After you carry a folding pocket knife for a while, it ceases to be just a simple tool and becomes an item the intricacies of which can become both absorbing and interesting.
One of those interesting intricacies (and one that will impact performance and usability the most) is the blade steel.
So, given that, here are some of the most common blade steels in the industry along with their relative strengths.
440C
This is a common budget pocket knife steel, and when properly treated will work well. It’s not that tough, but it does offer good corrosion resistance and ease of sharpening. So, for a folding pocket knife that won’t get abused, it makes a decent steel, and a cheap one.
420HC
This is the knife steel made famous by Buck Knife Company. Many of their knives sport 420HC which has been given a proprietary heat treatment that yields excellent edge retention while also remaining fairly easy to resharpen. It’s not the toughest knife steel, but it does offer very, very good corrosion resistance.
8Cr13MoV
Another common budget knife steel, but with more carbon than 7Cr13MoV (which could be considered cheap) it offers good edge retention while remaining corrosion resistant. In terms of toughness it’s similar to 420HC, and it is also very affordable. Knives made with this steel are rarely expensive.
1095
This is a high-carbon tool steel (with .95% carbon, yielding the name) that can be given a heat treatment so as to give it very good edge retention. It is also generally very easy to resharpen and extremely tough, as well as very cheap. The one ding on this alloy is that it rusts very easily.
14C28N
All in all, this is an excellent folding pocket knife steel with a lot of carbon that will take and hold a razor edge very well. It’s also extremely corrosion resistant (one of the best on this list) and remarkably tough, too. Knives made from this alloy can be a bit pricier but given the performance it may be worth it.
AUS-8
Easy to resharpen, fairly tough, and with decent (if not better) corrosion resistance, the one thing wrong with AUS-8 is that it does not hold an edge well. But you can raise a good one, and since it’s relatively soft, this is actually an advantage in the field as it makes the edge unlikely to chip.
D2
A tool steel not entirely dissimilar to 1095, D2 is budget-friendly and can yield and hold a razor edge well. It offers better edge retention than 1095 and very similar toughness, but its corrosion resistance is much better. This alloy will rust, just not as easily as the former.
VG-10
Easy to resharpen and with decent corrosion resistance, VG-10 is a bit on the pricier side, and it also isn’t that tough and loses its edge fairly quickly. But those former two attributes are the tradeoff!
CPM-S30V
Now we’re in the realm of super steels. CPM-S30V, like other Crucible Particle Metallurgies steels, has a very fine grain structure and even carbide distribution due to the manner of its production. This gives it excellent edge retention. It’s a bit on the harder side when it comes to resharpening and offers middle of the road corrosion resistance and toughness, though.
Here for a New Folding Pocket Knife? Get It at White Mountain Knives
Want to find a new folding pocket knife with a blade of one of the steels mentioned here? Or are you looking for something different? Either way, get it online at White Mountain Knives – they represent the top brands in the industry and offer free shipping on orders in the United States.
