Thread: If you were going to make a production razor...

Originally Posted by Bruno

Another point to consider is that kitchen knives 'can' be finish ground completely before HT if you don't require a super thin edge. That means grinding / sanding when the steel is dead soft, HT, a quick trip on a buffer or wetgrinder, and you're done. With a razor, the tricky work is done after HT. And AEB is a ghastly steel to grind post HT, just like 52100. that is where a lot of skill is required and where a lot of time is spent. and then we don't even mention things like proper honing geometry, tang alignment (radial and axial) and a host of other things.

I have never heard of 52100 or AEB-L being ghastly to finish. As for kitchen knives, what use is one that doesn't have a thin edge? Most people that i have run across heat treat them before grinding because you don't run nearly the risk of a large piece of steel that thin warping in the quench. Sure if you want a VERY thick edge. like .02 inch, you could grind before HT, but who wants that? How thick do you leave the edge on razors when you grind them before HT?