 
I agree, its nice being able to just move to a finer stone without a giant burr getting in the way.
 
brando555 said:
I read a little tidbit on Zknives about cts-204p that it doesn't really form much of a burr, so sure enough, I sharpened my 204p Southard the other day it barely formed any burr at all even with a 220 grit stone.

S30V is similar, but I did notice a small burr when reprofiling my PM2.

I'd say 8cr13mov is the opposite, it usually creates a rather large burr with a coarser stone.

What other steels in your experience are similar and don't form a burr when sharpening? Is it more the composition of the steel or the hardness that effects burr formation?
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M390 and 20cv are essentially the same steel as cts204p and thus also barely burr. I have also noticed Elmax doesn’t seem to burr very badly either.
 
I recently sharpened my Spyderco Southard in 204 on a Wicked Edge. It had a decent chip near the tip so I had a lot of work to do. I was working a 100 grit stone pretty aggressively to get below the chip and formed a decent burr from one side then the other and a less noticeable burr with the 200 grit stone but noticeable nonetheless.
First kinfevive sharpened with a Wicked Edge and managed to scratch the crap out of it a few times.

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3fifty7 said:
I recently sharpened my Spyderco Southard in 204 on a Wicked Edge. It had a decent chip near the tip so I had a lot of work to do. I was working a 100 grit stone pretty aggressively to get below the chip and formed a decent burr from one side then the other and a less noticeable burr with the 200 grit stone but noticeable nonetheless.
First kinfevive sharpened with a Wicked Edge and managed to scratch the crap out of it a few times.

View attachment 1046042 View attachment 1046041
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That Southard blade is such a wacky knife to sharpen.
 
ZDP-189 is what comes to mind in not forming much, if any, noticeable burr. But as previously mentioned, I think that's more about the hardness it's treated to, usually well above 60 HRC in knives made with it. Some very hard steels will still form a burr, but shed it very quickly; so you have to watch closely to see them at all.

A lot depends on what you sharpen the steel with and how much pressure you're applying while doing so. Abrasives not well-suited to the steel will struggle somewhat, and more or bigger burrs will usually be seen when that happens, more so if you're really leaning into it. On the other hand, an abrasive that easily & effortlessly cuts the steel will do so with much less burring overall. This is why I sometimes like to use a diamond hone on 'soft' steels like 420HC, because it cuts down tremendously on the burring issues otherwise seen with this steel and others like it. I've also liked a diamond hone for my Victorinox paring knives, for the same reason; I don't even strop those after sharpening on diamond. Other harder, more wear-resistant steels still prone to tough, tenacious burrs can benefit from the same strategy, like VG-10 or ATS-34 (exhibits some impressively tough, strong burrs even at HRC ~60 or so).
 
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Another vote for M390/204p/20CV. Any burr that forms is negligible and comes off very easily. Man that stuff is a pleasure to sharpen. I never truly appreciated those/that steels/steel until I started sharpening it.
 
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