Introduction Rewind a decade and a half and ask the question, “What is the best stainless steel for knives?” An overwhelming majority would have sung the praises of 440C. Arguably the most famous folding knife in American history, the Buck 110, was made of 440C prior to 1981. On the other hand, 440C has been…
Steel
An overview of various metals used in blade manufacturing.
What is SG2 Steel?
The Powder Metallurgy (PM) SG2 steel is also known as SGPS. It is manufactured by a Japanese steel manufacturer that is well known for the steels they make. The SG2 is high carbon content and a high alloy stainless steel. Powder metallurgy improves the alloy significantly. Regardless of the few comments to the contrary, one…
CPM-3V Knife Steel Overview
Overview Perfect knife steels are like opinions… You were expecting a joke, right? Well, the fact is, there is no “perfect” knife steel. It all depends on what your intended use for the knife will be, where you expect to use the blade and the conditions in which you will use it. Many throw around…
Cru-Wear Steel : What is it?
Introduction In the world of knife steel, there is a multitude of opinions on just about every aspect of each metal. Some claim one is easier to sharpen in the field, another says one keeps an edge better, while another swears by the toughness. For everyone to agree on one certain steel is very rare,…
How Good is CPM S90V Knife Steel?
Introduction Crucible Industries CPM S90V Knife is tough stuff. This steel is well known for for its wear-resistance. According to Crucible, S90V is used in plastic feedscrews, valve components, nozzles, slitters, cutters, gear pumps, pelletizing equipment, bearings, and other hard use parts. In the knifemaking world, S90V is legendary for its near perfect edge-retention. It…
How Good is Nitro V Stainless Steel?
Introduction With the vast amount of “boutique steel” on the market today, the knifemaker and consumer have an unprecedented ability to be choosy about the type of steel they want in their knives. Online forums are awash in back and forth banter on what steel to use for what purpose, how to heat treat and…
M390 Knife Steel Overview
Bohler M390 Steel Introduction Bohler M390 stainless steel is one of the recent wave of “super steels” heralded by knife makers all over the world. It has characteristics of high hardness and excellent corrosion resistance. This means you’re going to get a very fine edge that retains its sharpness even through hard use, with little…
S30v Steel Review
S30v steel is the latest innovation in recent years. This steel is being used to make pocket knives and the blades of steel knives in general. It also is used to make certain steel tools. Many of the steel tools made in America are made of this steel. It is arguably the strongest steel available….
How Good is N680 Steel?
Knives are made out of many different types of metal for a variety of different reasons. Böhler N680 steel is a fairly cheap type of steel but it also has some really good qualities about it. For example, this type of steel is very corrosion-resistant. The tradeoff, however, is that it does not hold an edge…