Thread: Razor from A-2?

Has anyone worked a razor from A-2? A local machine shop has a bunch of .300 A2 scrap that they will sell me barely over the cost of the waterjetting! If it is a usable steel, I'd be ok using it rather than O1, but I'm afraid of the large carbides popping off the edge and making it hard to sharpen to razor level.

I've seen many razors on here made with A2 steel. It is a bit harder but should sharpen with little problem and give a great edge.

Also, I wondered if it would be easy enough to work with files, compared to O-1

I'm not sure about the filing but I'm sure it is probably a little more difficult. I've been looking into A2 and D2 steel for making a frameback due to them being air cooled and less susceptable to warp.

A2 should work just fine for a razor however if you are doing your own heat treat you will need a furnace or forge that can hold it at around 1750 for 20 to 40 minutes. O1 needs less of a soak. If you are sending it out for ht it actually may be better than O1 because it is air hardening, instead of oil, and many places HT only air hardening steels.

Our own Kenny Powell made this beauty for me out of A2

Point received. That's a honkin' 12/8. How's the edge?

I called the machine shop and told them to start jetting. It was going to be $44 just for the steel at Enco, and they are going to be only a little higher than that including setup and Waterjet machine time and steel. Maybe I can have them cut an odd corner off and I can do a fixed blade too.....hmmm. I need to go back to the shop I guess.

They say they will be able to cut exactly square within .005". That seems nuts! I wish I could watch and take pictures. I need to call and ask. That would be fun.

Originally Posted by medicevans

Point received. That's a honkin' 12/8. How's the edge?

I called the machine shop and told them to start jetting. It was going to be $44 just for the steel at Enco, and they are going to be only a little higher than that including setup and Waterjet machine time and steel. Maybe I can have them cut an odd corner off and I can do a fixed blade too.....hmmm. I need to go back to the shop I guess.

They say they will be able to cut exactly square within .005". That seems nuts! I wish I could watch and take pictures. I need to call and ask. That would be fun.

LOL 13/8!! The edge is fantastic! Very smooth and holds quite an edge. The hardest thing is stropping due to the sheer size if it. It's actually easy to shave with.

A-2 will be a good choice

I agree, it should work fine, does offer a useful reduction in the chance of distortion, and should be a little more difficult to work, but not seriously. With a bench drill, hacksaw and Dremel tool you could do the profile yourself.

As a more general principle, though, rather than about your case, there is so much work in a razor that it doesn't make sense to count collars on the steel.