Blade Metals:

Steel is an alloy (mix) of mostly iron and some carbon. Other elements used in steels (alloys) are, manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten. The amount of alloy elements in the steel controls qualities like hardness, ductility, and tensile strength.

• Carbon (C) increases hardness, improves edge retention, increases tensile strength, increases wear & abrasion resistance
• Chromium (Cr) increases hardness, increases wear & abrasion resistance, increases tensile strength, corrosion resistance & increases melting temperature
  Stainless steel is a generic term steel with over 10.5% chromium
• Cobalt (Co) Increases strength & hardness. Used to make high speed (tool) steel, Intensifies effects of elements in complex steels
• Copper (Cu) Increases corrosion resistance and fatigue resistance
• Manganese (Mn) improves hardenability, increases tensile strength & increases wear & abrasion resistance
• Molybdenum (Mo) improves hardenability, increases hardness, increases tensile strength, increases wear & abrasion resistance & improves resistance to corrosion & pitting.
• Nickel (Ni) increases tensile strength, toughness, hardenability and corrosion resistance
• Silicon (Si) increases tensile strength, increases workability, elasticity
• Tungsten (W) is used to make high speed (tool) steel, increases resistance, hardness and tenacity
• Vanadium (V) increases hardness, increases tensile strength, increases impact strength, wear resistance, promotes fine grain & reduces metal fatigue
• Sulfur (S) Improves machinability in small quantities
• Nitrogen (N) Used in place of carbon
• Phosphorus (P) increases brittleness, workability. improves strength, machinability, and hardness

Modern steel is identified into grades defined by various organizations.

• Society of Automotive Engineers
• American Society for Testing and Materials

Steel can generally be divided into Carbon Steel, Stainless Steel.
Stainless Steel has over 10.5% chromium

Stainless Steels
Steel Type	Composition:	Hardness:	Used by:	Origin:	Cost	Properties:
12C27 Sandvik	Carbon, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Sulphur	59-61	CRK&T, KA-BAR, Opinel, Spyderco	Sweden	$30	Premium steel Used in Finish & Norwegian knives.
13C26 Sandvik			Kershaw		$13
14C28N Sandvik			Kershaw
154CM	Carbon, Molybdenum, Chromium	57-59, 58-60	Benchmade, Case, Emerson, Gerber, Leatherman, Microtech, Spyderco, SOG, Tops	USA, Crucible Metals	$20	Great corrosion resistance with good toughness and edge quality. Very few impurities, must be laser cut Developed as a high temperature alloy for use in fan-jet engines. 154 CM is not an accepted standard grade designation, just a manufacturers trade name.
17-7PH	chromium-nickel-aluminum precipitation	Rc 54-56	Buck			High saltwater corrosion resistance and good edge retention
20CV	Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Tungsten, Chromium, Manganese, Vanadium	60	Spyderco
3Cr13		52-55	CRK&T	China
4034		54-55	S&W (Taylor)	China		X45Cr13 (Europe) 40Ch13 (Russia)
Steel Type	Composition:	Hardness:	Used by:	Origin:	Cost	Properties:
4116	carbon, chromium	55-57	CRK&T, Kershaw, Cold Steel	German		High degree of corrosion resistance, strength & edge holding. 4116 Krupp
420	Carbon, Manganese, Chromium	54	Frost, Gerber	USA		Tanto blades, axe heads
420HC	high carbon: Carbon, Manganese,Chromium	Rc 58, 55-59	Buck, Gerber, Kershaw, Leatherman, Microtech, Ontario	USA, Crucible & Latrobe ?		Stays sharp, not brittle, excellent tensile strength, hardness and wear resistance, corrosion resistant. works well with high production tooling
420J2	Carbon, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Sulphur	52-55	CRK&T, Kershaw, Spyderco			Lowest grade of cutlerystainless steel. Low wear resistance & edge holding make it a poor blade
440A	low-carbon: Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Sulphur	55-57	CRK&T, Frost, Gerber, Kershaw, Ontario, Spyderco, SOG, KA-BAR			Contains the least amount of carbon and is the more stain-resistant. easy to polish, easy to scratch. Usually only used by production knife companies.
440B	Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Sulphur	56	Spyderco			Tougher than 440C but inferior edge retention & sharpness. easy to machine & sharpen making it cheaper to produce. Not commonly seen in knives.
440C	high-chromium: Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Sulphur	59	Benchmade, Coast, Frost, Spyderco, SOG, Warren		$12	Contains high carbon and is hard. Excellent value. First used by Gil Hibben about 1966. Benchmark cutlery steel SAE 51440C
440XH	Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Nickel, Vanadium	60-62	Spyderco
Steel Type	Composition:	Hardness:	Used by:	Origin:	Cost	Properties:
5Cr15MoV		55-57	CRK&T	China
6168CrV		59-61	CRK&T
8Cr13MoV	Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Nickel, Phosphorus, Sulphur, Vanadium	58-59 Rc56 to Rc58	CRK&T, Kershaw, Spyderco, SOG	China		High performance-to-cost ratio compared to AUS-8
8Cr14MoV		58-59	Benchmade, CRK&T	China		Excellent value, similar to AUS-8
9Cr13CoMoV	high-carbon, cobalt		Benchmade	China		High level of corrosion resistance at a great value
9Cr18MoV	Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Nickel, Phosphorus, Sulphur	58-60	CRK&T, Spyderco	China
ACUTO +		59-60	CRK&T
ATS-34	high carbon: Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Sulphur	60-61	Buck, Case, Spyderco, Tops, Warren	Japan, Hitachi		Very few impurities, hardness, rust resistant. Re-sharpening can require extra effort. Considered the equal of 154CM. Just a trade name
Steel Type	Composition:	Hardness:	Used by:	Origin:	Cost	Properties:
ATS-55	Carbon, Cobalt, Copper, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese	59-61	Spyderco	Japan, Hitachi		Very good cutlery steel Takes a very fine edge & cuts very well. Similar to ATS-34. Custom for Spyderco.
AUS 4		55-57	CRK&T	Japan, Aichi
AUS-6	Carbon, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Nickel, Phosphorus, Sulphur, Vanadium	56-58	Kershaw, Spyderco, SOG	Japan, Aichi		Compromise between toughness, strength, edge holding ability, resistance to corrosion & cost
AUS-8 (8A)	medium-carbon, high chromium: Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Nickel, Phosphorus, Sulphur, Vanadium	58-59	Benchmade, Blade-Tech, Cold Steel, Kershaw, Spyderco, SOG	Japan, Aichi		Mid-range steel, step up from AUS-6. Compromise between toughness, strength, edge holding, & resistance to corrosion
AUS-10	Carbon, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Nickel, Phosphorus, Sulphur, Vanadium	58-60	Spyderco	Japan, Aichi		Top of the line steel. Less rust resistant T ougher than 440C
Bohler M390	vanadium, chromium		Benchmade, Kershaw		$46	Excellent corrosion resistance
Bohler N680	chromium, molybdenum, vanadium		Benchmade		$20	High wear resistance & ability to preserve an edge
Steel Type	Composition:	Hardness:	Used by:	Origin:	Cost	Properties:
BG-42	high carbon: Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Vanadium	61-62	Buck, Case, Spyderco, Warren	USA, Latrobe		High performance, Improved strength & increased edge retention over 154CM Bearing-grade. for aircraft gears, ball screws, bearings.
CPM-S110V			Spyderco	USA, Crucible
CPM-S35VN			Spyderco	USA, Crucible
CPM-S30V	high-Chromium: Carbon, Molybdenum, Chromium, Vanadium	58-60	Benchmade, Blade-Tech , Buck, Chris Reeve, Kershaw, Leatherman, Spyderco, SOG, Strider, Warren	USA, Crucible Metals	$45	Uniform structure & clean steel properties. excellent corrosion resistance and superb edge qualities. Must be laser cut Created especially for knives in 2001.
CPM-S60V(440V)		57-58	Spyderco	USA, Crucible	$50	Exceptional wear resistance. Difficult to machine and grind
CPM-S90V(420V)		56-58	Spyderco	USA, Crucible		Difficult to work with & sharpen
Steel Type	Composition:	Hardness:	Used by:	Origin:	Cost	Properties:
Cronidor 30		58-60	Spyderco	Germany
CTS-204P			Spyderco
CTS-20CP			Spyderco
CTS-40CP		59-60	Spyderco
CTS-B75			Spyderco
CTS-BD-1			Spyderco
CTS-XHP			Spyderco
Elmax PM 170	Carbon, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Vanadium		Kershaw, Spyderco		$46
GIN-1		56-58	Spyderco	Japan, Hitachi		Very good mid-range stainless steel. Used on Japanese made kitchen knives
H-1	Carbon, Molybdenum, Nitrogen, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Nickel, Phosphorus, Sulphur	58-59	Spyderco	Japan, Myodo Foundry		Impervious to rust. Nitrogen used to harden the steel (not carbon) Introduced to the market in 2003 by Benchmade
Steel Type	Composition:	Hardness:	Used by:	Origin:	Cost	Properties:
MBS-26			Spyderco
MRS-30			Spyderco
N690	Carbon, Cobalt, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Vanadium	58-60	Benchmade, Blade-Tech, Extrema Ratio, Leatherman, Spyderco, Tops	Austria, Bohler		Keen edge qualities with great corrosion resistance, high resistance to wear, keeps a sharp edge
VG-1		61	Cold Steel	Japan, Takefu Steel		Sharpness, edge retention, point strength, shock, and ultimate blade strength Does not hold an edge as long as VG-10.
VG-10	Carbon, Cobalt, Molybdenum, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Phosphorus, Vanadium	Rc 60	Spyderco, SOG	Japan, Takefu Steel		Premium, high-end steel. Can be sharpened to a very durable fine edge. Designed for high-quality blades.
Steel Type	Composition:	Hardness:	Used by:	Origin:	Cost	Properties:
W-1			Spyderco			Spring Steel. Toughness is outstanding. used for grader blade edges, truck springs and files
W-2			Spyderco			Tool Steel. Toughness is outstanding. used for grader blade edges, truck springs and files. used for swords & knives
X15 TN	Carbon, Molybdenum, Nitrogen, Silicon, Chromium, Manganese, Nickel, Phosphorus, Sulphur, Vanadium	58	Benchmade, Spyderco	French		Use in harsh environments (salt water)
x 50 CrMo ??	high carbon, stainless	55-56 HRC	Victorinox			Optimum edge retention
YK-30		57-59	CRK&T
ZDP-189		67	Spyderco	Japan, Hitach		Sharpening is not easy. can be hardened to RC 65-67 without chipping
Steel Type	Composition:	Hardness:	Used by:	Origin:	Cost	Properties:

Knife Manufacturer / Blade Steel Material Resources:

More Blade Steel Material Resources: