new tandy knives

[DonnieBlaze]

i am thinking of getting the new demascus knives from tandy what do all of you think of them? good investment or not? i know demascus blades in general are good at keeping an edge just don't know about the tandy ones.

[TwinOaks]

All Damascus steel is not equal! If you'd like to spend several enjoyable hours/days/weeks reading about specific metalurgy, start by Googling " Wootz steel. That said, here it is in a nutshell- The wavy patterns mean bumpkiss for edge holding ability. In original Wootz steel, the patterns are formed from repeated folding and forge welding of the steel- similar to katanas (Japanese sword). All the folding (generally speaking) can strengthen the blade (research laminated steel), but strength doesn't equate to sharpness. The antique methods of folding the steel were performed to work out the impurities of the metals. There's also various methods of creating the patterns, and in some cases the 'damascus' patterns are made by acid etching only.

Now, to the new Tandy knives- They are pretty aren't they? I'd bet the true "amazing sharpness" advertised on the Tandy website comes from the 16 degree angle, and the carbon content of their "SUS410 High Carbon Stainless Steel" as opposed to stainless steels with less carbon. Nothing against the Tandy blades, but I think you could do as well by finding an older knife of good steel and spending some time for TLC and edge refinement. Check around on here for Bob Douglas' phone number and give him a call.

Incidentally, the claim (From the Tandy website) "Damascus" refers to metal with a visible grain pattern, is only true to a point- it became known as Damascus because that is where it was available- Damascus, Syria. More common and recent versions are also called "pattern welded" steel, typically incorporating nickel as one of the laminations, and complex cutting and reforging to achieve the desired patterns.

Edited January 14, 2010 by TwinOaks