Am I being to picky about a nick?

S

Swonranson100

Joined
Jun 12, 2022
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Need some advice. Recently got a long knife/short sword custom made. Beautiful blade, 80CRV2 steel with what appears to be a great heat treat. Got it out of the box. Admired it, and then accidentally slammed it into a piece of metal. I nicked part of the blade near the tip. A very small nick, barely noticeable to the eye and not even deep enough to catch my thumbnail when it runs along the edge. It seems like a slight roll/compression of the steel.

I read the forums and decided to try and sand it out. Took some 220 grit sandpaper and sanded that area of the steel for about 15-20 minutes. Sanded the edge to help flatten the nick then sanded the sides to help with some shaping. Very little sanding all in all. It’s now like new, I can only barely see a small portion that’s still just a little uneven but even that’s hard to see unless it’s under the right light.

So here is my question: I have this image in my head of creating a weak spot/stress point in the blade by sanding it and removing it. Am I just being unreasonable about it? I can’t see any evidence of a low spot or of a point where I took away too much steel. Everything in terms of blade shape and profile seems to be correct. Am I being stupid and need to just forget about it or did I accidentally create a weak spot that will fail later on. Thoughts? Thanks for reading and responding!

TLDR: sanded a nick on my blade. Did I just create a stress point or weak spot?
 
I’m gonna say NO. Seems like a silly question but then again I don’t have much experience with longer blades than 16”.

What are you gonna be hacking at that could stress this blade so much?

large chefs knife and machetes get nicks all the time and repaired/sharpened and never a problem in the world. Is your blade over 16”?

Enjoy your new knife and don’t sweat it!
 
rm41400 said:
I’m gonna say NO. Seems like a silly question but then again I don’t have much experience with longer blades than 16”.

What are you gonna be hacking at that could stress this blade so much?

large chefs knife gets nicks all the time and repaired/sharpened and never a problem in the world. Is your blade over 16”?

Enjoy your new knife and don’t sweat it!
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Yes It’s actually right at about that length. It probably ranks more in the line of short sword. Just wasn’t sure where to put a post about a short sword.
 
You're over-thinking it.

As mentioned above by rm41400, what are you going to be doing with a short sword that could possibly break the tip?

I can understand the "principle" of the thing, you want the peace of mind knowing that if the blade were used for it's intended purpose that it wouldn't break (I feel the same way about my "weapon" knives), but I seriously doubt that you've actually weakened the tip by a little sanding.

Stop worrying. It can ruin the enjoyment of a perfectly good blade.
 
If you sanded it by hand for 15-20 minutes its unlikely you changed anything.

You didn’t mentioned what kind of metal you hit. But, if it is a concern for you, I suggest reaching out to the maker. In normal use you would be fixing all this through normal maintenance. Knives dull (the fine edge gets torn, nicked, and dented) and you restore it with a routine sharpening.

n2s
 
I wouldn't worry too much about weak spots or stress risers from sanding out a tiny nick in the edge.

What I'm now reading about the 80CRV2 steel suggests it's ideal for use in knives & axes, because it has a great reputation for a combination of high hardness, extreme toughness and shock resistance, even up to 60 HRC or so. The 'toughness' and 'shock resistance' aspects are what will help minimize the risk of breakage or chipping from impacts. And the hardness characteristic is what gives it good or great edge retention. So, unless the heat treat is bad, which affects all of those things, there doesn't seem to be much to worry about.
 
Thank you guys for the advice. Brings a lot better peace of mind. I don’t intend to do anything with it other than it’s intended purpose. No wood chopping or hacking at metal wires. I do a lot of hiking so typically I’ll bring one for self defense against wild animals or other hikers but other than that I don’t intend to really beat the hell out of it. I appreciate everyone’s response. Gives me a lot of peace of mind!
 
not2sharp said:
If you sanded it by hand for 15-20 minutes its unlikely you changed anything.

You didn’t mentioned what kind of metal you hit. But, if it is a concern for you, I suggest reaching out to the maker. In normal use you would be fixing all this through normal maintenance. Knives dull (the fine edge gets torn, nicked, and dented) and you restore it with a routine sharpening.

n2s
Click to expand...
I hit a hardened piece of 1095
 
Damage to the edge of a blade happens all of the time. I've chipped off tips of knives. Nothing a sharpening didn't fix.

Post a picture if you want some better insight.
 
tokerblue said:
Damage to the edge of a blade happens all of the time. I've chipped off tips of knives. Nothing a sharpening didn't fix.

Post a picture if you want some better insight.
Click to expand...
I’ll try and post one after work though honestly I’m not sure if anything will pop up. Thanks for the reply.
 
Sounds like you just did a tiny bit more of what the maker did a whole huge bunch of to shape the blade. But if you’re still concerned about the blade strength, I’d find a wooden fencepost and whack it with all you’ve got. Recent studies suggest that wooden fenceposts are harder and tougher than 99.9% of other hikers, and 83.7% of wild animals.

Warning: do not try to extrapolate these data to include domestic animals or livestock, especially pigs. If you expect to be attacked by pigs, be prepared to deliver a projectile of no less than 140 grains, traveling at not less than 1100 fps, from a firearm chambered in a caliber that starts with “.3..”

Don’t carry a sword to do a pistol’s job.

Parker
 
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