Knife industry pros give their takes on what the hot knife steels will be in the year ahead.
Every cutlery buyer faces a dizzying array of steel choices when it comes to buying that next knife, an array that represents the proverbial “double-edged sword.” While it’s nice to have choices, it can also be hard to keep up with so many options. Fortunately, industry professionals are available to help sort out which stainless and carbon varieties are either catching fire or cooling off.
Hot Steels for 2025
- CPM Magnacut: Folders and fixed blades
- CPM S30V: Hunting knives, tactical folders, custom knives
- CPM S35VN: Tactical folders, custom knives, factory outdoor knives
- CPM 154: Hunting knives, EDC knives, custom knives
- CPM 20CV: EDC knives, custom knives, knives requiring heightened wear and corrosion resistance
- CPM S90V: Knives requiring heightened wear and corrosion resistance
- CPM Cruwear: Bushcraft knives and tactical fixed blades
- CPM 3V: Bushcraft knives, survival knives, hard-use knives, tactical fixed blades
- CPM 4V: Competition cutters, hard-use knives
- M390: EDC knives, custom knives
- 1095: Factory outdoor knives
*The steels are listed in no particular order by the knife patterns/types for which they are favored most by users and makers, according to the story’s sources.
MagnaCut Reigns Supreme
Last year when BLADE took the temperature of steel suppliers, the clear-cut champion of blade materials was Crucible Industries’ CPM MagnaCut stainless. The creation of steel guru Larrin Thomas, MagnaCut remains on top and will stay there for the foreseeable future. Bob Shabala, president of Niagara Specialty Metals, praised the high-performance blade material last year and still does today.
“We have sold about 320 tons of CPM MagnaCut since its introduction in 2020. It is our biggest selling cutlery grade right now and I don’t expect that to change anytime soon,” Bob said, adding the qualifier, “This is from Niagara Specialty Metals’ limited perspective. I’m sure other mills are working on new grades which I’m not privy to.”
One reason MagnaCut is so popular is it embraces all cutlery genres with ease.
“CPM MagnaCut remains in high demand across various knife patterns,” Bob observed. “Some customers currently using MagnaCut for fixed blades are expanding into folding knives and have expressed plans to continue using the steel for their new designs, reflecting its versatility and ongoing popularity.”
Scott Devanna, vice president of technology and a metallurgist for SB Specialty Metals, tends to concur.
“I’m not sure there will be a new ‘super steel’ introduced in 2025. The introduction of new steels seems to have a three-to-four-year cycle, and with the recent intro of CPM MagnaCut such new introductions may be a few years off. We sell a lot of MagnaCut,” he stated. “I’ve learned over the years that new is very often the primary driver when new grades are introduced. This is what happened with CPM S30V, CPM 20CV and its European equivalent M390, and a few other grades.”
It should be noted that MagnaCut technically is going into its fifth year of existence. As you can see, it takes a while for a steel to work its way into the manufacturing pipeline and be given a thumbs up or thumbs down by the end user.
Specialty Grade Steels
Meanwhile, other specialty grade steels aren’t being ignored. In fact, many knife consumers prefer other steels that suit their needs better, both of the stainless and carbon varieties.
“CPM S30V, one of the original cutlery-grade steels, continues to be one of our best-selling products,” Shabala noted. “Despite its age*, S30V maintains a strong position in the market, demonstrating its enduring reliability and widespread appeal among knifemakers.
Devanna agrees.
“CPM S30V is still a favorite for hunting knives, as well as CPM 154,” he noted. “For everyday carry folders, M390, CPM 20CV and CPM 154 are still used quite a bit as well.”
Scott said CPM S30V and S35VN remain strong for tactical folders.
Custom knifemakers aren’t as easily swayed by trends and tend to go with steels they are comfortable using, are time-proven to them personally, or geared to their particular customer base. While many are on the MagnaCut train, they tend to be more diverse in their choices.
“Other steels popular among custom knifemakers are M390, CPM 20CV, CPM 154, and to a lesser extent CPM S30V and CPM S35VN,” Devanna stated. “I have heard that CTS-XHP will be re-introduced, and this grade developed quite a following when it was readily available—especially for kitchen knives and high-end folders.”
Added Shabala, “CPM 154 is always popular with the custom makers.”
Carbon Steel
THE CARBON EQUATION
The outdoor crowd—bushcrafters, survivalists and open-air tactical users—has to be pleased with the attention they’ve been getting from the industry. These users’ requirements are different and they prefer a subset of steels all their own.
“CPM 3V and 4V are favored for hard-use knives due to the steels’ toughness, while CPM S90V and 20CV are popular among users who prioritize wear and corrosion resistance,” Shabala observed. “CPM 3V and CPM 4V are carbon steels that continue to sell well in specific areas. 3V is in high demand for bushcraft knives and 4V is being used by the current national champion in BladeSports International cutting competitions, Ben Propst. His wife Sue Ann is now using it and in 2024 they both won cutting events in Kokomo and the Smoky Mountain Knife Works fall festival.”
“I think CPM 3V and CPM Cruwear—mostly for bushcraft/survival knives as well as tactical fixed blades—are gaining popularity in the market,” Devanna opined. “CPM 3V has proven itself over the years and continues to be a popular grade. CTS PD#1 was in this category but availability of this grade is a problem.”
While major outdoor knife manufacturers like TOPS and ESEE still sell the bulk of their knives in 1095 carbon steel, they have been slowly offering their customers more diversity in their lines, including such stainless versions as S35VN.
Overall Take
As Shabala and Devanna noted, MagnaCut will be the top dog among steels in 2025, but it’s certainly not the only hound in the kennel.
The cutlery industry is so diverse in the competition among manufacturers, custom makers, genres of knives and budget categories, there’s room for many different stainless and carbon steels. While what’s in the works remains unknown to most, you can bet there are teams of metallurgists working on the next great knife steel as these words are written.
As a knife enthusiast and cutlery buyer your choices are bountiful in all categories—from EDC to outdoor, fixed blade to folder—and affordable to expensive. Some users buy one knife to last for years while others rotate their carry or require cutting fare for specific purposes.
The good news is your knife and steel options have never been better!
*Editor’s note: The first-ever steel both designed and made specifically for knife blades, CPM S30V has been used for knives since 2001.
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