Thread: Blade Steel.

I am still hung up on 1095 & O-1 simply because they work. I don't need a better steel, I need to become better.

Originally Posted by shooter74743

I am still hung up on 1095 & O-1 simply because they work. I don't need a better steel, I need to become better.

Same boat here. Sometimes you can't buy a better shave you just have to become better at it.

Bob

Additionally, before you use more expensive steel, you should become good enough that you don't get nervous about the cost of the steel vs your odds of ruining it. Same with forging. Forging wootz stock to size for example is not rocket science. But before you attempt it, you should have become good enough that you can heat and hammer a 400$ bit of steel without worrying that you're going to ruin it with heat, hammer or grinder.

One of the big reasons I made so many unfinished razors when I started was that I could do a lot more grinding and forging instead of spending time on scales and polishing.

A2 is primarily know for its impact resistance. Is is bit tougher and supposedly has a little better edge retention than O1. The problem is that those edge retention properties appear to come into play with A2 at fairly high hardness levels, as high as 62Rc. At 60 or so, the gap appears to be narrower. I cannot tell you how A2 is at taking a super fine edge and as Bruno stated, that is pretty important with a razor shaped object. A number of guys on here have used O1 and appear to be quite happy with the results. If you already have a good idea how to work it, well, there you go.

Originally Posted by shooter74743

I am still hung up on 1095 & O-1 simply because they work. I don't need a better steel, I need to become better.

They work AND you have figured out how to make them work well.