Knife Steel Information

Blade Steels

154CM- An American made premium grade stainless steel originally developed for turbine blades in jet engines. The predecessor to ATS-34, which has now seen a strong resurgence in the knife market. Good corrosion resistance with excellent toughness and edge quality.

S30V- An American made and developed premium grade stainless steel created especially for knives. It is a powder made steel with uniform structure and clean steel properties. As a blade it offers excellent corrosion resistance and excellent edge qualities.

D2- An air-hardened tool steel, which offers good corrosion resistance and excellent mileage in wear resistance. A good choice for hard use environments.

440C- A high-chromium stainless steel with an excellent balance of good hardness and excellent corrosion resistance. 440C takes a nice edge and comes back fairly easy as well. An excellent value priced steel for its performance.

M2 discontined use- A very tough, tool grade high-speed steel used primarily as a cutting steel in the industrial area. It offers excellent strength and wear resistance. Due to its make up, it is highly susceptible to corrosion, so we always apply our BT2® coating for corrosion resistance. An excellent choice for hard use environments.

N690- An Austrian made stainless steel, which is comparable to 440C in performance and value. Keen edge qualities with excellent corrosion resistance.

AUS8- A high-carbon, low chromium stainless steel, which offers a good balance of toughness, edge sharpness and corrosion resistance.

H1- A high-chromium stainless steel, which offers maximum corrosion resistance in both salt water and fresh water-100-percent corrosion resistant. The tradeoff in performance is good edge quality with good edge toughness, so we use it in wet environment rescue or emergency tool applications.

X15 T.N- This steel was developed for the aircraft industry for jet ball bearings, as well as the medical industry for scalpels. It has the ability to resist rust in the worst of conditions while maintaining ample edge retention. The capability behind this steel is in the way it is manufactured, resulting in the finest steel for use in harsh environments such as salt water. The edge on an X-15 T.N blade is easier to maintain.

DAMASCUS- A specially forged, layered steel makeup of a variety of steels. It offers excellent toughness and edge quality. For finishing, the surface layers or lines are exposed through an acid etch, which creates a very unique visual effect. Used in special applications due to its inherent high cost and artistic nature.