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Steel Knives

The most highly used knives are steel knives. Steel is a very durable material that can be easily sharpened and has a very long life. It can be alloyed with many other metals to give it different characteristics. Stainless steel is an alloy of iron and 10-15% chromium, nickel or molybdenum. It is highly resistant to corrosion, but cannot hold as strong an edge as carbon steel.

Carbon steel knives are an alloy of iron and 1% carbon. That little bit of carbon makes the steel very hard, allowing it to hold a sharp edge for a long time. Some stainless steel incorporates a fraction of that amount of carbon which can make them stronger and are known as “exotic stainless steel”. The patina that develops on carbon steel can corrode the knife if not treated properly, but can protect the knife as well.

Steel knives are made by one of two processes, either hot-forged or stamped. Hot-forged steel requires a long process of heating, stretching, folding, shaping and pounding that has to be repeated many times before the blade can cool and be sharpened. This makes a very strong blade that will last much longer than cold stamped blades. A stamped blade is cut from a single piece of cold steel and then sharpened to a point.

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