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Touhest stainless knife steel
- Thread starter Revolverrodger
- Start date
+1 'nuff said.
This larger knife I made from cleaver , that I bought for $ 5 .He had some stupid hollow plastic handle that fell apart after the first day of use and I made new one from G10 . Steel is stainless but I have no idea exactly which one .What I know is this .........the last seven years each winter I use this knive for batoning WITH hammer on spine dry wood /dry oak and dry beech / to start the fire in the fireplace . And I'm talking about around cubic meter of wood every winter .....Is this steel good? For me yes ....quite solid hold sharpness and it is indestructible
I'll take photo tomorrow for you to see what it looks like spine of knive from hammer :thumbup:
- Joined
- Apr 9, 2004
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- 9,439
Thanks. Nothing earth shattering in that video. I work a lot with CPM 154, done some with S90V and CPM 20CV but just med. to smaller knives. I've only made a few Tuskers with S35vn. RC was 59/60. Most of my big choppers are made with A2, O1, S7 and 3V.
Scott
- Joined
- Feb 23, 2000
- Messages
- 1,363
Steel manufacturers have their recipes for giving different qualities to match the probable use. How then they are cooked too makes a difference only adds to the possibilities. Steel is done on an industrial scale and the cutlery knife market is a very tiny part.
Quality of steel has never been better in consistency; its rare to get it wrong. Cost is competitive and generally low, even for the less common mixes. Industry are getting the steel they demand and its pretty good and far more consistent than its ever been to the point items can be made with less "fail" insurance built in.
The rest is how a knife is all put together, from steel base choice, to heat treatment, to going the extra mile. The big manufacturers want the fastest and most repeatable route to give a consistency and performance that matches the expectations of their market. A very few small manufacturers or custom makers will go the extra mile and fine tune to get the most out of the materials they chose to work with. Working beyond the established route may or may not give a better result.
On the whole we are getting quality and consistency that historically people could only dream of.
Printed data is just the start point. The rest is production. After that its salesmanship, competition, and marketing. The buyers will buy what they perceive they want. Fashion, hype, marketing, "I want one of those because so and so uses one", plus user reports all add to what is bought.
There may well be The Toughest out there but the question is too open to be specific. The variables are too long to be definite. The vast majority of options when done well enough are also tough enough. There is a hobby in asking such questions and in answering them. But just like the start data isn't that much use, other input isn't that useful either. Forcing failure says something but not all. Finding fault and reporting disappointment can help improve products, but then two knives from two batches might behave differently. It goes with the territory. Much has improved and long may it continue.
If you have a knife that has lasted 20 years of good use then its the best. Break it the day after then its the worst. The vast majority of knives from reputable makers are good enough. Much more then its luck. I say every knife has some luck built in. Now that I'm pretty confident in the steels its the design and handling that most interests me. I can work to the steel's limitations but if the knife doesn't drive well then its not suited to me. Form over function, fashion over practicability are what I am wary of now that too many knives are designed by those who don't use them.
Statements like: "if your life depended on it", "one survive knife concept", plus a few others, are marketing. So much is marketing to sell knives. Nothing much changes, same was done forever it seems.
I now just say get a knife you like, you will enjoy, best fits your style, and you can afford. Get a few and enjoy them. No one makes a light sabre yet, and most of the world gets by with some pretty uninteresting stuff (a kitchen knife $10, a machete is $15 and an axe $40... and they do most of the work people do).
LasTly my Boye Cobalt Crucible knife is stainless and lasted years, just requires sharpening often. Definitely tough enough.
Quality of steel has never been better in consistency; its rare to get it wrong. Cost is competitive and generally low, even for the less common mixes. Industry are getting the steel they demand and its pretty good and far more consistent than its ever been to the point items can be made with less "fail" insurance built in.
The rest is how a knife is all put together, from steel base choice, to heat treatment, to going the extra mile. The big manufacturers want the fastest and most repeatable route to give a consistency and performance that matches the expectations of their market. A very few small manufacturers or custom makers will go the extra mile and fine tune to get the most out of the materials they chose to work with. Working beyond the established route may or may not give a better result.
On the whole we are getting quality and consistency that historically people could only dream of.
Printed data is just the start point. The rest is production. After that its salesmanship, competition, and marketing. The buyers will buy what they perceive they want. Fashion, hype, marketing, "I want one of those because so and so uses one", plus user reports all add to what is bought.
There may well be The Toughest out there but the question is too open to be specific. The variables are too long to be definite. The vast majority of options when done well enough are also tough enough. There is a hobby in asking such questions and in answering them. But just like the start data isn't that much use, other input isn't that useful either. Forcing failure says something but not all. Finding fault and reporting disappointment can help improve products, but then two knives from two batches might behave differently. It goes with the territory. Much has improved and long may it continue.
If you have a knife that has lasted 20 years of good use then its the best. Break it the day after then its the worst. The vast majority of knives from reputable makers are good enough. Much more then its luck. I say every knife has some luck built in. Now that I'm pretty confident in the steels its the design and handling that most interests me. I can work to the steel's limitations but if the knife doesn't drive well then its not suited to me. Form over function, fashion over practicability are what I am wary of now that too many knives are designed by those who don't use them.
Statements like: "if your life depended on it", "one survive knife concept", plus a few others, are marketing. So much is marketing to sell knives. Nothing much changes, same was done forever it seems.
I now just say get a knife you like, you will enjoy, best fits your style, and you can afford. Get a few and enjoy them. No one makes a light sabre yet, and most of the world gets by with some pretty uninteresting stuff (a kitchen knife $10, a machete is $15 and an axe $40... and they do most of the work people do).
LasTly my Boye Cobalt Crucible knife is stainless and lasted years, just requires sharpening often. Definitely tough enough.
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A chart like this may be a useful start.
Chipping resistance may be a measure of toughness, if by toughness you mean low likelihood of breakage.
Thanks for this information. Very interesting. Where does this graph come from?
- Joined
- May 22, 2000
- Messages
- 185
Hi Guys... this is an interesting thread... I am a novice so I have a lot to learn.
What do you think of A2 Carbon steel? Descent for a 3 inch blade?
What do you think of A2 Carbon steel? Descent for a 3 inch blade?
Cobalt
Platinum Member
- Joined
- Dec 23, 1998
- Messages
- 17,952
A2 is an excellent steel. It can rust so maintain it.
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From the internet.
The internet is full of such charts. Many steel suppliers & technical sites have them. Most, like this one, have no attribution. I wouldn't bet my house on the info, but as I wrote, I like it as a starting point.
IMO, there are some useful points to remember from this thread:
- steel & knives are two different things. Steel testing is different to knife testing;
- technical data doesn't seem to be of a scientific standard, & may not even be applicable to knives;
- there is little agreement on definitions of words.
Indeed.From the internet.
The internet is full of such charts. Many steel suppliers & technical sites have them. Most, like this one, have no attribution. I wouldn't bet my house on the info, but as I wrote, I like it as a starting point.
From my experience, that chart is a little jacked up. I wouldn't bet a wooden nickel on it, much less a house.
From the internet.
The internet is full of such charts. Many steel suppliers & technical sites have them. Most, like this one, have no attribution. I wouldn't bet my house on the info, but as I wrote, I like it as a starting point.
IMO, there are some useful points to remember from this thread:
- steel & knives are two different things. Steel testing is different to knife testing;
- technical data doesn't seem to be of a scientific standard, & may not even be applicable to knives;
- there is little agreement on definitions of words.
Steel testing does apply to knives, since knives are made of steel, but, no, they are indeed different.
Technical data is often to a scientific standard. However those standards are not widely used or understood out even applicable to knives or knife making. Data is also frequently vague.
There is little agreement on technical terms in knife making. Other industries have specific definitions. Much of the problem comes when someone uses a word that can have different meanings, but can't or won't say how they are using the word.