It's what you can't see that matters the most in your knives.

  At Cudaway, every knife goes through a liquid nitrogen dip after heat treatment. This step is one part of our 33-stage process, and it changes the steel at the molecular level. The result is a knife that keeps its edge and stands up to daily use.

Imagine the knife blade as a parking lot where cars (atoms) are constantly jostling for position during forging and heat treatment. Some park neatly between lines; others sprawl across two spaces. When the metal is heated again during manufacturing, the cars start to move around, and as the metal begins to cool again, those cars find slightly new parking spaces. Which means even more cars can be double-parked.

 Essentially, the atoms within the metal get excited and start to shift as the blade heats and cools. Most atoms settle into stable structures, but some end up in unstable positions. This causes imperfections in the blade, which can lead to chips or even full blade breaks. Cryogenic blade treatment alleviates this by briefly shocking the molecular structure at an extreme temperature (-300 degrees F or lower).

 This process generates ultra-fine carbides that fill microscopic gaps in the steel's structure, which prevent the atoms in the steel from shifting as they heat and cool through our production process. Additionally, this process corrects existing unstable atomic structures from forging by filling the weak points that could hinder blade performance. The result is a harder blade (62 HRC). Now, traditionally, this would mean more brittle too, but because of the carbides that are formed from this process, it allows us to achieve 62 HRC hardness while maintaining optimal steel strength, reducing the brittleness.

The science is compelling, but here's what matters to you: Cudaway can offer you a knife that pushes the boundaries of an already incredible steel. Our knives come razor sharp out of the box, and you will experience longer times between sharpening, as compared to other knives. Furthermore, the strength of our blades is comparable to German steel, so they are made to take the abuse of day-to-day use. Your knives won't need special treatment.

All of this to say, Cudaway has been, and still is, dedicated to making a product that allows you not to compromise.