Titanium alloy knives why or why not?

Mitchell Knives said:
I have made many titanium blades, and think they are fine if you have realistic expectations.

They will never perform as well as a steel blade, but will perform adequately if the edge is carbidzed.

Titanium knives are an excellent choice for smaller dedicated defensive blades due to the light weight and corrosion resistance.
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Are you talking about stock removal 6al4v knives? I agree with you on that, for most knife uses and high-quality steel, but blanket statements don't do the subject justice. The context is crucial: type of steel, type of blade, and it's use.

Not when it comes to a large chopper or cutter, like a fine machete, made from a heat-treated, forged billet of appropriate alloy, such as Grade 38. It will compete against damn near anything for that use.

My little brother used a serrated knife I made him for several years at sea on a lightering vessel crew. They were all required to have a fixed blade serrated knife on their person at all times. It was forged and heat treated 89.5Ti 10Nb 0.5Fe titanium alloy. It wasn't even a very good knife, made from the tang end of a failed sword. It out-worked the various steel knives of every crewman and merchant marine he worked with, including Yuri the Russian, who was a certified knife nut and used high quality knives. My brother could easily cut a thick rope under tension with one swipe (he saved a Philippino crewman tangled in a rope with it once), and even used the blade to turn large shackles, under a heavy weight, to the amazement of his other crewmembers. It was barely 1/8" thick and would flex rudely while turning a shackle, but never broke.

He named the knife Popeye. It did not need a tungsten carbide edge.

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There is a lot more to titanium blades than is often thought, it just hasn't been explored very thoroughly.
 
Nice knife CM! :D

Grade 38 is a relatively new and excellent alloy, that I predict is going to start displacing Grade 5 as the all-purpose Ti alloy. The main reason 6al4v is still so common is because it's one of the only ti alloys that has a large body of testing and knowledge behind it (industries are simply used to it), and because its resistance to crack propagation as a structural member is so high.
 
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I have a cane, a crowbar, and an entrenching tool made of 6Al4V. I can attest to its usefulness.
 
All this talk about Ti blades and I don't see the word 'martensite ' .That's what good steel blades have and 'Mecha Ti ' [niobium + Fe ] have . Sorry to be so technical but I'm the metallurgist !
Last night at the diner after explaining what a metallurgist was the waitress said I must be very smart ! :rolleyes: :D
 
U.S. Gladius made an all titanium version of their knife.

Specifications:
• Blade Length: 6.5"
• Overall Length: 12"
• Overall Weight: 11 ounces
• Blade: .20” thick Solid Titanium (TC4)
• Handle Material: Rubberized Polymer (TPA)
• Sheath Material: Polymer
 
Mission knives seems to have a following are their knives any good. That Mps looks pretty nice. I've read in an older magazine where they haven't had any broken yet. What's everyone's thoughts on these knives being made from ti?
 
Hickory n steel said:
I never said steel was better , but we don't really see titanium knife blades Because steel exists.
Generally Steel is less expensive and it provides every property we need in a knife blade so there's no real need to reinvent the wheel.
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If it did, there wouldn't be knives made that take advantage of the specific properties of titanium and titanium alloys.

But there are knives made of them, and even entire companies like Mission who are known for making titanium knives. Why is that? Because steel does not provide every property we need in a knife blade.

"Because steel exists" is a flip, non-informative answer, really.
 
So there has been a lot of why not. Let's put some Pro's in here vs. the con.

Ti is light, lighter than steel.

Ti resists acid and corrosion like a stainless steel.

In the eye of the beholder of course but in it's natural state Ti takes on an attractive grey finish. It's also possible to add colour to Ti with heat or by anodizing to create an eye catching and unique finish.

Ti is non-magnetic.
 
View attachment 764158 Here are a few Mission Knives. All of the clips, screws, and pins are Titanium. They could be used to dig out land mines that had magnetic triggers. I have not tested this feature personally. I heard that the Navy stopped buying these because they were too expensive.
If you run the edge into something hard, it will bend instead of chipping. Go look for a steel pipe and pull the edge roll out (edge trailing). Then resharpen as necessary. These also make good Alaska knives because they do not shatter if you drop them in subfreezing weather.
The Kraton handle on the MPS is removeable if you want to do a cord wrap. You can also use the handle bare.
 
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