Ebay Damascus Knives - Any good? Help out a newbie

A

Abehles

Joined
Mar 9, 2014
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Hello! Im new to this website so i apologize if im posting this in the wrong area. Im looking at these damascus knives on ebay. The sellers name is knives4u12. He has 100% positive feedback with hundreds of reviews. Im looking specifically at a mini damascus knife. The item is being sold as "4.2" CUSTOM DAMASCUS STEEL MINI NECK KNIFE ROSE WOOD HANDLE US-2020." Here is the provided info: Handle-Rosewood Layers-352 Material used-
4340&1060 Hardness:58-60. Can anyone give me some information on this? Im new to all of this. http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTEyNVgxNTAw/z/0N8AAOxyLm9TFZ7c/$_57.JPG
 
Welcome to the forums. Many of the cheap damascus knives on ebay are made in India or Pakistan. Can't really comment on the quality but they have almost zero resale value in the states. If you like the knife and feel it is worth $57 to you then go for it. I would ask how they know it is RC 58-60 though as the steel combination is not likely to give that hardness.

I would study some of the stickies at the top of the page and look around for a while. There will always be one of those or one like it on the bay. Get educated then make your decision.

Fill out your profile and tell us a little about yourself.

I am sure the count will be by to drop his standard newb post on you sometime.
 
1. Don't post open eBay auctions. It's agin' da' rules here.

2. Those examined have proved to be quite soft. In French, that's "junque."
 
I would not trust the steel hardness. Those knives come from Pakastan most likely and guys mass produce them there. THey call them custom but they are not the kind of custom we refer to. A good friend of mine has some and they are very heavy and dont have close to the fit and finish that American damascus blades have. Also there is usually pitting in the steel- or rust areas that are from the weld being bad. Some of are fine but some show flaws. If you want a cheap knife that looks cool cause its damascus go for it! And use it. But if you are a collector, I would not recommend them.
 
Thank you for the quick replies! What really caught my attention was the price. This knife is actually 20 dollars. Obviously you get what you pay for, but this guys knives all look good and since he gets such good reviews, im thinking its worth it just to get it for fun. Since its only $20 with free shipping its not a huge investment and should be fun to compare to my nicer knives.
 
They can feed ten pakistanis for $20 and if you ask you might even get a nice pic of the "bladesmith" so you know exactly who you're feeding...


kidding of course.

those knives are made in a hut out of rusted car bumpers and suspension parts.
The hundreds of layers and hardness does sound good doesn't it?

I remember reading an article on one of these wonders that was bought to be tested.
i think the actual hardness was 30-35 hrc and at that hardness i think you'rr better off sharpening a butter knife.

Fit and finish to the trained eye (anyone who doesn't buy a knife on ebay) reveal just how bad the knives are made...

i believe there's a guy on this forum who sells those damascus "beauties" and claims he forges them although they look an AWFUL LOT like the real deal pakistani garbage

Anyone who doesn't put his name on a knife after making it, is trying to tell you something.
$20 spent will get you a $20 knife, however i'd rather spend it on a pack of toilet paper
 
Hi.

Why do you want this knife (or a knife like it)?

As any sort of collector piece its value is zero for a ton of different reasons (it's ugly, the fit and finish look to be crap, there is no maker's mark, etc., etc., etc.).

Do you want it as a "user" knife? What uses? It sure is tiny. I bet you could get a pretty good factory-made knife in excellent used condition for twenty bucks. So to me, it still doesn't make any sense.

Do you want it just so you can examine it out of sheer curiosity? Well, I can understand that. And the seller does accept returns (you pay shipping), so you could get your money back if it is worse than you imagine.

Personally, I have not handled this knife or AFAIK anything else by this importer (I am assuming he is an importer - not a maker), but I have seen and handled a bunch of knives "like" this one. The design/ergonomics, the material quality, and the fit and finish was uniformly poor. Some of them can get sharp enough to do a decent job with routine cutting tasks around the house. Some of them cannot do that. This one uses 1060 and 4340 steel. Maybe some of the makers or metallurgy experts here would chime in and correct me, but from everything I have seen and read, 4340 is not a good steel for a knife as it does not want to get sharp, and 1060 is a low quality steel that is used on some knives, but (again from what I have read) its performance is very sensitive to the heat treatment parameters . . . and color me 'skeptical" that a lot of care was taken with the heat treatment for this knife.

If you do decide to buy it, it would be nice if you come back here and let us know what you find.

Good luck.
 
It really is just curiosity. Obviously it wouldnt be put to real use, it would just be something to test and look at. I know its not going to be anything wonderful. I have a locally crafted knife for that.
 
I would look at their feedback and see what other people are saying about their damascus knifes. I bought a lot of 4 from pakistan for like $20 a piece with free S/H. For the most part they seemed well built.Didn't get to test any out cause they were dull and don't think were able to sharpen because of shipping or something. Actually didn't keep any which I regret. But gave my dad one and as far as I know he thought it was descent quaility too. Sharpened it and was ready to go. Wouldn't bet that you could beat on them hard at all even though they say that you can. Seemed kinda brittle. Very good looking though and isn't that the whole point of damascus is anyways. Would skin animals and stuff with it and also use in the kitchen but wouldn't use it for anything else but that really.
 
I after getting one of R@R's blades, can say YOU GET WANT YOU PAY FOR. Anyone can claim a RC of 58-60 but once you get it in hand are you going to test it? The proof is in how well it will cut. As others have said a butter knife is what you end up with after making one or two cuts, then it needs sharping. The file work may look nice, the damascus pattern may be nice , the bone handle is a plus, but calling it a knife around here will a lot of negative responses.
 
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