I was wondering if anyone has had success with 440 stainless? My gut tells me that it's not honable to a shave ready edge but I thought I'd ask.
Steel Question
- Thread starter CharlieFoxtrot
- Start date
Then all Fridours that we all enjoy so much are not honable?
Are you fighting a Pakistani blade or something?
as long as steel..be it carbon or stainless...is hardened during the making process..its fine
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
I'm not the expert here but I think Smalltank if not precisely right, is at least making a very important point. Most any purposed tool steel can take a decent edge I think. That is, if whoever does the heat treating and tempering knows how to get the best out of the particular alloy. Conversely, any steel can give a crappy performance on the hones if poorly handled during that important process. Sure there are ideal steels for razors. Some are more forgiving or easier to work with than others. But 440 can be made to work satisfactorily.
Keep in mind that there are variations of 440 such as 440CM with slightly different properties. Oh and ask yourself why most razors are made from carbon steel. Just sayin.
Keep in mind that there are variations of 440 such as 440CM with slightly different properties. Oh and ask yourself why most razors are made from carbon steel. Just sayin.
- Thread starter
- #5
Thanks guys. A long story short: Someone is asking me to hone a cheap 440 stainless razor. I balked a little not knowing if it was worth the time. I have enough backlog and I'm still on the fence but I may give it a shot.
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
Ah, I see. Well, good luck. Most, though not all, cheap razors are hardly worth the effort but if you get good results, please post pics and give us your impressions. There were a lot of opinions circulating at one time to the effect that Gold Dollars could not be made to shave, but dozens of members here have debunked that myth. Seraphim managed to get decent edges on some of the most notorious Pakistany cheapies. Got a coarse diamond plate for initial rough bevel setting? If so, I say go for it. You will waste an hour or two at the most, and you, as well as the rest of us, will learn something from it, I hope.
Remember, in some countries, all you need in order to have 440 stainless steel is a stamp that says "440" on it. And you don't know how or by who the thing was heat treated and tempered.
- Thread starter
- #7
Slash I think you talked me into it. So the worse case scenario is I have to sit with hones for a couple of hours? My expectation is that the metal will be soft. There's only one way to find out though.
There are different kinds of 440 steel. The most common are:
440a (low carbon content, relatively soft, edge doesn't last long, virtually stain & rust free). This is what a lot of souvenir swords, knives, etc., are made from.
440b (higher carbon content, but still not long lasting. Acceptable for knives, but barely).
440c (high carbon content, more prone to staining, but takes and holds an edge well). This is what most quality knives and razors are made from. Rockwell of 58 - 62 HC. As hard or harder than 90% of the good razors out there. More than hard enough.
Friodurs, Dovos, etc. are made from 440c.
A lot of razor shaped objects are made from 440b.
