Know your steel

What is VG-10 steel?

What VG-10 is, who makes it, what the HRC hardness number means, and why hardness matters for how long an edge lasts.
  • VG-10 The core steel of our Classic Damascus knives
  • 67 Layers of Damascus steel, on every Classic listing
  • HRC 60+ VG-10's hardness rating
  • Up to 62 HRC stated on two Classic Damascus listings

VG-10 is a stainless blade steel made in Japan by Takefu Special Steel. It is used for kitchen knives, everyday knives, and machine blades. This article covers what is in VG-10, what its hardness number means, and how it relates to the knives we sell.

What is in it

Element Share of VG-10
Carbon 1.00%
Chromium 15.00%
Molybdenum 1.00%
Vanadium 0.25%
Cobalt 1.55%

Carbon is what lets a steel be hardened, and chromium at this level makes it stainless. The smaller amounts of molybdenum, vanadium, and cobalt help the steel reach a high hardness and keep a sharp edge. The cobalt is the unusual part: 1.4116, the German steel in our other kitchen collection, has none.

What the hardness number means

Knife makers give hardness on the Rockwell C scale, written HRC, and so do the hardness figures on some of our listings. The test presses a diamond tip into the steel under a set load and measures how deep it goes. A shallower dent gives a higher number. VG-10 is rated at HRC 60 or higher.

Why hardness matters

Hardness is one of the main factors in how long an edge lasts. A harder edge wears down more slowly, so the knife stays sharp for longer between sharpenings.

Harder steel holds an edge longer, but it gives up some toughness.

Hardness is not a free upgrade. As steel gets harder it becomes less tough, and it is difficult to improve both at the same time. If you need to cut through bone, our meat and butcher cleaver listings are written for that job.

  • HRC 56 Our German steak knife listing: can reach 56HRC.
  • HRC 60+ VG-10's rating: HRC 60 or higher.
  • HRC 62 Two Classic Damascus listings: can reach 62HRC.

Layers and the core

A layered Damascus blade has a hard core steel that forms the cutting edge, clad in softer stainless steel. Several metals clad in repeated layers create the wavy Damascus pattern you see on the blade.

  • Layered cladding: softer stainless steel
  • VG-10 core: forms the cutting edge
A layered blade in cross-section, simplified and not to scale.

Where our Classic Damascus collection fits

Every listing in our Classic Damascus collection describes 67-layer Damascus steel. Two of those listings, the 4-piece Damascus steak knife set and the 5.5-inch Damascus santoku, state vacuum heat treatment and a hardness that can reach 62HRC; the other twelve do not state a hardness. The core steel in our Classic Damascus knives is VG-10.

This article covers the Classic Damascus collection only. Burnt Damascus is a separate collection, and our cleaver collection lists other steels, among them 50Cr15MoV and 7Cr15MoV.

Shop the collection: Classic Damascus.

Shop the steel