These professional knives are made exclusively for Tandy Leather Factory and feel like no other knives. Damascus is known for its elite quality and durability. It is the same process used to make authentic Samurai swords. "Damascus" refers to metal with a visible grain pattern. True Damascus patterns are formed when carbon trace elements create visible swirls in the steel mix. Our blades are made from SUS410 High Carbon Stainless Steel. Modern Damascus is a lamination of folded steels selected with cosmetic qualities, with grinding and polishing to expose the layers. The blade is finished with a hand grinding process that leaves thousands of little indentions on the blade, which reduces the surface area touching the leather, thus reducing the drag when cutting. All edges are ground to a 16 degrees angle per side making them extremely sharp. Most knives are commonly ground only to 22 degrees. These two traits put these blades a notch above most blades when comparing cutting abilities. Be sure you always use the proper cutting surface to ensure the sharpness of the blade. To maintain the life of your blade and for optimal performance, it is important to keep your knife stropped by polishing the edge with a fine abrasive such as Jeweler's Rouge #3323-00 on a piece of stout leather.