cheers for all the info guys!! the magnum looks exactly what i want and i can't believe the price either! i dont expect it to be as good as the bk2 due to the price but what is the difference in steels used as mentioned? does this mean the blade will not be as strong? quick other question but if i wanted a different sheath for it wheres the first place to look?
cheers again!!
andy
Yes, the blade will not be as strong, but that doesn't mean it will be weak! 440 steels are amongst the cheaper stainless knife steels, and for the benefit of reduced corrosion (note reduced, not eliminated) you pay a little in other departments like hardness (edge retention) and strength -- unless you pay a lot of money for the steel. You can get stainless steels which can give much better strength, edge retention and edge quality but the blade blank can cost fifty pounds or even more, before you've put an edge on it, and unlike some of the carbon steels, the heat treatment is not something that can be done in your kitchen. Some of them can be hard to sharpen. Speaking of which, D2 is not generally considered to be a stainless steel (it's a high chromium tool steel) in case you were wondering why people say it keeps an edge for ever.
To my knowledge there are three types of 440 steel in use for knives, and only two of those are common. The 440ER which I've seen mentioned is I think a salesman's misunderstanding. The German knifemakers talk about 440-er meaning "a 440-type steel". In other words it's one of 440A, 440B or 440C. I would welcome correction on this point if I have it wrong. Usually if a seller just says it's "440" he means 440A, the cheapest of them. The optimum hardness of 440A will be a few points lower than 440C, something like 55-57 for 440A as against 58-60 for 440C. I have a few 440A blades and they do the job just fine.
1095 is a plain 0.95% carbon steel. Tough as old boots. Hard to go wrong with steels like that but they will go rusty if they stay wet for any length of time. I keep most of my carbon steel blades (chisels, planes, the odd fixed blade) oiled when not in use which is always a bit of a nuisance but they stay sharper that way. When in storage I don't keep them in the sheath, but wrapped in an oily rag, in turn in a polythene bag to keep the oil from getting everywhere.
Lots of people on this forum make sheaths. I have several that I'm very happy with. Ask around.
