Tormek Community Forum

In the Shop => Knife Sharpening => Topic started by: cbwx34 on July 30, 2018, 10:15:26 PM

Title: Guide to Knife Steel Types
Post by: cbwx34 on July 30, 2018, 10:15:26 PM
Found a couple of guides to knife steels thought worth linking to (not that there aren't others)...

Essential Guide to Knife Steel (http://knifeinformer.com/discovering-the-best-knife-steel/)

Knife Steel Composition Chart (http://knifeinformer.com/knife-steel-composition-chart/)

All About Knife Steels (http://zknives.com/knives/steels/index.shtml) (This one has links to an iOS and Android app that's pretty handy).

What are your favorite links and/or knife steels? :)

Title: Re: Guide to Knife Steel Types
Post by: Fernando on July 30, 2018, 11:27:08 PM
Quote from: cbwx34 on July 30, 2018, 10:15:26 PM
Found a couple of guides to knife steels thought worth linking to (not that there aren't others)...

Essential Guide to Knife Steel (http://knifeinformer.com/discovering-the-best-knife-steel/)

Knife Steel Composition Chart (http://knifeinformer.com/knife-steel-composition-chart/)

All About Knife Steels (http://zknives.com/knives/steels/index.shtml) (This one has links to an iOS and Android app that's pretty handy).

What are your favorite links and/or knife steels? :)

I can give faith that the application is very useful, and does not have annoying advertising
link to android:  https://play.google.com/store/apps/developer?id=ZviSoft  (https://play.google.com/store/apps/developer?id=ZviSoft)
Title: Re: Guide to Knife Steel Types
Post by: Jamie007 on May 26, 2026, 11:39:54 PM
Hello,

TDRL; There are two main types of steel you'll find on most knives i.e. Carbon Steel and Stainless Steel.

1. Carbon Steel- It holds the edge for a really long time and is much stronger however, it can't withstand corrosion resistance and needs regular maintenance.

2. Stainless Steel- It is corrosion resistance due to the addition of Chromium and needs fewer maintenance.

For more details, you can read a piece I've written in my personal blog (http://knifehelper.com/).
Title: Re: Guide to Knife Steel Types
Post by: John Hancock Sr on May 27, 2026, 02:59:12 AM
With the prevalence of diamond and CBN the sharpening difficulty is not so relevant anymore
Title: Re: Guide to Knife Steel Types
Post by: tgbto on May 27, 2026, 08:49:37 AM
Quote from: Jamie007 on May 26, 2026, 11:39:54 PMFor more details, you can read a piece I've written in my personal blog (http://knifehelper.com/).

Hello Jamie,

I sincerely hope your presonal blog is not a collection of AI-written articles. Still, a couple of things would have me either believe the contrary or at least think you should cross-check what you present as definite truths.

A few examples amongst many :
- On your page about "hollow edge knives", what you are describing is not a hollow edge (the edge being the part that actually cuts the food, a hollow edge or concave edge is created by a convex sharpening medium such as a wheel). I suggest you quickly compute an estimate of the weight difference between a scalloped blade and a plain one, you'll see soon enough that there is no significant difference in knife weight. And... "I prefer chef knives because they're thick"? Really ? The "hollow" santoku you show is probably twice as thick as the thickest of my chef knives. The thicker the knife, the higher the resistance to cutting because of the effective surface.

- What you present on your article as a chef knife is actually a santoku, the chef knife being a gyutou instead. I  fail to see how a chef knife would be less able to handle mincing herbs than a utility knife. A chef knife, having a higher blade, allows for more control and consistency while mincing.

And there are countless others.

Well, actually it does look like AI slop. I'm not sure it does anyone a service, including yourself.