I bought a stainless 12-9 / 14 Grind with a stag and leather handle for the sole purpose to see how the the stainless performed on a large Randall Made Knife under hard use. I had a couple guys email me with that question when I posted my experience with an 01 Randall 12-9, and I was curious as well. I used it as a utility knife and was surprised at how well it prepared food and processed meat for such a large knife. It is a great camp knife as it's large size make short order of big tasks and the blade design is dexterous enough for small chores. The bottom line is a well constructed large knife must be sturdy enough to withstand hard use in the unlikely event it is called upon to do so.
This unit is made made from forged domestic 440 steel. I read a post that quoted the owner of Randall Made explaining how they determine the carbon content of the 440 stock at the time of purchase, and that actually determines whether it is 440B or 440C, and the small non forged stainless knives are ATS-34. I was impressed with the magnitude of Randall's quality control that goes into purchase of materials.
The tang is 1/4 thick and about 5/8 high which is very heavy duty and strong enough hard use. Another great feature is how the tang goes strait through and threads to the butt cap.
The quality of the stag is first rate, as well as the dense leather in the handle. I soaked the handle in pure filtered bees wax in an attempt to get what I could in the leather washers for good measure. Did the same with the sheath. I noticed when I look at old knives from the WWII and Korea era, the stag and leather handles held up, that is why I selected this handle configuration. I have owned two Micarta handled knives (one 45 yr old linen, one 15 yr old canvas) that started exhibiting early stages early stages of delaminating upon using them, and both were unused when I purchased them. Micarta is strong, sticky and has a secure grip in all conditions, whereas G-10 is super strong but slippery when wet or bloody and doesn't absorb shock. My observation is no handle material perfect, and that leather, stag, and wood should not be underestimated. I chopped and chopped and chopped without gloves with the stag/leather combo and never got a blister, never slipped, even when my hands were wet. I decided to test the waterproof quality of Randall's compressed shoe leather washers and the cement holding them together. I took the knife for a day in the water fly fishing, and let it sit in the river in back of my house for 45 minutes. I wiped it dry and the leather was hard as a rock. It was perfectly fine.
Randall's forged 440 stainless is tough as nails. For those like myself who believe a big knife must be tool or bearing steel because their experience with stock removal powered stainless super steels chipping under the stress of heavy blows, this stainless RandalI seemed put that fear to rest. I put this knife through the ringer. Took out a bunch of saplings as a warm up, and then took down and deconstructed two hard wood trees over 15 inches in circumference. I did not chop and break off, I chopped strait through each trunk and every limb. I also chopped each tree trunk in half. If the knife was gonna break, it would have. I even batoned it, avoiding the sharpened top edge of course. Worked like a champ. In the end, the blades factory edge was not dull, rolled, or chipped. I never saw anything like it. Net net net bottom line, the Randall S stamp #12 actually out performed in the field 52100, INFI, A2, and the couple of CPM's I have owned and used. I was in shock.
As for a big question, 01 or S, which is superior? In my mere opinion, if one were to rely on only one knife, the 01 is extremely fatigue resistant and will most likely never fail or rust (providing you allow the blade to oxidize). On the other hand, if one one lives primarily in a saltwater environment, or cuts a lot of synthetic materials, like carpeting, hoses, etc, the the harder near corrosion proof S blades have an advantage. That it why Randall makes both, and I personally use both.
I have used two large Randall Made 12-9 knives, same model with two totally different configurations, blade material, hilt, handle material and configuration. They both performed as well as a knife possibly could. It appears as though Randall pays particular attention to the quality of the blade steels every time they order, as well as every other component of the knife. The construction and temper is second to none. It's seems that 75 plus years of making knives really does add up to getting it right consistently. Luckily I live in a rural area, because the 12-9 is basically my EDC and it gets a lot of use.
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