The road to damascus

D

DOCSHARP

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Dec 29, 2013
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When I stopped collecting knives 40 years ago the Damascas blade was my favorite. They were beautiful , expensive and very difficult to make. Since that time I have seen Damascus style blades with a pattern which has been "printed" on in some way. These are not Damascus blades to me. Now I see blades IDed as Damascus blades made of many layers of folded metal for sale at prices so low that I find it difficult to believe that they actually are Damascus. Morey's Gifts , Helena Montana wholesale such knives and have an on line catalog.

Is it possible that these are actually DAMASCUS style folded metal blades ?
 
DOCSHARP said:
When I stopped collecting knives 40 years ago the Damascas blade was my favorite. They were beautiful , expensive and very difficult to make. Since that time I have seen Damascus style blades with a pattern which has been "printed" on in some way. These are not Damascus blades to me. Now I see blades IDed as Damascus blades made of many layers of folded metal for sale at prices so low that I find it difficult to believe that they actually are Damascus. Morey's Gifts , Helena Montana wholesale such knives and have an on line catalog.

Is it possible that these are actually DAMASCUS style folded metal blades ?
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Hi, Doc.

Yes, it is not only possible, but likely that these are DAMASCUS style folded metal blades. And the pattern which you believe has been "printed" on in some way is also quite likely Damascus - possibly mosaic Damascus.

40 years ago a computer was a room full of electronics with magnetic core memory and Hollerith cards, a television meant a giant box with a picture tube connected to an outdoor antenna or rabbit ears, a mobile phone - if you could find one - was about the size of a small breadbox, and you had to connect your telephone jacks to a phone (maybe one of those new-fangled dial-tone phones) that was owned or at least approved by AT&T.

A lot has changed in 40 years. Knifemaking is no different.
 
Doc, so a web search on "Alabama Damascus Steel" or "Damasteel" for example and you can see prices on their websites for various Damascus steel billets or Damascus knife blade blanks.
 
There are a number of knife companies offering "Damascus" knives. Most of this cheap Damascus is made poorly in Pakistan, India, or china. It is usually made from REALLY substandard steel, sometimes even rebar. In the strictest sense it is "real" Damascus, in the same way that velvita cheese might be made with "real" milk. You get what you pay for.
The "printed" Damascus is just exactly that. It is a patern that is etched on the surface of some cheap blade.
 
DesRosiers said:
There are a number of knife companies offering "Damascus" knives. Most of this cheap Damascus is made poorly in Pakistan, India, or china. It is usually made from REALLY substandard steel, sometimes even rebar. In the strictest sense it is "real" Damascus, in the same way that velvita cheese might be made with "real" milk. You get what you pay for.
The "printed" Damascus is just exactly that. It is a patern that is etched on the surface of some cheap blade.
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Adam (or Haley), I agree with you about the damascus, but I have to object to the denigration of Velveeta. It's hard to make proper queso, and thus proper Tex-Mex, without it.
 
If damascus is cheap and gaudy it is likely from Pakistan. Made by terrorists to undermine the American aesthetic as well as our cutting ability.

The best non-US damascus I've seen is the Leo types from Boker (made in Soligen), which are truly gorgeous and dimensional, and Damasteel, which is, I believe, Swedish, and used in some Custom and production high end knives. Otherwise, US names are Devon Thomas, Chad Nichols, and others of that group sell damascus to knife makers, and their damascus, SS and carbon, is high quality.

Some damascus LOOKS printed because you barely feel the layers as you rub your fingers over it, but it is nonetheless damascus, usually etched to raise the color contrast. That contrast will fade a bit if you over polish it, but it can be re-etched to bring back the original contrast.
 
If something seems too good to be true, it most always isn't true.
This is particularly true when it comes to custom knives, especially Damascus.
 
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Locutus D'Borg said:
US names are Devon Thomas, Chad Nichols, and others of that group sell damascus to knife makers, and their damascus, SS and carbon, is high quality.
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There is a Devon Thomas and a Devin Thomas, Devin Thomas is the stuff you want.

Doug
 
Thank you all for the various comments. There is a lot of different cheese to spead around and it appears that the Damascus blade has developed quite a spread as well.
 
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