Read the Beforeitsnews.com story here. Advertise at Before It's News here.

By Surviving In Argentina
Contributor profile | More stories

Story Views
Now:
Last hour:
Last 24 hours:
Total:

Survival Knife: Steel hardness and sharpening‏

Monday, August 11, 2014 16:44

% of readers think this story is Fact. Add your two cents.

Maybe you can shed some light on this on your blog. I have a Spyderco Endura, VG10 steel. It was razor sharp out of the box, but in time the blade got dull, and I have never been able to sharpen it with my wet stone back to factory standards. Meanwhile, I also have a Boker Magnum (looks like a Buck110 knock-off). It’s probably some cheap stainless steel, judging from the price I paid for it, but it takes a razor sharp edge with a couple of passes on the same wet stone and it retains the edge relatively well. So what make the VG10 steel better than say 1080, if it’s so hard to sharpen?

Jose

—-

Hello Jose,

The knife market is saturated with products and everyone wants the strongest and sharpest. These days, in many ways knives companies live or die depending on what a guy on youtube says. Does one knife cut 20 pieces of cardboard before failing to cut paper while another cuts 15? Guess which one ends up making the crazy sales after one of those videos hits 100.000 views.

Because of this knife companies are looking to make sharper knives, that cut better (although sometimes they sacrifice a tougher blade geometry in the process, like in the case of full flat grind knives) and hold an edge longer (although this same thing makes it much harder to sharpen). The Endura is a great knife, but I prefer the saber grin over the more fragile full flat grind.

Hardness is another hot topic. Everyone wants to have the harder knife. Joke about it but its true. “My knife is 60HRC” “Oh, yeah? Mine’s 61!”. In the good old days a knife was simply a high carbon steel blade similar to 1055 or 1080 and hardened to 50-55HRC. It would be tough as nails, hold an edge well enough, and a breeze to sharpen.

Today, we have knife enthusiasts that can’t even sharpen a knife themselves and want a knife that holds an edge longer before sending it over to someone to sharpen it for them. That’s how we end up with knives that are too hard, even brittle and may fail catastrophically or in the best case a knife that is at least a pain to resharpen.

Answering your question, what makes VG10 is the same thing that makes it a pain to sharpen: It’s a tough steel that holds an edge well, but holding an edge well means that it has resistance to wear, that the blade material, may that be for losing the edge or for putting it back, its harder to remove. VG10 is a high end knife steel that doesnt need resharpening often, but it will take more work to sharpen well when needed.

Source: http://ferfal.blogspot.com/2014/07/survival-knife-steel-hardness-and.html

Before It’s News® is a community of individuals who report on what’s going on around them, from all around the world.

Anyone can join.
Anyone can contribute.
Anyone can become informed about their world.

"United We Stand" Click Here To Create Your Personal Citizen Journalist Account Today, Be Sure To Invite Your Friends.

Please Help Support BeforeitsNews by trying our Natural Health Products below!

Order by Phone at 888-809-8385 or online at https://mitocopper.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST

Order by Phone at 866-388-7003 or online at https://www.herbanomic.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST

Order by Phone at 866-388-7003 or online at https://www.herbanomics.com M - F 9am to 5pm EST

Humic & Fulvic Trace Minerals Complex - Nature's most important supplement! Vivid Dreams again!

HNEX HydroNano EXtracellular Water - Improve immune system health and reduce inflammation.

Ultimate Clinical Potency Curcumin - Natural pain relief, reduce inflammation and so much more.

MitoCopper - Bioavailable Copper destroys pathogens and gives you more energy. (See Blood Video)

Oxy Powder - Natural Colon Cleanser! Cleans out toxic buildup with oxygen!

Nascent Iodine - Promotes detoxification, mental focus and thyroid health.

Smart Meter Cover - Reduces Smart Meter radiation by 96%! (See Video).

Comments

Online:
Visits:	1,606,715,532
Stories:	8,159,734