Which steel do you prefer?
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Chainsaw2
Member
Case XXX, D2, and real Damascas.
Black Toe Knives
Member
John, you need Stainless Damascus.
Do you make it? 
When I opened the package, the bowie had some darkening on the edge that must have happened in transit, though that's mostly come off with CLP. I've had this issue with other Damascus, too, so it's not just your knives.
Well, we do live in the wrong century...
When I opened the package, the bowie had some darkening on the edge that must have happened in transit, though that's mostly come off with CLP. I've had this issue with other Damascus, too, so it's not just your knives.
Well, we do live in the wrong century...
JHansenAK47
Member
VG10
I like it mostly because it isn't a giant pain in the buttocks to sharpen. Takes a good edge and doesn't chip out really bad.
I like it mostly because it isn't a giant pain in the buttocks to sharpen. Takes a good edge and doesn't chip out really bad.
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S30V, D2, 154CM and VG-10 are my top favorites. I also love 1096 and 5160 as well as Chrome Vanadium.
Aus-8A is a subtle favorite too. I love the laminated steel on Mora's.
Pictured: A Mora with dressy birchwood handle and brass bolster/cap. i got it from my friend Ragnar at ragweed forge
My set of RAT field knives. 9 inch, 6 inch and 3 inch. 5160 and micarta.
Buck Vanguard with S30V black blade. Sold as a Factory 2nd due to a very, infantessimaly small divot in the bolster for $90. (anyone got a leather sheath???)
Kennedy tool/tackle box used to store the folders.
Aus-8A is a subtle favorite too. I love the laminated steel on Mora's.
Pictured: A Mora with dressy birchwood handle and brass bolster/cap. i got it from my friend Ragnar at ragweed forge
My set of RAT field knives. 9 inch, 6 inch and 3 inch. 5160 and micarta.
Buck Vanguard with S30V black blade. Sold as a Factory 2nd due to a very, infantessimaly small divot in the bolster for $90. (anyone got a leather sheath???)
Kennedy tool/tackle box used to store the folders.
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Black Toe Knives
Member
John, SMKW carries RAT. I could make a 5160 and micarta combo. How Big?
Deltaboy1984
Member
High Carbon Steel cause I can sharpen it easily and SS is a pain.
ArfinGreebly
Moderator Emeritus
Personally?
Well, my experience isn't as broad as some of the guys, but within the scope of what I've actually used . . .
I have developed a preference for the Sandvik steels. They are pretty much trouble free, take a good edge, hold it well, and don't require mothering.
However, for actual steel performance -- like how sharp it gets, how long it holds the edge, how long it takes to put an edge back on the knife -- I'm kinda partial to the Case "CV" steel. Chrome vanadium steel has been a reliable tool steel for ages, and theirs will "gray" up rather than rust in regular use. Of course, if you let one sit wet or forget to wipe your prints off it and let it go for a while, you may find yourself having to polish off some red rust.
I own a number of knives in high-end steels (S30V, 154CM, stuff like that) and a number in "regular" stainless (440C, 420HC, "Tru Sharp," Sandvik 13c26 & 12c27, things like that), and then some others in random grades of stainless (SAK, assorted "surgical" steels, no-name steels).
I use a fine diamond steel to maintain most of them.
The lower end stainless can be frustrating to sharpen, as it "cuts" easily with stone or diamond and rolls over, or cuts poorly and acts "slippery" against stone/diamond. Bleh. The good 440/420 steels, depending on temper, can be easy to sharpen or a pain in the butt. Most of my "Tru Sharp" (Case) stuff behaves well and takes a decent edge without too much work. The Sandvik steels, though, are very well behaved. Consistently good.
My carbon steel blades, including the Case CV stuff, are satisfying to work with, as they "cut" uniformly with stone & diamond, and dress without fuss, and then hold the edge well. I've only ever had a problem with one carbon steel blade, and it was a cheaply made kitchen knife. Don't have it any more.
So, on balance, I prefer Sandvik for stainless and Case CV for carbon.
This is not an exhaustive treatment nor particularly objective, rather it's just a summary of my personal experience with the stuff I've used.
Well, my experience isn't as broad as some of the guys, but within the scope of what I've actually used . . .
I have developed a preference for the Sandvik steels. They are pretty much trouble free, take a good edge, hold it well, and don't require mothering.
However, for actual steel performance -- like how sharp it gets, how long it holds the edge, how long it takes to put an edge back on the knife -- I'm kinda partial to the Case "CV" steel. Chrome vanadium steel has been a reliable tool steel for ages, and theirs will "gray" up rather than rust in regular use. Of course, if you let one sit wet or forget to wipe your prints off it and let it go for a while, you may find yourself having to polish off some red rust.
I own a number of knives in high-end steels (S30V, 154CM, stuff like that) and a number in "regular" stainless (440C, 420HC, "Tru Sharp," Sandvik 13c26 & 12c27, things like that), and then some others in random grades of stainless (SAK, assorted "surgical" steels, no-name steels).
I use a fine diamond steel to maintain most of them.
The lower end stainless can be frustrating to sharpen, as it "cuts" easily with stone or diamond and rolls over, or cuts poorly and acts "slippery" against stone/diamond. Bleh. The good 440/420 steels, depending on temper, can be easy to sharpen or a pain in the butt. Most of my "Tru Sharp" (Case) stuff behaves well and takes a decent edge without too much work. The Sandvik steels, though, are very well behaved. Consistently good.
My carbon steel blades, including the Case CV stuff, are satisfying to work with, as they "cut" uniformly with stone & diamond, and dress without fuss, and then hold the edge well. I've only ever had a problem with one carbon steel blade, and it was a cheaply made kitchen knife. Don't have it any more.
So, on balance, I prefer Sandvik for stainless and Case CV for carbon.
This is not an exhaustive treatment nor particularly objective, rather it's just a summary of my personal experience with the stuff I've used.
+1 on the CV steel. Its really good steel and I often find meself carrying a case with it. Its also the only steel on case knives I collect. I have an AG Russell Laplander that I left in a sheath and now its rust city. Wont come off either. 
Curse you A2 for being so great yet so weak.
Curse you A2 for being so great yet so weak.
ArfinGreebly
Moderator Emeritus
Rust?
What is it you're using to remove the rust?
Probably a better question is "what have you tried so far?"
I've had some success with valve grinding paste (messy stuff, that) and with a kind of rouge. I've heard from some of the guys that "Flitz" polish will remove it.
(On my axe, I had to use a fine wet/dry paper to get it all. Took me a couple of hours.)
I guess it's a good thing that I don't have lots of experience with rust removal.
What is it you're using to remove the rust?
Probably a better question is "what have you tried so far?"
I've had some success with valve grinding paste (messy stuff, that) and with a kind of rouge. I've heard from some of the guys that "Flitz" polish will remove it.
(On my axe, I had to use a fine wet/dry paper to get it all. Took me a couple of hours.)
I guess it's a good thing that I don't have lots of experience with rust removal.
Tom Hudson
Member
I used nothing but ATS34 for many years - i used it on all my blades and all my springs on my folders - I have built hundreds of spring back folders and as far as i know i have never had a spring break!
Tom
Tom
David Drury
Member
Thank God, no Busse fanatics here. I was worried someone was going to come in here screaming INFI INFI INFI!
Personally, I like 1095 and 5160. They are my most common steels in my knives, and they are the ones that have proven over time their potential to work hard. Now, I own a Bugei blade that is made of K120C Swedish Powdered Steel, that is exceptionally beautiful, and has gone through hundreds upon hundreds of Tatami wraps and has not lost any of it's luster or edge. I own a Cold Steel Espada XL that is made from AUS-8A, but I don't know anything about it's performance because the most it's ever cut is a few sheets of paper. It's a self-defense tool, not a utility knife.
One steel I WOULD like to see in a knife is L6. But those billets are tough to work with from what I understand. SR-77 is nice, but I have yet to see one that holds it's edge longer than a month of hard work.
So, final answer 5160 & 1095.
Personally, I like 1095 and 5160. They are my most common steels in my knives, and they are the ones that have proven over time their potential to work hard. Now, I own a Bugei blade that is made of K120C Swedish Powdered Steel, that is exceptionally beautiful, and has gone through hundreds upon hundreds of Tatami wraps and has not lost any of it's luster or edge. I own a Cold Steel Espada XL that is made from AUS-8A, but I don't know anything about it's performance because the most it's ever cut is a few sheets of paper. It's a self-defense tool, not a utility knife.
One steel I WOULD like to see in a knife is L6. But those billets are tough to work with from what I understand. SR-77 is nice, but I have yet to see one that holds it's edge longer than a month of hard work.
So, final answer 5160 & 1095.
gga357
Member
5160 by far with w2, cmp 3v & infi following up in tie for second.
45crittergitter
Member
D2, but I've not tried all the other super premium steels.
Deltaboy1984
Member
Plain carbon Steel like in my Old Hickory knives!
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