[Harp-L] Stainless or not

[Ellis Brayham <ellisbrayham@xxxxxxx>]

You are quite right, stainless comes in many types, the most common being type 302, (marked 18/8 on some utensils for example) which having a nickel content is usually very stain resistant; its lower price mate, the 400 series,(18/0) has no nickel, and altho called stainless steel, will rust quite readily.  The majority of domestic items are made of 18/0, only the best quality ones are 18/8. A useful test to find which is which, is using the magnet, or a kitchen knife sharpening steel will do. The 18/8 having nickel will repel the magnet, and the cheap 18/0 will attract.

An aside to the simplistic explanation above is that quite a number of people are allergic to nickel, so just buying a harmonica with a 'stainless' mouth piece will not necessarily remove a nickle allergy problem. It has to be also said that all 'stainless' also contains chromium, which again a few folks are allergic to.  Gold plating, or plastic are two alternatives to those who suffer from these allergies.
Ellis Brayham

Therefore flatware that is 18/10 means that 18% is chromium and 10% is nickel. The higher the nickel content, the more protection the flatware has from corrosion.