This was a very interesting video indeed William! Thank you for sharing this information. I have long used a small dab of rubbing alcohol on my blades with a good wipe down and a finish coat of mineral oil or even a soft fixin wax depending on the knife. When you process fat wood and such the alcohol quickly removes the resin from the blade with no ill effects that I have found. I hope that gentleman's knives are salvageable. Take care sir!
I guess Im randomly asking but does anybody know of a method to log back into an Instagram account? I stupidly forgot my password. I appreciate any help you can give me.
@Samuel Lionel thanks for your reply. I got to the site thru google and im waiting for the hacking stuff now. Looks like it's gonna take quite some time so I will get back to you later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
You just solved one of my biggest dilemma. I have a knife in M390 stainless. I sharpened it many times on diamond plates. But after stropping I had a dull knife. I thought there is some problem with edge geometry and put my own careful made one. nothing. For last month or so it darkened my world :))) Thank you 🔪✨
Thank you! I did some research (including your posting) and decided to order a Smith & Sons knife w/ this steel. I have MANY different knife steels and this will be my first AEB-L. I am looking forward to checking it out for my own R&D analysis. Such a fun retirement research project but I won't/can't post on TH-cam !!! Thanks again!
I had my strop out to run my Scalpel and Woodsman's Butcher Knife then I saw your video on the sale earlier in the week warning not to do that on AEB-L. Glad I did not strop them.
What brand was the knife? That does make a difference. I was using AEB-L I heat and cryo treated personally in house. Not all heat treats are the same.
Alot of people have the notion that stainless means rust proof....stainless is exactly what it says it just stains-less....Yea some like H-1 is almost rust proof but not and edge holding sucks but LC200N is a different monster..will hold a edge for a very long time and is very stainless almost as much as h-1 but you don't have to sharpen after every cut..lol.....love your stuff....
Love both your products and your knowledge William (and love the knife you made me), but I do query the AEB L no strop recommendation, isn’t it a razor blade steel, I remember my Grandad stropping his cutthroat razor before shaving every day, that was many moons ago now but it seemed to get sharper each time, maybe that’s to do with a hollow grind?
Shelley Raskin yep, different grind and steel. Even though it is razor blade steel it is for a different razor blade than a straight razor. The razor blades today have a different grind.
AEBL is a strange steel. It just a variation of 13C26N. It supposed to be razor blade steel. Some people made kitchen knives but what I read that it was soft. Further reading, I found that the heat treat was not done optimally. But William manage to get it right. AEBL is not super steel like 3V, 4E, M390, for the price you r paying, it's a very good cost to performance steel.
Thank you checked it out. Great video I think I put a convex on my aebl I do have some diamond sharpeners I can use. I like the freehand method your using it looks more intuitive.
Nothing is wrong with a convex edge, if that’s what you want. I was cautioning the customer who purchased a V grind that stropping will change the grind to a convex. Personally Indo not like a convex on my knife only on axes or possibly large choppers for durability but for a all around belt knife I prefer a V grind but that’s me. If you like a convex then keep rocking it.
@@wcknives Thank you for your quick response. I don’t think I have a strong opinion either way. I sharpen both ways depending on which sharpener I use, the wicked edge fixed position sharpener does great v grinds and my Worksharp Ken Onion with grinding attachment does great with convex grinds. I guess I would be leaning towards convex as I feel they last longer. At least for me. I’m sure results my vary. But thanks again. Nice video.
question, Have you ever had any quality control issues. someone has stated that Your the perfect knife maker and never make a mistake, though i find it hard for any knife maker not to have an issue ever, thought id find out from the man himself. anyhow, nice blades by the way
I have been doing knives full time as a living since 2012. I have heat treated and ground every knife in my shop myself and in those 10 years I have shipped conservatively over 9,000 knives. In that time I have replaced less than 12 for warranty. Now was it quality control issues, mistakes or was it knife abuse? That is up for debate but every claim made I have replaced the knife, less than a dozen so far, without fail. I will say this I have made mistakes by the bucket fulls. You can only learn by making mistakes but they are never sold to the public. My initials WC is on every knife that leaves this shop and I take that as my signature of quality. Only folks who do nothing never make mistakes.
Good video! But diamond for aeb-l at 60-61 ?? I can sharpen aeb-l 62hrc on a brick of butter.... It doesnt need anything near diamond and wont eat up a natural stone at all.
beary potter I have a few natural stones around that is worn real thin in a very short period of time. Will it work yes but they don’t last as long as a diamond stone. That’s my point.
Thanks for the information Mr. Collins. Would it be ok to strop the AEB-L with no compound ? Also what grit diamond is optimal? I have a 250 and a 1000
I am so adamantly against tool steels, and carbon steels, I get it, the ancient world had basic carbon steels and most of the "world" cuts with rusting knives. Got a few in my kitchen that are passed throwing out. But all that aside. I am absolutely against carbon steels, and tool steels, they are just inferior to the alternative --- especially with that space age magnicut coming out. I know how to take care of carbon and tool steels, I just don't want to have to. Especially if I'm out and about in the hot humid summer months or in the rain, or by water. I don't want to have to constantly keep up with them. That's my .02 cents...
Robert Koontz the steel has to be harder than the knife blade so yes you could from any steel. I have one from Gossman Knives made from D2 steel and it works great.
@@wcknives I thought it might, I'm going to water quench at a very high heat, upside donw Co2 bottle it. lol and it should be much harder. Ps I'm making your SK on steroids, love the hook. the tracker hood is good for smoothing arrow shafts yours is great for all kinds of stuff. Thanks BK
@@wcknives I sure will, My brother lives in Cleveland east of Conroe. Maybe some day I'll pay you a visit or see at a gathering. Its a hopper, Its a chopper its the sledge omatic. lol Gallager lol
Albert Levy I have done that myself with good results but it is having a reaction to the steel. That is why it changes color and left in the solution to long it will be a problem.
A buffing wheel will heat a blade and the smaller and thinner the steel is the quicker it will heat up. The temper of the very edge is much softer than the original temper set into the blade after you do this. Like Will said after you sharpen off the buffer out edge of the knife you get down to the strength of the edge and now you're cooking. This is why when you buy production knives and use and hone them for a time they seem to work better and stay sharper longer. They buff the edge and make it look pretty and chunk of into the box to
I use a fine diamond and Spyderco ceramics as well as some burned out bulbs from an old street lamp, the big ones off of light poles! You have to very carefully break the glass lamp and remove the metal supports. I did this with a small hammer, after I wrapped them in plastic bags and a towel. There's something about the "tooth" on the surface of that long round thin bulb that honed my knives just as good if not better than my classic white ceramics. I clean them with a sponge and Beekeepers friend. And yeah guys DON'T soak your steels in bleach please. You can use some no rinse sanitizer solution such as Starsan used by brewers if that is your concern, but rinse them off, dry and then use lubricant. I use EEZOX exclusively if the knife will not be used on food or if you're going to store them for a longer time. Food knives get drugstore mineral oil
aeb-l is about as easy to sharpen to any stainless steel could get. you do NOT even remotely NEED diamond abrasiveness for aeb-l at any hardness. You can easily sharpen aeb-l at 64+ rockwell with almost any abrasive you could think of. Aluminum oxide, like most water stones. Easily. I don't mind aeb-l at around 61 for like bushcraft or outdoor hunting type knives, but anything else I'd want the stuff 64+ rc or bust. Anyway mate, the hardness of the steel is only a little bit related to it's abrasive resistance properties. You could take some 10v at 50 rc and it's gonna be harder to grind than aeb-l at 61+. In fact it's not even close. Not remotely. Because the carbides, the type and the quantity are what gives that resistance. The hardness of the steel itself only changes this property a few percentage points per rockwell point. When you look at 10v or whatever, which is like 4x more resistant than aebl at the same hardness, it's just not gonna matter how you change that harndess when the gap is that big. The same steel will be more resistant when it's harder. You take it from 61 up to 64 and you're gonna see maybe 15% better wear. 15% is a long way from 400%.
Uhm. chlorine or oxygen bleach are CORROSIVES. That means they corrode things, like metal. That's another way of saying rust. I have no clue why anyone would dip their knife into a solution of corrosive chemicals. That is pure incompetence. Also I'm not sure if you've considered not burning the fine edge on the buffer? Or Doing it by hand so the knives don't go out with known burned edges? idk
![[UNCUT] “บอสณวัฒน์” ลากไส้!! ใครหนุนหลัง "แม่ตั๊ก ป๋าเบียร์" I คนดังนั่งเคลียร์ I 30 ก.ย. 67](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/QlD7mU2KKRk/mqdefault.jpg)
Good sharpening info for the AEB L William. Thanks!
Thanks William for sharing and answering questions. This video help out. Thank you.
This was a very interesting video indeed William! Thank you for sharing this information. I have long used a small dab of rubbing alcohol on my blades with a good wipe down and a finish coat of mineral oil or even a soft fixin wax depending on the knife. When you process fat wood and such the alcohol quickly removes the resin from the blade with no ill effects that I have found. I hope that gentleman's knives are salvageable. Take care sir!
I guess Im randomly asking but does anybody know of a method to log back into an Instagram account?
I stupidly forgot my password. I appreciate any help you can give me.
@Markus Kelvin Instablaster :)
@Samuel Lionel thanks for your reply. I got to the site thru google and im waiting for the hacking stuff now.
Looks like it's gonna take quite some time so I will get back to you later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
@Samuel Lionel It worked and I now got access to my account again. Im so happy:D
Thanks so much you saved my ass :D
@Markus Kelvin No problem :D
You just solved one of my biggest dilemma. I have a knife in M390 stainless. I sharpened it many times on diamond plates. But after stropping I had a dull knife. I thought there is some problem with edge geometry and put my own careful made one. nothing. For last month or so it darkened my world :)))
Thank you 🔪✨
Great explanation of how these two great steels differ. FWIW, I love 'em both. Merry Christmas from Florida to Texas.
Thank you!
I did some research (including your posting) and decided to order a Smith & Sons knife w/ this steel. I have MANY different knife steels and this will be my first AEB-L. I am looking forward to checking it out for my own R&D analysis. Such a fun retirement research project but I won't/can't post on TH-cam !!!
Thanks again!
Can’t speak for others AEB-L. I have only tested AEB-L heat treated by me. Hope it is a great knife for you.
Thanks, William. That answered some questions I've had.
Thx for the video. Looking forward to seeing more
Great video can’t wait to see the rest of the series
Excellent tutorial!
I had my strop out to run my Scalpel and Woodsman's Butcher Knife then I saw your video on the sale earlier in the week warning not to do that on AEB-L. Glad I did not strop them.
Just got my 1st knife with aeb l steel. I was a master butcher for 7 years mine came very sharp but we shall see
What brand was the knife? That does make a difference. I was using AEB-L I heat and cryo treated personally in house. Not all heat treats are the same.
Alot of people have the notion that stainless means rust proof....stainless is exactly what it says it just stains-less....Yea some like H-1 is almost rust proof but not and edge holding sucks but LC200N is a different monster..will hold a edge for a very long time and is very stainless almost as much as h-1 but you don't have to sharpen after every cut..lol.....love your stuff....
I have a leather tool belt I use for stropping, Guess I'll be mounting it on board. Thanks
Good video. Only thing that is weird is you are looking at your view finder instead of the camera lens. It looks like you are talking to someone else.
Love both your products and your knowledge William (and love the knife you made me), but I do query the AEB L no strop recommendation, isn’t it a razor blade steel, I remember my Grandad stropping his cutthroat razor before shaving every day, that was many moons ago now but it seemed to get sharper each time, maybe that’s to do with a hollow grind?
Shelley Raskin yep, different grind and steel. Even though it is razor blade steel it is for a different razor blade than a straight razor. The razor blades today have a different grind.
AEBL is a strange steel. It just a variation of 13C26N. It supposed to be razor blade steel. Some people made kitchen knives but what I read that it was soft. Further reading, I found that the heat treat was not done optimally. But William manage to get it right.
AEBL is not super steel like 3V, 4E, M390, for the price you r paying, it's a very good cost to performance steel.
Might have to try sharpening my AebL steel differently I’ve been struggling with it.
This is how I do it. th-cam.com/video/RE8PHuo_0Wg/w-d-xo.html
Thank you checked it out. Great video I think I put a convex on my aebl I do have some diamond sharpeners I can use. I like the freehand method your using it looks more intuitive.
You you said not to strop AEB-L too much because it will convex the edge. What’s wrong with a convex edge. Please explain, I find this interesting.
Nothing is wrong with a convex edge, if that’s what you want. I was cautioning the customer who purchased a V grind that stropping will change the grind to a convex. Personally Indo not like a convex on my knife only on axes or possibly large choppers for durability but for a all around belt knife I prefer a V grind but that’s me. If you like a convex then keep rocking it.
@@wcknives Thank you for your quick response. I don’t think I have a strong opinion either way. I sharpen both ways depending on which sharpener I use, the wicked edge fixed position sharpener does great v grinds and my Worksharp Ken Onion with grinding attachment does great with convex grinds. I guess I would be leaning towards convex as I feel they last longer. At least for me. I’m sure results my vary. But thanks again. Nice video.
@@stevecress44 very welcome. I have many videos on edge testing and my video titled “ What is Sharp’ may interest you. Appreciate your view.
question, Have you ever had any quality control issues. someone has stated that Your the perfect knife maker and never make a mistake, though i find it hard for any knife maker not to have an issue ever, thought id find out from the man himself. anyhow, nice blades by the way
I have been doing knives full time as a living since 2012. I have heat treated and ground every knife in my shop myself and in those 10 years I have shipped conservatively over 9,000 knives. In that time I have replaced less than 12 for warranty. Now was it quality control issues, mistakes or was it knife abuse? That is up for debate but every claim made I have replaced the knife, less than a dozen so far, without fail. I will say this I have made mistakes by the bucket fulls. You can only learn by making mistakes but they are never sold to the public. My initials WC is on every knife that leaves this shop and I take that as my signature of quality. Only folks who do nothing never make mistakes.
Good video! But diamond for aeb-l at 60-61 ?? I can sharpen aeb-l 62hrc on a brick of butter.... It doesnt need anything near diamond and wont eat up a natural stone at all.
beary potter I have a few natural stones around that is worn real thin in a very short period of time. Will it work yes but they don’t last as long as a diamond stone. That’s my point.
William you skated around answering the question which steel you like better more then these politicians on TV. 😂
J.B.Caudill Knives LOL, I have more AEB-L knives now then O1 or any other steel. How’s that?😁
William Collins still leaving yourself a little wiggle room buddy. Lol
There will always be someone out there to try to prove someone wrong just for the sake argument
Thanks for the information Mr. Collins. Would it be ok to strop the AEB-L with no compound ? Also what grit diamond is optimal? I have a 250 and a 1000
spider Outdoors will do a follow up video on sharpening.
Knowledge is power. Great video William. Another note where did you get those suspenders?
lilbit1016 has them for awhile. Either Academy or Wall Mart probably.
Hello what victornox mini steel sharpener are you referring too?
They were available on Amazon but didn’t see any listed now. They may come available again at some point. Or you can try their website.
Now that your using Nitro V do you not recommend stropping
I do not like polished edges on any steel. Polished edges is sharp but do not last as long as a course edge, have video’s demonstrating this.
Is diatematous earth good for storpping,knives
gizmo atplay not AEB-L! Don’t recommend any compound or stropping that steel. Will go into more detail in the coming sharpening video.
I am so adamantly against tool steels, and carbon steels, I get it, the ancient world had basic carbon steels and most of the "world" cuts with rusting knives. Got a few in my kitchen that are passed throwing out. But all that aside. I am absolutely against carbon steels, and tool steels, they are just inferior to the alternative --- especially with that space age magnicut coming out. I know how to take care of carbon and tool steels, I just don't want to have to. Especially if I'm out and about in the hot humid summer months or in the rain, or by water. I don't want to have to constantly keep up with them.
That's my .02 cents...
Question, Can you make a steel sharpening rod out of AEB-L.?
Robert Koontz the steel has to be harder than the knife blade so yes you could from any steel. I have one from Gossman Knives made from D2 steel and it works great.
@@wcknives I thought it might, I'm going to water quench at a very high heat, upside donw Co2 bottle it. lol and it should be much harder. Ps I'm making your SK on steroids, love the hook. the tracker hood is good for smoothing arrow shafts yours is great for all kinds of stuff. Thanks BK
Robert Koontz cool send me a picture of the knife when your done.
@@wcknives I sure will.
@@wcknives I sure will, My brother lives in Cleveland east of Conroe. Maybe some day I'll pay you a visit or see at a gathering. Its a hopper, Its a chopper its the sledge omatic. lol Gallager lol
What about the cost difference, if any?
George Rector cost is the same.
But dont forget to take into account the tempering and liquid nitrogen costs will make it more expensive that 01!
Can aeb l get a hamon
There's one ad online for one
What about using vinegar to force a patina on 1095?
Albert Levy I have done that myself with good results but it is having a reaction to the steel. That is why it changes color and left in the solution to long it will be a problem.
A buffing wheel will heat a blade and the smaller and thinner the steel is the quicker it will heat up. The temper of the very edge is much softer than the original temper set into the blade after you do this. Like Will said after you sharpen off the buffer out edge of the knife you get down to the strength of the edge and now you're cooking.
This is why when you buy production knives and use and hone them for a time they seem to work better and stay sharper longer.
They buff the edge and make it look pretty and chunk of into the box to
I use a fine diamond and Spyderco ceramics as well as some burned out bulbs from an old street lamp, the big ones off of light poles! You have to very carefully break the glass lamp and remove the metal supports. I did this with a small hammer, after I wrapped them in plastic bags and a towel.
There's something about the "tooth" on the surface of that long round thin bulb that honed my knives just as good if not better than my classic white ceramics. I clean them with a sponge and Beekeepers friend.
And yeah guys DON'T soak your steels in bleach please. You can use some no rinse sanitizer solution such as Starsan used by brewers if that is your concern, but rinse them off, dry and then use lubricant.
I use EEZOX exclusively if the knife will not be used on food or if you're going to store them for a longer time.
Food knives get drugstore mineral oil
aeb-l is about as easy to sharpen to any stainless steel could get. you do NOT even remotely NEED diamond abrasiveness for aeb-l at any hardness. You can easily sharpen aeb-l at 64+ rockwell with almost any abrasive you could think of. Aluminum oxide, like most water stones. Easily. I don't mind aeb-l at around 61 for like bushcraft or outdoor hunting type knives, but anything else I'd want the stuff 64+ rc or bust. Anyway mate, the hardness of the steel is only a little bit related to it's abrasive resistance properties. You could take some 10v at 50 rc and it's gonna be harder to grind than aeb-l at 61+. In fact it's not even close. Not remotely. Because the carbides, the type and the quantity are what gives that resistance. The hardness of the steel itself only changes this property a few percentage points per rockwell point. When you look at 10v or whatever, which is like 4x more resistant than aebl at the same hardness, it's just not gonna matter how you change that harndess when the gap is that big. The same steel will be more resistant when it's harder. You take it from 61 up to 64 and you're gonna see maybe 15% better wear. 15% is a long way from 400%.
Appreciate the lesson and view.
@@wcknives sorry, I get bored easily and make noises time to time. Don't mind me.
Uhm. chlorine or oxygen bleach are CORROSIVES. That means they corrode things, like metal. That's another way of saying rust. I have no clue why anyone would dip their knife into a solution of corrosive chemicals. That is pure incompetence. Also I'm not sure if you've considered not burning the fine edge on the buffer? Or Doing it by hand so the knives don't go out with known burned edges? idk
Again thanks for the lessons and view. Process have changed since this video. This was several years ago.