1075/1080 or 1095 Steel for a first knife?

[czarjl]

I am just starting out with my adventure into knife making and need a bit of advice on what steel to start with. A bit of background on me (hope its helpful). I have a read a lot (but I?m sure there is tons more out there) on knife making and heat treating. I have decided to do stock removal and heat treat the blade myself. I will mostly be doing the work by hand, I want to start slow and take my time. I have a fair amount of metal working experience and access to most of the tools to match (lathe, mill, surface grinder, hydraulic press, arc welder, oxy torches?). I am in the process of building a basic forge to do the heat treat on my blade. I have what I thing is a ?sold? idea of the theory of how to make the knife and heat treat it, we will see how reality matches up.
My steel choices are 1075/1080 or 1095 steel from Admiral Steel. I chose the simple carbon steels so I can heat treat it my self and I get a bunch of steel to work with fairly cheap that will make a decent knife.

My question is should I start out with a 1075/1080 or 1095 steel from Admiral Steel? I understand all the metallurgy of both steels.
What I am unsure of is which one would most likely yield better end results for a beginner? It is my understanding that 1095 can yield a better edge and the 1075/80 will be easier to do a good heat treat on. I am looking to make something like a camp/hunting knife with a 4? blade.

Any guidance on which steel (1075/1080 or 1095 or something else) to start with would be greatly appreciated.

[Doug Lester]

You might want to give some of the low alloy steels a look, like 9260, 5160, 52100, or even O-1. These steels are still easy to heat treat with a simple set up but give more depth of penitration on the hardening. That said, there is actually nothing wrong with the higher carbon 10XX series. Just be sure that you bring the steel up to non-magnetic, soak for about a minute, and then move at all safe speed to get it into the quenchant. Being that you will be doing stock removal, start with annealed stock or you will have to anneal the steel yourself before grinding.

Doug Lester

[Ray Rogers]

In my opinion, you seem to have done your homework and I think you have a good grasp of what you are intending to do. I'd suggest the 1075/1080 for your first bunch of knives. The HT process for those steels is very similar to the process for 1095 but 1095 is less forgiving of mistakes and probably only makes a marginally better blade. Also, I like your decision to make a 4" blade to start with, most beginners want to make Rambo's knife and that is far harder to do than any 4" blade.

Some of the other steels that Doug mentioned can make a higher performance blade than 1080 but they also require a good bit of practice to achieve better results. So, save some money and make lots of 1080 blades and remember to test some of them to destruction. After that, you'll know what you need to know to be in a good position to try the more complex steels like O1 and 52100.

Welcome to the forums, let us see what you end up with ....

[Ed Tipton]

I only have two things to add to what's already been said. For heat treating 10xx steels, I highly recommend a toaster oven. Your kitchen oven can temper your work as well, but may be a tad more inconvenient. I've picked up toaster ovens at garage sales for as little as 5 bucks. If you're going to start with 1080 steel, may I recommend Kelly Cupples in Wash. state. I have purchased 1080 steel from him twice now, and he is a good guy to deal with and he is also a knifemaker, so he knows what you want. If you order $100.00 from him, he will also pay the shipping. If you intend to clay any of your blades, try ceramic "slip" compound. I paid $10.00 for about a forty pound bucket of the stuff, and it's easy to work with. My forty pounds will probably outlast my knifemaking career. Just be sure to put it on good and heavy.
Good luck!

[SBuzek]

1075/1080 is the way to go for starting out.Easy H/T and will make a good knife.
Stan

[czarjl]

Thank you all for your advice.

I think I will be going with the 1075/1080 steel? I am learning so easier to work with and cheapish is a definite plus. Once I have an idea of what I?m doing (right now I?m in the magical land of theory where everything works) I will move up to a better steel.

I will post pictures and I?m sure more question as I progress. My time is unfortunately limited. I was planning to work on building a forge this week but I have to run a new gas line and 110V electric outlet line for my heat treat oven... I mean my wife?s new kitchen stove.