A1 tool steel

D2 Offers low edge retention, lower toughness and close corrosion resistance compared to the A2 Steel. Get a free guide on Knife Sharpening to find out how you can achieve more.

Find out how you can achieve more! Checkout Deals of the Day on Amazon. Table of Contents. A2 steel composition. However, A2 tool steel belongs to A-Group, which have high hardenability and may be hardened in air. O1 tool steel belongs to O-Group, which must be hardened by quenching in oil. Oil removes heat more slowly than water, reducing the thermal shock that occurs when orange-hot steel is plunged into water.

Reducing that thermal shock minimizes the risk of cracking or distortion in the hardened piece. With an alloy as simple as O1 steel, containing so few alloying elements, the hardened grain structure is as fine as possible which allows honing to the sharpest possible edge.

But there is a trade off. During heat treatment the chromium addition combines with some of the carbon in the alloy to form chromium carbides — tough, hard particles dispersed through the steel. However, during heat treatment, the chromium carbides can grow quite large — large enough to affect your ability to hone the edge as close to zero-radius as you may want.

How should I sharpen my blade? Custom work? Blade for my shoulder plane? Hand scrapers? What blade should I use to make a smoother, jack, whatever woody? Why do you answer your own phone? Square Tube. Rectangle Tube.

Round Tube. Diamond Plate. Expanded Sheet. Perforated Sheet. Bar Grating. Safety Grating. Specialty Metals. O1 Flat Ground - Tool Steel. California Residents Warning! Select Size. Add to Cart. Select Size Select Size 1.