Demascene.
That, too, is an ambiguous term, since damascene and damascening can refer to ground, engraved or machined surface patterning (such as in watchmaking or "engine turned" panels).
Ask a Knifemaker: The Truth About Damascus Steel
31–40 of 107 posts
Re: Ask a Knifemaker: The Truth About Damascus Steel
#32Aren't Damascus blades originally an Indian invention?
The 'wootz' style Damascus is; Europeans didn't know it originally came from Southern India because it came through traders in Damascus.
The 'pattern-welded' Damascus is known from Europe (maybe as an attempt to replicate the 'wootz' style Damascus?) But it exists elsewhere as well.
Re: Ask a Knifemaker: The Truth About Damascus Steel
#33> When it comes down to it, most of today’s super exotic alloys will outperform any pattern-welded steel ... A well-made Damascus blade will stay sharp for longer than most production quality knives, but if you’re looking for the ends-of-the-earth best performing blade steel, look elsewhere Can someone link/name one of these super exotic alloys knifes?
Personally, I don't see the value in going for something super-exotic.
It's not exactly the fanciest exotic alloy knife in the world, but my Global G-2 is an amazing workhorse of a knife. I've owned the knife for 8 years, and, while I take good care of it, I've never babied it — it's still in impeccable condition and remarkably sharp (I've never gotten around to resharpening it).
Re: Ask a Knifemaker: The Truth About Damascus Steel
#34> When it comes down to it, most of today’s super exotic alloys will outperform any pattern-welded steel ... A well-made Damascus blade will stay sharp for longer than most production quality knives, but if you’re looking for the ends-of-the-earth best performing blade steel, look elsewhere Can someone link/name one of these super exotic alloys knifes?
this is a knife maker I follow - nice Damascus blades
http://www.bloodrootblades.com/chef-2/
Re: Ask a Knifemaker: The Truth About Damascus Steel
#35Earlier quoted context omitted.
Nobody knows if the modern approach is the same, even if using historically appropriate tools and materials.
But if the result is indistinguishable from old examples, does it matter if the approach is different?
The discussion is whether the _technique_ is lost, not whether we can reproduce the results. So... yes, it does matter. It is, in fact, the crux of the matter.
Re: Ask a Knifemaker: The Truth About Damascus Steel
#36Earlier quoted context omitted.
But if the result is indistinguishable from old examples, does it matter if the approach is different?
The discussion is whether the _technique_ is lost, not whether we can reproduce the results. So... yes, it does matter. It is, in fact, the crux of the matter.
If we can map all possible ways of making the material, surely one of them must be the ancient technique.
Re: Ask a Knifemaker: The Truth About Damascus Steel
#37For the pocket knife aficionados out there, if your ever in Portland higly reccomend taking a tour of Benchmade's factory. They've got a ton of history about the company and you get a chance to view the factory floor(industrial laser cutters!) where all their knives are made.
Portland, Oregon - not the Maine-stay" of the majority of Ame"ricans.
Re: Ask a Knifemaker: The Truth About Damascus Steel
#38For the pocket knife aficionados out there, if your ever in Portland higly reccomend taking a tour of Benchmade's factory. They've got a ton of history about the company and you get a chance to view the factory floor(industrial laser cutters!) where all their knives are made.
My day job is driving a 4kW fibre laser for cutting steel. AMA ;) Recently a couple of people have had me cut knives from old circular saw blades from timber mills. It's a fairly hard wearing steel, and they got the old blades for free. Just hobby knives, I think they do it mostly for the enjoyment of making their own knives, well fitting and shaping the handle, sharpening it. You'd still be able to say "I made that"…
Ever use a Lockformer Vulcan? It makes great air ducts, and probably good knives too.
Re: Ask a Knifemaker: The Truth About Damascus Steel
#39Earlier quoted context omitted.
My day job is driving a 4kW fibre laser for cutting steel. AMA ;) Recently a couple of people have had me cut knives from old circular saw blades from timber mills. It's a fairly hard wearing steel, and they got the old blades for free. Just hobby knives, I think they do it mostly for the enjoyment of making their own knives, well fitting and shaping the handle, sharpening it. You'd still be able to say "I made that"…
That's pretty cool, I'm assuming it runs from 240 or is it something beefier? Their factory is pretty neat, it's much smaller than I would have expected given their volume. Happy to support a company that does all it's work in the US even if the prices are higher. One of the thing that was interesting from the factory tour was that they were really just a high precision (at the time in the 80s) machine shop. Most of…
Not the OP, but the "standard" electrical connection in a metal shop is usually 480v 3-phase, most tools are going to use that.
Re: Ask a Knifemaker: The Truth About Damascus Steel
#40pattern welding is, effectively, a solution to a problem we don't have any more. When steel quality varied widely between batches, you needed a reliable way to mix it up so that the overall properties of the resulting object were predictable. This evolved into a more sophisticated technique that gave you not only predictability but differential properties (harder steel at the edge, more ductile in the spine) and a pr…
I’m not sure that is fully true - the authority on this that I think has proven out his trustworthiness in the knifemaking community, Kevin Cashen, makes a compelling argument that with correct heat treatment, pattern welding gives you the ability to mix alloys. He frequently uses an O1/L6 blend.
I am not saying that most of it isn’t cosmetic - that is certaninly the point most of the time, but, for boutique knife makers, it can give you more options if what you want is not available in a commercially made alloy. Keep in mind that most commercial steels are not the “best possible” for knives, but frequently the best balance of performance, and manufacturability (I.e. they avoid very complicated heat treats, and very expensive hard grinding with lots of embedded carbides).