Thread: Carbon or sheffield steel?

I've been looking around for some info on the two steels so I can gauge the pro's and con's of them both to see which I should buy for my first straight. So far though I haven't been able to find anything that would help me out. If someone could list the differences between the two along with a personal opinion it would be much appreciated

As far as I know what is commonly called Sheffield steel IS carbon steel...

as opposed to stainless. Did you want to ask about the difference between stainless and carbon?

Redwoood

I'm no metallurgist but as I recall Carbon Steel is a type of steel while swedish steel and sheffield or silver steel or india steel are just local terms for carbon steel that may or may not have certain trace element differences which may give the steel certain attributes that may enhance shaving characteristics.

all steel has carbon in it. it is the carbon that allows the steel to be made hard. without carbon all you have is iron that is relatively soft. now there are 2 "types" of steel (actually there are 100's of types but 2 major categories) carbon and stainless. Stainless is steel (which has carbon) in which other alloying agents have been added to reduce rusting and staining.
sheffield steel is steel that is produced in sheffield england (it still has carbon) Sheffield has for centuries been considered one of the best places in teh world to get steel for cutlery. their processing has earned them a reputation for quality steel.
as an analogy think of chocolate. you have different chocolate formulations such as white, dark, milk chocolate, etc....
within that you can get chocolate from different countries or comapnaies, such as germaon chocolate, hersheys chocolate, etc.

Originally Posted by spork

I've been looking around for some info on the two steels so I can gauge the pro's and con's of them both to see which I should buy for my first straight. So far though I haven't been able to find anything that would help me out. If someone could list the differences between the two along with a personal opinion it would be much appreciated

Sheffield steel is a high carbon steel. If you're thinking of "silversteel", it too is a high carbon steel with a small amount of silver added. As far as I know, it doesn't do anything, but was merely a sales gimmic.

Are you thinking of stainless steel? It's designed to avoid (not totally eliminate rusting). SS is harder and more difficult to hone, but it will hoild an edge longer. The ss in razors is freeze treated for improved sharpness. It should not be confused with some ss cutlery which takes an inferiror edge.

Thanks guys. Its just that I've been looking around for a razor and some places say sheffield steel and others say carbon steel, I thought there'd be a difference otherwise they would just advertise it all under the same name. Anyhow, Im buying my first proper straight (I'm using a disposable straight) and considering I dont have to pay for it I was thinking about this one http://www.classicshaving.com/catalo...51/2073787.htm What do you guys think of it? Will the blade go the distance? I basically want something that'll last and last and last that is also aesthetically pleasing to my tastes too, this one seems to fit quite nicely.

Originally Posted by spork

Thanks guys. Its just that I've been looking around for a razor and some places say sheffield steel and others say carbon steel, I thought there'd be a difference otherwise they would just advertise it all under the same name. Anyhow, Im buying my first proper straight (I'm using a disposable straight) and considering I dont have to pay for it I was thinking about this one http://www.classicshaving.com/catalo...51/2073787.htm What do you guys think of it? Will the blade go the distance? I basically want something that'll last and last and last that is also aesthetically pleasing to my tastes too, this one seems to fit quite nicely.

Very nice. I like it however I also like http://www.classicshaving.com/catalo...013/563795.htm
Either would be a winner.

Originally Posted by spork

Thanks guys. Its just that I've been looking around for a razor and some places say sheffield steel and others say carbon steel, I thought there'd be a difference otherwise they would just advertise it all under the same name. Anyhow, Im buying my first proper straight (I'm using a disposable straight) and considering I dont have to pay for it I was thinking about this one http://www.classicshaving.com/catalo...51/2073787.htm What do you guys think of it? Will the blade go the distance? I basically want something that'll last and last and last that is also aesthetically pleasing to my tastes too, this one seems to fit quite nicely.

That's a beauty! How are you managing to get it without paying for it? My only thought is that it's kind of fancy for your first razor. I would be nervous to work on it with no experience. You need some Ebay cheapies that you can wreck while learning.

I'll second Joe's comments.
While a lot of people (myself included) that get bitten by the ebay bug end up owning a lot of cheaper razors as opposed to few very nice ones, even if you are in the 'few expensive' camp, it's still good to have one or two cheaper ones to practice honing for example.

Oh yeah, let me know how to get a $400 razor without paying, I'd really like to get in on that.

Redwoood

As I've stated before, the Sheffield razors I own are, without a doubt, the best shavers I own. They hold keen throughout the shave and hold the edge for quite a while between honings.

I concentrate on the blade material and not necessarily the scales.

-Rob