What is considered they most "exotic" super steel out there?

Danke42 said:
Work hardening is the strengthening of a metal by a "cold" process. It could be machining or milling, it could be hammering or shaping, or in this particular case sharpening/honing of the material produces the effect.
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Does it actually work? Or is it just marketing wishful thinking?
 
It works enough that when Spyderco tested the blades of their serrated H1 knives vs. unserrated H1 knives the serrated ones were harder at the edge where the machine cut the serrations.

However the rumor that just sharpening H1 is enough to work harden it seems to be not very true.

Also, so what is the concensus, is H1 truly rustproof or only extremely rust resistant?
 
Pomsbz said:
Does it actually work? Or is it just marketing wishful thinking?
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It's a scientific fact. Folks found this out when they were hammering copper back centuries ago.

As for H-1 there isn't a scientific study that shows it work hardens from hand sharpening. Just an awful lot of anecdotal information that says it does. That is pretty typical for the world of knives.
 
From everything I've read about H1 it wont rust under regular use. However, under certain circumstances like some acids, extreme heat, and other rather odd and deadly (for humans) conditions it will oxidize.

LCN200n should be similar to H1 in this aspect but harder.
 
shqxk said:
You have no clue on what you're talking about.

SM-100 memory properties is in it annealed state which has nothing to do when fully hardened. It weren't designed to be use at high hardness from the first place.

http://sb-specialty-metals.com/ Has some SM-100 sheet for sale. You can buy it at good price and make a knife out of it to see if it was any better than average steel and quit being an armchair scientist. SB-Special is the main distributor of SM-100 FYI.

A high reputation maker like Tom Krein, Micehal Burch and Sebastian Berenji even stated several times that they won't ever work with SM-100 again due to it's difficult to grind and won't hold an edge.

And what is the point of super fragile high speed steel for knife when there are plenty of steel that will cut as well while not being overly brittle?
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No. It's obvious you have no idea what you're talking about. Go back to your little hideout and research SM-100 before talking. SM-100 will grinds and holds an edge just find, those makers have shown they have no experience using the material and tend to stick to the easy to use steels.


I'm putting you on the ignored list considering you don't even have the most basic comprehension about special alloys let alone not using a HSS as a chopper.
 
HowAmI said:
No. It's obvious you have no idea what you're talking about. Go back to your little hideout and research SM-100 before talking. SM-100 will grinds and holds an edge just find, those makers have shown they have no experience using the material and tend to stick to the easy to use steels.


I'm putting you on the ignored list considering you don't even have the most basic comprehension about special alloys let alone not using a HSS as a chopper.
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This is one very ridiculous opinion LMAO.

Not using HSS as a chopper? I never said anything about to use REX121 as a chopper. Its just too brittle to withstand even some possible misuse.

And do you even have a clue that CPM-M4 is the most popular steel in cutting competition scene and it's considered HSS too? Please continue to spreading your laughable opinion. It's fun to read :thumbsup:
 
IMO h1 is the best steel on the market. From the words of eric it out cuts anything they have ever tested. ANd in my years of experience with most steels on the market h1 easily has the best edge retention. zdp and 3v would be a closer second and I was let down by cruwear and maximent. I disliked 110 and 90v they did not hold an edge all that great, hard to sharpen and I couldn't get them as shart as I could others. s35vn is Ok, I like xhp a lot and D2 I think they are one of my favorite edc steels non h1. They sharpen easy and can get super sharp. zdp is also great but not as common and harder to sharpen. 3v is my favorite fixed blade steel best mix of edge retention which is great and ease of sharpening. 4v is sick but blows to sharpen compared to 3v, even on my belt grinders. 154cm I like more then others like vg10. I haven't tried LCN200n but am looking forward to it. I think we all also get caught up with steels and focus less on edge geometry. Having the best edge for your particular cutting tasks/preferences makes a difference I think. For instance I directly compared two of my mora knives. identical model and steel. I left one with a scandi and the other a convex edge. That convex edge was tougher and overall kept itself sharper. Didn't carve as well but cant win them all I suppose. The better an edge moves through material air go the less stress gets put on the edge as its cutting more efficiently.
I honestly bet if we started stamping some super fancy name steel on 440c most people wouldnt tell the difference and end up loving it because 440 is pretty darn good.
 
H1 because:

- can't rust, under no time frame and conditions if we're talking water (chemicals, strong acids and reactive components can make it "rust" in non-life-sustainable conditions)
- work hardens, unnoticeable under traditional sharpening methods but very important when grinding the blades to shape, reason (cost) why H1 blades can't be FFG
- is magnetic due to its Fe content, but can't corrode or oxidize due to its lack of C
- can be hardened enough to make it suitable for knives and tools, and having extremely high edge holding in SE while being non-chippy, non-bendy and non-fracturing
- all of the above can be accomplished and obtain at a modest, industry-suitable price and cost for the manufacturer and the end user
 
I'd agree with Peacent's post above. I have been using and testing H1 for years now on a saltwater kayak and have done everything I can to make it rust with no success. I have Spyderco Salt knives that have been in the kayak 24/7 for years covered in fish blood and stomach acid and sitting in pools of saltwater. I have purposely never rinsed them with fresh water just for the sake of corrosion testing. Zero corrosion...nothing. I do not believe the steel can rust.

Now, I have seen rust on those very knives but it has never been from the H1 rusting. After a day or two of exposure, the logo etching will show slight corrosion (maybe from the tools that etched it?) but that goes away within a few days and the issue never returns. Another issue you will observe if you really abuse the knives in a high corrosion environment is the hardware will eventually show some minor corrosion that will bleed out of the pivot. The hardware is HIGHLY stainless, but it is not H1. It takes a couple of months of 24/7 saltwater exposure without any cleaning (what kind of kook would do that?? :rolleyes::D) but it will eventually show some minor corrosion. This corrosion though is NOT on the H1 and you can wipe the H1 clean and examine it with a loupe and you will see no signs of corrosion.

Given that level of corrosion resistance and the high performance of serrated H1, I would definitely classify it as a "super steel". Maybe not by the same metrics that we usually label steels as "super" around here, but super nonetheless.
 
I think under the idea of "Exotic" then H1 must be because it changes the game so radically. Maybe also some of the beta titanium alloys since for the longest time even thinking of having an edge on Ti was just a pipe dream. Not to be reductionist, but if your steel is starting from a base of iron and carbon, then everything after that is refinement. Don't read me wrong, I love me some 3V, but its just a refinement of the science and art of metallurgy. At the end of the day the family tree leads from the 10XX class, through your tool steels, into the 400s, on to bearing steels, and then the CPMs, but its just a progression. H1, and the others like it (ceramics, non-iron alloys) are the punk rock of steels, knowing the rules just to break them, and find a niche and then do it very, very well.
 
gadgetgeek said:
I think under the idea of "Exotic" then H1 must be because it changes the game so radically. Maybe also some of the beta titanium alloys since for the longest time even thinking of having an edge on Ti was just a pipe dream. Not to be reductionist, but if your steel is starting from a base of iron and carbon, then everything after that is refinement. Don't read me wrong, I love me some 3V, but its just a refinement of the science and art of metallurgy. At the end of the day the family tree leads from the 10XX class, through your tool steels, into the 400s, on to bearing steels, and then the CPMs, but its just a progression. H1, and the others like it (ceramics, non-iron alloys) are the punk rock of steels, knowing the rules just to break them, and find a niche and then do it very, very well.
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that's exactly what I mean, it's a new stage of steel-making and metal technology.
Old rocks and flint, then bronze and copper, iron and steel, giving place to basic carbon steels (1095, 5160...) and tool steels (A2, O1...) and finally creating stainless steels of all sort (basic 400 series, "surgical steels", powder metallurgy steels, aerospace grade alloys...). The next logical step is not a stainless steel, but a stainproof steel. And that's what H1 achieved right there. Now we're seeing LC200N, hardened BetaTi, ceramics and nano-structures made of carbon tubes, but that's a whole new realm quite distant from the "world and history of steels" shall we name it.
 
HowAmI said:
No. It's obvious you have no idea what you're talking about. Go back to your little hideout and research SM-100 before talking. SM-100 will grinds and holds an edge just find, those makers have shown they have no experience using the material and tend to stick to the easy to use steels.


I'm putting you on the ignored list considering you don't even have the most basic comprehension about special alloys let alone not using a HSS as a chopper.
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You should check out the blade sports competitions.

They use HSS for choppers
 
NJBillK said:
This sounds intriguing.

So far I have a Spyderco Maxamet Mule, a CPM REX76 B&T from Gary Creely and two B&T/Parers from Bluntcut Metalworks.

Though the BCMWs aren't in peculiar alloys, they are both Very stable with fairly high hardness (W2 & 52100 @ 64-65hrc). They do not chip or roll on raw or cooked beef or pork bones when boning out shoulders or other joint work and are both around .012 BTE.
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That's awesome, I'm a fan of 52100 and I'd love to get a W2 knife sometime. Have you tried Nitrobe 77? It feels like a stainless version of 52100. I have a Carson Tech Griffin with a N77 blade and it's one of my favorite knives. I need to have it reground thinner, it's about 20-25 thou and I want it under 10. I have a Elmax Para 2 with a Krein regrind and it's at 5 thou. I have beat on it, chopped through a 2 inch branch(it took 5 minutes since its so light), rough cut dry dirty wood and it was still shaving sharp. I wish more companies ran their steel harder and has thinner grinds. Microtech and Fantoni do it right. MT's s35'm is the best I've tried and out of 6 Knives I've owned all were ground thin. Most South African makers grind their knives thin.
 
d00mtr33 said:
That's awesome, I'm a fan of 52100 and I'd love to get a W2 knife sometime. Have you tried Nitrobe 77? It feels like a stainless version of 52100. I have a Carson Tech Griffin with a N77 blade and it's one of my favorite knives. I need to have it reground thinner, it's about 20-25 thou and I want it under 10. I have a Elmax Para 2 with a Krein regrind and it's at 5 thou. I have beat on it, chopped through a 2 inch branch(it took 5 minutes since its so light), rough cut dry dirty wood and it was still shaving sharp. I wish more companies ran their steel harder and has thinner grinds. Microtech and Fantoni do it right. MT's s35'm is the best I've tried and out of 6 Knives I've owned all were ground thin. Most South African makers grind their knives thin.
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Judging by this post, you should do yourself a favor and get in touch with Luong at Bluntcut Metalworks. One of my favorite alloys of his was a Parer that was made of CPM 10V @68hrc.

Great guy to work with and he has some impressive results.

I have not tried N77, but it sounds like might be seeking it out.
 
BluntCut should try his fancy heat-treatment on an H1 blade. :D
 
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