bead blast or satin finish--which is better?

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b9wayne

Joined
Jan 31, 2008
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do most people prefer one over the other? what's the difference between them? is one finish more suited towards some tasks than others, how do I choose which finish is best for me?

could someone describe the differences and advantages for me?

thx
 
Bead blast- is like a dull duty finish. Satin- is a semi-bright duty finish.
 
what is "Satin Bead Blasted" as quoted as the finish for the Kasper knives here (I thought it was either/or "shiny satin" or "bead blast"):
http://www.ghca.org/KFK.html

Does one or the other finish protect the handle/blade better than the other? or is Finish choice just for aesthetics?
 
Which is better? Which is better HOW???

Bead blasting encompasses a range of finishes, the appearance of which is determined by bead size and material, as well as by the air pressure used when blasting. Different grades of both glass beads and sand can be used in a bead blast cabinet, though one must be removed in order to use another obviously.
 
A beadblast is a dull, non-reflective finish. If you want your knife blade to be less conspicuous, it is the way to go. However, from my experience with them, beadblasted finishes do cause blades to be more susceptible to corrosion, and scratches do show up more easily on a beadblasted blade than on a satin blade, IMO.

A satin finish is shiny and considered to be dressier. Handrubbed satin finishes are particularly popular on presentation type knives. Personally, I prefer satin finishes.

I don't know what a "satin bead blast" finish is, to me those two terms are contradictory when referring to knife finishes, but I am guessing that it could be when you use a finer blasting medium to get a little bit shinier of a bead blast instead of the really dull finishes that you get with the coarser blasting media.
 
Satin, is more of a hand-rubbed finish. Bead-blast is more of a solid finish.
 
commodorewheeler said:
A beadblast is a dull, non-reflective finish. If you want your knife blade to be less conspicuous, it is the way to go. However, from my experience with them, beadblasted finishes do cause blades to be more susceptible to corrosion, and scratches do show up more easily on a beadblasted blade than on a satin blade, IMO.

A satin finish is shiny and considered to be dressier. Handrubbed satin finishes are particularly popular on presentation type knives. Personally, I prefer satin finishes.
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Al Polkowski's site says I can choose between Shiny Satin or Bead Blast. Anybody have any photos that demonstrate the difference? Does Shiny Satin mean it's like a mirror image, or just that it's a little shinier than the bead blast?

Is there any difference in grip from the finish?

Anybody have experience with Al Polkowski shiny satin vs bead blast that can chime in, perhaps recommend a finish?
 
It's kind of like asking if a bowie or a hunter is better. It depends on what it's going to be used for.
 
b9wayne said:
Al Polkowski's site says I can choose between Shiny Satin or Bead Blast. Anybody have any photos that demonstrate the difference? Does Shiny Satin mean it's like a mirror image, or just that it's a little shinier than the bead blast?

Is there any difference in grip from the finish?

Anybody have experience with Al Polkowski shiny satin vs bead blast that can chime in, perhaps recommend a finish?
Click to expand...

I would think that Al's "shiny satin" is like a regular satin finish, where the blade is shiny but you can see the sanding lines. It would not be like a mirror, where you wouldn't be able to see any lines at all, that type of finish is called a mirror polish on knives.
 
Here is what I know.

Bead-blasting produces a frosted look to the steel, different media produces either a dull frost or a bright frost. A 70 grit aluminum oxide will provide a very rough dull frost, and of note this grade of media cover many things to include scratches and actually makes tiny cuts in the steel hence it opens the pores making the knife very susceptible to rusting and will scratch very easy.

A fine media such as your ceramics like Zirblast which is about 280 grit provides a fairly smooth bright finish and is less likely to hide anything, it may even make scratches stand out. The ceramic is micro and generally round in shape and peens the surface of the steel. The steel is still prone to rusting. Not as likely to scratch like 70 grit A.O.

As far as a satin finish goes the 2 most common methods are a "Hand satin in which the maker comes off the grinding surface clamps the blade down, starting with say a 400 grit paper he begins the labor intensive process of rubbing the length of the bevel until the proper effect or finish is achieved. Some will go to say 800 then drop back down to 400 grit. Some go as far as 1000 and higher which can produce a hand-rub mirror finish. This is about as good as it gets and is very smooth and pleasing to look at, the end user can touch up any marks that come with use by using the right paper and patience.

The other satin finish is called a "Machine satin and is done with a scotch-brite belts on the grinder, if done correctly it will produce a very durable finish but it will show wear. It also can scratch easily.

The last finish is using a combination of bead blasting and stone-washing, which in fact finely scratches the whole knife it will soften corners and diffuse the surface of the knife not to mention the steel is as smooth as a babies butt. It in fact closes the pores making the knife very corrosion, scratch and will wear far better than any of the finishes above IMHO.

Like I said this is what I know and have used all these methods in the production of my knives, but by all means its not the gospel!

Hope that helps?
Spencer
 
Bead blast finishes were all the rage in the 90's. It gave a knife the "tactical" look.

Boys and girls if you think that a "dull" blade will give you an edge (no pun intended) in the field. Put down the Ricky Recondo books.

Go out to the woods, strap on 75 to 125 pounds of gear and walk through the woods.

Note how quite you are! The blade will not give you away....all those sounds like a charging handle being pulled, stock of an M-4 hitting something, etc. Metal and Plastic sounds are not normally found in nature. Its even worse at night!

Satin finishes are:

Easier to maintain

Don't leave ugly marks from where the kydex scratched them.

Don't induce rusting (depending on the media used to bead blast...sand is the worst, silicon glass beads are the best) as a bead blasted blade will do.

My experience in the field showed me that satin finished blades (not mirror finished) are far and away easier to take care of and are not as prone to rust.

Les Robertson
Custom Knife Entrepreneur
www.robertsoncustomcutlery.com
 
In theory a mirror polished carbon steel blade will be the most rust resistant of any of the finishes mentioned. Even a finely sanded finish will let rust get a hold. Mirror finishes look bad after some use though. A course sand blasted finish is the worst for allowing corrosion to get ahold. I prefer a hand rubbed or finely sanded finish for looks but in my humble opinion and expierence the higher the polish the least rust. I do alot of outdoor stuff and the best test for corrosion is useing a knife offshore cutting chum buckets and the occasional bait fish. Salt Water is the devils piss and blood is not much better. A shiny carbon blade has been easier to keep than the other finishes mentioned. I do not like bead blast unless it is a very fine glass bead media that gives a satin like finish and then only for something tactical. just my thoughts on the subject. Never heard of the glint of a blade getting anyone killed anyway.
 
JParanee said:
In theory a mirror polished carbon steel blade will be the most rust resistant of any of the finishes mentioned. Even a finely sanded finish will let rust get a hold. Mirror finishes look bad after some use though. A course sand blasted finish is the worst for allowing corrosion to get ahold. I prefer a hand rubbed or finely sanded finish for looks but in my humble opinion and expierence the higher the polish the least rust. I do alot of outdoor stuff and the best test for corrosion is useing a knife offshore cutting chum buckets and the occasional bait fish. Salt Water is the devils piss and blood is not much better. A shiny carbon blade has been easier to keep than the other finishes mentioned. I do not like bead blast unless it is a very fine glass bead media that gives a satin like finish and then only for something tactical. just my thoughts on the subject. Never heard of the glint of a blade getting anyone killed anyway.
Click to expand...
Could we take it oe step further and say that a very highly polished finished that has then been etched with FeCl or something similar would be the most corrosion resistant finish for a carbon blade?
 
It depends ;) Practically a mirror finish is best for wall hangers while a handrubbed satin finish is best for users :cool:

I personally prefer handrubbed satin finish on my knives because I use most of my knives! And normally I could always put back a handrubbed satin finish on my used knives using various grits of sand papers starting from 300 grits up to maximum of 2000 grits :cool:
 
If you read the experts correctly, as well as my own opinion on personal carry....


SATIN FINISH WINS BY A LANDSLIDE...... Mirror polish, when an option, is nice too, but not as easy to care for.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
thx all for the replies.

Is there any difference in grippiness of the handle based on the finish chosen? or is finish irrelevant to grip?
 
Having used both for many years, I prefer the looks of satin finish, but Bead Blasted finish is way easier to fix. When my bead blasted finish gets all marred up from heavy use, I just stick it in the bead blast cabinet with 320 grit and walla, she's as good as new in less than 5 minutes.
 
I personally do not care for bead blast finishes for the reasons that Coop mentioned. I very much prefer satin finish.
 
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