[AwP]

For a throwing knife you want steel that's more "tough" then "hard", 5160 or 1050 would be good choices for that. Big files ARE what you use for most of your filing work unless you have powertools or are doing fine filework on the spine. You want to use a tecnique called "draw filing" which is where you hold both ends of the file and pull it sideways along the blade instead of the normal one handed motion.