Is this normal for MAXAMET?

[bearfacedkiller]

Welcome to the forum!

That is a high level of concern for a non stainless steel. Either use it and let it patina or stick with stainless steels.

This mostly buffed out. Par for the course for me with steels like this.

Invest in some polishing paste of some sort and give it a rub down every so often.

[Joshua J.]

Maxamet does seem to have a propensity to have little tiny pits, this is from a new PM2. Pics are from a clip on macro lens, maybe 10x. The pitting is visible to the naked eye, which is why I looked closer.



I posted these in another thread and did not receive a satisfying explanation. So I don't know what it is, but it's not an issue for my uses, at this time.

Clearly the pitting existed before the edge was applied. First guess is decarb from heat treat.
I would not complain about it at all as it's only aesthetic and if the current HT is good then I don't want it changed just to fix a minor change on the finish.
If Spyderco could improve HT at the same time as fixing the issue then it would be more worth looking into.

My best suggestion at this point is just that Maxamet knife models should be treated with DLC, but then we wouldn't get to see the neat texture of the raw surface so whether this is good or bad is all a matter of perspective.

[bearfacedkiller]

I just looked at my Maxamet Native with a 16X loupe and cannot see anything like that. Curious to see what others think.

[JRinFL]

I’ll have try with a better camera and check my other Maxamet knife, but my Manix does not look like that at all.

[Albertaboyscott]

I had posted on the previous thread about this and thought it was the same as my knives and normal. I think I'm wrong. I only have a 10x loupe and can see some small black dots but I don't think it's the same as your pictures. I checked both my manix and pm2. Interesting for sure

[The Mastiff]

grinding marks I'd guess.

If I was you I'd put down the microscope until I figured out what is important, a defect or unimportant tooling marks. You can drive yourself crazy looking at "imperfections" through a scope that really aren't problems.

[curlyhairedboy]

Man, now I wanna look at mine. I’ll report back…

[Sharp Guy]

Native 5 LW Maxamet



Pic was taken when it was basically new. It just looks stonewashed to the naked eye. I wouldn't have noticed except I decided to reprofile the edge shortly after I received it and noticed the finish when I was looking at it with a loupe. If it's actually pitting from corrosion then it happened before I received it. It's the same a couple years later as when I got it with no special treatment. None of my other non-stainless blades look like this including my Sage 1 Maxamet with satin finish

[David45]

Interesting the pitting doesn’t appear in the sharpened edge. It appears to be concentrated on the outer surface. I really like my Manix LW Maxy!

[Gtscotty]

Don't see any pores in mine (Native LW blem).







Pics with one of those cheap Amazon USB microscopes, says something like 40x-1000x, so who knows.

I bet if you soaked those holy blades in Eezox, CorrosionX or Hornady One Shot and could get it to really soak into the pores, you'd never have a problem with rust again. Maybe don't peal your apple every day with it after that though.

[Gtscotty]

As compared to:

S110V (also a Native LW)





And 20CV (Para 3)





Not much to see on the stainless, but the stone wash of the Maxamet is distinct.

[spoonrobot]

Don't see any pores in mine (Native LW blem).

https://i.ibb.co/nmb3n27/usbcamera20210429195300.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/0JCmWGP/usbcamera20210429195320.jpg

https://i.ibb.co/cyYD7h3/usbcamera20210429195427.jpg

Pics with one of those cheap Amazon USB microscopes, says something like 40x-1000x, so who knows.

I bet if you soaked those holy blades in Eezox, CorrosionX or Hornady One Shot and could get it to really soak into the pores, you'd never have a problem with rust again. Maybe don't peal your apple every day with it after that though.

Great pics, thanks for sharing.

Maxamet does seem to have a propensity to have little tiny pits, this is from a new PM2. Pics are from a clip on macro lens, maybe 10x. The pitting is visible to the naked eye, which is why I looked closer.
https://drandalls.files.wordpress.com/2 ... g_1883.jpg
https://drandalls.files.wordpress.com/2 ... g_1909.jpg

I posted these in another thread and did not receive a satisfying explanation. So I don't know what it is, but it's not an issue for my uses, at this time.

Clearly the pitting existed before the edge was applied. First guess is decarb from heat treat.
I would not complain about it at all as it's only aesthetic and if the current HT is good then I don't want it changed just to fix a minor change on the finish.
If Spyderco could improve HT at the same time as fixing the issue then it would be more worth looking into.

My best suggestion at this point is just that Maxamet knife models should be treated with DLC, but then we wouldn't get to see the neat texture of the raw surface so whether this is good or bad is all a matter of perspective.

Interesting, thanks for the response.

[Doc Dan]

We are discussing a steel that is not in the least corrosion resistant. Why would anyone be surprised at a bit of micro pitting? I am not a Maxamet fan. I prefer K390, but that is me. It is not corrosion resistant either, but it is not too bad.

[ChrisinHove]

grinding marks I'd guess.

If I was you I'd put down the microscope until I figured out what is important, a defect or unimportant tooling marks. You can drive yourself crazy looking at "imperfections" through a scope that really aren't problems.

Excellent advice! Maxamet is more than a little “out there”, after all.

[Matus]

I had Maxamet Native 5 in hand - it had no pitting - nor would I accept it in a new knife, because it will be trapping humidity and make the blade more prone to rust.

The lines are most likely CNC marks from edge of a tool (on mine they were around 200 micrometers apart). The stonewash did not cover them fully, but they were nearly invisible with a naked eye.

[Pokey]

I've looked at two of the three Maxamet blades I have under a microscope in the past. Those two do have the micro craters on the surface. All three of the knives, PM 2, Para 3, and Native 5 are factory seconds. It appears that this can show up on Maxamet in general.

[awa54]

If your knife arrived with oil on the blade and the packet of silica gel beads in the box, then it's likely in the condition it left the factory, barring of course obvious water damage to the packaging, or rust on the blade.

As others have mentioned, Maxamet is an extreme steel that requires unusual manufacturing techniques and is in no way stainless, much less intended for use in knife blades. If "features" like this are unacceptable to you, Maxamet is probably not your steel... My suggestion is to sharpen it, use it and be amazed by its cutting characteristics, it is what it is!

[JRinFL]

Don't see any pores in mine (Native LW blem).







Pics with one of those cheap Amazon USB microscopes, says something like 40x-1000x, so who knows.

I bet if you soaked those holy blades in Eezox, CorrosionX or Hornady One Shot and could get it to really soak into the pores, you'd never have a problem with rust again. Maybe don't peal your apple every day with it after that though.

This what my Manix looks like. Thanks for the much better pictures than I can get at the moment!

[JacksonKnives]

Basically guaranteed it's something that happened at the factory before final surface treatment.

Maxamet is very abrasion resistant, so in a stone washing tumbler you'd probably see corners rounding off before you remove pits like that.

Hard to say why some stonewashed blades have the pits and others don't, but it's not worth worrying about IMO. It's a lot better than getting a blade that's thinned out...

[Doc Dan]

Just rub it really good with Vaseline, wipe off all of the excess until it looks dry and call it a day.