Nitrocarburized finish.......is it possible?

[falar]

It seems that any coated knife regardless of the coating applied will lose said finish relatively quickly when used hard.

I know that when you nitrocarburize steel it isn't a coating, but a treatment of the surface that raises the hardness. Would this be detrimental to a knife where hardness needs to be managed for optimum performance?

Another reason that makes me ponder it is the fact that at least some grades of stainless can be treated in this manner.

Has anyone every produced a knife with this type of surface treatment as a finish?

 

[all 41 + 14 all]

Not all steels are suited for nitriding, carbo-nitriding, etc. Many steels will become soft (over-tempered) in the heat of the nitriding process. Look online at a major manufacturer's data sheet for info regading a specific alloy. I've seen notes on nitriding compatability in Carpenter's data sheets, for example.