Is 14C28N Steel Good Steel?

14C28N steel is known to offer among the best if not the best toughness in knife steels out there. This is its most premium attribute and a reason it is a favorite for most knife enthusiasts.

14C28N also offers excellent hardness and corrosion resistance associated with Nitrogen in its composition, unlike other steel types which use carbon to boost hardness.

What’s more, this steel is easy to work on, reducing the cost of production and hence affordable end products, knives in our case.

If you are on the market for a high-end knife with affordable prices, check into the varieties of 14C28N. Their prices are not as low as with low-end knives, but you are assured of premium performances at affordable prices.

14C28N steel Chemical composition

• Carbon C 0.62%: Increases the edge retention, hardness and tensile strength. It also improves steel resistance to wear, abrasion and corrosion.
• Chromium Cr 14.00%: Chromium Increases hardness, tensile strength and corrosion resistance of a blade.
• Manganese Mn 0.60%: Increases Hardness.
• Nitrogen N 0.11%: Helps in producing fine grade size and strengthening the steel blade.
• Silicon Si 0.30%: Increases strength and heat resistance.
• Phosphorus P 0.02%: Improves machinability and hardness.
• Sulfur S 0.01%: Improves machinability.

Properties of 14C28N steel

14C28N Hardness

The hardness of steel determines most of its other properties. Our steel of the day 14C28N hardness is 55-62 HRC making it hard steel.

With this level of hardness, 14C28N can be used to make different types of knives. Versatility is a crucial component for many knife makers.

This steel can be used to make kitchen knives, pocket knives, hunting knives, and it can be used for fishing knives too.

In many cases, hard steels are known to be brittle, but this is not the case with Sandvik 14C28N.

14C28N Edge retention

14C28N steel delivers good edge retention mainly because of the high carbon and chromium amounts in its composition.

14C28N steel knives are incredibly sharp right out of their packaging. The good thing is, they will maintain that sharpness for a while before sharpening.

14C28N Toughness

One of the areas where 14C28N steel scores highly is in its toughness. It is known to offer among the best toughness in knife steels. Its toughness level can only be beaten by a countable number of steels. These include 8670 steel, 5160 steel, and Z-Tuff steel.

You can find a similar level of toughness in blades made of  420HC, AEB-L steel, and CPM 3V.

If you are looking for a knife blade with excellent toughness you will never go wrong with a 14C28N knife. 14C28N Knives will withstand challenging applications without chipping or breaking.

14C28N Corrosion resistance

Due to the high amounts of chromium in its composition, 14C28N stainless steel offers excellent corrosion resistance.

The corrosion resistance of 14C28N knives are comparable to that of knife blades made from Nitrogen Based BD1N and 440A stainless steel

Because of its corrosion resistance capabilities, this steel is used to make knives used in wet and humid environments.

Wear resistance

The carbon and manganese in this steel give it good wear resistance. You can be sure that you will use knives made from 14C28N for long without wearing and tearing, irrespective of the usage.

Ease of Sharpening 14C28N Steel.

Because 14C28N is not very hard steel, it is easy to sharpen. You should get a razor-sharp edge with this steel even without sharpening skills and using regular sharpening tools.

14C28N steel vs other steels

14C28N vs S30V

CPM S30V steel is a more popular knife steel than Sandvik 14C28N steel, it has been adopted by most knife manufacturers due to its well-balanced performance properties.

S30V steel beats 14C28N steel edge retention, it is known to offer great edge retention hence widely adopted for pocket knives and folding knives as it will require minimal sharpening.

In Corrosion resistance, Sandvik 14C28N beats S30V by a slight margin. The improved corrosion resistance can be attributed to fewer impurities (sulfur and phosphorous) in its alloy.

This enables the other core elements like Carbon, Chromium, and Nitrogen to finely combine and produce better corrosion-resistant steel.

Sandvik 14C28N steel does beat S30V in toughness too due to the low impurity count and its developmental production process. As earlier stated its toughness level can only be bettered by a countable number of blade steels.

The choice of a knife with either S30V blade steel or 14C28N blade steel will depend on your needs. both are excellent but you will get a tougher blade with 14C28N and better edge retention with S30V steel.

14C28N vs VG10 Steel

Japanese VG 10 stainless steel will offer better edge retention than 14C28N stainless steel. The improved edge retention is attributed to the high amount of carbon that contributes to high carbide volume over 14C28N steel.

While Sanvik 14C28N steel contains a lower amount of chromium elements (14%) in its alloy, it still beats VG10 stainless steel with its 15.5% chromium content in corrosion resistance.

The added corrosion resistance can be reduced impurity levels and the introduction of Nitrogen elements which enables the formation of a more rust resistant blade.

Sandvik 14C28N stainless steel thrashes VG 10 stainless steel in toughness. It offers twice the level of toughness of VG10 steel. A 14C28N knife will be more durable than a VG10 knife in tougher applications.

In general, 14C28N blade steel will offer better performance than VG10 blade steel. 14C28N can also be used in a wide variety of knives due to its exceptional toughness while still being corrosion resistant.

See also 14C28N vs D2 Steel Review

Have a look at these Five Star Rated Cangshan 14C28N steel kitchen knives