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which is the toughest stainless?

M

M Wadel

Joined
Sep 11, 2005
Messages
801
anybody know? is aus8 considered tough with the Ni in it or are all the stainless steels pretty much the same. what stainless could be used for big knives, i saw some Big Country knives used this steel (camping knife) so i figured it could be used. ok which is the toughest of these D2, Ats-34/154cm/Rwl-34, 440C, S30V, Aus-8 (who sells AUS8?), 12C27, BG42? cant seem to find any VG10, dont even know who makes it.:confused:
 
AUS-8 is a japanese steel though I don't know who makes it. One excellent knife is the Cold Steel Master Hunter stainless version with AUS-8. You should really define what type of knife for what purpose rather than saying 'what's the toughest'.
 
I think he might mean which one would stand up best to heavy duty tasks like chopping, prying, etc (he said "big knife" and mentioned a camping knife). If that's what he means, I'd also be very interested in seeing which steel comes out on top.
 
i was planning to make some a big campingknife that can handle some chopping (and probably some standard abuse) :D
 
hahahha.... I know the answer too.... but I am just going to leave a hint... is a 400 series steel. ;)
 
At a blade show a couple of years ago, a knifemaker told me that S-7 is the toughest workable steel he knew of.
But I doubt it's stainless.
 
For a tough stainless steel, S30V is hard to beat. In fact, many knifemakers use it in their larger knives for both combat and outdoor aplications.
 
S30V is hard and brittle, not soft and tough. There are big (and good) knives in S30V, but because S30V tends to chip instead of roll, and because S30V's main strength is that you can use a very extreme final bevel angle for slicing, it doesn't make much sense as a chopper or camp steel. Having an S30V knife with a wide final bevel defeats the purpose of using S30V in the first place.

Not that this is a hard and fast rule. Again, there are good big knives in S30V designed for heavy outdoor use. But in general, camp knives use carbon or tool steel, or a softer, tough stainless steel such as.....

As for *good* stainless steels that are very tough, I would pick 440C. Something like 420J2 might be tougher, but it isn't nearly as good all around.
 
420J2 is quite soft (RC 56) and unsuitable for this use. 440C (stainless) would be the choice of the bunch but I'd still use 1095 (non-stainless) as first choice. The others, I would think, would chip out in a bush knife configuration; simply too hard for that use. IMO
 
I'd agree with most others here and say that for a Stainless 440C would be my choice. Of all the choices you had, though, I'd go with the semi-stainless D2.
 
Hair said:
S30V is hard and brittle, not soft and tough. There are big (and good) knives in S30V, but because S30V tends to chip instead of roll.
Click to expand...

Due to vanadium carbides, S30V is pretty hard and offers excellent wear resistance however it's all in the heat treat and from what I understand it's hit or miss deal. Many makers have reported great results with this steel in large knives while others have cursed it. I've read somewhere it's much less brittle than 440C. I think most of us if given the choice of steels where toughess is desired, would prefer carbon but lets leave that out and stick to the original post.
 
which is the toughest stainless?
Click to expand...

Notice the term "toughest". Not hardest, not most wear resistant. Toughest.

Most people here are thinking which one is better balanced between these characteristics in order to be suitable for big, camp knives.

So the later question is open to debate because there is no perfect balance. True stainless suitable for big knives would be 440c or 440B, even 440A (hear the crowd gasp...) or as said before you can trade off a little stain resistance and get D2 which will be superior to 440C.
 
rifon2 said:
At a blade show a couple of years ago, a knifemaker told me that S-7 is the toughest workable steel he knew of.
But I doubt it's stainless.
Click to expand...
S7 is a carbon tool steel with 3.25% chromium. Not enough to be stainless. Yes it is tough........very tough steel. I would say if you want stainless I'd go with 440C at about 58 rc.
Scott
 
I should have added that AUS-8 is about the same as 440B , both are suitable for your needs. I have the agrussell kukri , made from 440B , it works very well !!
 
thanks for the replies guys, so 440C is good enough, thats nice because its very cheap compared to the others
 
I recall a year or so ago a similar thread on another forum, and the talk was almost all S30V. Crucible seemed to be promoting it as the toughest stainless, and several makers were on that bandwagon at the time. Real world experience with this S30V seems very mixed, I wonder if Crucible has backed off its claims?

I know it wasn't the question, but using stainless for almost any large, hard use knife just doesn't make much sense to me, unless corrosion resistance is an overriding concern ..... though I've never tried one of the Fallkniven VG10 laminates, which sounds promising
 
I believe Gail Bradley used S30V for his "chopper" at the Guild show last year, and was quite competitive.

sal
 
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