/ck/ - Food & Cooking

>>20315304
>>20316596
>>20318080
>>20318219
You're all kind of missing some key details. Metal alloys vary more than just "it's hard." On a microscopic/molecular level, different alloys have different crystalline structures in the metal, orienting atoms of each component metal in various different ways. Since alloys vary by the proportions of different elements, the variation in the nature and shape of each alloy's crystalline structure can have implications for all sorts of different properties relevant to knife-making.

Some alloys are more or less brittle, whereas others are more malleable, for example. Will the edge bend when it encounters something hard, or will it just snap and result in a chipped blade, is an important question to answer before buying a knife. Some alloys are more resistant to abrasion--the crystalline structure lines up atoms that form stronger bonds closer to one another--these metals may have any number of hardness ratings, but they will generally be more difficult to sharpen, as the metal abrades more slowly/less evenly than other alloys. Some alloys are more easily abraded, but have such a strong molecular structure that they can hold a narrow edge better. A different alloy might be able to hold an edge for longer but not be capable of sharpening to quite as sharp of an apex. Corrosion resistance is another important property for knife-making that different alloys excel at more than others. It's all a trade-off, and no single alloy is "the best" for every user or every use.