Titanium Blade?

[Jeff Sorensen]

I recieved some titanium the other day. They were some drop
pieces, 1/8" thick by 1" wide by 12" long, as well as a few thinner
pieces and even more on the way. It is labeled as grade 2 titanium.
Will this in any way make a decent knife blade?

Thanks for any replies,
Jeff

[DanCrabtree]

From what ive heard titanium doesnt make a good blade material but is commonly used as fittings and sides on folders. Its a really tough metal but from what I heard its not a good blade material... Notice im using the words from what I heard.

[rhrocker]

Originally Posted by Jeff Sorensen

I recieved some titanium the other day. They were some drop
pieces, 1/8" thick by 1" wide by 12" long, as well as a few thinner
pieces and even more on the way. It is labeled as grade 2 titanium.
Will this in any way make a decent knife blade?

Thanks for any replies,
Jeff

Jeff, I understand that it hardens in the 40's I believe I read that in Wayne Goddards book), so it would be pretty marginal as a blade, except of course for something like a letter opener. It would sure make a heck of a neat colored blade though. I've been wanting to experiment with a blade made of Titanium, just haven't got around to it yet. It would be good as a collectors knife, that would be mostly displayed, but the buyer would have to be made aware of it. The color variations and possibilities are endless. You might get Peter Atwoods video on coloring titanium, it's a valuable resource, and Peter does a great job of teaching the how-to's. One trick he shows is to lay some netting over the ti part to be anodized, then spray something 3-M spray adhesive (for photos) over the netting, then remove the net and anodize, the pattern is striking.
Anyway, give it a try and tell let us know how it works for you, and have fun!

[Florian P.]

Short version
Grade 1 and grade 2 is unalloyed titanium and by that too soft for knives. For knifeblades only alloyed titanium is hard enough (and in comparison to steel still quite soft).

Long version
I have no HRC-values for unalloyed titanium, but for titanium-alloys:
"beta titanium" has between 44 and 46 HRC, TiAl6V4 (used eg. for framelock-frames) has about 38 HRC

2 examples for beta-titanium:

1. Beta III (UNS R 58030) Ti-11,5Mo-6Zr-4,5Sn ~ 40 HRC
2. Titan Beta 21S (UNS R 58210) Ti-3Al-0,3Fe-15Mo-28Nb-0,2Si ~ 43,6 HRC
If 0.25% Oxigene is added than you get about 46 HRC.

The advantage of titanium is that it doesn't rust, but it's hard to machine & beta titanium is quite expensive. I would only use it for a divers' knife.

Hope that helps.

[Gabe Newell]

I have a number of titanium blades with press-fit stellite edges.

Another alternative is to coat the edge. Warren Thomas did a bunch of these:



Warren Thomas Carbide edged Titanium knives at BladeArt

There are a lot of titanium dive knives being made:

http://scuba.about.com/cs/equiprevie...niumknives.htm

Ocean Master has a titanium formulation they claim HRC of 51-54.



Ocean Master Material Properties

There are also a variety of titanium concoctions being tried, for example Boker has both Titanium-carbide and sintered Titanium/Ceramic/Silver blades.

Boker Titanium-Carbide knives

Boker Titanium-Ceramic-Silver knives

[Jeff Sorensen]

Thank you for all of the replies. I will probably make a few knives just as conversation pieces or oversized letter openers. They would probably make neat butter knives for dinner.
Thanks again for all of the replies
Jeff

[AwP]

That would be the sweetest butter knife ever, maybe you could make a few and some forks and a Ti pie server to go with it and have a desert set.

[AUBE]

for those of you interested in Ti knives you might want to check out Mission Knives www.missionknives.com

i knew a guy in the military that had one of their blades and swore by it..i got to play with it briefly one day and i liked it

it also looks like they work with custom knifemakers..this was taken off their site

"If interested in titanium as blade material (where strength and edge holding is a factor), please contact John Moore at Mission (714)951-3879.

If interested in Mission providing cutting or heat treating services for your specific needs, please contact John Moore at Mission (714)951-3879. "

ive been meaning to check into it but just havent had time.
they have a bit of info on Ti, and working with Ti.

also keep in mind that the rc isnt the only factor in edge retention...Ti is very abrasion resistant so can hold a good edge compared to most steels of the same rc

-Jason Aube

[Cold Steel Cult]

yeah with somethin like that ud have to be sharpening it constantly to keep the edge keen enough... Ive hear d titanium is very springy though and it's #### hard to break too... just a thought

[jknives]

Does anyone know of any work done to investigate the pros/cons of using different grades of titanium specifically for the purposes of knifes.

A few things mentioned above about Grade 5 being harder than Gr2 but probably more difficult to form. But what about something in the middle Gr 9 etc ? Would be great to hear some stories and experiences..

[RedstickJP]

I'm new to knife making but I've had my fair share of experience with Titanium dive knives. I'm a certified diver and used to work in a large dive shop. They are expensive and very popular sell to divers....but I've seen a lot of them get broken becuase divers try to use them as a pry bar, which they are used to doing with SS dive knives. The only reasons I heard for divers buying them was 1) corrosion resistance, 2) its expensive so it must be better. I always loved the look of them, but I always prefered a good SS knife. A little silicone grease rubbed on the blade and I've never had knife rust on me yet. I know its not exactly the info you were looking for, but thats from a divers point of view if it helps at all.

[jknives]

Thats really interesting you mention that redstick about diving and where titaniums anticorrosive properties are the main reason for choosing titanium. I went with Gr 5 which should give me that balance between strength and weight... This is what I've ordered from a company in china norstl www.norstl.com to have a play around with....

1 Titanium Sheet Size: 1.6 * 150 * 310mm EURO 12.14
Grade: Grade 5
N.W.: 0.34KG/PC
Standard: ASTM B265
Surface: Pickling
Deliery Condition: Annealed

2 Titanium Sheet Size: 4 * 150 * 310mm EURO 34.82
Grade: Grade 5
N.W.: 0.84 KG/PC
Standard: ASTM B265
Surface: Pickling
Deliery Condition: Annealed

3 Titanium Sheet Size: 5 * 150 * 310mm EURO 41.03
Grade: Grade 5
N.W.: 1.05 KG/PC
Standard: ASTM B265
Surface: Pickling
Deliery Condition: Annealed

4 Titanium Sheet Size: 12 * 280 * 250mm EURO 120.23
Grade: Grade 5
N.W.: 3.79 KG/PC
Standard: ASTM B265
Surface: Pickling
Deliery Condition: Annealed

[Sgp918]

jknives,
Any update. I am interested in making a scuba diving knife.

[machinedock]

i think there are some swords also according to size of them....

[billyO]

Originally Posted by CharlesTHarring

Have you tried to search for it online?

Hello Charles. I'll suggest checking the dates before responding to threads. The OP's question was almost 15 years ago, and the most recent post was about 5 years ago, so I'm not sure the folks with the questions need an answer anymore.