Thread: Damascus Custom Set - need help please.

Originally Posted by Jasper Kade

using these components: 1070, 5160, 01, Cable, Chain. He says he's done a few one-off razors before, but mostly he makes art knives, daggers and folders etc, but says he has no problem doing straight razors. But I just wanted to ask you guys that know about the technical side of razor making, what key processes/methods/standards should I ask that he uses just to be sure he's making razors and not just razor shaped knives - or is it kinda the same thing...???

differentially temper the blades so that the spine is more durable to knocks and bumps while the edge side of the blade is harder to retain a nice edge

And finally just on my design side - how thick should the thickest part of the spine be for a razor this size? - does it matter? and also what angle should the spine be to the cutting edge? (this goes hand in hand with the previous Q I suppose..)

Thanks for any input with this, I just don't want these to be glorified knives shaped like razors - you know what I mean

I'll give my input into the above questions FWIW. I agree with Mike in terms of the unknown content of some of this stuff and how it could be shaky. True- only the maker can speak for his experience with his own damascus, but personally if I were spending thousands on a project like this (don't know if you are) I would at least want a guarantee that it would shave well (which he may or may not be able to give). We don't know the amount of each material he uses either but with 1070, 5160, cable, and chain- the low carbon content in the overall knife kind of scares me.

As for a differentially treated blade I think it is totally unnecessary. IMO a lot of knifemakers get into that kind of thing as a marketing technique. It sells knives when people think you use the absolute best steels and methods or when you can talk metallurgy that they have no comprehension of all day. In this case, the technique has little to no bearing on the end product. Will you use the razor like a samurai sword? Who treats their razor like 'knocks and bumps' are a daily routine anyway, especially with some custom damascus piece?

I'd suggest for an 8/8+ razor to have the spine at a 1/4". This is how a lot of the old ones were. As for angle it's kind of common sense. I've spoken to a lot of custom razor makers and have come to the concensus that most ballpark the spine to edge angle. There are a wide array of angles that will give you a comfortable shave IMO.

What else to ask the maker? I really don't know. I have seen razors that were obviously ade by a knifemaker who knew little about razors. In person it's obvious. Did they shave? Who knows. Aesthetics can be totally personal though and a razor really doesn't neeeed to look like a razor to shave. It's a touchy subject I'd say. I don't think you'd find a lot of knifemakers who would admit to reeeeally not knowing anything about razors before they agreed to make you one. Then again, everyone has to start somewhere and he says he already has.