Titanium knife

johnwaynesandw

johnwaynesandw

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Mar 18, 2005
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I have tried to sharpen this knife and it has a decent edge, but will not get shaving sharp. Is this common with titanium blades? The guy I got it from told me the maker, but I forgot, does any one have any info on this knife, Is there a special way to sharpen it? ect. I have attached some picture of the knife. Thanks John




 
It's my understanding that knives with Titanium blades, while light and reasonably tough (but not very hard), generally do not take an edge as well as the various popular blade steels. I don't think you can expect to get your knife "shaving" sharp, but you should be able to get a good "utility" edge.
 
Yea , that knife is meant for penetrating self defense rather than cutting or slashing.
Goodguy is right though you ought to be able to get a user edge on it.
 
I had been looking at the tiatanium blades being offered by Emerson, Mission and some custom makers and had been wanting one to try. Unfortunately justifying that kind of cash was out of the question so making my own was the only alternative. That is how the one shown in my signiture line came to be.

I've found that sharpening titanium by hand with a diamond is the best way. They seem to perform markedly better with a fairly course edge too so I'd recommend at least a medium EZELap or DMT diamond sharpener if not a course.

I use a belt sander to get the main or primary bevel and finish it up by hand. I've managed to get and keep mine where it pops hairs off my arm readily and shave news print, cuts fiberglass tape, other types of tape and boxes. I used it yesterday to cut up 25 towels to wash rag sized rags for my shop and was surprised at how well it did. Its only in the harder materials that the edge will roll some on you with a ti blade. Otherwise there are some distinct advantages to it. For one its virtually unbreakable or as some say a sharpened pry bar. For another its never going to rust at all.

I try to look at these things as objectively as possible and really want to throw a real world view of it out there. I carried a Buck 501 for many years. For the kind of stuff I do everyday with a knife I don't see this titanium blade needing anymore frequent sharpening or maintainance than that old Buck did. I've even sharpened pencils with it and whittled some with it and its surprised me each time. Granted the edge should be thicker to be strong enough to hold up. Because of this it can drag some in thicker card board but the fact is it works and better than I had read about to be honest. Even still if keeping that shaving edge is important to you go with steel. Ti can be brought to that level but it will lose it after a short while but it still cuts quite well for a long while after that too. Bringing that hair pop ability back is a quick process with a few strokes of the diamond pad though so you are ready for the next job with it. At least that has been the case for me.

STR
 

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  • All Titanium Rice Beater Upper clip side.jpg
    All Titanium Rice Beater Upper clip side.jpg
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Are you attempting to put a V-bevel on the blade?

As a chisel grind, you should do 3 strokes on the chisel-ground side to every 1 stroke on the flat-ground side. If you are attempting to put a V-bevel on a blade that has a chisel grind, you may be in for a lot of work as you have to reshape the entire edge.

A chisel ground blade can be made sharper than a V-bevelled blade (as it can be made half as thin as a V-bevel), but it won't cut through deep mediums very well as the blade will want to pull in the direction of the chisel edge.
 
Mission Knives makes AMAZING all titanium knives. Their knives are wicked sharp.
 
I believe that's true. All of the Mission knives I've seen have been razor sharp
 
I think the Mission knives are a different titanium though. Beta titanium isn't it? I asked Chuck Bybee about that once. He said if anyone thinks 6AL-4V is hard to grind they should try Beta once. They'll never think 6AL was all that bad after they mess with Beta ti on a grinder.

STR
 
I have a Mission MPU, a small skeletal spearpoint titanium necker. It hangs over the kitchen counter and does nicely on fruits, vegetables, bread ... all the small ordinary food prep, and it keeps a nice edge. I don't try to keep it sharp enough for onions or tomatoes.

Its corrosion resistance makes it ideal for extended kitchen work, rinsing between foods and not worrying about serious washing or drying until I'm finished. In fact, I generally just shake off the water and slip it into its Kydex sheath still damp.

It's also perfect as a very lightweight undercover security knife.
 
Thanks guys for all the help. I plan on using this knife a like STR said it is a sharpened pry bar. I think I will use my pocket knives for cutting and this ti knife will be a small pry bar. Thanks again for all the help. John
 
Thats a nice looking knife that first poster in this thread has there.
I have an affinity for Ti knives since I live practically immersed in salt water (boat) Even serious stainless knives, let alone cheep ones, would soon pack it in
or become so rusty as to be useless for cutting stuff. This is because of my mode de employ though. I do not polish and oil knives everyday, instead I leave a number of them lieing around. I keep one in a tackle box, one by the steps, one in a drawer by the bunk, one on deck by the mast, one kicking around the cockpit somewhere one in the truck, ect. these tend to sit around (rusting if they are stainless) until I need them, which might be a while. Therefor, when the affordable dive knives made from TI came out, I was delighted and replaced all of the above with them. They do fine, they sit there for weeks if needbe in the damp, lashed to the rigging or in the dinghy. Or, even just in a pocket after cutting up a grapefruit. They of course do NOT hold a fabulous edge, but they WILL cut line, cut fish, cut your thumb, sharpen a pencil. I had an Ocean Master folding beta TI for several years and NEVER sharpened it. I did NOT cut alot of cardboard with it >_< but used it for E D C eating, peeling fruit, every day tasks. I loved it and still love it. It lives tethered to my foulweather jacket right now, and I carry a smaller ti knife that I just bought, for my E D C now. I dont know it it will be as good as the OM which is un availible at dive shops any more. I bought it off Ebay and am not sure if its beta TI (harder) or not. If you MUST shave (???) with the thing, AND you live in some corrosive environ, the best thing then is a boye cobalt knife. That thing is incredible. it does not rust, AND it holds an edge a LOOOOOONG time cutting stuffs like carboard and rope. it is BRITTLE, so noooo pry-ie!!! and its heavier then stainless (IMO) I unfortunalty lost that sucker and bought the ocean master because I liked the lighter weight of TI and I dont insist on a razor sharp edge on these things.

as an aside, Ive broken a SOG clip point stainless knife, and it did not seem like it took any more force (or stupidity) to break THAT than the breaking the point off the boye did before I missplaced it. The TI will bend a little before it breaks (gosh reading the above makes me look like Ive really been abusive with my knives >_<) The boye now makes a sheepfoot or pointless blade that will be far better for regular use on a boat...since Im not like, trying to stab pirates with the thing in any case.
 
Take a look at the ti hideaway picture. Leaning against a carbon fibre pool cue, weighing .6oz it cut into the cue...

Charlie
 
No one buys a ti blade without realizing its properties I hope.
If it's not sharp enough for john wayne, I'll gladly take it off your hands :-)
 
I really like Mission Knife & Tool's all titanium knives. I hope to get another one someday.
 
tristram said:
No one buys a ti blade without realizing its properties I hope.
If it's not sharp enough for john wayne, I'll gladly take it off your hands :-)
Click to expand...


Check out the trade forums. Sorry it took so long to respond, I thought this tread was dead.


Thanks,
John
 
What I always noticed with my Ti Spyderco kitchen knife is that the thing always feels dull as hell, but it still cuts well.
 
Like Esav, I too have the Mission Ti MPU (Multi Purpose Utility) skeleton necker. I use an Eze Lap or DMT diamond dust covered benchstone for all my sharpening needs. No problems with the Mission Ti. But expect a slightly toothier edge rather than a super fine polished one. Keep in mind that a thinner stock blade with a narrower edge profile will always sharpen easier and will take on a sharper edge than one that is from thicker stock. The use of Ti for blades is also made for those who work around areas where the tools they use need to help minimize conductivity, magnetivity, sparks and other conditions caused by use of ferrous blades.

N.

www.dozierknives.com/forum
 
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