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kevpenbanc said:
Pics pleese.
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Let's hope my photo bucket link skills work out. Let me know if I goofed it up. Backside is hardest part to photograph.

http://s991.photobucket.com/user/chef_thames/library/Oatley 52100

After a weekend of use and a sharpening session through my stones I'm still as in love as I was when I opened the package. The grind is just amazing. The backside is super convex and really helps with food release and sharpening. Blade road is very flat, there is a problem spot on the heel but that was discussed before purchase and it's not on an often used spot so I dont mind. The 52100 has wonderful heat treat and takes a super keen edge, the edge feels very much like a brand new super thin DT ITK, just like there isn't anything there at the very edge. The handle is huge but it feels good with a blade of this length and weight. I didn't feel any sticky feeling on the stones. I've got another spot with Oatley lined up for next year and I want something else with his single bevel grind, I'm really impressed.
 
Thanks for the pics.
😃👍


hambone.johnson said:
Let's hope my photo bucket link skills work out. Let me know if I goofed it up. Backside is hardest part to photograph.

http://s991.photobucket.com/user/chef_thames/library/Oatley 52100

After a weekend of use and a sharpening session through my stones I'm still as in love as I was when I opened the package. The grind is just amazing. The backside is super convex and really helps with food release and sharpening. Blade road is very flat, there is a problem spot on the heel but that was discussed before purchase and it's not on an often used spot so I dont mind. The 52100 has wonderful heat treat and takes a super keen edge, the edge feels very much like a brand new super thin DT ITK, just like there isn't anything there at the very edge. The handle is huge but it feels good with a blade of this length and weight. I didn't feel any sticky feeling on the stones. I've got another spot with Oatley lined up for next year and I want something else with his single bevel grind, I'm really impressed.
Click to expand...
 
How's the reactivity of the steel? I know it has a small amount of Cr and seem to remember reading it being a bit less reactive than others, but can't find that statement now.
 
DanHumphrey said:
How's the reactivity of the steel? I know it has a small amount of Cr and seem to remember reading it being a bit less reactive than others, but can't find that statement now.
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In my experience 52100 is less reactive than aogami and quite a bit less reactive than shirogami. This is based on 52100 knives from Mert, Devin, Marko, Fowler and the ZKramers, compared to monosteel shirogami from Masamoto (the KS) and the exposed core on several other knives.
 
DanHumphrey said:
How's the reactivity of the steel? I know it has a small amount of Cr and seem to remember reading it being a bit less reactive than others, but can't find that statement now.
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Compared to the 2 blue#2 knives that I own, the 52100 has taken not much visible patina.

My aritsugu mukimono has an awesome patina from doing a batch of garlic and ginger brunoise for an Asian fridge sauce I keep on hand for noodles.

The 240 monzabaru line suji that I keep for my station develops a nice blue too but not like the muki.

I have done only raw fish on the 52100 and then today at home I did about 3 tablespoons brunoise ginger for comparison and received no patina on the blade as a result of either products. I'm going to do some brunoise garlic and onion for dinner tonight to see what happens

I've never had issues with food degradation due to reactivity of HC knives.
 
Thanks all. I've been super frustrated with the reactivity of the cladding on my B2 Tanaka, which is just soft iron. The monosteel simple carbon knives I used growing up were nothing like it; nevermind "wipe it off after use"; this thing will go brown while I'm still cutting an onion. I swore off iron-clad knives.

Then I went and got a new Forgecraft off BST. Ah well, I'll use it for anything but onions. But at least this means Ginrei will work for me, if I ever decide to spring for that level.
 
hambone.johnson said:
Let's hope my photo bucket link skills work out. Let me know if I goofed it up. Backside is hardest part to photograph.

http://s991.photobucket.com/user/chef_thames/library/Oatley 52100

After a weekend of use and a sharpening session through my stones I'm still as in love as I was when I opened the package. The grind is just amazing. The backside is super convex and really helps with food release and sharpening. Blade road is very flat, there is a problem spot on the heel but that was discussed before purchase and it's not on an often used spot so I dont mind. The 52100 has wonderful heat treat and takes a super keen edge, the edge feels very much like a brand new super thin DT ITK, just like there isn't anything there at the very edge. The handle is huge but it feels good with a blade of this length and weight. I didn't feel any sticky feeling on the stones. I've got another spot with Oatley lined up for next year and I want something else with his single bevel grind, I'm really impressed.
Click to expand...


That's a seriously awesome knife!!! Congrats and mad props to the maker for it! One more great maker to start saving for...
 
GRoc said:
That's a seriously awesome knife!!! Congrats and mad props to the maker for it! One more great maker to start saving for...
Click to expand...

Thanks GRoc. It's pretty awesome. Little money in the piggy bank each month for me. Only one grand purchase a year. [emoji106][emoji106]
 
Cool thread, I know I'm late to the party but I don't think I've tried 52100 yet. Outside of ginrei (which I like the looks of)and z Kramer, what are some other 52100 knives that can be had off the shelf? Or at the very least without a 6 month waitlist?
 
Mucho I find interesting that you find you can achieve ultra sharpness with Swedish stainless and ginsanko over AS. Do you still feel that way?

Mucho Bocho said:
Todd, I guess i've come to the conclusion that asking the question "which is the best steel" or a lot like asking "Who are we, where do we come from and where are we going." Meaning, the answer depends on your point of view. If you go from super clean carbon (white) to super clean stainless (Swedish), if HT is done properly, will excel in some applications and do poorly in others. Also, the hardness of the steel will also change how it behaves. More over, 52100 comes in several flavors too. I know that Devin is working with an aerospace 52100 flavor that he said could achieve four times edge stability compared to other 52100 steels.

I'm a home cook, the qualities I value in my knives/steel are ultra sharpness. thats why most of my knives are in White #1, DT AEBL, Swedish Stainless, ginsanko... and I stay away from Blue, Super Blue, Hap40, ZDP...

It's my understanding that Bob Kramer brought 52100 to the kitchen knife market. When someone buys a Zwilling 52100 Kramer, do they think their getting REAL Bob Kramer 52100 steel? Everybody thought that AEBL was crap do to its low carbon content, till Devin proved everyone wrong. Look at what Will Catcheside does with 1.2442...

So my point is, there is no one steel blend that is BEST at everything. Its the smith that makes the steel what it is, not that the steel is inherently desirable because of its composition.
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Mucho Bocho said:
I do. I think Swedish stainless was designed for surgical tools. AEBL is as fine
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Interesting. The only blades that I've ever seen in a general operating theatre are labelled "Carbon steel". Didn't specify which steel in particular though. I think that some of the ophthalmology micro blades have an obsidian edge to allow a very acute edge.
 
Nemo said:
Interesting. The only blades that I've ever seen in a general operating theatre are labelled "Carbon steel". Didn't specify which steel in particular though. I think that some of the ophthalmology micro blades have an obsidian edge to allow a very acute edge.
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I know nothing about the subject but I would be pretty surprised if carbon was used in major surgeries.
 
They are all disposable blades. They sometimes get changed a number of times during an operation. In many operations, the scalpel is used only to incise the skin. Most operative dissection is "blunt dissection", performed with an artery forcep ("hemostat" in USA) or the outside blunt face of dissecting scissors. This minimises the risk of accidentally cutting something important. Electrocautery (diathermy) is used for most other dissection, and scissors are used more often for sharp dissection. I suspect that reusable forceps and scissors are stainless, otherwise repeated cycles of exposure to blood and high temperature and pressure autoclave sterilization would make them rust. Single use/ disposable ones may not be. Some disposable forceps are labelled "single use dp3250b". I assume that this refers to SAE 3250, but am not 100% sure.

Whilst we don't do cardiac or neurosurgery here, we do pretty much everything else, including a lot of stuff that would be considered "major" and as far as I know, all of our different disposable blades are labelled "carbon steel" on the packet. I'll have a look at a blade itself next time I'm in to see if it specifies the exact steel used.
 
labor of love said:
Cool thread, I know I'm late to the party but I don't think I've tried 52100 yet. Outside of ginrei (which I like the looks of)and z Kramer, what are some other 52100 knives that can be had off the shelf? Or at the very least without a 6 month waitlist?
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Just putting it out there as my turn on his is next but there's a fella in Aus called Robert Trimarchi (The Nine) who is making some nice looking (to me at least) knives in 52100. @Preizzo knife tastes run very similarly to mine and he loves his.

 
Yup. Wrought iron from wagon wheel hubs and stuff. Though I believe he also does mono and can clad in non salvage mild skins
 
Bill Burke, who literally defined the best heat treatment of this steel, and who is an abs master smith, a true artist, and a fine human being.
 
Eric said:
Bill Burke, who literally defined the best heat treatment of this steel, and who is an abs master smith, a true artist, and a fine human being.
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Yep Bills HT of 52100 is amazing in every way.
 
Eric said:
Bill Burke, who literally defined the best heat treatment of this steel, and who is an abs master smith, a true artist, and a fine human being.
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All true statements but should be added that wait time is "undefined" at this point. Good thing I'm young enough and patient, to still have hope.
 
Mert Tansu of Tansu Knives learnt his 52100 HT from Bill Burke. I haven't tried it yet but have a boning knife from him near completion so can report back when its done. Or check out the passaround thread in his vendor sub forum. That is a 52100 blade of his.
 
MertTansu absolutely makes some of the finest 52100 blades available, whether, honyaki, san mai mono steel, whatever. I own a gyuto and have tried several others and his work is second to none.

Pretty damn great guy, as well. :cool2:
 
jonnachang said:
Carter Hopkins is doing 52100 stock ground blades in North Carolina under C II Bladeworks.
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I have one of Carter Hopkin's blades, I am really impressed. His wood work on handles is also amazing, he rehandled my TF for me.
20170414_161554.jpg
 
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