Will the black coating on my knife wear off?

You have been looking at beautiful knives and some of them have a black coating on the blade.  Everyone wonders if the knife coating will come off with use.

The short answer is, "Yes."

Knife coatings are just that--coatings on a hardened steel blade.  As you use the knife, the coatings experience friction and abrasion from the materials you are cutting.  Eventually you will begin to see scratches in the knife coating.

So you have to determine if that is something you can live with.

Some people cannot abide scratches in the coating.  So those people are always better buying a knife with a satin finished blade because it will continue to have a less scratched appearance.

Other people look at the scratches in the knife coating as a badge of honor for their knife.

All of that being said, the coatings used by Benchmade Knives and Zero Tolerance (ZT Knives) are the best in the industry and they wear much better than older coatings did.

So now, you have to decide.  :)