# D2 knives right after heat treatment. Can you tell me more about the colors?



## gemeengoed

Hi guys,

I just heat treated my first 3 chef's knives in my new oven and am wondering about the colors. It looks fantastic but are these knives heat treated properly?

The oven was set to ramp to 650 degrees Celsius, hang there for about an hour, and then up to 1030 degrees Celsius for about 10 minutes after i quenched them between steel plates. 

https://flic.kr/p/BKmrfd

cheers,
-sander


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## Marko Tsourkan

gemeengoed said:


> Hi guys,
> 
> I just heat treated my first 3 chef's knives in my new oven and am wondering about the colors. It looks fantastic but are these knives heat treated properly?
> 
> The oven was set to ramp to 650 degrees Celsius, hang there for about an hour, and then up to 1030 degrees Celsius for about 10 minutes after i quenched them between steel plates.
> 
> https://flic.kr/p/BKmrfd
> 
> cheers,
> -sander



Color-wise they look fine. Thats what stainless and semi-stainless steels look like after HT. I assume, you wrapped yours in SS foil.


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## gemeengoed

Marko Tsourkan said:


> Color-wise they look fine. Thats what stainless and semi-stainless steels look like after HT. I assume, you wrapped yours in SS foil.



you assume right, Sir.


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## PolishAvenger

I have to ask....what possessed you yo make chef knives out of D2? There's an old knifemaking saying that goes, "D2...takes a mediocre edge, and holds it forever". D2 just doesn't like to get screaming sharp, and then it's so abrasion resistant, sharpening is a bear.
-Mark


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## gemeengoed

good question... my answer would be that this is the first steel that was more rust resilliant than O1 steel that is readily available to me by my steel supplier. and you are absolutely right: after heat treatment the knife is VERY hard to grind down to a point i had to stop my grinder and continue on a diamond stone. i didn't know D2 doesn't like a sharp edge, thank you for that. but the first thing i always hear about when having people test my knives is the rust situtation.


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## PolishAvenger

I disrespect D2 far too much...but it's always hit and miss. Bob Dozier has a special heat treatment for his, I believe, and that's why I never hear anything bad about his blades. D2 has fairly large carbides and I think that when the edge is so thin, as on a blade meant for cutting in the kitchen, those carbides do funny things, like chip out of the steel matrix. But, I do understand givin' the customer what he wants. Let us know how they perform, eh? I have some D2 I haven't even touched yet.
-Mark


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## PolishAvenger

A discussion on another forum....if this breaks a forum rule, please let me know....just trying to be helpful. Apparently, the consensus isn't unanimous, but it's food for thought.
-Mark

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1316723-D2-for-chefs-knife


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## gemeengoed

thanks again for taking the time to answer me. i now have made a reasonably sharp knife and will let you know who and what.


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## gemeengoed

hi guys, a quick update: finished my first D2 knife with pear scales and i like it. but i have to say damn that stuff is tough to grind when it's hardened... http://imgur.com/a/MApHW


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## gemeengoed

i have 2 more D2 knives in the making but again, this stuff just eats belts as if it's nothing. took me about an hour to take off 4 grams of each knife and the belt is of no use anymore. drawfiling is pretty much useless. frustrating but then again, what if it's finally finished? this could truly be a knife that lasts you a lifetime. http://imgur.com/a/XIWLZ


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## PolishAvenger

Good work, man.....it's a steel that's meant to cut other steel industrially, so incredible wear resistance is its calling card
If I remember correctly, Norton Blaze belts hold up about as good as can be expected on hardened D2. What's that blue belt you're using?
-Mark


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## Kentucky

Completely normal for HT..D2 can be a very good steel but it has massive ammounts of RA that has to be dealt with in HT..If you use the industry standard HT for D2 you can end up with 20% RA..Thats were the crappy edge comes from..The ndustry standard HT is for punch/press dies in large sections were RA is of no concern..Knife makers have come up with their own HT for D2 and CPMD2 that is far better for a knife..


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## gemeengoed

PolishAvenger said:


> What's that blue belt you're using?


 it's designation is DZY71 polyester cloth zirconia sanding belt - P60 grit.


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## PolishAvenger

If you begin to think you're belts might be letting you down, spend the extra money on some U.S. or German made products....you might be surprised. Happy grinding!
-Mark


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## gemeengoed

i've got a wide range of belts, ceramic, trizact, aliminum oxide and zyrkonium. i don't think thats the problem


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## PolishAvenger

Hah!!! Must just be the D2!!!


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## Silverthorn

gemeengoed said:


> i have 2 more D2 knives in the making but again, this stuff just eats belts as if it's nothing. took me about an hour to take off 4 grams of each knife and the belt is of no use anymore. drawfiling is pretty much useless. frustrating but then again, what if it's finally finished? this could truly be a knife that lasts you a lifetime. http://imgur.com/a/XIWLZ



D2 makes me cry most of the time.


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## gemeengoed

finally, the first of the 2 is almost done. http://imgur.com/a/su1vq


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## PolishAvenger

Damn good work!
-Mark


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## gemeengoed

finally, the last one is complete, this one is fitted with pear wooden scales, which i really like because of its density. it's been a long journey but worth it.


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## gemeengoed

hi guys, a little update concerning belts: i just got me some 60 grit 3M cubitron II belts and i have to say these cut like CRAZY. seriously.


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## PolishAvenger

Ya GOTTA love that!
-Mark


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## jessf

How are these D2 knives holding up? I've read a lot on the use of D2 for such a fine edge and I'm curious to know how they've faired in used. I've got a steep edge on my D2 honesuki and it's the kind of knife not typically used on a board. I'm speculating that might help mitigate the chances of chipping those large carbides. I figured it may be a good beefy stain resistant bone cracker with a decent edge. Not looking to cut tomatoes wafer thin.


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## gemeengoed

i have several kitchen knives out to friends who say it holds its edge. last weekend i finished a D2 cleaver as well which was a pain to finish because i heat treated it too thick [.8mm] and it took ages to grind it down to .5mm. i was lucky to receive some dry ice to increase the heat treat on this one and it seems to be holding up just fine. i put quite a steep edge on this one as you can see by the width of the secondary bevel but i want to further try it before giving a judgement.


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## ant_topps

Hi All,

Just wanted to throw my own two cents in. I started using Bohler's K110 derivative of D2 as I could get the steel in 2.5mm sheets.
It murders belts but if you use a good #60 ceramic belt (VSM XK870X / XK885X / XK760X) you should be fine. 

I put my first few out on test with a few restaurants to see if D2 would hold up, especially when the grind is thin.
I can say that this steel does quite well in holding the edge, it's not prone to chipping and I've gotten some positive feedback.


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## gemeengoed

hi Guys,

it's about a year later now and i have resharpened the knife for the first time. I have to say i like it because of its durability and stain resistancy. I sharpened it till about 6000 grit and honed on a leather strap afterwards. The cleaver is having a little trouble cutting through a tomato but then again it's pretty thick. This might just be the steel for me... 

https://youtu.be/29lyx-F7b8s

btw Anthony that knife is gorgeous.


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## Mucho Bocho

Gemeengoed, Thanks for the video. I think you've polished all the teeth out of those edges. But you certainly don't have to start over now that you've likely reached the apex with fresh steel. 

Try this:
Prepare a 1000 stone, set the bevel with just a couple of deliberate strokes on each side, your not looking to feel a burr. Just an even thin shinny line at the apex. 

Prepare a 6000 stone and give it a few very light trail edge strops, to put little teeth (6000) on the larger teeth (1000). Flip the blade over each strop, for right handed knives I strop bottom up, then top down. 

When going from grit to grit, the goal is not to remove the previous teeth, but to add smaller teeth to the larger teeth. So usually much lighter pressure is used when polishing (burnishing) an edge. Hope that helps.


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## gemeengoed

Mucho Bocho you know what, that never occured to me. when i move up the grit i sharpen until i don't feel no resistance anymore, and repeat.

thinking about it you must be absolutely right. Thanks for this insight!


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## WillC

Hello there, If you want to get the most out of D2 have a read of this if you have not already.

https://tspace.library.utoronto.ca/bitstream/1807/13366/1/MQ45596.pdf

This was the basis of my research on reducing carbide size in D2 for this article/comparison

http://www.kitchenknifefora.com/threads/cpm-3v-vs-d2-fight.451/

My conclusion was that you can indeed get a more even carbide distribution form D2, which gives you the best possible toughness. It was allot of work however but worth it I felt for producing the best possible blades for tackling really tough tasks, bones, etc, infact I used bones as my test subject.

But for push cuts for usual Gyuto tasks the "feel" of the cut is so much worse with D2 than a fine carbide steel, you can get it sharp and it will stay sharp, but it will never have that feeling of a fine edge. For push cuts its just the wrong choice of steel. But impressive toughness and impact resistance if you can successfully heat treat it for smallest most even carbide formation. 
Will


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## jessf

Good reads.


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