Dexter Russell Sani-Safe steel?

Barry H

Barry H

Joined
Nov 3, 1999
Messages
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I have a general question about the Dexter Sani-safe USA knives. I recently was at a restaurant supply store and picked up one and used it to cut up a hind quarter of a deer. It was still sharp after all that!:eek: Why kind of steel do they use?
Thanks!
 
Dexter, and most other large cutlery companies which make similar knives, is very cagey about what kind of steel it uses, so it's more than likely a commonly used garden variety of stainless like 4116.
 
Thanks, fellas. Pretty impressed with its edge holding, especially since it only cost me $15
 
I don't have a clue about what the steel is, but I'm pretty sure I've had one of those knives for about 25 years. Took no care of it, ran it through the dishwasher hundreds of times . . . It eventually got dull, but that's what whetstones are for, right?
 
I wouldn't be surprised if that Sani-steel name simply indicates stainless. Back from a time when there was a belief
that stainless was more hygenic than carbon.
 
Given that I and the OP got them from restaurant supply places, I suspect they were built to hold up under abuse more than anything. They're not "chef's" knives; they're meant for hard use in a kitchen, meant to go through an industrial dishwasher every night.
 
KenHash said:
I wouldn't be surprised if that Sani-steel name simply indicates stainless. Back from a time when there was a belief
that stainless was more hygenic than carbon.
Click to expand...
The SaniSafe line has molded plastic handles and no crevices or seams to collect crud or grow bacteria. They are made to be sanitized in very hot water. A dishwasher will not damage them.

Dexter Russell Cutlery | Sani-Safe

Dexter Russell Sani-Safe - Built to be both tough and sanitary. A textured, slip-resistant, easy-to-clean polypropylene handle withstands both high and low temperatures. An impervious blade-to-handle seal provides the utmost in sanitary qualification. Stain-free, high-carbon steel blade, with...
www.dexterrussellcutlery.com www.dexterrussellcutlery.com

I love my SaniSafe knives, but some have a tendency to get spots of rust. It cleans off easily. You cannot find tougher kitchen knives at any price.
 
The Sani-Safe knives are listed as having DEXSTEEL blades, which appear to be a proprietary name.
As to the type of steel it may be:
"

What kind of steel does Dexter Russell use?​


Dexter uses a 400 and above quality steel grade.
Dexter uses a proprietary steel that is based on a 420, high-carbon grade. Also referred to as “surgical steel” for their kitchen knives.
 
Steel type pales in comparison, to suitable heat treat, edge geometry, and design. Buck is a mediochre but well known example of this IMO.
Most users buying Busse, ColdSteel, Tops etc. Would be happier with the performance of a cheapo Dexter Russel, Victorionox, Tramontina, butcher/kitchen knife... they will all cut better, be easier to sharpen/ clean/replace, than super steel cold chisels you need to baton through cheese!
I love all the Brands and knives I mentioned even own some...but if it is real world performance and not the love of knives you are trying to indulge...then look at what the Pro's use! And not you tube warriors, but craftsmen, butchers, fisherman, Cooks, and people that still live in the jungle!
I have never In over forty years and trust me I look! Have I seen footage of a group of people that lives a hunter/gather lifestyle now or in the past, that uses a blade more than 1/8" , unless it is an Axe or chipped out of stone!
 
Dex Steel seems to easily take a nice edge. The steel feels a little bit softer than most other steels in my cheap kitchen knives while sharpening.

From apparent softest to apparent hardest:
Rada T420
Dexter Russell Dex Steel
Chicago Cutlery "high carbon stainless steel"
Victorinox probably X55CrMo14 / 1.4110
Mora 14C28N
 
Not a big fan of their stainless, though it certainly has its' place; but their carbon knives get and stay screaming sharp
 
elasmonut said:
Steel type pales in comparison, to suitable heat treat, edge geometry, and design. Buck is a mediochre but well known example of this IMO.
Most users buying Busse, ColdSteel, Tops etc. Would be happier with the performance of a cheapo Dexter Russel, Victorionox, Tramontina, butcher/kitchen knife... they will all cut better, be easier to sharpen/ clean/replace, than super steel cold chisels you need to baton through cheese!
I love all the Brands and knives I mentioned even own some...but if it is real world performance and not the love of knives you are trying to indulge...then look at what the Pro's use! And not you tube warriors, but craftsmen, butchers, fisherman, Cooks, and people that still live in the jungle!
I have never In over forty years and trust me I look! Have I seen footage of a group of people that lives a hunter/gather lifestyle now or in the past, that uses a blade more than 1/8" , unless it is an Axe or chipped out of stone!
Click to expand...
Depends on the task at hand? Dexters are fine for cutting up meat or general butchering tasks, but I am surely not chopping wood, batoning wood with a Dexter made for kitchen/butchering tasks. Nor would I use a CS, Tops, Busse in the kitchen! I have all those knives and have been using them for the tasks I mentioned for years! I have a custom knife that's .25" at the spine which is excellent for camp tasks like batoning wood etc. Who needs an axe? 🤣
 
Who cares?????
They work, can be sharpened and sanitized every night.
You may not see a SaniSafe at the front of a Chef's kitchen or at a Sushi Bar but I can bet you if the fish/meat was processed in the US Fish/Meat industry, it was probably a SaniSafe.
I have number of SaniSafe used for breaking down fish/meat.
-Richard
 
Buck does a nice job heat treating their 420HC steel. If the HT is good, the steel can perform well. But most of the inexpensive kitchen knives use mediocre steels. If you were impressed with a SaniSafe, you should look for something in AEB-L/NitroV/14C28N at 62-63 HRC, which will blow the Sanisafe out of the water. Or S35VN, Magnacut, S90V, MagnaMax, etc, which have a LOT more edge retention than the others!

I did a small boning knife for a guy in S35VN several years ago since he wanted to know why it was much more expensive than his beloved Dexters to try out. I told him if he liked it, he could buy it if he felt it was worth the price. I saw him 3+ months later; he had the cash in hand. He did 7 or 8 deer, a dozen wild turkeys (fall hunting season in New York), plus kitchen use daily after that for a few months, and it was still sharp. He was shocked, bought that knife, one of my strops and then ordered another one in Magnacut the next year! He was blown away at how well it held the edge and kept cutting and understood why the custom knives are more expensive and was shocked at the edge retention that was possible. He had used the $5 Dexter Seconds from the factory outlet store for years and hated having to sharpen them, but after using a good knife in good steel, he understood!
 
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