HeatTreatBench · knife steel heat-treat recipes

14C28N Heat Treat Recipe

Stainless knife steel · target 58–62 HRC · austenitize 1950°F (1066°C)

plate
CategoryStainless
Austenitize (recommended)1950°F (1066°C)
Austenitize range1900–1975°F (1038–1079°C)
Preheat1450°F (788°C)
Soak at temperature5–15 min
QuenchPlate quench (aluminum plates); Sandvik official is oil quench at high cooling rate — plate quench is the maker substitute for thin blades
Cryo / sub-zeroOptional — dry ice or LN2 — recommended for the higher hardness / corrosion range
Temper2× 2 h · cool to room temp between cycles
Reliable hardness58–63 HRC
Sandvik nitrogen-alloyed stainless — clean, corrosion-resistant. Similar HT to AEB-L.

Temper → hardness chart

Approximate HRC after a double-temper at each temperature (from the sources below). Set your target and pick the matching temper.

Temper °FTemper °CHardness
300°F149°C62 HRC
350°F177°C61 HRC
400°F204°C60 HRC
450°F232°C58 HRC

Composition (typical, wt%)

Element%
C0.62%
Cr14%
Mn0.6%
Si0.2%
N0.11%

Alleima (Sandvik) 14C28N datasheet

HeatTreatBench — the recipes in your shop, offline

Get the full 14C28N recipe plus 25 more steels offline — set your target HRC and the app gives you the exact temper, with a forge timer and a per-blade log. Works in the shop with no signal.

Download on the App Store

Sources

More Stainless steels

AEB-L1950°F · 61–64 HRCNitro-V1900°F · 58–64 HRCMagnaCut2050°F · 59–63 HRCCPM-1541950°F · 60–62 HRCCPM-S30V1950°F · 58.5–60.5 HRCM3902050°F · 60–62 HRC