65 Mn Spring Steel

A Chinese spring steel with properties comparable to 5160 – flexible, tough and well-suited for functional cutting swords at an accessible price point.

65 Mn is a Chinese-standard (GB/T 1222) high carbon spring steel with approximately 0.62 – 0.70% carbon and a substantial manganese content of 0.90 – 1.30%. This elevated manganese gives 65 Mn its deep hardenability and creates a steel with impressive flexibility and resilience when properly tempered – characteristics which make it well-suited for sword blades which need to endure the stresses of regular cutting use.
In practice, 65 Mn performs comparably to the well-regarded 5160 spring steel. It offers a solid balance of toughness, edge retention and flexibility that makes it a dependable choice for functional swords. The steel is used by several manufacturers including the original Paul Chen Hanwei. For those seeking a capable spring-steel blade without the premium associated with some Western alloys, 65 Mn delivers reliable performance.