Frequently Asked Questions
Everything makers ask us before their first order. If your question is not here, message us on WhatsApp or mail [email protected] and we will answer quickly.
About Our Blade Blanks
What exactly is a blade blank?
A blade blank is a semi-finished blade with no handle. It is profiled, ground, hardened and sharpened. All that is left for you to do is fit handle scales, shape them, and finish the knife. You skip the heat treatment and the grinding, the two stages that need the most equipment and experience.
Where does your steel come from?
We buy Böhler and Uddeholm steel directly from Voestalpine. Both brands sit under the same group, so we source certified stock rather than resold bar of unknown origin.
Who heat treats your blades?
Voestalpine does. After laser cutting, our designs are hand ground on belt grinders with our own jigs in our Istanbul workshop (a few full flat models are CNC ground), and the ground blades go back to Voestalpine for hardening. The mill that produced the steel runs the cycle in industrial vacuum furnaces, including the cryogenic step our powder steels need. This is the single biggest reason our blanks come out consistent batch after batch.
Do the blades arrive sharpened?
Yes. Every blade ships sharpened, with the burr removed, unless your order note asks for no sharpening. The standard finish is ground on ceramic belts at 40, 120 and 240 grit.
Can I get my name engraved?
Yes, laser engraving is free. Write the text you want in the Delivery Note field at checkout, giving each blade its own text if they differ. For a logo, mail it to [email protected] (vector file, or JPEG or PDF) and write "logo on mail" in the Delivery Note field.
Can I forge or file your blanks into a different shape?
No. Our blanks arrive fully hardened, so they cannot be forged and a hand file will not touch them. Work them by stock removal only: belt grinder, diamond files, drill. If you need a different profile, we can make it to your design.
Choosing a Steel
What hardness do you run each steel at?
| Steel |
Hardness |
Type |
| 1.4116 |
54-57 HRC |
Stainless |
| N690 |
58-60 HRC (kitchen profiles 58-59) |
Stainless |
| AEB-L |
60 HRC |
Stainless |
| Sleipner |
60-62 HRC (kitchen profiles 60-61) |
Semi-stainless tool steel |
| Elmax |
60-61 HRC |
Powder metallurgy stainless |
| Vanax |
60 HRC |
Powder metallurgy, nitrogen alloyed |
| M390 |
60-61 HRC |
Powder metallurgy stainless |
| Vanadis 4 Extra |
63-64 HRC |
Powder metallurgy tool steel |
Which steel should I pick for a kitchen knife?
N690 if you want one steel that does everything well. AEB-L for a thin, keen slicer. 1.4116 if the knife needs to be easy to sharpen. Elmax or Vanax for a premium build. Sleipner for heavy prep and cleavers, if the owner will dry the blade. Our kitchen steel guide goes through each one in detail.
Which steel should I pick for a bushcraft, hunting or EDC knife?
Sleipner for choppers and hard-use blades, N690 as the general default, Elmax or M390 for hunting knives that need long edge life, Vanadis 4 Extra for maximum performance, Vanax for saltwater. Full breakdown in our outdoor and EDC steel guide.
Are your semi-stainless steels going to rust?
Sleipner and Vanadis 4 Extra are tool steels, not stainless. They will develop a patina and can spot if stored wet. Wipe and dry the blade after use and oil it before long storage and they will be fine. Many makers let the patina form on purpose. If the knife is going to someone who will leave it in the sink, build it in N690, AEB-L or Vanax instead.
Why does heat treatment matter more than the steel name?
Because a badly hardened premium steel loses to a well-hardened simple one every time. Hardness that comes in under target, retained austenite left in a powder steel, decarburised edges from an unsealed cycle. None of it is visible, and all of it shows up as a blade that dulls fast or chips. That is why our blades go back to the mill for hardening rather than through a workshop oven. Our full reasoning is in this article.
Custom and Wholesale Orders
Can you make a blade to my own design?
Yes, this is a large part of what we do. Minimum order is 50 pieces per design, lead time is 6-8 weeks from an approved drawing, and you can choose any steel we carry. See our custom and wholesale page.
I do not have a technical drawing. Can you still work from my design?
Yes. Draw your blade on white paper, photograph it from directly above, and send us the image. We will turn it into a professional technical drawing free of charge and confirm every dimension with you before anything is cut. If you have a DXF file, send that instead and we can quote faster.
Do you offer wholesale pricing on catalogue blanks?
Yes. Contact us before you order with the models and quantities you need and we will quote wholesale pricing. Discounts scale with quantity, and we can hold stock for repeat orders so your lead times stay short.
Orders and Delivery
Do you ship internationally?
Yes. We ship worldwide from Istanbul, Türkiye, with UPS Express: 1-3 business days to Europe and 2-5 business days to the United States and Canada. Your order is handed to UPS within 1-2 business days. Full details on our Shipping Policy page.
How much is shipping?
Shipping is charged per order, not per item. When you reach checkout and choose your delivery country, the rate for that country appears as a separate line in your order total. Because it is a single charge for the whole cart, the more blades you add to the same order, the lower the shipping cost works out per blade.
Something arrived wrong. What happens?
Contact us straight away and we will put it right. We would rather fix a problem than argue about it. In most cases we make it good on your next order, and if it is something serious we will sort it out immediately. See our returns policy for the details.
Still Have a Question?
Phone / WhatsApp: +905441672528
Email: [email protected]
Istanbul, Türkiye
Where to next
Still deciding on steel? Read choosing steel for a kitchen knife or for outdoor and EDC knives. New to the process? How to turn a blade blank into a finished knife walks through a full build.