|
With O1 tool steel, P50 is a little too fast...technically. I have quenched a few blades of O1 into P50 without issue. Others have had some micro cracks on the surface of the blade when doing that. An 11-13 second oil is usually recommended for O1. The pearlite nose on O1 is like 10 seconds....so a fast oil is not needed at all. 52100 has a PN of around 3 seconds....fast oil not required... however I do use P50 for 52100 and some smiths actually water quench 52100. 1095 and W2 have a PN of less than 1 second...fast oil needed.
1095 is indeed best with a fast oil like P50. Thinner cross sections will harden OK in canola warmed to 130?F, but approaching 1/8"...you may have some pearlite left over in the matrix, especially above 1/8". Some steels like the Hitachi White and Blue need an extremely fast quench...P50 works well...brine is better. The Hitachi steels, due to being a more clean and pure steel, are the only steels a brine quench is actually recommended. W2 and 1095 to some extent...with some failure rate (25%...just guessing).
|