I'm confused about the different steels


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TripleF

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I'm first to admit that this is likely a pretty basic question. But I'm thinking about a knife that is made of A2 steel. A friend told me that A2 holds an edge well but is REALLY hard to sharpen. I'm not a really good knife sharpener but I'm getting better. Should I be concerned and choose a knife with a different steel? Or should I not be too concerned?
 
So all A2 steel is not the same? My level of knowledge here is really lacking! So how would I tell before I buy the knife?
 
You'd have to ask other people who own the same knife!

All steels are not the same, but all steels can be hardened to varying degrees of hardness.
PMZ
 
You're not as confused as you're going to be...

I'm gonna stir the pot. One of you other fellas is gonna hafta answer the actual question...

Read this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockwell_scale
Then this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAE_steel_grades

You are standing on a slippery slope (i just pushed you, btw).

Metallurgy is chemistry, with experience (the smith himself) mixed into it... steels can have the same chemical content, but it will act differently depending on how they were worked. (personally, i think it's all sorcery. but i'm not a smith. Liquid goes in, something sharp comes out... i can't do that, ergo magic.) Actually, this might account for the awe with which some ancient cultures viewed smiths and their craft. (Iz, i hope you see yourself here. Might be time for a tutorial? hint hint).

There are some common, popular steel grades for cutlery, and i think the smart folks i invoked earlier will give you their advice and opinions. Stick with reputable companies, avoid bad "bargains", and just give in to the knife sickness. Your first knife will not be your last!
 
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There is no such thing as steel that is more or less difficult to sharpen, just ones that take more or less time. Carbon steels are "easy" to sharpen in that they can be done quickly whereas stainless steels usually take more time. In both of these instances, the same technique is used--it is just repeated several more times for the steels that are higher in hardness.

I've noticed that A2 steel does take a little longer to sharpen as opposed to other high carbon steels and O1 tool steel. I don't think you should be put off on buying the knife for that fact as you would have to learn the proper techniques of sharpening regardless of what steel or knife you have. With harder steel like A2, the good thing is that it would be more forgiving and you will have more chances to get proper strokes when sharpening.
 
A2 is a very good steel and relatively easy to sharpen at under 60 rockwell hardness. My favorite camping knife is A2 at 59 rockwell {and I own some D2 and cpm-d2 and m2hs and cpm-3v and infi and 52100 and cpm-m4 etc..). O1 will sharpen even easier (apples to apples--same rockwell)..and plain old 1095 is easy to sharpen and just as good as any other steel out there---if it's done right. It's tough to tell what steel a blade is by just looking at it. What brand and model are you considering?
 
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Oh my, Seeker! You just made my brain hurt bad! I'll read the links . . . I just quickly reviewed them.

Trekon86 - Guess your suggestion may well be really smart. The knife I've been thinking a lot about is the Bark River Aurora. Believe it is A2 steel. Hopefully an Aurora owner will see this!!
 
IMO it dosent matter.

A2 produces a very good cutting edge with the ability to take some abuse. To often people talk about steel as though its the single part of a knife that makes it "Good", the truth is that its one minor part of the knife.
 
A2 is not "hard to sharpen" it's just not widely known how to sharpen yet.
I'm not brave enough to try n' do a tutorial on new steel sharpening.
If you are ordering a new knife & and the maker gives you a choice, go wit' 1095. safe and "easy" not to mention a sure thing.
 
I had a BRKT Aurora and Canadian Special, and had no problem sharpening either one.
If you like the looks of the knife and have no problems sharpening a convex grind to begin with, I'd say go for it.
 
A2 at 58/59 rockwell is a very good steel and edgeholding and toughness is very high.
As someone else said the handle and edge geometry is much more important than
what kind of steel it is.
If you will buy a knife with a conxex edge and watch a tutorial on maintainig the edge you will be very well off.

Forget hollow grinds and make sure it has a smooth and maybe contured handle.
Look at Iz Turley and Bark River knives, both give great service to the owner and will out cut most factory knives.

Larry
 
A-2
An excellent air hardening tool steel used by handmade knife makers and by speciality makers like Bark River as well. First maker I know of using it was Harry Morseth in the early 1930s. Performs best at about 60-61 Rc (see hardness). For many years my favorite as well as Ron Lake's. It contains about 1% Carbon, 1% Molybdenum, and 5% Chromium

The above is a quote from the A.G. Russell website. The Glossary and Steel Guide on his website has a tremendous amount of information.

Here is a link to the Glossary: http://www.agrussell.com/Glossary/a/101/

With over 40 years in the knife business, he is well respected and trusted.
 
The BRKT Aurora is a nice knife in A2. I have had several BRKT knives and they were all above my expectations. Derek at Knives Ships Free has a good tutorial on sharpening a convex grind, and there is lots of advice right here
 
Thanks everyone! I've learned a lot.

Sounds like I can't go wrong if I try this BRKT Aurora. Now to figure out how I'm going to pay for it!!
 
I doubt you will really find much difference compared to other knives. I have knives in A2, O1, 1095, 1070. The differences between knives of the same steel are sometimes greater than the ones of different steels. I gave up on the steel quest long ago and now just go with trust in a maker.
 
I to would stick with a 1095 steel, they discolor with age - so what. the tool steels o1 a2 may get to brittle in cold weather if you need to lay a baton on them .. the old timers prefered softer axes in the winter climates just for that reaason.
 
1095 is a fairly "brittle" non-alloy steel. Axes are often 1055, (C.050-.060) which is a bit over half the carbon content as 1095 (C.090-1.04), and are about 55-56Rc, compared to 58-59 of 1095. A favorite of mine is 5160 (C.56-.64), which has a smidgen of chromium which helps the hardening ability of the steel, but not nearly enough to be a "stainless". It is often found in leaf springs. Chromium contributes to rust resistance, surface hardness, polish ability, and brittleness (compared to non-alloy) btw, a high polish helps rust resistance in all steels. I don't care for it, personally, and prefer a "satin" finish. Stainless such as 440C has an excess of chromium needed for rust resistance, and therefore has a high scratch resistance. It is also more brittle than a stainless with less chromium. A 440C blade needs to be thicker, per design, to overcome the additional brittleness. Scratch resistance makes the sharpening more difficult. Hope this has been of use, and not just a rehash of common knowledge.
 
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