Thanks to its versatility, hard-wearing nature and approachable pricepoint, D2 steel comes standard in many popular knives. Here are some of our favorites. If you’re in the market for a reliable blade ...

A Dozier Knives Yukon Pro Skinner. Dozier Knives is well known for the use of D2 steel. Dozier Knives D2 steel doesn’t contain the 13 percent of chromium needed to be considered a true stainless ...

Winkler Knives makes some excellent blades with 5160. While this steel is a little low on carbon compared to some others, it still manages decent edge retention, and is easy to touch up with a strop.

The Ka-Bar Dozier S35VN Folding Hunter EDC knife is now available on the brand’s site for just $97. While pricier than the D2 version, it’s still a remarkable value for a steel of this caliber.

Which brings us to the Pilar III — a practical design that’s straightforward enough for the most inexperienced wielder of knives to handle but built with enough know-how to keep die-hard enthusiasts ...

This general workhorse of a knife has a 4.6" blade of D2 steel hardened to 58-60 Rockwell and featuring a drop-point profile with a slight spear point beveled in. Black G10 scales have a knapped ...