MT40 HIC Mule Team Blade

Sal Glesser Sal Glesser or anyone else who can answer it. The nub protruding from the ricasso has always been a pet peeve of mine and I typically grind them down carefully with my belt grinder. Is there anything finicky about working with the HIC as opposed to steel? I know you can’t recommend modifying this blade but …
 
Sal Glesser said:
Hi Sgt,

Should be soon now. FYI, It was a challenging model to build. Zoom meetings with the manufacturer in Switzerland, special tooling, special handling and really nothing quite like it. It's a High Impact Ceramic Sport knife, rather than a kitchen knife. I've been testing one for a while. I've been sharpening it with very light strokes on a CBN "Cat's eye" which has worked OK. I'm really hoping the folks that get one will help us all figure out the different and best ways to sharpen it. Working hardness was exceptional on the CATRA tester.

sal
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There's already talk in the "other forum" that the "factory" edge on the HIC isn't sharp "enough."

What little research I did via Google suggests that diamonds are the only way to go as far as sharpening a ceramic knife is concerned. I've got diamond rods for my Sharpmaker. I've also got a diamond embedded sharpening block to use as needed.

TazKristi mentions in the other forum that the HIC Mules are being sharpened "in house" before shipment.

So, what method/material are your people using to sharpen the HIC Mules and why (if you know) are they not being sharpened more acutely?
 
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sgt1372 said:
There's already talk in the "other forum" that the "factory" edge on the HIC isn't sharp "enough."

What little research I did via Google suggests that diamonds are the only way to go as far as sharpening a ceramic knife is concerned. I've got CBN & diamond rods for my Sharpmaker. I've also got a diamond embedded sharpening block to use as needed.

TazKristi mentions in the other forum that the HIC Mules are being sharpened "in house" before shipment.

So, what method/material are your people using to sharpen the HIC Mules to sharpen them and why (if you know) are they not being sharpened more actuely?
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If it's like previous ceramics I have experience with, it's a different kind of sharp.
Ceramics seem to have micro serrations.
More "slicy" than push-cut.
Imagine others more knowledgable on the topic will weigh in.
 
1. Will this thread serve as the feedback thread?

2. I can confirm what sgt1372 sgt1372 related: mine is probably the least sharp knife I have ever received from Spyderco. It is certainly sharp, but the edge honestly feels smooth with little bite. It's odd: it will easily slice printer paper, but it really struggled to initiate a cut through a ripe cherry tomato. Basically no burr or micro serrations at all.

Note that I am NOT criticizing Spyderco. I'm a fan of theirs and know what they are capable of. This is a new material and I expect odd results.
 
oldmanwilly said:
1. Will this thread serve as the feedback thread?
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No reason why it can't. They're essentially doing that over on the other Spyderco forum.

oldmanwilly said:
2. I can confirm what sgt1372 sgt1372 related: mine is probably the least sharp knife I have ever received from Spyderco. It is certainly sharp, but the edge honestly feels smooth with little bite. It's odd: it will easily slice printer paper, but it really struggled to initiate a cut through a ripe cherry tomato. Basically no burr or micro serrations at all.
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I don't usually mess the knives in my collection but sounds like I'll need to see if I can get a better edge on it w/the diamond rods in the Sharpmaker and/or with the Fallkniven diamond ceramic whetstone that I also have on hand.

I don't ski anymore but I think I've also got some diamond sharpening stones in different grits that I use to use to sharpen my skis that I could use as well.

ETA for the delivery of my HIC Mule is Thursday 2/15.
 
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I'm a bit surprised that most of the comments concerning the HIC Mule is comparing sharpness, that it doesn't get as sharp as steel.

I was hoping that most would see this as a new "Potential" cutting tool. Please use the knives and lets see what they will and will not do? It's not a steel and to date, it has not been as sharp as steel. Early iron blades had their issues, which were eventually resolved. Now we've got powdered steels, Nitrogen steels, Carefully engineered steel by the most knowledgeable among us, like MagnaCut, We've taken serrations to a new level.........................................but all with steel.

This is a new material that we've formed into what is basically a "Sport Knife". It will work in the kitchen and it will work in the field. I think we owe it to our experience, passion, knowledge and future to see what it can be developed into. Let's get to know it. We need to see how it behaves. It may have strengths we haven't discovered yet? It is a mystery? And the Edge is a Ghost.

The pattern is a good all around general shape for most knife cutting applications. We have sheaths and handles and some prefer to make their own.
It won't conduct electricity.
It won't reflect light
It won't rust.
CATRA testing, working hardness was better than steel.
Will it work for hiking/camping detail?
Will it work for dressing game?

I have a Gauntlet set up with CBN rods (40 degrees incl.) I have been using mine quite a bit. I give it about 20 light strokes on the CBN every couple of days. It won't shave hair but it does cut well. It picked up a couple of minor "dings" which easily sharpened out. I check it with a 10X loupe regularly. I've using it for household chores, kitchen use, opening boxes, etc. I too am trying to learn what this "Martian" eats.

I really appreciate the effort and attention that some of the Afi's jumped on it with, and shared their experiences. We all get to learn from each other.

sal
 
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Sal Glesser Sal Glesser I absolutely agree with your post above. I'm sorry if my earlier post sounded critical, I was merely trying to share an observation. I am extremely excited for this new material and have every intention of using it as I would any other fixed blade.

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I did use it to breakdown a large pile of cardboard boxes this evening, enough to fill an entire municipal sized rolling trashcan with zero diminution of cutting ability. It didn't seem to be as bitey as I'm used to, but it sliced consistently well.

I'm going to keep using this until it stops slicing as well, then I'll try to touch it up. I think I'm more excited to try sharpening this than anything else.

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This Mule is cool, and I'm glad to have one to try out for myself. Thanks for making this available.
 
Forever SC-16WB white ceramic knife from a test review i did back in 2014.
The edge was finished in steps up to 1 micron diamond compound on dedicated Paper Wheels.
Cliff Stamp comment: "Thanks, that is a decent sharpness for even steel".


Link to the complete review here: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/forever-sc-16wb-ceramic-knife.1206014/

If i manage to score one of these new Spyderco HIC blades and my eye sight is good enough i will do some experimenting.
Provided the ceramic structure is at least comparable to what Forever and Kyocera produce i see no reason why these HIC blades can't be taken to similar levels of sharpness.
 
One of mine is sharper than the other; so I probably will try either my CBN or Diamond rod on my Sharpmaker, or try my Worksharp Pro Precision Adjust with Diamonds at some point, to see how it sharpens. I'm pretty sure both are sharp enough to do most tasks around the house.

I'm using some Halpern Tekwood scales for now, in Indigo and Green Hornet color options.

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I was excited to receive mine in the mail today. Very cool piece for sure. Of course the first thing I try to do is shave a bit of arm hair and that was a no go. I’ve never had a Spyderco not come shaving sharp before, oh well there’s more to life than that. I’m going to Blade Texas next week so hopefully some handle material will jump out at me there.

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Couple tests.. Worked Great, for steak!
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The back half isn't as sharp as front half, but phone book paper in all directions cuts nicely.
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I'm used to a toothy-er edge. I have used CBN and Well Worn diamond rods. Then to the strop. That goes for all steels.
I don't see any difference on what I'm going to do with the HIC.
Time for some more usage and then touch up the edge.
 
Picking mine up at the PO today. It arrived yesterday. Will post a pic of it after I put a pair of scales on it.

BTW, FWIW, there are people already trying to resell the HIC Mule on eBay who are asking $250-350 for it. :mad:

Wish there was a way to stop this flipping nonsense but apparently there isn't .

Oh well . . . 🤷‍♂️
 
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Took the black scales off my Z-Max Mule & put them on the HIC.

The HIC looks pretty good in "all black" to me and I also like the way the blade shines at an angle in a couple of the pics below.

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One of the holes in the handle was drilled kinda wonky (sorry, didn't take a pic of that) but the scales lined up ok.

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The edge on the HIC clearly was NOT as sharp as the one on the Z-Max (or the other Mules that that I had on hand to compare with it) but 20 light strokes on both sides with diamond rods inserted in my Sharpmaker noticeably improved its sharpness.

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When I compared the profiles & thickness of the HIC with the other Mules mentioned & I really didn't notice any difference. So, I put the HIC into a standard Mule Bolatron sheath and it fit fine. Didn't notice any rubbing on the blade and am glad I didn't buy the "special" HIC Bolatron sheath for it.

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So, I'm entirely satisfied w/my purchase. :)

The HIC joins these 8 other Mules in my collection: LC200N, MagnaCut, M390, M398, S45VN, S90V, S110V & the Z-Max.
 
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"LC200N, MagnaCut, M390, M398, S45VN, S90V, S110V & the Z-Max."

Wow, I missed out on many of those. I only have M398, AEB-L, T15, and two HIC.
 
The only ones I've missed out on were the CTS 204P Mules that were defective and never released.

This is interesting stuff. I haven't gotten mine to shaving sharp yet, but I have put an acceptable working edge on freehand on my DMT Diafolds and it has been holding up fantastically well. And just as a little bonus, it fits perfectly in my craptastic homemade kydex sheath.

 
Mine took a tumble and went tip-down onto a marble tabletop. The tip now needs some love and care:

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I'm not shocked by this and now I am motivated to start sharpening it. I've started some light passes on a fine diamond plate and it is slow going, as I expected. A review of the Spyderco Forums threads show everal people warning against using coarse grit diamonds and against free handing. I'll stick with finer grits before stropping with diamond paste.
 
Well, that took a while:

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I used light strokes on a fine DMT diafold (600 grit) and took my time. Oddly enough, I've have steels (PM A11) that seemed to skate off of diamond plates more than this material. That notwithstanding, the HIC is clearly very hard and took a long time (a couple of hours, off and on) to repair the tip. I also touched up the rest of the edge. It feels much sharper now than when it initially arrived but still not shaving sharp. That said, now it cuts fruits and vegetables much more easily. I will try stropping with diamond paste next to see what progress can be made.
 
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