Thread: Japanese Stainless Steel

Originally Posted by khaos

aha..... I will double check on that. But thank you!

Mate, that's the exact seller you posted--he's selling Pakistani razors. Not much to double check...

I believe it is the same as the Venus razor that has been seen with various titanium overcoats.

Originally Posted by fccexpert

440 stainless and some of its varients are the best stainless for use in edged tools. It will take and keep an edge, though it is not quite as hard as high carbon steel. Like all stainless steels it has a tendency to gall under sheer and this can make it a bit more difficult to hone. Japanese stainless is generally high quality.

I am answering this post and the one above it talking about 440C razors being on the do not buy list. This is one of the reasons forums like this can be dangerous. The steel used in both Dovo stainless and Henckels Friodur stainless razors is in fact 440C. This information came from Anne Rothstein at Dovo when she told me that Dovo had it's 440C blanks forged by the same foundry that Henckels used to have theirs forged at.

There are multiple grades of 440 steel and dozens of variations of stainless steel in general. 440C IS high carbon steel - it just has about 13% chromium in the mix to make it stain resistant therefore it is high carbon stain resistant steel. The other 440 variations are good for scissors, surgical instruments, tableware, etc. but do not have the edge holding capability of 440C.

I doubt the Pakistanis are even using 440 stainless steel.

Originally Posted by Croaker

A well known German collector lamented to me that the art of making the finest steel for straight razor blades has been lost. "The old blades are the best". I have noticed this myself in comparing early Bokers with late manufactured ones, such as 1970's vintage King Cutters. I have also read that modern production German straight razors are using old stockpiles of blanks to make them with. When they are gone, so will be the razor manufacturing industry, in my opinion, except for zeepk and the like . My two stainless Friodurs cannot compare with the comfort and closeness of an old carbon steel Sheffield or Solingen blade. None of the old masters are alive now. Just an opinion!

Ya right! And Mr. Rodgers was a Navy SEAL too!

Originally Posted by khaos

So this has potential to be a "double arrow" out of Japan- a decent no-name brand?

Double Arrows are from China.

Originally Posted by John Crowley

I am answering this post and the one above it talking about 440C razors being on the do not buy list. This is one of the reasons forums like this can be dangerous. The steel used in both Dovo stainless and Henckels Friodur stainless razors is in fact 440C. This information came from Anne Rothstein at Dovo when she told me that Dovo had it's 440C blanks forged by the same foundry that Henckels used to have theirs forged at.

There are multiple grades of 440 steel and dozens of variations of stainless steel in general. 440C IS high carbon steel - it just has about 13% chromium in the mix to make it stain resistant therefore it is high carbon stain resistant steel. The other 440 variations are good for scissors, surgical instruments, tableware, etc. but do not have the edge holding capability of 440C.

I doubt the Pakistanis are even using 440 stainless steel.

Since I'm pretty sure you are referring to my post as "the one above," I'd like to respond. I don't mean to be rude, but maybe double check what I said.

"I don't know much about steel either, but I'm pretty sure many of the razors on the do-not-buy list are 440c stainless (though maybe my memory is failing me again).

I would avoid it.

EDIT: Ran a search and Master razors are 440 stainless. That's the one I was thinking of."

That is very different from saying that 440C stainless razors are on the do not buy list.

From Wikipedia:

Type 440—a higher grade of cutlery steel, with more carbon, allowing for much better edge retention when properly heat-treated. It can be hardened to above Rockwell 55 hardness,[citation needed] making it one of the hardest stainless steels. Due to its hardness and relatively low cost, most display-only and replica swords or knives are made of 440 stainless. Available in four grades: 440A, 440B, 440C, and the uncommon 440F (free machinable). 440A, having the least amount of carbon in it, is the most stain-resistant; 440C, having the most, is the strongest and is usually considered more desirable in knifemaking than 440A, except for diving or other salt-water applications.




So, there are at least three different grades of 440 stainless: A, B, & C

Originally Posted by John Crowley

Double Arrows are from China.

I realise this. Hence the "" aroudn teh "double arrow" as in, the "double arrow" of China vs the double arrow of China. Compare it to, american football is the "rugby" of USA. I am not saying it is literally rugby. Just a comparable sport, with oval balls, tackling, and goal lines and kicks and stuff. By "DA" I meant cheap, virtually no-name, modern, mass production razor.

add 440V by CPM

it's now called S60V though
no relation to the others

I have 440C knives and they are great. Dovo and TI are on top of their game or they would not be in business today pumping out straights and giving everyone a good line up.

The Japanese are proficient at making very sharp blades. and I am still impressed with the disposable feather straight blades and the others they make under different names...how sharp they are and how long they last before I discard them. The Japanese are on top of their game.

The manufacturers that have been at it the longest seem to have the "edge"

Pabster