CPM MagnaCut – The Next Breakthrough in Knife Steel

nattynarwhal said:
I think magnacut is definitely punching above it’s weight here. At the end of the day, you’re talking about a steel with a carbide volume far lower than s110v and k390.

Still, this steel should have s35vn like edge retention (at 63 hrc) and be as tough as 4v, while being as corrosion resistant as Lc200n. That’s an incredible mix of properties, and should be enough to sell steel geeks on it as a balanced steel. Just don’t expect it to outperform the steels designed with wear resistance as a priority.
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In his last test with MagnaCut the knife sharpened to 15 degrees per side cut the same amount of rope as the Mule test.
I think it's a safe bet that Spiderco skipped the 20dps step in their sharpening on the Mules, if I'm right we will see the Mule drop cutting ability from the factory edge when sharpened at 17 degrees per side.

If the Mule is an indication Spyderco would be willing to ship all MagnaCut knives at 15 degrees per side then it may as well be considered a miracle steel just for convincing manufacturers to change standard practice, but that won't impact enthusiasts, only average users who never re-profile a blade.
 
Joshua J. said:
If the Mule is an indication Spyderco would be willing to ship all MagnaCut knives at 15 degrees per side then it may as well be considered a miracle steel just for convincing manufacturers to change standard practice, but that won't impact enthusiasts, only average users who never re-profile a blade.
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I thought 30 degrees inclusive ( 15 per side) is what Spyderco has already been shipping knives at for years now. ? Am I having a senior moment?
 
The Mastiff said:
I thought 30 degrees inclusive ( 15 per side) is what Spyderco has already been shipping knives at for years now. ? Am I having a senior moment?
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According to The Knife Lab in the Para 3 M4 vs Cru-Wear video the factory edge was measured at 18 degrees per side, it's possible they're aiming for 20 degrees but at this point I can only assume the factory edge angle is somewhat variable.
 
Things have been a little crazy, so I just made it back to Bob Kramer's shop today.

I spend a couple of hours there, and between the BSing, he taught me how to set a primary bevel and walk it to meet the secondary bevel. Not as easy as he made it look, lol. I still need a ton of practice, but I'll get there. :)

The knives will be cleaned up/heat treated and should be finished next month. :)

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I got the SMKW exclusive blue marble carbon fiber Hogue Deka In MagnaCut and I’m quite impressed with it.its been in my pocket everyday since it came in the mail and I’ve used it a lot throughout this past month.the Deka has been one of my favorite EDC knives for several years now.its one of the few knives that I’ve bought multiples of.I just wish they would’ve went with a DLC coating as I’ve never been a fan of Cerakote being used as a blade coating.its great for guns and ok for coating scales but it doesn’t hold up that great as a blade coating.I mean,it’s not like it really needed a coating to begin with considering it’s nearly as corrosion resistant as LC200N.I will be glad when I can get a fixed blade in MagnaCut.I wish I could’ve scored a Spyderco Mule in MagnaCut but by the time I found out about them they were already sold out.I seen Bark River has several models coming out in MagnaCut,I may pick up one of those when they are available.Im hoping to find a MagnaCut Bushcraft knife with a scandi or scandi-vex grind in the not too distant future
 
I have a Bradford 3.5 in Magnacut and it is very slicey. I have a Bark River Bushcraft Scout on per-order as well. Here is my question/concern: I hear all these wonderful properties about this new steel BUT without custom heat treat to get the steel above 62 hrc is really going to do as well as it is being touted?
I do not have enough time on the Bradford to tell any difference (have not had to sharpen yet).

So what do you think? Magnacut at 61-62 hrc which is where non customs will probably end up - is it really going to shine like all the reviews say? Seems like all the hype is when the steel gets up to 63 thru 65, but I do not see that in production knives.
 
DaveD said:
I have a Bradford 3.5 in Magnacut and it is very slicey. I have a Bark River Bushcraft Scout on per-order as well. Here is my question/concern: I hear all these wonderful properties about this new steel BUT without custom heat treat to get the steel above 62 hrc is really going to do as well as it is being touted?
I do not have enough time on the Bradford to tell any difference (have not had to sharpen yet).

So what do you think? Magnacut at 61-62 hrc which is where non customs will probably end up - is it really going to shine like all the reviews say? Seems like all the hype is when the steel gets up to 63 thru 65, but I do not see that in production knives.
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knifesteelnerds.com

CPM MagnaCut - The Next Breakthrough in Knife Steel - Knife Steel Nerds

CPM MagnaCut is a new stainless knife steel designed to be better than anything that has been available before. Is it a success?
knifesteelnerds.com knifesteelnerds.com
When maximum toughness is at 61.5-62RC and drops sharply going any harder I would expect most people to aim for 62RC no matter how good your HT is.
People like to run harder because they can, and MagnaCut is still much tougher than any other stainless blade at high hardness, but that doesn't make 62RC a bad choice at all.
This is very much a case of trading attributes, you're still getting the the full potential of the steel with a factory HT.
 
just ordered a bar of MagnaCut. going to make a kitchen/chef knife as a gift for a relative.

probably going to have to send it out for heat treatment. thinking Paul Bos. what HRC should I ask for? 62? 63? 64? I want to go for a thin slicer with a thicker spine. possibly an S-grind. if you think it would be responsibly tough for a chef knife at 64 I would probably go that route. the person I am gifting it to would care for it and not likely drop it, try and chop or cut through bones, etc.
 
If you are able to specify, then we are each able to make our own call after looking at the graphs. I made one and specified 62, to err on the side of toughness for the type of knife it was. I might go 63 or 64 for a kitchen knife.
 
Backyard said:
just ordered a bar of MagnaCut. going to make a kitchen/chef knife as a gift for a relative.

probably going to have to send it out for heat treatment. thinking Paul Bos. what HRC should I ask for? 62? 63? 64? I want to go for a thin slicer with a thicker spine. possibly an S-grind. if you think it would be responsibly tough for a chef knife at 64 I would probably go that route. the person I am gifting it to would care for it and not likely drop it, try and chop or cut through bones, etc.
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I think there are two obvious choices for heat treat.
1. 2050F soak with 350F temper, hitting 61.5/62RC
This is maximum toughness and the ideal for EDC.

2. 2100F soak with 300F temper, hitting 63.5/64RC
On the 300F Temper graph toughness drops sharply at anything harder. Here you're only about 1RC off from maximum hardness but gain about 25% more toughness vs. 65RC.
 
Currawong said:
Larrin did a video on the best hardness for MagnaCut

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Awesome video. but as one commenter put it, it's like trying to drink from a fire hose with the amount of information provided. may have to watch it more than once
Richard338 said:
If you are able to specify, then we are each able to make our own call after looking at the graphs. I made one and specified 62, to err on the side of toughness for the type of knife it was. I might go 63 or 64 for a kitchen knife.
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I can always ask but I'm not sure Paul Bos heat treatment can get their ovens high enough to get the steel to maximum hardness. a few years back I spoke with the current guy running the shop (I want to say his name is also Paul) and he mentioned something about his ovens topping out at just over 2k degrees. hopefully they have upgraded since with the popularity of PM stainless steels. he also had reluctance to quench in oil or anything else but the nitrogen blast chamber
Joshua J. said:
I think there are two obvious choices for heat treat.
1. 2050F soak with 350F temper, hitting 61.5/62RC
This is maximum toughness and the ideal for EDC.

2. 2100F soak with 300F temper, hitting 63.5/64RC
On the 300F Temper graph toughness drops sharply at anything harder. Here you're only about 1RC off from maximum hardness but gain about 25% more toughness vs. 65RC.
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looks like Larrin did a decent job showing that in his video.

if Paul Bos heat treatment cant do option #2 does anyone here know who can? or is willing to do it for me for a reasonable price?
 
I sent mine to Peters. They seem to be handling quite a bit of Magnacut. You can always call Brad for specific questions.
 
Just chiming in to say, I have a lot of Magnacut, Bradford Knives, Dawson Knives, and a few customs. I love it. In my experience, it holds an incredible edge for woods tasks (I don't cut a lot of rope or cardboard), and it is very tough and stain resistant. I've tried to get it to corrode with no luck. I've also been very rough with it with n o edge damage. It seems to me to be as good, or even better, than advertised.
 
anyone use Jarod Todd for heat treating? may give them a try since it looks like they can hit 64hrc for MagnaCut.

also, for my chef knife in MagnaCut, what would you recommend for edge thickness before heat treatment? is 0.01 good for this steel? can I go thinner? will an oil quench require a thicker edge? If Jarod Todd uses oil I may have to error on this safe side. if they use plates then I can probably go thinner. will need to ask them what their method is for getting to 63/64hrc. didn't really want to have to do much grinding after hardening as everyone knows it is much harder to do. I'd like to get as close as possible while still being on the safe side.
 
I have not personally had any heat treating done by Jarod Todd JTknives JTknives - but I know every post on these forums says he does a very good job
I look forward to when I can say I have first hand experience

but look thru these:

Recommendation? - Where to send a knife for heat treat

Hello everyone, this is my first time making a knife. Recently, I just finished shaping the knife and doing the basic grind. I was wondering where to send this knife so that it can get heat treated. I live around NY so it would preferably be somewhere close. The knife is rather small (8 inches)...
www.bladeforums.com www.bladeforums.com

Need to find a bladesmith who heat treats with calibrated equipment

I am looking for a smith who is willing to heat treat a new steel carefully. As in, with properly calibrated equipment and will not take any shortcuts. I would like to have something done in MagnaCut and be able to contribute accurate data. If anyone knows of Bladesmiths that don't frequent...
www.bladeforums.com www.bladeforums.com

etc etc
 
dirc said:
I have not personally had any heat treating done by Jarod Todd JTknives JTknives - but I know every post on these forums says he does a very good job
I look forward to when I can say I have first hand experience

but look thru these:

Recommendation? - Where to send a knife for heat treat

Hello everyone, this is my first time making a knife. Recently, I just finished shaping the knife and doing the basic grind. I was wondering where to send this knife so that it can get heat treated. I live around NY so it would preferably be somewhere close. The knife is rather small (8 inches)...
www.bladeforums.com www.bladeforums.com

Need to find a bladesmith who heat treats with calibrated equipment

I am looking for a smith who is willing to heat treat a new steel carefully. As in, with properly calibrated equipment and will not take any shortcuts. I would like to have something done in MagnaCut and be able to contribute accurate data. If anyone knows of Bladesmiths that don't frequent...
www.bladeforums.com www.bladeforums.com

etc etc
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Face palm. I could have just done a forum search for him and seen those threads and posts. seems like a great place. He may be my new "Paul Bos". price looks reasonable too. glad others have had good luck with his service

so, how about edge thickness on a MagnaCut chef knife before heat treatment? can I go less then 10 thousandths or is it pushing it?
 
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