Subject: Carbon vs. Stainless?

From: [email-masked] (Darrell Markewitz)
Date: Fri, 27 Jan 1995 13:09:04 GMT

Just a few cents worth

I like carbon steel for knives. i find it easier to sharpen, that it
gets sharper than alloy blades, and it seems to keep sharp longer. (the
easier and longer parts should be against each other - but its what i
have noticed!)

problem is that you have to keep carbon steel CLEAN and OILED - else it
rusts like a son of a ..

I forge all my knives - and avoid alloy steels! The stuff is often too
wierd (heat treating) and often too red short (have to work it to close
to the burn temperature).

It may be that because most hand forged knives are of carbon steel, that
they have developed the reputation for quality because of the production
technique. Individual heat treating, done by eye by some one who knows
his business, will always  give you a superior knife to 'batch treated'
blades.

As far as I'm concerned at least. (About 20 years at the forge!)

Darrell
the WAREHAM FORGE
Hamlet of Wareham
RR #2, Proton Stn
Ont, CDN -  N0C 1L0
(519) 923- 9219
[email-masked]