STAINLESS STEEL Types

There are three types of carbon steels: mild steels, medium carbon steels, and high carbon steels. In practice, the carbon content can vary between 0.05% and 1.35%, thus giving different shades.

If the hardness of steel is a function of its carbon content, there are also steels to which some elements have been added. The addition of nickel, chromium, manganese, and molybdenum gives these steels superior physical and mechanical properties to those of ordinary steel.

The great blacksmiths have tried and tested many variations, such as the Swedish steel O1 wanted by Randall, the 5160 and 1084 appreciated by ABS, or the famous 52100, a steel used to roll balls.

For us, in common industrial or artisanal cutlery, the most used carbon steel is XC75 which contains 0.75% carbon.

STAINLESS STEEL

French and European standards require steel in contact with food steels with a minimum chromium content to guarantee the stainless steel of the metal.

Stainless steels are distinguished by their resistance to corrosion. For this, chromium is added in proportions of up to 20%; It is he who gives stainless steel its resistance to corrosion.

In cutlery, steels with a chromium content of between 11.5% and 18% and a carbon content between 0.15% and 1.20% are used.

Like carbon steels, they can be hardened and tempered, and in this way acquire a high hardness while resisting corrosion.

The addition of other elements improves its performance. Molybdenum, like vanadium, provides better cutting performance and greater resistance to corrosion. These stainless steels are tempered in the air, under gas, but especially under vacuum.

In France, the best known are Sandvik Z40CI3 and 12C27, the most famous being the ATS 34, the 154CM, the AUS-8 or the 440C.

The new nuances, doped with nitrogen, come from the latest metallurgical technologies. Its properties are exceptional: high resistance to corrosion, excellent polishing capacity, and excellent cutting qualities after cryogenic treatment at 80 ° C.

THERMAL TREATMENTS

It is incorrect to say that one steel cuts better than another, because the chosen material is only one of the variables and of equal quality of emouture, and whatever the grade of steel used, carbon or stainless steel, is the care given to the heat treatment of the blade that will give him his definitive qualities.

The purpose of the heat treatment is to reconcile two contradictory requirements: the hardness and flexibility of the blade.

For carbon steels, at first, the heated steel suddenly cools in a fluid (oil or water) to gain hardness; It is cooling.

The operation can be selective and involve only the lower part near the cutting edge; it can also be multiple and repeated. Brutally cooled, the steel is tempered so that the blade does not remain brittle.

For stainless steels, these same operations are carried out in an oven and for the most complex qualities, under vacuum. The heat treatment acts on the arrangement of the iron and carbon atoms.

The temperature of the steel at the time of cooling, the temperature and quality of the bath, the temperature and the duration of the incomes are all critical parameters, variable from one steel to another, which, well controlled, will allow adjusting with precision the degree of hardness desired.

You have understood, we must not have a priori, but we must choose according to the use and quality. A carbon steel blade will skate quickly and add much charm to a traditional knife, while the best stainless steel is essential in technical Handmade Damascus Steel Hunting Knife. As for believing that one is easier to sharpen than the other, in fact, it is just worn resistance ... and a special ability!