Knife steels

[Dirtyphil71]

I’ve wondered this and may have answered my own question but….
What makes a CPM154 knife (pick any good knife steel) so much more expensive than the same steel, same design than other makers. Say a Benchmade versus a Kizer… is it heat treat, country of origin, or nam?

 

[kobold]

Check this out https://www.bladeforums.com/threads...e-any-difference-in-these-two-steels.1000394/
And welcome!

 

[Tsujigiri]

It is much cheaper to manufacture in China, but another thing people forget about is the cost of customer service. These companies lose money every time they have to fix a knife, usually as a result of abuse or negligence. And even when they charge a fee, it doesn't cover the actual cost of warranty work. Chinese companies have removed that from their business model completely.

D2 and 440C can also vary widely in price depending on if its coming from a western brand name forge or being produced to spec in China. That's why you see so much D2 on Chinese knives; it performs well and they can avoid import tariff costs.