Elmax knife abuse Media
Published: 10 years ago
The purpose of this video is to illustrate the unusual durability of Elmax.
This is a 6" utility/fighter that I make in .165" Elmax at HRC 60. It was taken down to .020" and sharpened at 20 degrees per side. This is relatively thin and as a result it is light weight and cuts well. The reason I wanted to make this video is to illustrate to people that with this steel you can have a hard thin abrasion resistant stainless knife that is still quite durable. These properties are not frequently found together.
Elmax is a 3rd generation particle metallurgy stainless "super steel" with 1.7% carbon and 3% vanadium forming over 20% carbide by volume. The PM manufacturing process forms very fine vanadium carbides that are evenly dispersed and rounded that are unusually cohesive to the steel matrix which reduces the brittleness associated with such a high carbide steel. As a result it is quite durable when pressed beyond normal use. It isn't as tough as CPM 3V, but it is remarkable for a stainless.
The abuse in this video is not what most people use knives for, I get that. But it is important to know that a rough use tactical knife can be wailed on should the need arise, which is why I use this steel and why I made this video.
On a final note. Elmax is very susceptible to a loss of hardness during grinding, particularly the final edge grind. As a high chromium steel it conducts heat slowly, it generates a lot of heat while grinding, and if it gets much above 400F you'll start loosing hardness. It is very easy to over heat the thin cutting edge, particularly at the very apex of the edge, without feeling much heat at your finger tips and there would be no tell-tale oxidation colors to alert someone of the problem. So, I believe this is a steel whose edge should be ground under flood coolant. It's messy, but for this material to perform reliably I think it's necessary.
This is a 6" utility/fighter that I make in .165" Elmax at HRC 60. It was taken down to .020" and sharpened at 20 degrees per side. This is relatively thin and as a result it is light weight and cuts well. The reason I wanted to make this video is to illustrate to people that with this steel you can have a hard thin abrasion resistant stainless knife that is still quite durable. These properties are not frequently found together.
Elmax is a 3rd generation particle metallurgy stainless "super steel" with 1.7% carbon and 3% vanadium forming over 20% carbide by volume. The PM manufacturing process forms very fine vanadium carbides that are evenly dispersed and rounded that are unusually cohesive to the steel matrix which reduces the brittleness associated with such a high carbide steel. As a result it is quite durable when pressed beyond normal use. It isn't as tough as CPM 3V, but it is remarkable for a stainless.
The abuse in this video is not what most people use knives for, I get that. But it is important to know that a rough use tactical knife can be wailed on should the need arise, which is why I use this steel and why I made this video.
On a final note. Elmax is very susceptible to a loss of hardness during grinding, particularly the final edge grind. As a high chromium steel it conducts heat slowly, it generates a lot of heat while grinding, and if it gets much above 400F you'll start loosing hardness. It is very easy to over heat the thin cutting edge, particularly at the very apex of the edge, without feeling much heat at your finger tips and there would be no tell-tale oxidation colors to alert someone of the problem. So, I believe this is a steel whose edge should be ground under flood coolant. It's messy, but for this material to perform reliably I think it's necessary.