The material from which the blades of the knives in the set are made. Usually, it is the same for the entire set.
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Steel. In this case, we mean steel blades made by stamping. It is believed that this method alone does not provide as high a quality as forging; in addition, the blade and shank in this case can be made separately and then welded together, which further reduces the durability of the knife and increases the risk of breaking it with great effort. However, stamped blades are easy to manufacture, inexpensive, and usually strong enough for most tasks, both everyday and professional. This ensured their high popularity.
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Steel (non-stick coating). Steel blades (usually stamped, see above) with a special polymer coating applied to them. It not only prevents sticking of products, but also protects the blade from corrosion, provides ease of cleaning, and also gives the tool an original and bright appearance — after all, the coating can be given any colour. Among the shortcomings, it is worth noting the tendency to abrasion, which pretty quickly reduces many of the advantages of such a blade to nothing.
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Forged steel. Blades made of steel by forging (when a relatively thick workpiece is flattened to the desired shape by a series of successive blows). Such knives are considered much stronger and more durable than stamped ones,
...in particular because the shank and blade are initially one piece, which reduces the risk of breaking the knife. And in terms of performance, forged products win. On the other hand, the process itself is quite expensive and troublesome, and therefore is used mainly in premium knives.
— Damascus steel. Damascus steel in modern knives means steel consisting of layers with different carbon contents. These layers vary in colour, which gives the blade a characteristic beautiful pattern, while the Damascus blades combine high strength, flexibility and durability. However, the complexity of production significantly affects the price — such knives can cost many times more than even similar forged ones.
— Ceramics. Ceramic, usually based on zirconium, is considered a highly advanced material. It allows you to create very sharp blades that do not dull for a long time, do not oxidize, are easy to clean, are not prone to scratches, and also weigh much less than steel. On the other hand, ceramics are very fragile and completely devoid of flexibility, due to which they are prone to chipping and are very sensitive to bumps and falls. Therefore, ceramic knives are not recommended to be washed in the dishwasher. In addition, due to the high hardness of the material, such blades cannot be sharpened by traditional methods, and special ones are quite expensive — despite the fact that the cost of the knives themselves is also very high.
