The satisfying benefit of a "Drawer Full" of 1095...

Macchina

Macchina

Joined
Apr 7, 2006
Messages
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I joined Bladeforums almost 10 years ago and was really into Modern folders at the time (as well as the next 7 years or so). At that time 154CM/ATS34 was recently dethroned as king by S30V and D2 was waning in popularity (it's back up there now though). This was a few years before S90V, Elmax, m390, etc. exploded on the scene and made a new king super steel every other week. At the time I remember owning a few Benchmade 154CM knives and eventually thought of them as butter knives due to the lack of super steel (154CM was THE super steel just a few years before). I would literally swap out knives only a year or two after buying them for fear of them becoming obsolete bricks. It got to the point of the steel alone being the single most important factor in knife selection, and all design factors were second to the steel offered.

Looking back on that mindset and I feel silly. I have carried modern knives for maybe 5 days out of the last year and haven't even thought of the steel I was using.

I got into traditionals and hanging out on the porch a couple years ago and right from the start I was attracted to carbon steel. My traditional drawer of knives is about 90% 1095 (with a bit of 440C and D2 mixed in). Because my collection is mostly GEC and CASE CV my selection process for these knives has been completely based on the merits of the design and uniqueness of the handle instead of the flavor-of-the-day of steel. I also find no real decision based on steel is required when I pick the day's carry aside from if I know I'll be getting wet I may grab one of my few stainless traditionals. It's been said many times on this forum: 1095 will do just about anything you ask of it with ease but it's use on most all carbon factory traditionals puts the focus of traditionals on handle, pattern design, blade set, etc.

So... Do you find comfort in being able to look past traditional steel to select based on the design of the knife or do you wish the latest super steels would penetrate (destroy?) our traditional world?
 
there is nothing like a good sharp knife and to tell you the truth, in my wide collection of knives, from the early days to now, ive had knives with all sorts of steels. from 440C to D2, but i barely sharpen my knives and probably couldnt tell you the difference between the steels. in fact some of the knives probably have mystery steel for all i know. I was just looking at my schatt and morgan barlow in winterbottom which didnt have the blade steel etched on and was slightly disappointed to find out it wasnt 1095 or ATS 34 but 420HC. I think the more i accumulate, the more I learn. With all the good posts and discussions here, Im definitely learning more and more about my knives. I think it would be interesting to have super steels in traditionals, but would it destroy? i doubt it. canal street used 440C and was still ok
 
I don't care about the latest super steels. I'd rather have something I can sharpen/touch up easily myself. Although, I'm not a fan of carbon steel, has to be stainless for me; so there is that. It does limit my choices somewhat, especially when it comes to gec and such.
 
I thought 1055, 1095, 440A, and 420HC were/are "super steels. They (and that 4116 German steel Cold Steel sees fit to use in the KUDU and ELAND) do a super job of cutting whatever I need to cut, and are easy to keep sharp with just a wee bit of stropping.

Back in the '60's when almost every knife it seemed, from a $2.00 "gas station special" (or free with fill up) on up had "440C" stamped on the blade. I was not impressed. Hard to sharpen, did not hold an edge ... Have not owned a 440C blade since. If course I know now that the vast majority of those ... knife shaped objects ... did not have the proper heat treat, (they did not know how to properly heat treat it in the beginning) and more than likely had a bad edge geometry/profile.
Still, Even if I could find a traditional folder I liked with 440C, I really don't see any reason to go out if my way to try that steel again. I'm happy with the performance of my knives.
 
Glad you found the one steel that makes you happy. I generally prefer stainless steel. I also enjoy modern knife designs and modern steels. Big hobby, room for more than one point of view.
 
440C is a great stainless steel for a knife, and strikes a balance between being tough and still fairly easy to sharpen. As well as being as close to traditional as you can get. IE- not considered a super steel. Most of those 'gas station specials' probably were mis-represented as 440c.
 
I went the same direction as you! I remember buying knives solely for the steel, and now I don't really care that much as long as it will take a nice edge. (Though I do prefer some steels over others) One of the biggest things that got me over my steel snobbery was learning how to properly sharpen a blade. I do have a wide variety and still like to experiment with different steels, but there are others features of my knives that are far more important now.
 
"Super steel" is a pretty grey area. Some people consider CPM-154 a super steel like Northwoods knives but really the latest and greatest would be something like SM-100.
CPM154 is a great powder metallurgy steel as there are many others made by crucible or etc but it's no longer considered a 'super steel'. It's just an all around great performing modern steel, same as S30v.

As a steel junkie I do care about what steel is on what knife depending on cost. Edge holding + lack of resharpening leads to a longer/fuller blade height and life.

But I see no reason for production companies to use anything past ATS-34 like Queen does. I enjoy a 1095 blade just fine and see no reason for modern steels to penetrate the traditional knife companies themselves. If you want a modern steel, have a custom made~
 
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I love CPM-154, and I think I would like other very wear resistant stainless-steels in my traditional knives.

I would also love to have customs made of ALL my knives, but I am not that wealthy. I would appreciate S30V or S35VN blades, or really even just a lot more ATS-34 and CPM154 around.

I wasn't impressed with the last 440c I used, but maybe I should give it another try.

I have no problems with 1095 other than it makes my apples taste tangy.
 
My education and early career was in metallurgy, so I am pre-disposed to steel snobbery. I have purchased and used a fair number of modern folders and the steel and heat treatment were quite interesting to me. While I appreciate supersteels for their edge retention, I always liked the soft stainless in a SAK for the ease of sharpening and keen edge. I finally carried my first carbon steel traditional and found that I really liked it. I like patina. I like how easy it takes an edge and I actually enjoy routinely touching it up on the strop. While not as facinating as the latest supersteel, I find that metallurgy is less apart of my enjoyment these days.
 
To be truthful, the type of steel matters far less to me than the heat treatment. GEC is really making magic right now with their 1095. They are running the RC nice and high, and getting some excellent edge retention as the result.

I'm plenty happy with 1095 for my everyday use. It's easy enough to sharpen, plenty tough, and resists edge roll well when run hard.

I would like to see somebody start producing some good stainless. Something a little better than 420HC, and something that can be run hard. I have some knives that live in outdoor packs, and would prefer some good stainless for those knives.
 
Well, to me the steel is only a part of the knife, along with the pattern and handle material. I appreciate "rusting" 1095, XC70/75 and D2, but stainless also may be fun, 12C27, 440 and the like. But sometime I may also want to try something "newer", like Lam CoS on a Fallkniven GP. I would certainly not go to tactical or else to try these modern steels.
 
I pick my knives based on the design and handle material firstly and actually prefer them to have carbon steel blades. With just a little care and proper storage, carbon steel should outlast your lifetime. This had been proven time and again.
 
1095 is fine, but I'm finding that I like D2 quite a bit more. I'm just too busy nowadays to spend time regularly maintaining my knife. I find that the D2 handles neglect far better than 1095 without showing any signs. I don't really care for stainless. They always end up all scratched up looking for me. Patina does a good job of hiding that.
 
Like many of you when I began to take knife collecting seriously I started with modern folders and steel type quickly became very important to me. Truth of the matter was that I knew nothing about metallurgy and really was only being reactive to what others were considering the flavor of the day. A good example is that the only reason I own a Kershaw BLUR is that the blade was made of Elmax steel which I don't have a clue what that really means. I do know however that to my eye my traditional knives are just plain pretty and work well for what I do with them. As far as edge retention I kinda like it when a blade gets dull because I truly like to put an edge back on them and always have an Arkansas pocket stone close by just in case. So as long as the blade steel is not just plain junk it is no longer a consideration for me when buying a new knife.
 
When I have a Traditional knife I really like; beautiful handles, excellent finish/quality, the blade(s) that suit the frame and that slice efficiently; then I regard that knife as being made of 'super-steel' whatever its metallurgy.
 
i don't mind 1095 or a lot of the other steels used on traditionals for edc chores, i rarely put those knives through enough work in a day where they are left dull. For the knives i take to work though, those steels don't cut it for me. I love my Bull Buster, but sometimes it doesn't even make it through the day before needing to be sharpened. i have traditionals in 154cm and the like, and those are better, but i would still like to see some more modern steels used in traditionals. A Sodbuster in XHP, M4 or 3V would be amazing. I guess customs are my option.
 
I also like 1095 just fine, seems that GEC does a superb job in heat treating it. Like lots of others, i started my knife buying journey with modern "super steel" and slowly progressed to where i am now. I have a few modern one handers, but a traditional does the job for me just fine. I prefer carbon steel, but since picking up the Case/Bose Cattle Knife in 154cm, I am appreciating not having to maintain the knife daily.
 
I started out enthralled with the different blade steels of all the latest modern folders. While I still appreciate my modern folders I came to realize that with a proper edge geometry many steels are going to get the job done for the tasks most of us use our knives for on a daily basis. The super steels have their place but in my experience 1095 performs very well. I took my GEC#15 down to about 7 degrees per side. That is almost a zero grind as the main bevel is around 4.5 degrees per side. I put a 15 degree micro bevel on it and I went out to test its performance by cutting cardboard and then by shaving down a piece of oak. The edge performed beautifully without any damage. No rolling, chipping, and the blade stayed relatively sharp. After putting it through the paces I have complete confidence in 1095 for my general uses.

Over the past few months I have really come to love traditionals but my one apprehension is not in the steel but in the pivot getting play under heavy use. With a modern folder you can often tighten the pivot and remedy this but it is not as easy on a traditional. Something I will be looking into is how to dismantle and work on a slip joint knife to deal with this issue. I also only have handled a handful of slip joints so I don't know if this happens on all brands/patterns. I know that is a little off topic but discussing the performance of 1095 vs modern super steels led me to thinking about the performance of slip joints in general.
 
I don't know anything about steels and don't care. I'm happy in my ignorance because for me, it's all about the "look" of the knife. Blade and handle profiles, handle materials, bare end or bottom bolster, etc, etc. Not criticizing your opinions, just telling you the way I live my life.
 
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