Steel for hunting blades: comparison

At all times, blacksmiths and gunsmiths were faced with the question – which steel should the ideal hunting knife blade be made of?  A good product must meet several parameters at once ...

• maintaining the sharpness of the cutting edge for a long time

• ease of sharpening

• corrosion resistance

• high strength

Today several grades of steel satisfy the given parameters at once, from which hunting knives oftentimes are made.  Let's briefly describe and compare them:

• Wootz Steel.  Combines excellent hardness, resilience and excellent cutting properties.  The high hardness of the wootz steel blade allows you to work with the hardest of materials.

• ELMAX.  Swedish powder steel, only slightly inferior to wootz steel in hardness and cutting properties, but not subject to corrosion (even in aggressive environments).

• K110.  K110 steel is a high-carbon cold-formed tool steel produced by Bohler-Uddeholm corporation.  This is an analogue of Kh12MF steel, purified from impurities.  Knives made of K110 keep the edge really well and have a high hardness of 63 HRC.

• N690.  Despite the unsurpassed strength and hardness, it is prone to corrosion, therefore, in the field, such knives quickly lose their original beauty.

• X12MF. It is not the best in any of the indicators, but it combines good corrosion resistance, ease of sharpening, high strength and an acceptable price.

• XB5 (diamond steel). Diamond steel knives are a very good option for the hunter. They are practically never become dull and easily cut the hardest of materials.  However, the comparative complexity of processing this steel makes the cost of the knife blades quite high.