Abrasives
Grinding and Sharpening Elmax: Belt Recommendations & Technique
Elmax sits in the moderately demanding middle tier of powder-metallurgy stainless steels, tougher and easier to work than harder-edged steels like CPM…
Knife steel
Elmax knife steel
A premium powder-metallurgy stainless steel from Bohler-Uddeholm, balancing strong edge retention with excellent corrosion resistance and easier sharpening than most steels in its performance class.
Also known as
At a glance
How Elmax behaves
The four meters are relative to the rest of the database. Composition is the published nominal analysis, not a mill certificate for your bar.
Working properties
- Toughness
- 4
- Edge retention
- 4
- Corrosion resistance
- 5
- Ease of grinding
- 3
- Composition
- Best uses
A strong all-around choice for EDC and outdoor knives, especially where top-tier corrosion resistance matters, such as marine or humid environments. Browse more entries in the Knife Steel Database, and see the Heat Treating Guide for the full stage-by-stage process.
- Sources
At the bench
What each property means for this steel
Open the property you are worried about. Every note is written for the blade in your hand, not for a spec sheet.
Toughness
Fine, round carbides from the powder-metallurgy process give it good toughness for a high-carbide steel, with minimal risk of edge chipping when hardened correctly.
Edge retention
Strong wear resistance from a heavy vanadium and chromium carbide load, holding an edge well in everyday-carry and outdoor use.
Corrosion resistance
18% chromium puts it among the best corrosion resistance of any premium knife steel, a strong choice for marine or wet environments.
Grinding and machinability
One of the easier premium powder-metallurgy steels to sharpen for its performance level, though still slower to grind than basic stainless steels.
The full reference
More on Elmax
Elmax is a third-generation powder-metallurgy stainless steel from Bohler-Uddeholm, built with high chromium, vanadium, and molybdenum content for a strong all-around balance of wear resistance, corrosion resistance, and toughness. Its fine, round carbides make it noticeably easier to sharpen than many other steels with this level of performance.
Elmax FAQ
What hardness does Elmax reach?
Most working knives run around 60-61 Rc, with a maximum working hardness near 62 Rc. See the heat treat details further up this page for the full recipe.
Is Elmax hard to sharpen?
No, it is one of the easier premium powder-metallurgy steels to sharpen for its performance class, thanks to its fine, round carbide structure. See the full grinding and sharpening guide for belt recommendations.
Does Elmax rust?
No, it offers excellent stainless corrosion resistance, among the best of any premium knife steel, well suited to marine and humid environments.
How does Elmax compare to CPM 20CV or CPM S35VN?
Elmax is tougher and easier to sharpen than CPM 20CV, and holds a slight corrosion-resistance edge over CPM S35VN while being nearly tied with it otherwise. See the full breakdowns: CPM 20CV vs Elmax and Elmax vs CPM S35VN.
Head to head
Compare steel data for Elmax
Every matchup Elmax appears in, dimension by dimension.
Keep reading
Guides that use this steel
MetallurgyWhat Alloying Elements Do: Carbon, Chromium, Vanadium & More
Every knife steel is iron plus a specific recipe of other elements, and each of those elements pulls the steel’s behavior in a particular direction…
MetallurgyCarbide Size and Sharpening: Why Some Steels Feel Different
Two steels with similar hardness numbers can feel completely different under a sharpening stone, one glides along smoothly, another feels like it’s…
Same bench
Grind Elmax on a machine that holds still
Whatever the steel, the grind is only as flat as the platen behind it. I machine the parts, hand-assemble and test Torus grinders in Sterling, Illinois.
Nova 2×72 Aluminum Belt Grinder
Current dual-axis platform with a fiber-laser-cut 6061 chassis and single-knob tracking.
Starts at$1,295
Nebula 2×72 Steel Belt Grinder
Current dual-axis platform with a steel chassis, more mass and less vibration.
Starts at$1,295
Torus 2×72 Classic Aluminum Belt Grinder
Prior-design aluminum chassis, 90-degree tilt and 1.5-inch tooling arms.
Starts at$995
One-man shop
Thinking about Elmax?
Tell me what the blade is for and how you heat treat. I will tell you whether this is the steel I would use, and what I would use instead.