Abstract: A process for increasing the resistance to wear of the surface of hard metal parts subject to wear, such as a cutting blade of metal cutting tools, and the product which results from the process, which includes coating the surface of the hard metal, for example, cemented carbide articles with a first layer comprised of one or more layers of a metallic carbide or nitride in a total thickness ranging from 0.01 to 10 .mu.m, a second layer comprised of one or more layers of a refractory oxide, such as an oxide of aluminum, zirconium, silicon, calcium, magnesium, titanium, and hafnium, and stabilized zirconium oxide in a total thickness ranging from 0.5 to 10 .mu.m, and depositing over the refractory oxide coating a third layer comprised of one or more layers of a nitride, carbonitride, oxynitride, oxycarbide or oxycarbonitride and boride of such metals as titanium, zirconium, hafnium, aluminum and silicon in a total thickness ranging from 1 to 10 .mu.m.

Abstract: A process for increasing the resistance to wear of the surface of hard metal parts subject to wear, such as a cutting blade of metal cutting tools, and the product which results from the process, which includes coating the surface of the hard metal, for example, cemented carbide articles with a first layer comprised of one or more layers of a metallic carbide or nitride in a total thickness ranging from 0.01 to 10 .mu.m, a second layer comprised of one or more layers of a refractory oxide, such as an oxide of aluminum, zirconium, silicon, calcium, magnesium, titanium, and hafnium, and stabilized zirconium oxide in a total thickness ranging from 0.5 to 10 .mu.m, and depositing over the refractory oxide coating a third layer comprised of one or more layers of a nitride, carbonitride, oxynitride, oxycarbide or oxycarbonitride .[.and boride.]. of such metals as titanium, zirconium, hafnium, aluminum and silicon in a total thickness ranging from 1 to 10 .mu.m.