The Soul of the Clifft: 125Cr1 Steel and the Beauty of a Hamon
At Dauntless Manufacturing, material selection is never an afterthought. Every steel we use is chosen with intent, driven by function and form, performance and purpose. For our award-winning Clifft Bowie, we selected a steel that might not be familiar to everyone, but has a cult following among bladesmiths and steel nerds alike: 125Cr1.
What's in a Name?
125Cr1 is a high-carbon, low-alloy steel produced by Uddeholm in Sweden. It’s also known in various circles as:
-
26C3 (its European standard designation)
-
"Spicy White" (a nod to its performance and clean chemistry)
-
Hitachi White Steel analog (due to its similarity to the famous White #1 and White #2 steels from Japan)
Its chemistry is simple but powerful. Containing roughly 1.25% carbon and a very small amount of chromium (~0.3%), this steel is incredibly clean and fine-grained. That purity gives it the ability to reach extremely high hardness levels without becoming brittle, which is part of what makes it so exciting for knife makers.
Why 125Cr1 for the Clifft?
When we designed the Clifft Bowie, we wanted a steel that could hold a razor-sharp edge, take a hamon, and harken back to traditional bowie aesthetics while still performing under modern demands. 125Cr1 checked every box:
Hamon Capability
With a simple, carbon-rich composition and no alloying elements that inhibit carbide solution or migration, 125Cr1 is ideal for differential heat treatment. This process involves clay-coating the spine of the knife before heating and quenching the blade. The uncoated edge cools faster, hardening into martensite, while the coated spine cools slower, forming a tougher pearlite or bainite structure. This hardness contrast creates the hamon — a visual and functional transition line between hard and soft zones.
In the Clifft, we lean into this traditional technique. The hamon on each blade is unique, formed by hand through controlled heat treat and quench cycles. It's not just for looks — it's a marker of craftsmanship and functional metallurgical control.
Toughness and Edge Retention
While 125Cr1 doesn't have the extreme impact toughness of some of our heavy-duty steels like CPM 3V, it brings something different to the table:
-
Edge stability at high hardness
-
Superb slicing performance
-
Controlled wear resistance
The fine grain size achievable with 125Cr1 allows the blade to take and hold a scary-sharp edge, even at Rockwell hardness values in the 64-66 range when fully hardened. For the Clifft, we differentially harden the blade, giving the edge high hardness and keeping the spine tougher, which provides resilience without sacrificing performance.
Ease of Sharpening
One of the joys of a simple steel like 125Cr1 is how easily it takes a screaming edge. Unlike high-alloy stainless steels packed with vanadium or tungsten carbides, 125Cr1 has a very low carbide volume. That means:
-
Faster sharpening
-
Easier edge maintenance
-
Finer, more refined edges
It’s a favorite among those who enjoy hand sharpening and polishing, as well as those chasing mirror-finish bevels and high contrast hamons.
How It Compares
For context, here’s how 125Cr1 stacks up to some other popular steels:
-
Versus 1095: 125Cr1 offers finer grain and slightly higher carbon, giving it better edge holding at high hardness.
-
Versus Hitachi White #1: Nearly identical in behavior and performance, with White #1 offering slightly higher purity and sometimes tighter carbides depending on the batch.
-
Versus AEB-L: AEB-L is tougher and stainless, making it ideal for general EDC and kitchen work, but it lacks hamon potential and the high hardness edge performance of 125Cr1.
A Nod to Tradition, Built for Today
In many ways, using 125Cr1 for the Clifft is a return to form. It’s a modern steel with echoes of the past — reminiscent of the steels used in historic Japanese swords and early American fighting knives. By combining this steel with modern heat treating techniques, precision grinding, and a razor-sharp edge geometry, the Clifft is more than just a bowie knife. It's a celebration of craftsmanship.
Each Clifft Bowie is a blend of steel and style, legacy and innovation. It’s a working tool and a collectible. A cutting instrument and a piece of metallurgical art.
Whether you're drawn to the Clifft for its visual drama or its cutting performance, the soul of the blade lies in its steel. And in the case of 125Cr1, that soul is fiery, elegant, and unapologetically sharp.
Indomiti Sumus.