Knife Making

M390 steel is a powder-metallurgy stainless steel from Böhler, valued for high wear resistance, long working edge life, corrosion resistance, and polishability.

Coffee etching Damascus steel is a finishing step used to deepen the dark areas of a blade’s pattern, usually after a primary etch has revealed the layers.

Feather Damascus is a pattern-welded steel with curved layers that branch away from a central line, resembling the shaft and barbs of a feather. Makers create that structure by manipulating, hot-splitting, and rewelding a layered billet.

N690 is a cobalt-alloyed stainless knife steel made by Böhler. It offers a useful balance of corrosion resistance, wear resistance, and manageable sharpening for everyday carry, hunting, and general outdoor cutting.

Mosaic Damascus Steel is a type of pattern-welded steel renowned for its intricate designs and exceptional durability. This results in each Mosaic Damascus piece being a unique blend of art and functionality.

A knife grind is the shape of the blade’s cross-section as it narrows toward the cutting edge. The main types include flat, hollow, convex, Scandi, chisel, and saber grinds, with compound and asymmetrical variations. The grind affects how the blade passes through material, how much steel supports the edge, and how you maintain it.

The Rockwell hardness scale measures a material’s resistance to permanent indentation. HRC means hardness measured on the Rockwell C scale, the scale normally used for hardened knife blades

Knife making takes some skills in metalwork, woodwork and designing, much endurance, carefulness and tranquility. You’ll need to take it easy and not hurry to make sure you’ll succeed. Fine projects take practice, and you might craft dozens of knives before making your excellent one. 

The finish quality of the blade is determined by the Grit of the finishing grind. These can range from a low-shine 280-320 grit finish to a mirror-shine. The high polish shine can be accomplished by buffing with chrome oxide (ex. white chrome, green chrome), hand rubbing with extremely fine wet-or-dry abrasive paper, or with a Japanese water-stone, which has an approximate grit of 10,000-12,000. Most high quality manufactured knives have about an 800 grit finish.