Steel, wood and leather
Damascus and plain 1095 compared, and the woods, horn and leather that finish them.
4 min read
Two steels, several woods, one leather. Those two steels are the whole house list, set out in full on the steel and hardness page, and none of it is complicated.
The two steels
1095 and 15N20 forge welded, folded, drawn and acid etched so the layers surface. The pattern comes from how that billet moved under the hammer, and it is most of what you are paying for across the Damascus knives.
- Edge
- Good
- Hardness
- 58 to 60 HRC
- Corrosion
- Will rust
- Best for
- Collecting, gifts, display
One steel, heat treated for work rather than looks. Plainer to read, and the better material if the piece is going to be used. Which of the two you want comes down to that one question.
- Edge
- Excellent
- Hardness
- 54 to 58 HRC
- Corrosion
- Will rust
- Best for
- Field, camp, kitchen
Hardness, and why higher is not better
Hardness is measured on the Rockwell C scale. A blade at 62 HRC holds an edge a long time and chips when abused. The same blade at 54 HRC dents instead of chipping but dulls faster. The useful band sits in between, and that is where both house steels sit. The steel glossary unpacks 1095, 15N20 and what forge welding actually involves.
Plain 1095 at 54 to 58 HRC, Damascus at 58 to 60 HRC
Handle woods
Horn, bone and leather
Horn and bone
Stag horn, buffalo horn and camel bone appear on many knife handles. All natural, so colour and figure vary between pieces, the photograph shows a representative example, not an exact twin. Everything is cut and fitted by the makers, which the country of origin page sets out plainly. Stable indoors, unhappy soaked.
Leather
Vegetable tanned, cut, wet formed to the blade and stitched. Slower than chrome tanning, and it gives leather that stiffens to shape and takes a patina rather than staying uniform. Spare scabbards and sheaths are sold on their own if one ever gives up.