Lots of companies talk about the quality of their steel. PUMA® proves it. We proof every single PUMA® knife made in Europe for hardness. If you examine the right hand side of your knife, you will see a small indented dot on the blade. This small dot is the “proof mark” from a Rockwell hardness tester. Using a diamond-pointed needle, every knife made in Solingen and Spain is tested for hardness. This needle causes the proof mark that is a symbol of a PUMA and is your personal assurance that your knife will deliver the PUMA® quality promise. Before we package our knives, we know for sure that they deliver the right degree of hardness. If it does not pass, it does not ship.

The steel used to make PUMA German knives is the best knife steel in the world. The proper amount of carbon makes a knife easy to sharpen and hold a cutting edge, but it also allows a knife to rust more easily unless other trace elements are added to protect oxidation. In our 440C steel, we add about 1% carbon for a great edge and about 17% chromium to maintain the temper but inhibit rust. About 0.35% Silicon is also added to the base alloy to deoxidize the steel and further stabilize the blade. Additionally, other trace elements such as manganese, phosphorus, sulfur, and molybdenum are added to increase the ability of the steel to form an edge and hold it once formed. These trace elements cause the molecules to align more evenly when cooling to give better structural strength and consistency. After the initial steel bars are formed, blades of models such as the White Hunter are then hot-drop forged. The steel bars are heated to between 3150 and 4200 degrees Fahenheit. Once heated, the blade is placed between two dies and mechanically forged under 2200 pounds of pressure to fit the shape of the dies. The hot drop forging process not only shapes the blade, it also once again improves the molecular structure of the steel. Once the PUMA® blade is forged, it is tempered and hand finished in 22 separate steps by skilled craftsmen, many of whom come from families that have been making PUMA® knives for literally 10 generations. Each step uses increasingly fi ne lubricants, oil coolants, and special polishing grease. One of every 100 blades made in Solingen is intentionally broken and inspected with a microscope to verify that the steel has been formed to specifi cations. This is a more expensive way to make knives, but we know that every knife that bears the PUMA proof mark really does deliver the promise of the best knife in the world.