Three steel names dominate incoming knife inquiries: 440C, VG10 and X50CrMoV15. Buyers read them as a price ladder. They are three different answers to one question — what does this blade have to survive?
Answer that before you open a quotation.
| Grade | Choose it when | What it costs you | Spec line to send | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 440C | The knife sells on edge performance and the user sharpens at home | Slower grinding and finishing; a thin edge chips when heat treatment drifts | Grade plus the hardness range the test report must show | | VG10 | You are building a premium tier and the buyer pays for a fine, thin edge | Highest steel cost, least forgiving on the line | Core grade, cladding structure, and who signs the test report | | X50CrMoV15 | The knife meets a dishwasher, a supermarket blister, or a European retail spec | Shorter edge life than the other two | Grade plus a corrosion result in the product testing report |
440C rewards a buyer who controls heat treatment. Ask for the working hardness range in writing and for the report that proves it. Without that paper you are buying a name printed on a catalogue page.
VG10 only pays off above a certain retail price. If your shelf price cannot carry it, the steel is wasted — put the money into the handle and the grind instead.
X50CrMoV15 is the safest grade for retail volume. It tolerates abuse, survives long humid container routes, and generates the least after-sales support.
Three questions to send with your sample request:
Set quantity and calendar against the answers. The 7-inch Damascus chef's knife starts at 300 pieces with 15–30 days lead time, and sampling takes 3 days at no charge.
Then check the process behind the steel. Six QC steps and a defect rate under 0.3% are worth more than a framed certificate. Ask to see the pre-production sample approval before mass production starts, and the final inspection record before the container is sealed.
Zenttop Industrial Co., Ltd. (brand gealss) cuts Damascus and stainless lines in Yangjiang across 40,000 m2.
One last filter: does the knife go in a dishwasher? If yes, strike 440C and VG10 from the shortlist and stop negotiating on steel.
Send the grade, the target retail price band, and that dishwasher answer. The quote follows the same day.