Does Anyone Prefer Combo Edge?

One of the main things I dislike about serrations is that if one of the teeth chips off then there is really no way you can repair it, you will be just stuck with a damaged serration.

I could cut rope just fine with a plain edge, I have no need for a combo edge......I hate it when a knife company only offers a combo edge on a new model, for example the Buck Endeavor only comes with a combo edge, the knife looks good for the price but the useless serrations prevent me from buying it.

If I need to cut branches I use one of these, it's probably the only useful tool that I need with serrations:
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stabman said:
I prefer plain edge, but have bought combo edge when that's all there was (discontinued knives, that sort of thing).
The serrated part has come in handy for "sawing" through materials that a plain edge slides off of though...no matter how sharp.
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This. Even a very sharp plain edge doesn't cut hard plastic as well as serrations. It'll just slide off when you use pressure, which can be quite dangerous
 
C_Becker said:
This. Even a very sharp plain edge doesn't cut hard plastic as well as serrations. It'll just slide off when you use pressure, which can be quite dangerous
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Very true.
For most materials I prefer a nice sharp plain edge, but serrations certainly are better for certain tasks. :)
 
IMO the best bait knife is a Stainless Mora Combo Edge. Getting through bones will dull a PE so fast (especially when you chunk a Horse Mullet cutting through the 1/16" - 1/8" spine with 5-10 horizontal cuts per fish). This combo gives you the best of both worlds. When you want to fillet off flesh in a detailed manner, you have the PE and fine tip. When you want to saw through bone, you use the SE.

Using 2 knives for this would just jam me up, waste time, and add more steps to the process while alternating back and forth. Without serrations, you end up running the knife back and forth and it still doesn't cut through thick fish bones. You'll have to push down hard and break the bone and possibly mangle your bait (and maybe your edge) in the process. With the serrations you fly right through it.



And chunking Horse Mullet leads to big Red Drum :D

 
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I'll admit that most of my folders are combo edge. I was/am ignorant when it comes to good knives, but I'm working on it. The problem I see is that the combo edge takes up the main (for me anyway) working section of the blade. The biggest advantage to me of the serrations is rope cutting, but a properly sharpened blade will make short work of most ropes. I have used the serrations as a saw in a pinch, but its not justification enough to keep buying combo edges. I think it comes down to marketing. Most people think that combo edges look cooler so thats whats made/sold.
 
jmclfrsh said:
I'm a combo edge guy. Was walking the dog with a very sharp PE and went to trim back a branch (about as thick as a ring finger) that was hanging over the sidewalk. Thought it would be cake. Wrong!

Ended up sawing, and sawing, was not working. And this knife shaved hair, no problem.

Next day, brought my trusty Emerson CE CQC8 with me. Got to the branch, saw marks still there. Put the serrated portion on the branch about 4" away from my other "attempted" cut. One pull, branch was severed.

That's why I'm a combo edge guy. A knife is meant to cut stuff. Serrations can mean less drama, and a job done quickly...

...Zip tie? No question, serrations blow away PE every time. Go out to the garage and try it with some zip ties and a chunk of a 2x4. Slide the blade in until the serrated portion (back side of the serrations, the flat side) is engaging the zip tie, twist the handle and "pop!" the zip tie is severed. No damage to the packaging or the item itself.
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Some of it comes down to technique. Yes, a PE will not saw through a branch. Instead, you have to perform a few simple push cuts. The third or fourth cut will usually sever the branch. If it doesn't, by that point you can easily snap it. I use this technique regularly on branches thicker than the one you've described, and it doesn't take very long at all. Will a CE saw through the branch more quickly? Probably; however, I can cut a branch plenty quick enough with a PE using this technique.

As for zip ties, I don't have a problem cutting them with a PE. I just push into them gently at about a 45 degree angle, and there are no issues. If I'm able to pull through them at an angle, then it's even easier. Again, a CE can probably cut a zip tie more quickly; however, I don't feel that I'm at a significant disadvantage with a PE.

I'm definitely not against CEs. To each his own. I just want to offer a different perspective.
 
I think pain edge is best. I don't know if it has already been said in this thread but you can sometimes sharpen a pain edge knife up on an 8000 stone and it will split hears and slice real well. Or you can sharpen it on a rough stone and leave a toothy edge and it will bite into materials almost like it's got a fine micro serrated edge. Pain edge has more versatility for me.
 
When I was a kid (8-18), back in the 70's and early 80's, my brothers and I spent most of our free time in the woods. We worked on a cattle farm during the summer and after school. I collected knives and swords at that time, but there was nowhere near the abundance of knife styles and options available now (at least not where I lived). I typically carried a USMC knife or a Camillus / Western 6" hunting knife all day and they were used constantly. I still have one of those old knives and it was sharpened so often the cutting edge literally looks like a kukri. I don't recall ever having a problem cutting anything, or wishing for a saw on any of my knives. Most of what was available was plain-edge with leather-washer handles. I don't think I saw a combo-edge or serrated blade, other than on a steak knife, until I was in my mid-twenties.

My first combo edge knife was a Gerber, and maybe it was the cutting tasks I was engaged in (or the style of the serrations) but I was pretty underwhelmed by the thing. I did more skinning, carving, and chopping than the typical "urban" cutting tasks like slicing cardboard and cutting zip-ties. I still have the Gerber, but it hasn't been used in twenty five years. It saw pretty limited usage when I first got it, too. It just didn't fit my needs.

I like a fully serrated blade for climbing or sailing. If I were cutting zip-ties or pallet-banding all day long I would probably carry a fully serrated knife for that type of task and a plain-edge for everything else. The combo-edge just isn't my flavor, but I do think it is directly related to the type of cutting I typically do. As far as looks go I don't really care for the appearance of the combo-edge blades, but again, I find myself drawn more to the lines of a knife that suits the type of cutting I do. I would never carry a knife just because it looked nice to me. It's a tool, and carrying around a purty, but unsuitable tool seems odd to me. It has to fit the bill or I have no use for it. What fits somebody else's needs is up to them. A Fallkniven Frej probably isn't the right blade to be carrying if you work in a shoe store. For me, the only serrations I need are on my steak knives. Everything else is plain-edge. For cutting small limbs I use a pair of Felco pruning shears. They are plain-edge too.
 
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flip888 said:
I think pain edge is best. I don't know if it has already been said in this thread but you can sometimes sharpen a pain edge knife up on an 8000 stone and it will split hears and slice real well. Or you can sharpen it on a rough stone and leave a toothy edge and it will bite into materials almost like it's got a fine micro serrated edge. Pain edge has more versatility for me.
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This is an excellent point. A lot of guys who regularly use a plain edge to cut rope do this. They sharpen the knife on a rough stone, and that's it. A toothy plain edge cuts fibrous material more effectively, whereas a polished plain edge excels at push cuts.
 
I hate serrations, personally. I feel (and you may disagree) that if your plain edge can't do what the serrations can... It's not sharp enough! The last Combo-edge knife i bought had razor sharp serrations but that part of the blade became useless when they dulled. Of course they can be sharpened but it is difficult and requires even more tools to do so than just a simple stone to touch up a PE.

Recently I've been looking more at the Veff Serrations by CRKT and man are they beautiful. I feel these would be far more effective and also substantially easier to re-sharpen.
 
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Killtation said:
I hate serrations, personally. I feel (and you may disagree) that if your plain edge can't do what the serrations can... It's not sharp enough! The last Combo-edge knife i bought had razor sharp serrations but that part of the blade became useless when they dulled.

Recently I've been looking more at the Veff Serrations by CRKT and man are they beautiful. I feel these would also be substantially easier to re-sharpen.
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A $6 - smith's diamond rod "pen sharpener" will undull those serrations in about 4 minutes...
 
I have one of those Smiths combo sharpener things I carry for camping, and the diamond rod does well on serrations.
Personally prefer PE for about everything. Even my steak knives, just dig the cleaner cuts. If your knife wont cut zip ties you need a sharper knife. If you are hacking a ton of cardboard everyday try a toothy grind. It will actually smooth out to a sharp grind with most good steels, then you have to dull that.
 
I have a CRKT Incendor with Veff serrations and they do sharpen with a diamond rod very easily. I'm not an expert by any means but I ordinarily prefer plain edge, myself. That being sruff: the Incendor is probably my favorite EDC blade, at the moment. Mostly because of its deployment speed/fondling factor.
 
Killtation said:
I hate serrations, personally. I feel (and you may disagree) that if your plain edge can't do what the serrations can... It's not sharp enough!
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That really depends on the material being cut.
The example that stands out in my mind was this hose attached to a vacuum line on a rotovap (basically a distiller) at the lab.
The hose was so many years old that ALL flexibility was gone.
I had to cut it shorter after an attachment had broken and got jammed inside...a hair shaving edge just slid right over the surface.

It took a LOT of sawing with serrations around the hose before the task was done (an actual saw would have been even better due to the way the material had changed); then it turned out that the stupid hose had gotten so stiff that a new attachment could not be inserted into the end, even after coring the hose out to a larger inner diameter.

We had to end up getting an entirely different hose. :foot:

Some materials are cut best with a plain edge. :)
Others are better with serrations.
And others are best cut with a saw.
 
Okay so I had to come back and confess my hypocrisy. After slinging poo about combo edges the next knife I buy is a combo. My only defense is good steel and custom Veff serrations.

 
@LeathermanGX said:
Okay so I had to come back and confess my hypocrisy. After slinging poo about combo edges the next knife I buy is a combo. My only defense is good steel and custom Veff serrations.

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And the fact that those serrations and the knife itself both look mighty cool. ;)
 
I like plain edge, but among friends who don't know much about what's out there, and who don't use knives much, combo edges are quite common. Then again, they usually buy S&W and Gerber.
 
@LeathermanGX said:
Okay so I had to come back and confess my hypocrisy. After slinging poo about combo edges the next knife I buy is a combo. My only defense is good steel and custom Veff serrations.
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Amazing! That blade looks great. How do they cut compared against a standard spyderedge? Seem more directional... not suited for sawing action but more for a pulling only action.

Mikel
 
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