Why Not Stainless?

I like 'em both. Recently I've started to carry one cheaper stainless for cooking or "wet work" (like a Mora 2000) in my pack and one carbon for "work" work on my hip. Reason being is I use Eezox to prevent rust on my carbons and don't really want that tainting my food when I prep it, so I like using the 2000 for that. Not that I don't use the 2000 for "work" work as well, but I will not use my carbons for food prep unless absolutely needed because of the Eezox. I've had nary a problemo with rust since using Eezox.
 
I'm much more concerned with design than what a blade is made from provided they exceed a minimum standard [and excluding big thwackers for which my penchant is carbon]. One of my favourite users that gets loads of woods time is an economical Boker in 440C that is so not trendy. The truth of it is, despite the inferior steel, I wield that better than the F1. I retained the Boker and the F1 got bequeathed. Heresy huh.

Further, how many times did we see SOG get a panning for being reluctant to release many models in a better steel that 440A. On that, it is interesting that a prevailing zeitgeist at the moment is constantly biggin'-up offerings in 12C27 . As far as I can determine the composition of 12C27 isn't a million miles away from 440A despite some unspecific mumbles about 'purity'. Might the lions share of apparent discrepancy not be simply that companies such as BRKT design better cutting instruments than SOG does irrespective of the steel?

Sticking with SOG as an example we also have something of a naturalistic blind field trial. Let's look at Joe Talmadge's popular steel chart :

Of AUS-6 / 6A it is said, “Japanese stainless steels, roughly comparable in carbon content to 440A (AUS-6, .65% carbon) and 440B (AUS-8, .75% carbon) and 440C (AUS-10, 1.1% carbon). AUS-6 is used by Al Mar, and is a competitor to low-end steels like 420J.”

On that, a potential buyer may well snub an AUS-6 / 6A blade in the belief that the performance would be on a par with the lowly 420J.

And further up the list we find of 440A, “The general feeling is that 440A (and similar steels, see below) is just good enough for everyday use, especially with a good heat treat (we've heard good reports on the heat treat of SOG's 440A blades , don't know who does the work for them).”

Here's where the blind trial works a peach. All SOG blades sold as 440A have always been AUS-6 / 6A, they were just sold as 440A for marketing purposes. Interesting huh?

It strikes me that too many people get psyched out over their knife choice. Little wonder there are so many posts with members seeking little more than validation for what they picked on some of the other forums.
 
Horn Dog said:
It is amazing what some people call survival knives--everything from a Busse Battle Mistress to a Mora. Down here, I consider the machete a good choice (along with a folder).
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Yes, Sir. Good point. There certainly is a broad interpretation associated with that adjective. :) I remember being in parts of Georgia (training with the Army) where I thought a machete was perfectly appropriate in some of the jungle and swamp features found there. For that matter, a machete is a good choice in the Oregon coastal range (rain forest) given its extremely thick, almost impenetrable undergrowth.

In general, carbon steels are tougher than stainless steels, and if you're going away from civilization, you want your tools to be tough. That's one important reason for the popularity of carbon steels. Carbon steels are also easier to sharpen in the field, so that's another benefit there. And they're quite often less expensive, too.
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I agree with this in large part. However, there are always those exceptions to the rule it seems. A well-known knife maker sent me a knife that he had made for camp and trail use. I was able to test the knife extensively on a 400-mile backpacking trip down the PCT, doing everything in the book other than chopping concrete blocks. The blade is 4-1/2" long, 154CM, 3/32" thick at the spine, and very light weight. The thin, flat-ground blade sharpens up as easy as any carbon steel blade out there (heat treat by D' Alton Holder). And, though the blade is almost semi-flexible, I was not able to break it by hand while testing its limits prying (I don't pry with my knives normally). The knife was plenty tough in my book. And it cut too! :) Yes, the thick, obtuse, hard stainless knives can be a real bear to sharpen to a decent cutting edge.
 
I used to be an all stainless guy, now I love the carbon carbon gets dark and stains but rust hasn't been an issue....I do like the 12c27 on the moras and barkies and the lam vg-10 of the fallkniven line Probably will try a helle and a brusletto down the road. but when you pull out a blade that's blue and black from use it show charecter and tells a story of shared adventures... I know it sound lame... also carbon is wicked easy to sharpen and keep that way... Vikings sailed across the sea with nothing but carbon blades, alot of which still exist today...I don't think they are as fragile as people think...although it seems that less and less manufacturers are making carbon blades. (at least commercially)
 
RescueRiley said:
I used to be an all stainless guy, now I love the carbon carbon gets dark and stains but rust hasn't been an issue....I do like the 12c27 on the moras and barkies and the lam vg-10 of the fallkniven line Probably will try a helle and a brusletto down the road. but when you pull out a blade that's blue and black from use it show charecter and tells a story of shared adventures... I know it sound lame... also carbon is wicked easy to sharpen and keep that way... Vikings sailed across the sea with nothing but carbon blades, alot of which still exist today...I don't think they are as fragile as people think...although it seems that less and less manufacturers are making carbon blades. (at least commercially)
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Yeah, I really think that rust/corrosion is overplayed. for a collector it's a problem, but for a user, a little pitting, patina, wont' hurt a blade.

I have an old case hunter being customized and reconditioned by Pickle and the blade is pitted to heck. His comment was this knife will outlast the both of us.

Personally, I prefer carbon and will continue to use it!

Brett
 
It all comes down to not the type of steel but the grind/edge geometry, the heat treatment, temper and proper use of a cutting tool. All cutlery grade steels are good if the above things are followed.
Scott
 
I guess I see where those of you who live where there is humidity are coming from. I hadn't thought about the fact that rusting will dull your edge, and I can imagine that being a drag and a half.

Here, we get, what, 7 inches of rain a year? In this environment, rust is usually something that happens when you're negligent about drying your knife off after cutting food.

Given that, I've tended to trust the toughness of carbon steel. There are a lot of things that a knife can recover from, but snapping in half isn't one of them, and if you're out in the wild and that's your only knife . . . .
 
Not previously mentioned... carbon being softer allows for the ability to hit the spine of the blade against a sharp rock to generate a spark. Its good to have another method to make fire - albeit a difficult one from a tinder perspective, yet another method nonetheless. I also like as previously mentioned like the toughness and particularly the ease of sharpening.

On the other end of the spectrum for corrison I carry a Simonich Bitterroot in Talonite around my neck every day. I also have a mini Talon and Talonite Crowfoot.
 
The easiest solution is to carry 2 knives, one stainless and one carbon. :D
Scott
 
Why does it have to be carbon or stainless? I have spent plenty of time in the outback with stone tools of my own manufacture and find them perfectly acceptable. They don't rust either! :)

I gathered and made everything in the photo from what was located on our own land (except for the leather) . I needed to show some of my first-day students the many tool resources they were missing at their feet. Even the bands on the arrow shaft were done with ochre and pine sap. Nope, I don't have the same trepidation in my approach to outdoor tools as many do. Stainless or carbon...not really an issue. ;)
stoneknife1er1.jpg
 
Very, very impressive Dannyboy. I have long wanted to try my hand at knapping. Just not enough hours in the day!
 
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