Are plain edge knives better looking?

D

Dr sharp

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Oct 20, 2003
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Did you ever notice most high end knives are plain edge..is this because it looks better to the eye. It seems most knife newbies like the 50/50 blades, then after a while they go over to the plain edge camp. Ive also read where a properly sharpened plain edge can do anything a serated can do.
 
Complex Answer:
Yes they definately look better IMHO, but that is an oppinion question. Others here might find serrated better looking.

In terms of cutting performance it depends on the task, but I feel that a plain edge is much more adaptable to the task at hand.

For instance:
If you need to cut tomatoes, cardboard, or letters open, use a highly polished razor edge. If you need to cut rope, carpet, or plastic blister packs use a coarser edge.

Truth be told though, a razor edge works fine all the time, so I would keep a highly polished edge on my knife for EDC. If I knew I was going to be cutting carpet exclusively for a while during the day, I might run the edge on some coarser stones, as the coarser edge will cut through that type of material a little faster.

A serrated edge will excell at tasks like rope or carpet cutting, but won't do as well as a plain edge at most other tasks. (A highly polished edge will do fine at those tasks too, and a coarser PE even better, but for the most part the serrations have a slight edge there.)

I'll stick with plain edge.
-Kevin
 
I prefer plain edge over a serrated edge for many things, and a serrated edge for others. But I dislike combo edges. So I carry a plain edge (bali or auto) along with a serrated Spyderco. If I had to choose one, I'd stick with the plain edge.

As for which looks better? I'd have to say plain edges look smoother with cleaner lines, but then there's pictures like this that are just too badass to discount (credits to Sonny Burnett).
 
When I was 12 years old serrated knives were a novelty (yes, I am as old as dirt) and I thought they were cool. I bought Mom a serrated Flint Vanadium carving knife. Subsequently I had to maintain that knife. Suddenly serrations became much less appealing to look at. They have only grown uglier over the years. They got real ugly when I went door-to-door sharpening knives one summer. I charged double for serrated blades, but it was more like 5x the work to do a really fine job on them. I can only see serrations through the eyes of my experience. They just don't look pretty to me anymore.
 
Yep, plain edged knives just plain look better unless it is my fully serrated Protech TR1 :D
 
There are very few knives that the serrations are an integral part of the design, rather than just glommed on in place of a plain edge.

Perhaps that is the reason plain edge knives look better.
 
For me, plain edges look better, but my benchmade 806SD2 has proven itself to be so handy and verastile so many times that I would not trade it for the plain edged version. It is half plain and half serrated, about 2 inches each, and for all of the uses I have put it to it has excelled. There have been enough times that the serrations have been very helpful like with fiberous stuff at awkward angles for instance.

Other people will say cary a fully serrated and a plain edge. I like carying the half serrated large, a medium plain edge, and a small reverse s shaped plain edge.

All that said, I still think the plain edge looks prettier.

Chris
 
I think plain edge blades look better, and also perform better in just about 99.9% of all situations. I very rarely reach for a serrated knife, or wish I had a serrated knife. I think that a combo edge is just a waste in terms of usefullness as you don't get enough of either edge to be truly useful.

I see many people dress up a factory folder with a combo edge, such as an LCC for example. Put a satin finish on the blade, some kind of fancy handle scales, colored bolsters, filework, etc. Honestly I feel al that work and money is a waste because the serrations make the knife look like a cheap POS. I just think that in most cases a partially serrated blade ruins an otherwise good knife.
 
Its already been said - plain edges do more things better, while serrations do some things very well. So to start off, I'd just prefer a nicely honed razor sharp plain edge.

But also think it has to do with trends and marketing.

The serrated blade has been displayed to most of us with a "tactical" implications. I don't mean "fighting" but rather the idea that under SOME very extreme circumstances, a serrated blade will do knife-jobs extraordinarily well. If you imagine freely, what you consider an ultra-emergency situation where a knife needs to be deloyed... might include things like a car crash, hung up on a rope, etc. The kind of images that appeal to most of us as non-combative emergencies. In those circumstances, when you need to cut a rope immediately or slash through some locked-up seatbelt, the serrated blade excels. It then doesn't even need to be able to last particularly long, whittle wood for a fire or slice tomatoes for dinner.

Once again, a plain edge will do just as well, and will always be more versatile and adaptable to the situation. The smarts are between one's ears, not on the blade.

My 2 cents. Jason.
 
My preference is for blades that have nothing that breaks up their lines. I don't like edge serrations or saw teeth on the spine. I also don't really care for filework.
 
I personally like plain edges better. I would think they would be easier and cheaper to make for custom/high-end (read low production numbers) knives.
 
I also consider PE knives better looking. My Benchmade LE's are all plain edge. ;)

That said, however, I don't have any problem carrying combo edge knives as users. There are just some materials, such as hard plastic straps, that serrated edges just sail right through.
 
Sometimes, it's a mood thing. Plain or Serrations really start to be noticed when the knife is dull. To tell you guys the truth, I keep my knives sharp and don't really use my knife enough where serration or plain would become too noticeable( unless cutting fiber). Recall that serrations are pretty much always chisel edged. When i use my Spyderco Police knive to cut plastic sheeting. The cut comes out curved. However, there are some days, I just like the full serrations and don't care if the cut comes out to be off. There are other days, that i like the way how an Old Timer stockman whittles and slids through something smooth as glass. I think it's really a mood thing.
 
Love PE most of the time. Once you cut stuff that dulls knives quickly, full SE becomes your friend
 
They got real ugly when I went door-to-door sharpening knives one summer. I charged double for serrated blades said:
What do you use for sharpening serrations? I use a Spyderco Tri Angle sharpmaker with decent results.

OTOH, my EDC is a SE Delica and I am very pleased the way it performs. (I also have a PE version, so I can make the difference). PE is easier to maintain indeed but SE lasts longer.
But since the question was mainly about the looks rather than functionality, I think that all depends on the design. Some knives look better with serrations, while to others those just don't fit. Also, there are several brands that developed their own style of serrations (for instance Spyderco and Cold Steel) and some of them may be more eye appealing than others.
And of course, as they say, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so the subjective factor is very important here.
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