From my research, the materials are all very similar....hard carbides contained in a softer matrix. None of them require any heat treating....just grind to shape and finish.
I've never been able to get anyone to openly admit it, but when talonite became the "steel of the month" a few years ago, I had someone send me a piece to experiment with. I'd worked Stellite in the past, and found the same things that Frank mentioned. As I played with the talonite, I got to thinking of Stellite, and it got me curious. The two were so similar that it couldn't have been a fluke. I made some phone calls, then did some digging around on the web, and found that a partial patent for Stellite had been sold, and that it was now being produced in small quantities and labeled as "Talonite"! Every since, when the subject of Talonite comes up, I've been trying to get someone to admit that they are the same thing....but nobody will. I always hear "Talonite is nothing like Stellite!" My opinion differs.....if you put the two materials side by side, and work them side by side, you will not be able to tell them apart.
OK, sorry, got off course there. I personally think that these types of materials are nothing more than "fads". Maybe for a very specialized use they have a place as a blade, but in general the cost to benefit ratio is way lopsided. I'm not trying to belittle anyone who owns one, or dog anyone who works with these materials....but in my experience with them, it's all about the "Wow! Look what I got!" factor.
