Thread: Scaleless Damascus Razor for custom work

yea you ain't gonna get no quality razor period for $50 let alone a Damascus. Those are probably just chemical etch patterns on some generic steel so it looks like damascus.

Hello all -

Another newb with the same interest as the originator of this thread. By happenstance, I found the same website (alabama damascus steel) a couple of days prior to the creation of this thread.

I emailed back and forth a couple of times with the company, who inform me that while they know that several purchasers have made user razors from their stock, their sense that most were being made into display pieces.

I have a little OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) when it comes to searching the Web; this morning, I came across this site:

Messerklinge nanus Damast Rasiermesser Nordisches Handwerk | Details

Unless you sprechen zie deutsch (college German was a half-century and more ago), open using google translate.

xe.com converts 39.50 euros to 50.4x USD.

Despite my grandfather having been a principal at the company which first developed and marketed vanadium alloy steel, I know nothing of metallurgy ("I'm a doctor, not a metallugist"); these are the data provided by the site:

The Rockwell hardness is about 55-60 HRC.
The blade has a hollow ground and is pre-sharpened.
Blade length: 76 mm
Erl: about 64 mm
Total length: 140 mm

Curious to know that the experienced/pros think.


Stuart

in my experience, anything that says it's Damascus and is under $200, probably isn't Damascus. The time and effort to fold that steel isn't cheap, although it would be nice if it was. Good hunting.

Originally Posted by StraightRazorRobot

in my experience, anything that says it's Damascus and is under $200, probably isn't Damascus. The time and effort to fold that steel isn't cheap, although it would be nice if it was. Good hunting.

Further, as soon as someone realizes this sentiment has been expressed, there will be offerings of the SAME product for a price at or above $200 (NOT joking)

Additionally, the statement or claim that, "several purchasers have made user razors from their stock" should offer no confidence. I and many others have sharpened several knives quite well and shaved with them for demonstration purposes. I would suggest that I could probably sharpen a convenience store pocket knife well enough to shave with it...but it would be a RATHER uncomfortable shave, and there would have to be a fairly good chunk of bet money trading hands when we were all done.

Not only did I shave with this knife, I did so dry...looking at the results...would you want to?

Now i'm curious about that site one, so any input would be much obliged. i understand the part about if its under 200 its probably not real, but would using machines possibly lower the cost to that around about number?

Originally Posted by thebigspendur

yea you ain't gonna get no quality razor period for $50 let alone a Damascus. Those are probably just chemical etch patterns on some generic steel so it looks like damascus.

It's genuine pattern welded steel Spendur. The squiggly lines run all the way through to the other side. The Alabama Shop is a big one that pumps out a lot of material. They must have figured a way to ramp up production to drop their costs so low. I know I couldn't make it selling for that cheap.

For you steel types who are interested, here's the calculation I just ran.

Steel type times carbon content times layers/mass added then divided by proportion equals mean carbon content. For the five welds they report, the carbon would be averaged pretty well across all the layers.

4 layers 5160 = 4 x 0.60 = 2.4
3 layers 203E = 3 x 0.20 = 0.6
3 layers 52100 = 3 x 1.00 = 3.0
3 layers 15N20 = 3 x 0.75 = 2.25

Carbon content 0.63 from this mix. Medium carbon steel containing two nickel (125N20/203E) materials and two with chromium (5160/52100) but not enough to be stain resistant.

None of which changes the fact that this is a razor-like object.

Duplicate.

Geometry, is as important if not more so then the steel,, The Alabama one doesn't have the geometry, looking at the other link it looks the same...
The spines are too thin,,, But I think that you should not take Max's or my word for it and try them yourselves