Page 24 World May 2011 The Tungsten Carbide Edge

with tungsten car- a German light bulb manu- bide edges, and I find it facturer seeking a suitable fascinating that interest is alternative to expensive again rising in the poten- diamond dies used in the tial of this “space age” tech- production of tungsten nology for producing knife wire. By the 1930s, it had blades that cut better and begun to find use in the longer between sharpen- cutting and milling of steel, ings. an application for which it What’s a Tungsten remains very popular Carbide Edge? today. other common items The idea behind the made from tungsten car- tungsten carbide edge is bide include the “ball” in simple enough. steel is a ballpoint pens, wear resist- good material for knife ant bearings, and jewelry blades because it is strong, that’s almost impervious to durable, and wear resist- scratches. ant. In time, however, the The patent that made They don’t come much better than this: a mint Robeson “Flame Edge” Deluxe steel wears away at the the tungsten carbide knife Hunter, model 36TC, complete in its original packaging and with the “Tungsten very edge, making the blade practical was Carbide Edge” sticker still applied to the blade. Fifty years old, and just like the knife dull. no single mate- #2,714,563, granted in day it was made. Dino Bakeris collection. rial has yet been discov- 1955 and assigned to the ered that is as suitable in Union Carbide and Carbon by Mark D. Zalesky wears away, making it self cutlery company of its an all-around sense as Corp. of new York. It Imagine, if you will: a sharpening. time, Robeson Cutlery Co., steel, but if we were to describes a “method and whole new kind of knife This fantastic new knife introduced to the world combine the strength and apparatus” for spraying a edge developed directly technology is real – no what it described as “[t]he durability of steel with an tungsten carbide coating from missile and rocket joke – and you can certain- first knives in 2000 years even more wear resistant on a metal surface, by research and involving the ly buy such a knife and try with a cutting edge that’s material, we could have effectively blasting it on world’s hardest metal, det- it out for yourself. I did noT sTeel,” and promot- the best of both worlds. using a gun-like device. onated onto one side of a leave one little thing out, ed it with phrases like Voila, the tungsten carbide That’s where the “ten times steel knife blade at ten however... the year, which those found in the first edge! the speed of sound” and times the speed of sound is 1959. paragraph. Robeson was Tungsten carbide was “6,000 degrees” comes into and at a temperature of You read that right; the first but not the only discovered in the 1920s by Continued on page 25 6,000 degrees. Best of all, fifty-two years ago, the company to produce pock- as you use it, the steel edge most technologically savvy et, hunting, and kitchen Northeast Keeping Knives Cutlery Collectors in American Lives Association Custom - Antique - Factory Knives

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Side by side, the similarities between Robeson’s 22TC and Kinfolks’ 330TC “Flame Edge” knives become obvious. Note the wide gray strip along the edge – that’s the tungsten carbide coating. Dino Bakeris collection. sten carbide at the edge, edge” for knives made with kitchen cutlery line includ- resulting in a knife that is this technology. This term ed some with serrated at least somewhat self- should not to be confused edges. In time, even the sharpening – a dream of with “Frozen Heat,” company’s electric carving knifemakers ever since the Robeson’s brand name for knives (yet another prod- first edge was discovered. cryogenically treated uct they helped pioneer) The same principle can be blades, another technology were offered with tungsten found in nature, in the they helped pioneer. carbide coated blades. form of a beaver’s front The first Robesons with It’s hard to draw a lot of teeth. tungsten carbide blades conclusions from the scant let’s take a quick look seem to have appeared in records available, but it back at the history of the early 1959 and the technol- seems that advertising of tungsten carbide coated ogy rapidly found use in all the Flame edge line had knife blade, before bring- areas of the company’s tapered off by late 1961, ing ourselves up to speed product line including and by the middle 1960s with what’s happening Robeson’s line of Kinfolks Robeson’s interest in tung- today. brand knives, which the sten carbide knives had Robeson’s “Flame Edge” company had recently waned. In 1965 Robeson Historically, the king of acquired. Pocket knives, sold out to Cutler-Federal, tungsten carbide knife hunting knives, and espe- who was interested in the blades is the company that cially kitchen cutlery can company’s appliance divi- This promotional insert was included in the packag- introduced them, Robeson, be found with the Flame sion, and that spelled the ing of Robeson’s Flame Edge” knives. who trademarked “Flame edge feature; and the Continued on page 26 Continued from page 24 thin layer of tungsten car- play and according to bide exposed at the edge, accounts it was a very loud allowing us to take advan- process. tage of its wear resistance Coating one side of a while retaining the overall knife’s edge with tungsten qualities of the steel blade. carbide requires that only What’s more, as the knife the softer, uncoated side be is used, the steel will wear “The knife I carry! The FreeHand™ automatically locks into sharpened. This leaves the away faster than the tung- the closed position and with the flick of an index finger will lock into the open position as quickly as any switchblade. I consider it to be my most practical folding knife design. At 3½" long, it's just the right size. The FreeHand™ is proudly For the Very Finest in made in America.” ~ Blackie Collins KNIFE EXOTICA Visit Us At: www.adamsknifeworks.com Unique Offerings From: , Dalton, Microtech, Case XX, Hubertus, Boker, Latama, Protech, Lone Product Specs: Wolf, William Henry, Whiskers Allen, 154cm Blade Steel Bargeon, ZT Zero Tolerance, Vallotton, Glass Filled Nylon Handle Gerber, AGA Campolin, Weidmannsheil, , Bill Miller Damascus plus %XCHANGE3ERVICE$RIVEs$ALLAS 4EXAS Customised models found nowhere else! PHONE  sFAX   www.adamsknifeworks.com WWWMEYERCOUSACOM

Item #: MCFH1 File Name: MCFH1_Ad_KnifeWrld2011.ai File Size (TRIM): 5.75” x 5.5” Folds to: n/a IF APPLICABLE Publication: Knife World Date: 1.27.11 Buyer: Mike Manrose Designer: TISH Revised By: Proofed By: Round #: 4 Printed @: 100% Page 26 Knife World May 2011

This custom paring knife by Canadian knifemaker (and KNIFE WoRLD corre- spondent) Abe Elias has been given a tungsten carbide coating using the Rocklinizer (coating visible on the edge, below.)

Less than a decade ago, Buck experimented with the tungsten carbide edge, manufacturing a short run of 110 folding hunters that were not available to the public. Today, they’re rare collectibles. Well, don’t be misled. um and the less wear- While it hasn’t exactly rev- resistant steels may have a Continued from page 25 with the name of baseball technology to at least a few olutionized the sporting new lease on life as blade end of Robeson’s cutlery great Ted Williams; these T39 models (and perhaps knife industry, it did find materials. innovations. were sold by sears, others). no catalog, adver- its way into some ultra- After more than fifty Schrade’s Roebuck and Company as tisement, or price list has niche markets like micro- years, is the tungsten car- “Everlast Edge” part of Williams’ endorse- yet surfaced to document scopic section cutting and bide-edged blade an idea The next big name to ment of sears sporting them – but they do exist, various types of industrial whose time has finally carry tungsten carbide goods. and demand a premium. In knives. Furthermore, the come? only time will tell, knives was schrade Imperial all likelihood, these knives availability of less expen- but things are definitely Walden, then a part of At about the same time date to the 1960s. sive equipment for apply- looking up for those who Imperial Knife Associated the schrade Walden tung- ing a tungsten carbide continue to pursue the Companies, who intro- sten carbide knives were in Finally, I know of one coating has finally put the dream of a self-sharpening duced their first "everlast production, Imperial Knife more company that has technology within reach of knife. edge” knives in about Associated Companies also experimented with tung- knifemakers – and that 1965. To date I have only made some inexpensive sten carbide-edged blades, means tungsten carbide Contact Information heard of the everlast edge hunting knives with tung- and a lot more recently blades are poised for a (equipment): appearing on schrade sten carbide coated edges than the others – in 2003, comeback. Rocklin manufacturing Co: Walden 147 and 148 hunt- under the Imperial brand or thereabouts. At that Rocklin manufacturing phone 800-255-6046 or ing knives with delrin han- name. examples of their time, Buck Knives pro- Co. of sioux City, Iowa rocklinizer.com and go to dles, but a recent J. Bruce small bowie-style hunting duced a short run of about entered the tungsten car- the Knife maker’s model-- Voyles auction offered a knives are known to exist a hundred examples of bide deposition field in the Knife & Blade Applications schrade Walden pock- with that feature and a their classic 110 folding mid-1960s with what they section etknife with a tungsten blade etch reading hunter, to gauge the reac- call the “Rocklinizer,” a Contact Information carbide edge and the han- sPoRTsmAsTeR tion. These knives were piece of equipment that (Tungsten Carbide dle stamped UnIon / TUnGsTen CARBIde never commercially offered applies a very thin layer of Knives): CARBIde CoATInGs edGe. In my research, I and today are considered a tungsten carbide (or titani- The Knife shack (Jim seRVICe – apparently a found a “Valu-mart” ad for rare and desirable version um carbide) particles to Faltz): 352-316-6814 or promotional piece for the this knife which was run of the company’s most pop- steel – or other metals such knifeshackusa.com (cus- company responsible for during the Christmas sea- ular model. as titanium – by a spark tom knives) the tungsten carbide coat- son of 1967 – value, $1.95, The State of Tungsten deposition process. This is ing. According to sources, sUndAY onlY 99c! Carbide Blades Today a far less expensive ozark Knife makers (Tom the 147sTC was listed in Western Cutlery After reading the past approach than detonation, mcGinnis): 417-581-6689 schrade’s promotional lit- Another brand of knife several paragraphs, you which has allowed Rocklin or www.ozarkknifemak- erature from 1968 to 1969, that can rarely be encoun- might think that tungsten to market their equipment ers.com (custom knives) and the 148sTC from 1965 tered with a tungsten car- carbide blade technology to a greater number of to 1971. some of these bide coated blade is has more-or-less been rele- companies who had a need mike snody: 361-443-0161 knives will be found etched Western, who applied this gated to the history bin. for tungsten carbide’s wear or www.snodyknives.com resistance on industrial (tactical knives) dies, cutters, and the like. But it wasn’t until last Titan Knife Technologies year that the company (George lambert): 877- released a Rocklinizer 740-2875 or package designed specifi- www.titanknifetech.com cally for knifemakers: the (titanium fillet knives) 380 AKm. For under $3000, a knifemaker, small Twin Blades (Charlie and factory, or even an individ- Harry mathews): 912-865- ual can now have every- 9098 or twinxblades.com thing needed to apply tung- (custom knives) sten carbide to a knife blade. The process can be The author would like to applied to finished or thank the many helpful unfinished blades, even folks who provided infor- relatively soft blades. In mation for this article, but fact, materials with less is afraid he’ll leave some- edgeholding ability actual- body out – so thanks to all Imperial’s inexpensive “Sportsmaster” knife, offered with a tungsten carbide edge ly have more potential for of you, you know who you during the late sixties. Jim Woods collection. self-sharpening, so titani- are! p