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Stainless steel

AUS-8

Japanese mid-tier that aged well: tough for its hardness and very easy to bring back.

Typical hardness
57-59 HRC
Edge retention
1/5
Toughness
4/5
Corrosion resistance
3/5
Ease of sharpening
5/5

1-5 is a relative ranking drawn from published composition and hardness, not a lab measurement. Higher is better on every axis, and no steel is a 5 across the board — edge retention and toughness pull against each other.

5 knives in AUS-8

Ontario RAT Model 1 — 3.5 inch drop point blade
Ontario

Ontario RAT Model 1

Blade
3.5″
Weight
4.95 oz
Drop PointAUS-8
EDC FolderBudget
Havalon Talon Hunt — 3.5 inch drop point blade
Havalon

Havalon Talon Hunt

Blade
3.5″
Weight
4.6 oz
Drop PointAUS-8Replaceable
Replaceable-BladeMid
Outdoor Edge SwingBlaze — 3.6 inch drop point blade
Outdoor Edge

Outdoor Edge SwingBlaze

Blade
3.6″
Weight
7.2 oz
Drop PointAUS-8
Hunting FixedBudget
Ontario RAT Model 2 — 3 inch drop point blade
Ontario

Ontario RAT Model 2

Blade
3″
Weight
2.7 oz
Drop PointAUS-8
EDC FolderBudget
SOG Seal Pup Elite — 4.85 inch clip point blade
SOG

SOG Seal Pup Elite

Blade
4.85″
Weight
5.4 oz
Clip PointAUS-8
Bushcraft & CampMid