Stainless Stainless Steel

"Stainless" means stain-resistant, not stain-proof. In kitchen use, the steel can still discolour or pit if exposed to acidic environments — citrus, vinegar, or salt water — for extended periods. Wash and wipe dry after every use, and avoid leaving the blade soaking in water. With basic care, a stainless knife is very low-maintenance and a great everyday choice. Aichi, Japan 🇯🇵

AUS-8 AUS-8

Hardness

57–59 HRC

555759616365+

AUS-8, often just called "molybdenum vanadium steel," is a Japanese stainless steel praised for its affordability, ease of sharpening, and excellent corrosion resistance. It's recommended for less experienced users due to its balanced properties. With added molybdenum and vanadium, AUS-8 offers enhanced strength, hardness, and durability, positioning it as an upper medium quality steel. It's comparable to 440 steel but stands out with better hardness and corrosion resistance. A proper cryogenic treatment further improves its edge retention and toughness, making AUS-8 a cost-effective choice for knife makers and users looking for quality and performance.

Compare with

AUS-8

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13.0% 9.8% 6.5% 3.3% 0

0.7%

13.0%

0.1%

1.0%

0.04%

0.03%

C — Carbon Cr — Chromium V — Vanadium Mo — Molybdenum Si — Silicon P — Phosphorus S — Sulfur

Hardness 57–59 HRC

555759616365+

Steel

AUS-8

What's in AUS-8

What each element does in your knife.

AUS-8 element composition and spec ranges
Element	Spec range	What it does in your knife
CrChromium	13.0–14.5%	Raises corrosion resistance; at roughly 13%+ free chromium the steel qualifies as stainless. Also improves hardenability and wear.
SiSilicon	1.0%	Strengthens the steel matrix and acts as a deoxidiser, improving hardness and resistance to oxidation.
CCarbon	0.7–0.75%	The primary hardening element. More carbon means a harder edge that holds longer — but past a point it trades away toughness and rust resistance.
MnManganese	0.5%	Aids hardenability and strength and acts as a deoxidiser in smelting. Too much can reduce toughness.
NiNickel	0.49%	Improves toughness and ductility without sacrificing hardness, and adds a small boost to corrosion resistance.
MoMolybdenum	0.1–0.3%	Improves hardenability and toughness, boosts corrosion resistance, and helps the steel hold hardness under heat.
VVanadium	0.1–0.26%	Forms extremely hard vanadium carbides for superior edge retention, and refines the grain for a finer, tougher edge.
PPhosphorus	0.04%	An impurity from smelting. Even small amounts promote brittleness, so steelmakers keep it as low as possible.
SSulfur	0.03%	An impurity that reduces toughness and promotes brittleness; only ever added deliberately in free-machining steels.

Composition from zknives (K&S steel dataset) reference material. These ranges come from the K&S steel composition dataset, which is derived from zknives; maker figures are cited separately only when they are used on the page.