Bohler-Uddeholm / Sweden

Marss-500

Stainless Steel54–59 HRCConventional Ingot Steel Process

Composition

Core alloying elements define the baseline trade-off between wear resistance, corrosion behavior, and toughness.

Material Overview

Stainless steel, identical with Sandvik 12C27M steel. Very pure alloy, fine grained, good corrosion resistance. Takes very sharp edge. Several sources list 18% Chromium for this alloy, which is not incorrect. I suspect info got copied from one to another. Anyhow, Swedish sources and at least one Russian knife making book list 14.50% which is the right number.

Performance Radar

Use four core metrics to understand the usable operating envelope of this steel at a glance.

Edge Retention

Toughness

Corrosion Resistance

Sharpenability

Edge Retention

5.0

Toughness

8.0

Corrosion Resistance

9.0

Sharpenability

10.0

Advantages

Extremely easy to sharpen
Excellent corrosion resistance
Very tough and reliable
Low cost and widely available
Great for outdoor use

Disadvantages

Low edge retention
Not suitable for heavy abrasive cutting
Basic performance compared to modern steels
Requires frequent sharpening

At A Glance

Very pure alloy, fine grained, good corrosion resistance. Takes very sharp edge. Identical with Bohler-Uddeholm Marss-500 steel.