Any User Feedback on the MagnaCut Steel?

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Hz_zzzzzz

Hz_zzzzzz

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Really curious about the new super steel. Saw quite some MagnaCut knives sold on Sponsor Market and BST recently. Anyone can share some user feedback on the steel?

How does it compare to traditional PM steel like SG2 or CPM-154 on stone? How's the achievable sharpness and retention of the off-stone sharpness?

Thanks for any discussion.
 
I had a gyuto in magnacut. The maker indicated the intended hrc to be around 61. Edge retention is a tough one to gauge but I can say for certain it could achieve the same sharpness level of SG2 if not better. Edge retention was definitely better than low alloy steels but Im not sure I can it was much better than some of the other PMs in practice. Where it stood out for me was the toughness. At 61 hrc this steel could take a beating. I used it for everything except hacking thru bones.
 
Bico Doce said:
I had a gyuto in magnacut. The maker indicated the intended hrc to be around 61. Edge retention is a tough one to gauge but I can say for certain it could achieve the same sharpness level of SG2 if not better. Edge retention was definitely better than low alloy steels but Im not sure I can it was much better than some of the other PMs in practice. Where it stood out for me was the toughness. At 61 hrc this steel could take a beating. I used it for everything except hacking thru bones.
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That's quite low for magnacut.... Anyways for the OP, I have experience in folders with magnacut between 64-65 and it has performed great. It has great edge stability so it has great achievable sharpness. Very good retention. Higher than SG2, but of course nowhere near ZDP.
 
jedy617 said:
That's quite low for magnacut....
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I personally would have preferred the steel pushed a bit further. I think intent was that going past the 60-61 mark the predicted toughness takes decent dip. Probably still plenty tough for a kitchen knife. Leaving it at 61 basically made it bomb proof.

When I get a knife in Apexultra I want that steel pushed to the max.
 
Bico Doce said:
I personally would have preferred the steel pushed a bit further. I think intent was that going past the 60-61 mark the predicted toughness takes decent dip. Probably still plenty tough for a kitchen knife. Leaving it at 61 basically made it bomb proof.

When I get a knife in Apexultra I want that steel pushed to the max.
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Even for a pocket knife it's still very very tough at 63+. I have a knife maker friend who tested edge stability by hitting his 65 magnacut knives into a bolt. It performed quite well. Will still have higher toughness at 65 then aogami super at the same hardness.

I'd like to check out some apex ultra someday for sure.
 
Meglio Knives currently selling some Magnacut gyutos, I wonder how high they push them.
 
jedy617 said:
That's quite low for magnacut.... Anyways for the OP, I have experience in folders with magnacut between 64-65 and it has performed great. It has great edge stability so it has great achievable sharpness. Very good retention. Higher than SG2, but of course nowhere near ZDP.
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If you look at the data from Larrin Thomas, the peak toughness is 61-62 hrc compared to am
Max hrc 64-65. I would rather have the increased toughness.
 
Bensbites said:
If you look at the data from Larrin Thomas, the peak toughness is 61-62 hrc compared to am
Max hrc 64-65. I would rather have the increased toughness.
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Yes, that is where maximum toughness is. However it is still the toughest stainless PM steel around, even at 64-65 hrc it will be tougher than sg2 and vg10, and stuff like aogami super. It makes much more sense to run it higher and have decent edge retention while still being quite tough.
 
I have made a couple gyutos in Magnacut. I was shooting for 61-62 for peak toughness with a thin edge. Grinding, the steel was very very wear resistant. I ground to a zero and it was very easy to raise a burr and remove it. The steel is capable of taking a very very keen edge. As far as edge retention, I have one magnacut gyuto out on a passaround. Pro chefs like the edge retention. Pro sharpeners have enjoyed sharpening it.
 
Bensbites said:
I have made a couple gyutos in Magnacut. I was shooting for 61-62 for peak toughness with a thin edge. Grinding, the steel was very very wear resistant. I ground to a zero and it was very easy to raise a burr and remove it. The steel is capable of taking a very very keen edge. As far as edge retention, I have one magnacut gyuto out on a passaround. Pro chefs like the edge retention. Pro sharpeners have enjoyed sharpening it.
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That's a shame, a lot of potential is wasted at that hardness. Hell, at 65 HRC, it is 2ft-lbs tougher than SG2 at 60.5 hrc, and we know japanese makers tend to run SG2 at between 62-63 so in reality toughness would be even lower still, and people don't really complain about toughness on sg2. Again, also way tougher than VG10, SLD (D2), and other japanese chef knife stainless steels besides ginsan.

There is a reason why makers who value toughness like Chris reeve are still running it at 63-64 hrc, it's because that's what the steel was designed to do as being stainless equivelents to vanadis 4 E and 4V (also usually ran at 64-65.) The only reason it should be run low would be for a heavy duty cleaver or outdoor knife.

Pro chefs most likely are used to VG10/AUS 8 and the like, so of course a higher vanadium content PM steel like magnacut will impress them, but it's nowhere near where it could be.

It is tougher to grind because of the vanadium content, but will still be quite easy compare to something like s90v.
 
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Or just get 2 Magnacut gyuto, one around 61-62 HRC for bulletproof cut tasks. Another one around 64-65 HRC for delicate cut tasks.
 
Jason183 said:
Or just get 2 Magnacut gyuto, one around 61-62 HRC for bulletproof cut tasks. Another one around 64-65 HRC for delicate cut tasks.
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If I was going to go for something for pure toughness I would just get something like z tuff, 3v, or even AEBL if I wanted stainless. Magnacut is so good because of its high edge stability at high HRC...again not much of a point running it at lower hardness because you can find tougher stuff anyway.

If we want to talk about running thin, I am getting a knife by RJ Martin (very high end folder maker) in magnacut, check on how thin his edges are run: (.009 behind the edge) scroll thought the pics; and he runs at 65. For testing in the field, he gives his knives to friends who hunt and say go to town in them, skinning etc and magnacut past with flying colors.
 
Bico Doce said:
I had a gyuto in magnacut. The maker indicated the intended hrc to be around 61. Edge retention is a tough one to gauge but I can say for certain it could achieve the same sharpness level of SG2 if not better. Edge retention was definitely better than low alloy steels but Im not sure I can it was much better than some of the other PMs in practice. Where it stood out for me was the toughness. At 61 hrc this steel could take a beating. I used it for everything except hacking thru bones.
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was that the one I made? I'm pretty sure that batch was at 62 rc.... unless I specifically sent you a message saying otherwise? Now I'm curious so please do let me know :oops:. That batch was heat treated in Sedona AZ at Tim Wright's shop. In fact my notes with Tim indicate those measured at 62.5 RC, but in my Instagram listing I rounded conservatively to state 62.
 
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jedy617 said:
Even for a pocket knife it's still very very tough at 63+. I have a knife maker friend who tested edge stability by hitting his 65 magnacut knives into a bolt. It performed quite well. Will still have higher toughness at 65 then aogami super at the same hardness.

I'd like to check out some apex ultra someday for sure.
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I think it is worthwhile to point out that that test (the way most people interpret the results) is a test of strength (hardness) not toughness. Very ductile steel like AEB-L @60RC will have the edge deform before it chips in that test while steels that are higher hardness cut through with no deformation even though they are less tough as the yield strength has not been exceeded. Toughness at a given hardness is a measure of how much the steel will deform before fracture.
 
Troopah_Knives said:
I think it is worthwhile to point out that that test (the way most people interpret the results) is a test of strength (hardness) not toughness. Very ductile steel like AEB-L @60RC will have the edge deform before it chips in that test while steels that are higher hardness cut through with no deformation even though they are less tough as the yield strength has not been exceeded. Toughness at a given hardness is a measure of how much the steel will deform before fracture.
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I was linking to show the bte measurement, the bending was just an unintentional add on.
 
HSC /// Knives said:
was that the one I made? I'm pretty sure that batch was at 62 rc.... unless I specifically sent you a message saying otherwise? Now I'm curious so please do let me know :oops:. That batch was heat treated in Sedona AZ at Tim Wright's shop. In fact my notes with Tim indicate those measured at 62.5 RC, but in my Instagram listing I rounded conservatively to state 62.
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I was in fact referencing the knife you made. I believe I asked you via IG and at the time I think the response of 61 was not the official rating but maybe an approximation because you didn’t remember exactly at the time. I put it down in my notes and just rolled with it.

But it turns out I was wrong and thank you for clarifying. I stand by my statement that the steel felt really tough and from what I could tell very good edge retention compared to what I had at the time. I’ve since used k390 and I think that tops magnacut but no surprise there.
 
Bico Doce said:
I was in fact referencing the knife you made. I believe I asked you via IG and at the time I think the response of 61 was not the official rating but maybe an approximation because you didn’t remember exactly at the time. I put it down in my notes and just rolled with it.

But it turns out I was wrong and thank you for clarifying. I stand by my statement that the steel felt really tough and from what I could tell very good edge retention compared to what I had at the time. I’ve since used k390 and I think that tops magnacut but no surprise there.
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my bad for not being more tidy with the documentation
here's the actual reading from that batch, April 17 2021
 

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Thank you for all the discussions.

Personally, I am used to low toughness steel like sg2, vg10 or AS. I even found the toughness of zdp-189 bearable.

I think the cutting board matters here. When I used boards like ending grain hard maple or cherry, I got micro chips from many steels whenever the edge is super thin. I guess a PE board in a commercial kitchen only makes it worse. However, since I switched to Japanese Hinoki and Hasegawa FSR, most of my knives/steels have been doing fine even when I zero edge them. So I prefer higher sharpness and retention over toughness as long as it’s not too difficult to sharpen.
 
MagnaCut should allow for even thinner edges without chipping. Of course you might get to a point where the edge bends without chipping because it is too thin and that is no better than microchipping in practice. I've had excellent experience with MagnaCut, but I sharpen on diamond stones and to me it sharpens very easily.
 
Just found a random toughness test video on Magnacut

Looks really good, I think I might just go for 64-65 range too, good enough to cover all my abusive tasks
 
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