Group Buy Interest Check: Laser 180mm Gyuto blank

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applepieforbreakfast

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Lately, I’ve been wishing that a certain knife was a little bit taller and a little more stain resistant. I was going to profile a new knife by hand, but then I saw this thread, and I started thinking about outsourcing the profiling, as well as the HT.

I was just wondering if anyone else would like a profiled, heat treated blank as well? Maybe you’ve got a handle laying around, and haven’t found the knife for it? Maybe you just want something to play around with? Maybe you want to try out a new steel? I figure this would be a fairly inexpensive way to do any, or all, of those things.

Knife Blank Deets
Mono Laser Gyuto, Wa tang (I could go either way on a machi)
180x45, edge profile similar to Maz 180 petty.
Stock thickness:
0.080”-0.090” (2mm-2.3mm)

Steel choice:
D2: I’m not sure how well this would do in a mono laser with regards to toughness, but I really like SLD’s toothiness.
AEB-L: Always a popular choice, though I haven’t used it.
Z-Wear: Haven’t used this either. Looks like a middle ground, tougher than D2, but more slicing edge retention than AEB-L.


Profile will need to be cleaned up, and bevels ground.

Plasma cutting and heat treat from Jarod Todd (Knife heat treating services | JT Custom Knives)

What this is:
A group buy for a profiled, heat treated blank

What this is not:
A group buy for a complete knife.


I welcome any and all suggestions.


Mods:
If this isn’t cool, just let me know and we’ll go from there.
 
Hmm, if there was a time to sit down and grind a knife, I guess this is it. I would be moderately interested
 
Would be more interested if it was carbon. Maybe AEB-L would be alright, tho. Guess that would be a better choice for a gift knife than a carbon steel.
 
Hmm, if there was a time to sit down and grind a knife, I guess this is it. I would be moderately interested
That was my thought.

PM more info please.
PM Sent

Z-Wear sounds more than a little ambitious to me. AEB-L or A2/SKD12 maybe, nil interest in D2/SLD/SKD11.
I could probably go for some A2. Would you prefer a carbon steel?

Would be more interested if it was carbon. Maybe AEB-L would be alright, tho. Guess that would be a better choice for a gift knife than a carbon steel.
I feel like carbon steel is more popular around here. It wouldn't surprise me if others felt the same way. Might end up having "enough people" to do both stainless and carbon.
 
A2 is around 5% Cr so while not as stainless as D2 (12%) is has some stain resistance and is a bit less brittle. Said to be nicer on the stones and to potentially take a very slightly sharper edge than D2 but probably not so sharp as AEB-L. (subtle distinctions here). According to the @Larrin CATRA tests D2 has the best edge retention followed by AEB-L followed by A2. I think the abrasion resistance to Z-Wear makes it a non-starter for amateurs and that might be true of D2 too. Some real knife makers need to weigh-in on this subject, I'm guessing.
 
Would be very interested. (With a preference for carbon)...
 
A2 is around 5% Cr so while not as stainless as D2 (12%) is has some stain resistance and is a bit less brittle. Said to be nicer on the stones and to potentially take a very slightly sharper edge than D2 but probably not so sharp as AEB-L. (subtle distinctions here). According to the @Larrin CATRA tests D2 has the best edge retention followed by AEB-L followed by A2. I think the abrasion resistance to Z-Wear makes it a non-starter for amateurs and that might be true of D2 too. Some real knife makers need to weigh-in on this subject, I'm guessing.

I'm familiar with D2's abrasion resistance. I figured a laser would reduce time and frustration. AEB-L would be significantly easier though. And to be honest, AEB-L would be perfectly adequate for my use case of this knife (garlic, shallots, meals for two, etc.)
But the heart wants what it wants. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 
I would be totally interested, but it depends at what cost.
I've been looking into commissioning a blade from a smith friend of mine, possibly.

I'd like to make a knife for my mom. She wants something light, sharp, and comfortable.
 
Price depends on how many are ordered of the same thickness and alloy. So if we had enough people that wanted carbon, we could probably do both carbon and stainless. They do not have to be of the same profile design. Price break at 5 blanks ordered.

Example:
1 blank, ~$45
2 blanks, ~$38 each
4 blanks, ~$34 each
5 blanks, ~$29 each
10 blanks, ~$27.50 each

Please remember that these numbers are estimates, based on the design in mind, his in-stock 0.083" AEB-L, and pricing calculator on his site. There may be adjustments, but I wouldn't expect anything too surprising.

These price estimates do not include the cost of shipping from me to you. Shipping would be at cost. USPS Priority probably.
 
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I re-read your original post which had already answered my question, so deleted comment.
Thank you

I am not sure how many people on this forum have the equipment to actually grind bevels in hardened steel.
 
I re-read your original post which had already answered my question, so deleted comment.
Thank you

I am not sure how many people on this forum have the equipment to actually grind bevels in hardened steel.

Ah no worries. I was a little quick on the draw.
Nothing wrong with more clarification though. Sometimes I don't make word come out good.
 
Z-wear is both significantly tougher and a bit more wear resistant than d2. Do you know how hard he heatreats AEB-L, z-wear, a2? Z-wear would probable be very difficult without proper power equipment. Sounds interesting though.
 
How much work would it be to profile/sharpen by hand?

I wouldn't mind paying extra for it to be fully ground with a coarse edge...in which case, I'll take 2.

Otherwise, I may have to bow out, as I can't see hand grinding a heat treated steel blank into a blade...

edit: I have a basic set of diamond and ceramic stones for woodworking. They're pretty good stones, and can handle m4 hi speed steel with no problem. But stock removal for a cruwear bowie, or a Chuka laser would make me want to jump off a bridge.
Not sure how these blanks will look?

As for steel, I figure that anything that the KKF chooses will be way better than available on the market at say Williams Sonoma...
 
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How much work would it be to profile/sharpen by hand?

Tens of hours, depending on what you’re going for? Not really worth it unless you’re excited about a long term project. That said, that’s what I’d be doing if I got one. 🤷

But yea, I’ve only done major work on san mai blades so far. I guess I’d like to know how hard he heat treats things... if it’ll be a mono blade at 64 HRC, my elbows might give out before I finish. Maybe 59-61 would be nice? I dunno. Sorry if this has been answered somewhere.
 
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I would be interested if he could remove the ht scale and may be even do some rough grinding so that the only thing left would be finial profile and sharpening, something that could be done on the stones in a few hours. Aeb-l sounds reasonable
 
I'd say that power tools would be your friend. If you find repetitive actions comforting, that's totally an option too. I think the first one I do will be by hand, and if it's terrible, I'll use a grinder for the next.
 
I would be interested if he could remove the ht scale and may be even do some rough grinding so that the only thing left would be finial profile and sharpening, something that could be done on the stones in a few hours. Aeb-l sounds reasonable
 
Very cool idea! Knife style is right up my alley. Its probably outside my skillset but would love to see the end results
 
I would super interested in skd12 or A2 blank for sure
 
Hate to say but... Complete bevel grinds even on 2 mm blades, will be a terrible venture without powertools. Like even with a small cheaper belt grinder, you’re probably looking at going through atleast 5 ceramic coarse belts and 10+hours. Softer HT will help a little, but make you less happy with outcome.
 
I’m no expert, but I have some experience of crazy projects without power tools. Sanding paper, a coarse stone and a lot will power will take you pretty far. It takes a lot of time but I think it’s worth it.
 
Hate to say but... Complete bevel grinds even on 2 mm blades, will be a terrible venture without powertools. Like even with a small cheaper belt grinder, you’re probably looking at going through atleast 5 ceramic coarse belts and 10+hours. Softer HT will help a little, but make you less happy with outcome.

Hey, don’t rain on our fantasies! I’m taking solace from @stringer’s account of shaping a Sabatier blank with only bench stones. What else do we have to do with the 100 hrs it’ll take? (Besides childcare, work, eating, sleeping, physical therapy, exercise...... hmmmm, on second thought...)
 
Hey, don’t rain on our fantasies! I’m taking solace from @stringer’s account of shaping a Sabatier blank with only bench stones. What else do we have to do with the 100 hrs it’ll take? (Besides childcare, work, eating, sleeping, physical therapy, exercise...... hmmmm, on second thought...)

You might want to put the physical therapist on retainer for this project.
 
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