01 Knife Steel
August 26 2019 larrin.
01 knife steel. Unlike damascus steel blades which have a beautiful wavy pattern on them this steel only has its lustre and no pattern. O1 steel history properties and how to heat treat. It is used in custom made fighting knives by makers such as phill hartsfield rob criswell mike snody and john fitzen razor edge us and one. Here i will mention the third factor in my steel choice rationale.
O1 is a general purpose tool steel that is typically used in applications where alloy steels cannot provide sufficient hardness strength and wear resistance. I started making knives with 01 steel and loved it for its functional qualities. See also aisi tool steel grades. O1 steel is a newer form of steel that is employed in the forging of knives and other objects.
If a knife owner is careful of his equipment keeps it reasonably dry does not store it in the sheath and waxes it periodically his blued steel knife can maintain its finish for many years in the field. O1 steel is a tough form of steel and is meant for making rugged parts and of course knives. I have settled on a2 tool steel and i really love knives made from it. In 1876 a large sheffield steel.
A d o m t s l w. The zt 0620 is a great example of a superb elmax blade. What s great to see is that bohler uddeholm sure is giving crucible a run for their money these days. Its origin traces back to the decade of 1940 and ever since it has become popular.
What is it and why should knife makers be interested. Tough steels excel at camp chores and batoning wood but are unable to be used at very thin edge profiles while maintaining edge stability. The best all round knife steel. O1 tool steel is the original oil hardening non shrinking tool steel that can be hardened to the rockwell c 65 range from a low austenitizing temperature.
I ve never found anything an 01 edge can t handle. Tool steel grades used in cutlery. The following are tool steels which are alloy steels commonly used to produce hardened cutting tools. Thanks to johnny ngo and althesciencepal for becoming knife steel nerds patreon supporters.
Plenty of info here for machinists fabricators makers and home shop tinkerers too. A2 a steel that trades wear resistance for toughness. However the history is a bit more interesting than that. See knives with elmax steel.