Damascus knives are there any advantages

How do you feel about damascus steel

  • It is inferior to many modern blade steels

    Votes: 35 30.2%

  • When done right it is a great performing and attractive option

    Votes: 65 56.0%

  • The risk of hidden inclusions or weld failure is a big concern

    Votes: 7 6.0%

  • I don't care about the steel, it is the design and geometry of the knife that matters most

    Votes: 9 7.8%
  • Total voters
    116
As presented, at least to me, the question doesn't make sense.

"Damascus" as the term is used today is just a process not the actual steel. You can make "Damascus" blades out of high quality steels and they are even making patterns with powdered steels.

So a "Damascus" blade made out of high-performance steels is going to out perform a mono steel blade of the lesser-performing steel. And vice versa.

Maybe the question is better presented as, does pattern welding bring any improvements to a blade versus one of mono steel?
 
K33ncutter
What make and model is the third from left? I like sort of barlow style of it.
Rich
 
I may be all alone on an Island with this statement but........a knife is ultimately a tool, the second you start doing things like damascus, damasteel, heat ano...etc etc it goes from being a tool to a piece of man jewelry.

You wouldn't make a hammer or wrench out of damascus.......

Never really enjoyed my damascus knives, even the expensive customs.....to each his own I guess.
 
This is my only Damascus blade. I typically try to avoid Damascus, and other "rust-prone steels".
I think it is 9cr. I have a regular Praxis for EDC. I got this one because I think it looks great!
c803ds-2-1-_1587814142_1200x1200_ft_90.jpg
 
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mwhich50 said:
This is my only Damascus blade. I typically try to avoid Damascus, and other "rust-prone steels".
I think it is 9cr. I have a regular Praxis for EDC. I got this one because I think it looks great!
c803ds-2-1-_1587814142_1200x1200_ft_90.jpg
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Are you saying that Damascus is rust prone? Just trying to be sure I understand your comment.
 
Eli Chaps said:
Are you saying that Damascus is rust prone? Just trying to be sure I understand your comment.
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I don't know much about Damascus, but I think it is the most rust-prone blade steel. All the nooks, and cranny's can attract moisture like bead-blast finishes. Tool steel might be close, or worse. I only have very basic knowledge, when it comes to blade steels.
I am pretty OCD about wiping down/cleaning my knives, so I really don't have any issues with rust.
 
mwhich50 said:
I don't know much about Damascus, but I think it is the most rust-prone blade steel. All the nooks, and cranny's can attract moisture like bead-blast finishes. Tool steel might be close, or worse. I only have very basic knowledge, when it comes to blade steels.
I am pretty OCD about wiping down/cleaning my knives, so I really don't have any issues with rust.
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A stainless Damascus is not going to be rust prone. Something like the 15n20/1095 will be. Your 9cr18mov Damascus is stainless I believe. Possible to rust? Yes. Easy? Not really.
 
mwhich50 said:
I don't know much about Damascus, but I think it is the most rust-prone blade steel. All the nooks, and cranny's can attract moisture like bead-blast finishes. Tool steel might be close, or worse. I only have very basic knowledge, when it comes to blade steels.
I am pretty OCD about wiping down/cleaning my knives, so I really don't have any issues with rust.
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Modern Damascus is often made out of stainless steels.
 
mwhich50 said:
I don't know much about Damascus, but I think it is the most rust-prone blade steel. All the nooks, and cranny's can attract moisture like bead-blast finishes. Tool steel might be close, or worse. I only have very basic knowledge, when it comes to blade steels.
I am pretty OCD about wiping down/cleaning my knives, so I really don't have any issues with rust.
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Mike Norris, Devin Thomas, and Chad Nichols make stainless “damascus”.
 
I like Damascus blades, but, I really like San Mai Damascus. Seems like the best of both worlds, beauty and performance.

Mike Norris San Mai CTS-XHP core Damascus on a Jason Clark custom. (stainless)
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Chad Nichols Armor core San Mai Damascus on a Jason Clark custom. (Stainless)
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The only Damascus I have experience with is CRKs (Chad Nichols and Devin Thomas). As far as performance goes they are just as capable and durable. No complaints whatsoever. Easy to sharpen and maintain, they have good edge retention as well.

I wouldn’t say they have any true advantages tho, over say s35vn. For me personally it’s more about the looks of it. I love the way they wear over time and use. They do seem to sharpen up really sharp
 
Is it true that most blades on the market today are “Damascus in name only?” Like it shows a Damascus pattern finish but the steel is in fact, say, S35VN?
 
Initially, Damascus steel meant a blade.of wootz steel, a product of India forged in medieval middle eastern techniques that were lost over time. Within the last dozen years or so Alfred Pendray managed to identify and replicate the.processes used to make a damn good and close iteration of the famed blades that would slice a hanky falling thru the air.

Pattern welded steels have become popular under the misnomer of Damascus steel. Personally I like Damasteel. Their process and product both appeal to me!

In the end, it all comes down to taste and use! Everybody will differ on these!
 
Larrin said:
Please stop comparing pattern-welded Damascus to “modern steels.” Those are not opposites. Pattern welding is using two or more steels in combination after diffusion bonding. It is a process not a steel. You can use old steel, good steel, bad steel, modern steel, etc. in your Damascus. Another way to look at it is as a composite steel. The quality of any composite would be based on the materials used, the quality of the processing, how the composite is constructed, and for what uses the composite is intended.
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Right. I want to apologize to Dr. Thomas, and the rest of the community, for being possibly, partly, responsible for this. He's right (of course he's right!), as long as you can get them to weld together, you could use any steel or metal that you wanted. Suwannee River was experimenting with a pattern weld involving copper.

It does illustrate the problem with talking about "damascus": there is a serious lack of good information.

Well, that, and I have a habit of talking around my foot......
 
Then there is the other misnomer, so called cable or wire rope damascus. I like that the thing is forged from a homogeneous steel; which to me means the potential for better welds and heat treatment. But, I don’t know whether the high carbon cable used has the chemistry that we want for quality knives.

cacable_damascus_integral_175807_2.jpg

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n2s
 
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