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I hate misusing forums to sell stuff, but if you want even more I also offer my own DVD's along with the ABS on my website at: http://cashenblades.com/mathertonforge/index.php/for-sale/ I don't mean to steer you away from the ABS, they need our support, but my own DVD's are only available on my...

Thank you so much for bringing this point up guys, these are my thoughts exactly. I have a small section in my knife design class/lecture devoted to this and how we need to think not so much about the exceptional cases but instead what every knife will face all the time, and sharpening is one...

Don't fall victim to pretty pictures! You really need to handle a blade to judge it properly and our internet driven society has people fawning over nothing more than pretty images. I had a chance to handle this blade today. It is beautifully light, as an easy carry folder should be, and an...

What use is gained knowledge if it is not helping the craft? On 80CrV2; it is a European alloy so you may have to look under the material number designation 1.2235 for more in-depth information. I have connections in Europe that help me get different literature so that I can look things up...

I would like to add that I blamed spheroidizing a little too exclusively for carbon lock in that last post. I have carbon locked my own steel by getting a little too creative with my normalizing operations before doing the same standard speroidizing that I have always done. We really need to...

I have seen even higher temps for 80CrV2, like crazy high, that left me scratching my head. This would be a case of recommending a sledge hammer for engraving because the material was too hard with a chasing hammer. As I said before... when in doubt, normalize! There is a condition in...

The definitive bible in this would be the "ASM Heat Treater's Guide", but a new edition is quite expensive. What you can do is look on your phone app store for a downloadable facsimile. There are a few apps out there like this. I have one on my phone that allows you to search by alloy name and...

We should expect a chemistry within a range specified for the alloy it is claimed to be, and we can reasonably expect it to be annealed, probably spheroidized, especially if described as such. Not much beyond that. I personally believe that if we all were more insistent on being provide spec...

If there are any more questions that I could help with I would love to discuss them. But let me take time to emphasize that Ed is also pointing out detrimental soak times, which I find just as crazy as he does. If you actually are soaking 1095 for 30 minutes, I have no idea what you are...

John, no thanks are necessary. Karen just showed me an exchange on social media that I will never visit because I find it toxic, and it reminded me how much I don’t miss such interaction and cringe when my name is involved in its ugliness; I always want to be part of the solution, not part of...

And finally, before I go to bed as my insomnia has passed: It is very important to note that this familiar chart is often referred to as the iron carbon equilibrium diagram. This is because the phases shown at the given temperatures are what is achieved at near equilibrium. In plainer...

To the original question: Steel is an alloy, or even more simply, a mixture of iron and carbon. At room temperature the carbon will separate out to concentrate enough to form a compound (iron carbide) within the iron, leaving the iron free, and unfortified, to behave like the rather soft metal...

I actually thought that I should say something earlier in this thread in hopes of heading off any misunderstandings. I have never really taken a firmer stance about this topic because it’s just a small point about steel heat treatment. But every time this comes up things get more and more...

Well you can say it is just your opinion Chris, but the physics that govern the properties of the steel hold the exact same opinion, so you are in pretty good company. If one defines the "strength" of a material its resistance to deformation, ductility is virtually the opposite property...

I have found that anything under 120X runs the risk of stress riser fracturing, if the blade reaches maximum hardness. I teach most of my students to take them to 220X. Less than this will be tougher to remove when the blade is hard, and I discourage those not very used to things like wet...

I guess it is a matter of different marketing realities. Mine is based upon a reputation for never compromising on the functional aspects of my blades. When I get a request for blunted blades, I promptly refer the customer to a maker who works in that market instead.

Those would be "wasters", rather than swords. They are practice equipment in lieu of actual swords. Foils and Epees are sport equipment. Similar to how a prop pistol that is solid moulded plastic, or those only capable of shooting blanks, would like wise never be considered actual guns.

"Knife: a cutting instrument consisting of a sharp blade fastened to a handle." -Websters Universal Encyclopedic Dictionary I start many of my talks with this line to remind students what we are making, and that if we are doing anything at the expense of the very definition of what we are...

^^ What he said. I always introduce my blades to a heat source that has assumed temperature and leveled off. 45 minutes is not a lot of time to wait, so you should be safe, but generally you want to get the temper done as soon as possible, if you have fully hardened the blade. Hours, or...

The concerning thing for me is the idea that one should lower the blade hardness to accommodate easier sharpening, if that is the case, we can all go with that $5 Pakistan stainless special at Walmart. Strength and abrasion resistance are the properties that are needed for a long lasting and...