My new D2 hunter for this archery season!

**randallss7** · 10-05-2014, 06:45 PM

My new hunting rig for this season, It will be 3rd attempt to replace the 0-1 tool steel hunter I made a long time ago. The Blade on this one is 3/16" thick D2, handle is copper bolster with nickel silver pins in bolster and handle, Mosaic pin is copper and Nickel silver lanyard tube is nickel silver, scales are 3/8" stock thickness black linen Micarta scales. Blade finish is just 600G one way hand sanded finish.

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**Phaedrus** · 10-06-2014, 01:39 AM

Very nice work! D2 is great steel if the HT is right.

**Rick** · 10-06-2014, 05:50 AM

You should be very happy to receive that. It's beautiful.

**crashdive123** · 10-06-2014, 06:17 AM

Another beauty.

**MrFixIt** · 10-06-2014, 07:16 AM

Looks great!
I especially like the file work.

**randallss7** · 10-06-2014, 07:38 AM

Originally Posted by Phaedrus

Very nice work! D2 is great steel if the HT is right.

Thanks! and I guess you could say that about any cutlery grade steel, the HT is the most important part of any knife...in my opinion.

**randallss7** · 10-06-2014, 07:39 AM

Originally Posted by Rick

You should be very happy to receive that. It's beautiful.

I know right, when I handed it to myself, I was like you are such a great guy to give me such a fine cutting tool. Now I owe myself one.

**Rick** · 10-06-2014, 08:18 AM

Make sure it's a surprise gift. Everyone likes happy surprises.

**Phaedrus** · 10-09-2014, 05:29 AM

Originally Posted by randallss7

Thanks! and I guess you could say that about any cutlery grade steel, the HT is the most important part of any knife...in my opinion.

I agree for the most part. Some steels aren't great no matter how you treat them. It seems like guys that do the HT right on D2 are few and far between. I'm a big fan of tool steels myself, and high carbon.

**randallss7** · 10-09-2014, 08:19 AM

Originally Posted by Phaedrus

I agree for the most part. Some steels aren't great no matter how you treat them. It seems like guys that do the HT right on D2 are few and far between. I'm a big fan of tool steels myself, and high carbon.

I do not know about others heat treat of D2, I follow a simple formula for heat treating D2, heat oven to 1400 ish cook for a few minutes, then bring oven to 1850 degrees soak for 15 minutes, remove from oven and quench in air comes out of quench around 65HRC I then temper it at various degrees to achieve the balance of hard and toughness I want for that particular knife any where between 400 and 700 degrees for 63 to 57hrc respectively. We all know there are more properties and just as important properties to a blade other than just the HRC. wear resistance, toughness, grain sizes, grain composition, chemistry, etc. This is the HT formula straight from the manufacturer and is very similar to any high carbon high chromium steel. There are several steels I'm not a fan of but I'm not sure I would say they are not great, maybe not great for how you or I use them but maybe just fine for others, not arguing just sharing my opinion.

The reason I went with D2 for this knife is: as a knife maker I'm always ask to see my knife, if I pull my rusty 0-1 knife out of my pack and show it, that does not go very far for most people who cant see threw the shine. I'm hoping with this one I can keep it looking good and still have a very well performing knife as D2 is stain resistant but not considered stainless. I also just knocked the edge of brittle off this knife its sitting at HRC 62 which makes it a mother to sharpen, I know as I put the final hand sharpening to it last night and it took a long while to get hair popping shaving sharp. Some people say D2 cant get that sharp, I think they give up before ever getting to the initial burr edge or the long process of polishing it down to a razor edge from there. I would never make a knife in the 62hrc range to sell unless someone specifically ask for it.

I do not think a D2 blade is what most users on this forum would benefit from its to wear resistant and to hard to sharpen even in a less hardened state. Its to expensive, this bar of D2 cost me 50.00 for 18" x 2" x 3/16" the same in 0-1 or 1095 would be 20ish. A good flexible high carbon steel in the lower hardness ranges and higher toughness ranges, or a differential heat treatment would be my suggestion for most "bush craft" knives. Steels like 5160, 0-1, 1095, 1080, 51600 with a differential heat treatment. If stainless is requires maybe 154cm or something similar if you just have to.

**Old Professor** · 10-09-2014, 09:12 AM

A really beautiful knife!

**crashdive123** · 10-09-2014, 02:30 PM

I use a similar formula for heat treating D2. 1875 degrees (my oven heats up slow so no "resting" period) and let it soak for about 20 minutes. Quench between aluminum plates in a vice. Temper at 500 degrees for two hours. I like the results.

**Phaedrus** · 10-10-2014, 05:20 AM

Originally Posted by randallss7

The reason I went with D2 for this knife is: as a knife maker I'm always ask to see my knife, if I pull my rusty 0-1 knife out of my pack and show it, that does not go very far for most people who cant see threw the shine. I'm hoping with this one I can keep it looking good and still have a very well performing knife as D2 is stain resistant but not considered stainless. I also just knocked the edge of brittle off this knife its sitting at HRC 62 which makes it a mother to sharpen, I know as I put the final hand sharpening to it last night and it took a long while to get hair popping shaving sharp. Some people say D2 cant get that sharp, I think they give up before ever getting to the initial burr edge or the long process of polishing it down to a razor edge from there. I would never make a knife in the 62hrc range to sell unless someone specifically ask for it.

There are very few steels that I find hard to sharpen! But that's mostly because I have fifty waterstones and three belt grinders.

I agree that most people wouldn't find an outdoors knife too useful hardened to 62 Rc but I like kitchen knives in that range. I've had a couple that were roughly 65 Rc!