What type of steel for a custom?

R

RWT

Joined
Mar 15, 2011
Messages
1,432
I have finally decided to have a custom/ semi custom made with my input. Question I have is what steel to use? I have a few Busse's and Kin and like the INFI and SR101. I have no experience with 01 which seems to be very common and the 1095 BK11 I have I cannot get sharp.(My Izula does?) A2 does not look easy to sharpen and I can never get my D2 KOA knives sharp unless I take them to a professional. Have a folder in S30V - takes a great edge, but I do not see many of the makers on the forum use it. Appears 1084/1095 and 01 are the most common. What are their strengths and weaknesses as my total budget is $200.00(no sheath)

I am looking for a general hunt/camp knife - 1/8 to 3/16 - 4" to 5" blade. large handle at least 4.75 "- full tang- convex edge - unknown on grind as I just need easy to sharpen and a good slicer. I do not mind general maintenace, but I will mistreat her all season long and not take care of her until end of year. I am a heavy use and need a strong tip, primarily ranch work and cleaning animals. Lots of cleaning animals. I doubt I will ever baton anything and expect any choice to be good enough to CYA if I have to baton. Would like this steel to take hair popping sharp edge, have enough retention to clean at lease 2 deer without resharpening or stropping. I am looking for this custom to bump all the others I use out of rotation. Basically my one knife to last a lifetime.

So what steel best fits in my budget and what are it's advantage and disadvantages.

***If something like CPM3V is the best, but I have to bump the budget I will consider it
 
I have read that L6 is a fantastic steel for custom fixed blade knives, and relatively cheap. $0.02.
 
I have had a few customs in (1095, O1, 5160, A2) All were very good. I believe the two key points to discuss w/ the potential maker are: Application (primary purpose of knife) may seem obvious but people bring different expectations to their knives. On what canvas does the maker paint best? (i.e. which steel do they favor/have the most confidence/proficiency in heat treating?) I beat the O1 and 5160 knife up w/ chopping and batonning...both did well holding edge and were plenty tough for what I was doing. O1 patinaed quick, 5160 slower to patina
Good luck with your decision
 
it all depends on what kind of knife you want and what you are going to use it for if you want stainless i would go with cpm 154cm/ s35vn/ s30v. if you want brute strength for chopping, batoning, hammering, and prying jobs. i would go with 5160 at 58-59 HRC if you want a little better edge retention but not such a beat up knife and dont care if it rusts 1095 or O1 is your steel. O1 in my opinion being the better out of 1095 and O1 it is stronger and holds a better edge.
 
RWT said:
I have finally decided to have a custom/ semi custom made with my input. Question I have is what steel to use? I have a few Busse's and Kin and like the INFI and SR101. I have no experience with 01 which seems to be very common and the 1095 BK11 I have I cannot get sharp.(My Izula does?) A2 does not look easy to sharpen and I can never get my D2 KOA knives sharp unless I take them to a professional. Have a folder in S30V - takes a great edge, but I do not see many of the makers on the forum use it. Appears 1084/1095 and 01 are the most common. What are their strengths and weaknesses as my total budget is $200.00(no sheath)

I am looking for a general hunt/camp knife - 1/8 to 3/16 - 4" to 5" blade. large handle at least 4.75 "- full tang- convex edge - unknown on grind as I just need easy to sharpen and a good slicer. I do not mind general maintenace, but I will mistreat her all season long and not take care of her until end of year. I am a heavy use and need a strong tip, primarily ranch work and cleaning animals. Lots of cleaning animals. I doubt I will ever baton anything and expect any choice to be good enough to CYA if I have to baton. Would like this steel to take hair popping sharp edge, have enough retention to clean at lease 2 deer without resharpening or stropping. I am looking for this custom to bump all the others I use out of rotation. Basically my one knife to last a lifetime.

So what steel best fits in my budget and what are it's advantage and disadvantages.

***If something like CPM3V is the best, but I have to bump the budget I will consider it
Click to expand...

Sounds like you are going to want something that holds an edge (wear resistant).

Since you are talking about Customs here so there is both a wait time and likely a broad choice of steels that you could choose from depending on the maker.

1st off you would need to find out what steels the maker can or will work with.

2nd, you will need to talk to him about what you want the knife for and how it will be used.

3rd, You will need to listen to the maker when he gives his recommendations.


Price really shouldn't be the deciding factor here because you could end up with less than you wanted in the end and on a custom that you waited for.....

I think S30V with a good HT would really fit what you want, that or CPM-154.
 
From what you described as your intended use I'd have said D2, but you already said you have trouble sharpening it. It has enough corrosion resistance to survive in the field and is strong enough for heavy use without requiring an overly heavy blade.

The problem here is that we don't know what the issue was when it came to sharpening the previous D2 examples, so whether it was a particular edge design or the steel itself or just your technique is completely unknown.

In terms of durability and cleaning multiple animals I don't think you'll be happy with any of the usual stainless options, you'll have to trade something off for the stainless. That might be as simple as resharpening a bit more often, but there will be SOME trade off. This is why D2 is popular, you get a great blend of the two categories.
 
RWT said:
the 1095 BK11 I have I cannot get sharp.(My Izula does?)

I can never get my D2 KOA knives sharp unless I take them to a professional.
Click to expand...

Remyrw said:
The problem here is that we don't know what the issue was when it came to sharpening the previous D2 examples, so whether it was a particular edge design or the steel itself or just your technique is completely unknown.
Click to expand...


RWT, i think you need to sort out whatever problems you're having sharpening your knives. how do you currently sharpen your knives?

my experience with D2 has been positive.
 
Worksharp system. I start wih the 220 red belt and finish with 6000 purple. I am using the 20 degree per side guide and have no issue with most of my knives. The D2 KOA may have needed to be reprofiled asI do not know what edge grind it came with originally. No matter what I did I could not get it to push cut paper. Same issue with the BK11. I have at least a dozen other knives and have no issues with getting them sharp on this system. I want to learn to strop so I can touch up in the field as I have tried free hand and a stone before and only ruined blades, thus the reason for the Worksharp and my desire to find the best compromise for edge retention and ease of sharpening.
 
RWT said:
Worksharp system. I start wih the 220 red belt and finish with 6000 purple. I am using the 20 degree per side guide and have no issue with most of my knives. The D2 KOA may have needed to be reprofiled asI do not know what edge grind it came with originally. No matter what I did I could not get it to push cut paper. Same issue with the BK11. I have at least a dozen other knives and have no issues with getting them sharp on this system. I want to learn to strop so I can touch up in the field as I have tried free hand and a stone before and only ruined blades, thus the reason for the Worksharp and my desire to find the best compromise for edge retention and ease of sharpening.
Click to expand...

I think you really need to get the sharpening down 1st before getting into a custom knife because a custom knife won't solve your problem, they don't sharpen themselves.
 
Have you tried different angles with those 2 knives? They could just be set at over 20 degrees so your sharpener isn't hitting the edge.

I've had A2, 3V, 1095, 15n20, O1, S30V and SR101. All sharpen easily with sand paper on a strop for me. Edge holding on the S30V and the 3V were best but they're also more of a pain to sharpen. Takes a little longer. The rest were just fine in the edge holding category. For you I'd go with A2. It gives you a steel that's a little easier to sharpen then the two V's and gives more rust resistance then the others.
 
Shotgun said:
Have you tried different angles with those 2 knives? They could just be set at over 20 degrees so your sharpener isn't hitting the edge.

I've had A2, 3V, 1095, 15n20, O1, S30V and SR101. All sharpen easily with sand paper on a strop for me. Edge holding on the S30V and the 3V were best but they're also more of a pain to sharpen. Takes a little longer. The rest were just fine in the edge holding category. For you I'd go with A2. It gives you a steel that's a little easier to sharpen then the two V's and gives more rust resistance then the others.
Click to expand...

i dont know who did your O1 steel heat treat but O1 should hold a better edge then most of those steels
 
How about M4. Holds a good edge, doesn't rust super easy, is fairly tough, and I find it extremely easy to sharpen.
 
Lots of good advice so far!! I would agree, get the sharpening down first then spend the $$$ on a custom. I went through a lot of production knives before I felt my maintainence skills were good enough to warrant a custom knifemakers hard work.

I cring at the thought of using an inexpensive power sharpener on a handmade knife. To me, of you're going through the trouble to have someone make exactly what you want, a little efforrt to learn how to care for that piece is the least you can do in return.

That being said, I've had good results with O1, 5160, 1084. A2 seems a little harder to sharpen, but not troublesome. Coated D2 has worked quite well for me as a "beater", a strop or ceramic stone brings it right back in no time.
 
As a maker and heat treater, I can honestly say that there are alot of good steels out there. Nobody said ATS-34 which is a great steel also. The best in steel comes out in the oven. Make sure you choose a good quality steel , with good heat treating, and a reputable maker and you wont go wrong.
GOD BLESS!!
Michael
 
chad2 said:
i dont know who did your O1 steel heat treat but O1 should hold a better edge then most of those steels
Click to expand...
Scott Gossman. IME O1 falls on the low end of the steels listed beating out 1095 and 15n20 only.
 
michael o'machearley said:
As a maker and heat treater, I can honestly say that there are alot of good steels out there. Nobody said ATS-34 which is a great steel also. The best in steel comes out in the oven. Make sure you choose a good quality steel , with good heat treating, and a reputable maker and you wont go wrong.
GOD BLESS!!
Michael
Click to expand...
Yep, I've pretty much abondoned finding the right steel. My focus is now on a good design and a maker known for quality heat treat. Those factors are way more important then the steel.
 
Shotgun said:
Scott Gossman. IME O1 falls on the low end of the steels listed beating out 1095 and 15n20 only.
Click to expand...

edge retention is going to be better then A2 by far better then 1095 and 15n20 by a little bit those were the ones that he said were the same and i was just correcting him buy saying O1 has better edge retention then the other steels

O1 is also widely used for custom knives because it is a very strong steel that holds an amazing edge if it was stainless it would be considered a top notch steel.

it is not as strong as A2 but how many steels are? it is stronger and holds a better edge the 1095 and 15n20

O1 holds an edge a step down from s30v but is around the same toughness

so like i said before it all depends on what you want your knife for.
 
chad2 said:
edge retention is going to be better then A2 by far better then 1095 and 15n20 by a little bit those were the ones that he said were the same and i was just correcting him buy saying O1 has better edge retention then the other steels

O1 is also widely used for custom knives because it is a very strong steel that holds an amazing edge if it was stainless it would be considered a top notch steel.

it is not as strong as A2 but how many steels are? it is stronger and holds a better edge the 1095 and 15n20

O1 holds an edge a step down from s30v but is around the same toughness

so like i said before it all depends on what you want your knife for.
Click to expand...
Your experience may differ and that's cool. I use my knives for food prep a lot so maybe that's why O1 hasn't performed that well for me. You can almost watch it rust in front of you.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top