Myths About Damascus - Edge Retention, Sharpness, and History

[Larrin]

I wrote an article on a handful of Damascus steel myths (it would be much longer if I covered them all).

Was Bill Moran the first to "rediscover" pattern welded steel?
Did Europeans name Wootz steel Damascus?
Is Damascus steel sharper? Hold an edge longer?

https://knifesteelnerds.com/2018/07/30/ ... cus-steel/

[emanuel]

A good read as always Larrin. Thanks

[ThePeacent]

thank you Larrin
and thanks for the quick reply to my question from yesterday regarding "flexibility/springiness affected by Heat Treat" :cool:

[BigGrove]

I learned something! Now my brain hurts...

[Larrin]

thank you Larrin
and thanks for the quick reply to my question from yesterday regarding "flexibility/springiness affected by Heat Treat" :cool:

I should pretend to be busier.

[Larrin]

I learned something! Now my brain hurts...

Learning doesn’t have to be painful. :)

[Ngati Pom]

Thank you Larrin, very interesting read.

[ZrowsN1s]

Good article Larrin.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Thank you, this is a good article. One thing missing is that it has been shown that Damascus steel may have carbon nanowires in it.

[Bloke]

Thanks yet again Larrin! :)

[Evil D]

I was just watching some random video the other day about technologies and inventions that we can no longer use and Damascus was one of them. The video claimed that, while we can technically make Damascus steel, that the original recipe and method of making it is still a mystery to us and far more advanced than what we can make today.

[Larrin]

I was just watching some random video the other day about technologies and inventions that we can no longer use and Damascus was one of them. The video claimed that, while we can technically make Damascus steel, that the original recipe and method of making it is still a mystery to us and far more advanced than what we can make today.

It’s definitely different in the particulars but more advanced is doubtful.

[Frozenspyder]

Very interesting.

[Doc Dan]

Thanks for the article. That was good information. I found it interesting that combining AEB-L and 154cm led to performance in the middle of the two.

[Larrin]

Thanks for the article. That was good information. I found it interesting that combining AEB-L and 154cm led to performance in the middle of the two.

It’s amazing what we can learn once we decide to test things instead of making up our own “science.”

[shunsui]

Thank you, this is a good article. One thing missing is that it has been shown that Damascus steel may have carbon nanowires in it.

I think the "may have" is the key thing here. Peter Paufler still works over in Germany, but it's hard to find any solid information on the subject.

The Guardian ran an interesting article on nanotechnology.

https://www.theguardian.com/nanotechnol ... nt-history

They mention the Lycurgus Cup, a much more interesting instance of ancient nano tech.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2FBF03215599

There's a small download button on the page for the pdf file.

You can download the pdf with this link.

https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/1 ... 215599.pdf

[Larrin]

You’re right, I should have added the myth of carbon nanotubes in Damascus. Verhoeven, for example, doesn’t buy it: https://www.nature.com/news/2006/061113 ... 13-11.html

[Crux]

I wrote an article on a handful of Damascus steel myths (it would be much longer if I covered them all).

Was Bill Moran the first to "rediscover" pattern welded steel?
Did Europeans name Wootz steel Damascus?
Is Damascus steel sharper? Hold an edge longer?

https://knifesteelnerds.com/2018/07/30/ ... cus-steel/

Great article! Absolutely a great work.

[dj moonbat]

I read a magazine piece at one time that said that there were environmental factors in the ore deposits that went into the Damascus crucible variety that led to the banding, that we've lost (at least for now). Apparently, the same is true of Stradivarius violins -- something in the water made the wood amazing.

But even if we've lost that particular trait, I have a lot of trouble believing that if armies still used swords, we wouldn't see better swords being made using modern steels. Science works.