Does Sharpness Matter ?

R

rprocter

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i'm about 2 years and 60+ knives into this "custom knife thing", but still feel like a novice and am hoping some of the experienced 'elders' will respond.
about 1/2 my knives are from lesser known makers of user grade knives. that said, the knives are extremely well made and represent excellent value.
my focus here is on the others, mostly folders, all from well known, much respected makers, whose work may also be purchased as collectibles, not to be used.
what has surprised me, is that a some of these have a less than shaving sharp edge. most were purchased from the maker and some from BF members. one of my pre-purchase questions is "is the blade(s) sharp ?". my 2nd surprise is the usual answer received: "i don't know, it's never cut anything".
to me, no matter how excellent the fit and finish or how impressive the art aspect is, a custom knife should also be a superior cutter. but i have learned that this is not important to some seasoned collectors. am i just at a 'stage' in knife collecting that i will mature out of ?
examples of the 'class' of makers i am referring to, but whose knives i have ARE sharp includes, Snody, Chew, Davison(T.A.) Erickson, R.J. Martin, D'Holder, Krein, Dozier, Foster, and others.
this posting has been precipitated by the recent ebay purchase of an unused, uncarried, stag, fileworked single blade trapper by a much respected maker(known to all here for sure) whose single blade knives are listed on his website for ~ $500 and 2 bladers for $750-$1000. this knife is close to 'perfection', except for the edge grind which is obtuse and neither side actually reaches the edge. i.e. it is blunt rather than dull. this leads me to wonder if the ability to put a truly sharp edge on a blade is a different talent than that which is necessary for knife 'building'.
i am hoping for a little mentoring on this subject.
thanks, roland
 
Does Sharpness Matter ?

Hell yeah! :D

I've seen too many custom knives that were not sharp. But have also handle a bunch that were scary sharp.
 
Don Hanson III said:
Does Sharpness Matter ?

Hell yeah! :D

I've seen too many custom knives that were not sharp. But have also handle a bunch that were scary sharp.
Click to expand...





i'm with don on this one....i use alot of my customs and have handled many knives from well known makers that i wouldn't use till i sharpened them.....alot of them have poor geometry for actually cutting too.....it's sad but i think alot of people have never seen a sharp knife before......ryan
 
Sharpness matters to me. What good is a fancy custom folder if the only comment I recieve upon showing it off to friends (who are less enthusiastic about blades) is, "It's dull"?

I've mentioned it before here, but I have a really nice folder from a well known maker that fits this description. This is a maker who also participates in cutting competitions and knows sharp. But this folder, which is immaculate in all other respects, has an edge with an inclusive angle just shy of 90 (yes, ninety) degrees, and was too dull to slice paper.

I'm afraid it will decrease the value substantially if I put a hair splitting edge on it myself, and so far have been reluctant to take a chance (loss/damage) in shipping it to the maker for proper attention.
 
As long as it's sharp enough to open a letter, I'm good with it.

NOT

Being ultra razor sharp if very important to me. I like it when you can drop a sheet of computer paper and slice it before it hits the ground.

A dull knife is like a gun that won't shoot.

Is there anyone here who doesn't care who made their custom knife, what the steel make-up is and if the blade is dull? ;)
 
there some incredible knives in David Darom's book which are intentionally left unsharpened.
David, do you know who I'm talking about? I think it was in the Collections book...
 
I like my knives very sharp. However, depending on the knife's intended use, sometimes it's not made with a razor edge but with the edge a bit thicker and stronger.
 
Sharpness sure matters to me! I even have a better first impression by a knifes sharpness than what it looks like. I recently acquired a new blade that was not sharp at all. AFAIK the blade had never been used and it doesn't seem the edge has had any work done since the factory. I plan on getting a good Lansky or Spyderco sharpening system and taking care of it. Not necessarily a bad thing, but for the OOB experience it makes a difference.
 
I have a beautiful custom from a well known maker that just won't get sharp. Maybe the Heat Treat...I do not know. I bought a David Mosier and it is a laser beam. As a result I now have 4 Mosiers. David's knives also have superior fit and finish and are just damn sturdy. I am far more careful when I buy customs now.

I agree sharp is critical. I use my knives, even the expensive customs, so sharp is important.
 
I won't read what others have responded in order not to get in trouble, and in order to write my opinion without prejudice. Yes, a knife must be sharp, very sharp. Period, end of story. A knife that is built to be put in a safe and that can't cut a tomato, well, that's a piece of jewelry or an extravagance or whatever you want to call it, certainly not a righteous knife. I understand that such a "knife" might be appealing to some, and I respect their preference, but they have no value for me. Just my $0.002.

Of course, anyone with a dull blade of good steel and willing to depart with it, I'll take it (it'll be razor sharp in no time at all.) ;)


rprocter said:
i'm about 2 years and 60+ knives into this "custom knife thing", but still feel like a novice and am hoping some of the experienced 'elders' will respond.
about 1/2 my knives are from lesser known makers of user grade knives. that said, the knives are extremely well made and represent excellent value.
my focus here is on the others, mostly folders, all from well known, much respected makers, whose work may also be purchased as collectibles, not to be used.
what has surprised me, is that a some of these have a less than shaving sharp edge. most were purchased from the maker and some from BF members. one of my pre-purchase questions is "is the blade(s) sharp ?". my 2nd surprise is the usual answer received: "i don't know, it's never cut anything".
to me, no matter how excellent the fit and finish or how impressive the art aspect is, a custom knife should also be a superior cutter. but i have learned that this is not important to some seasoned collectors. am i just at a 'stage' in knife collecting that i will mature out of ?
examples of the 'class' of makers i am referring to, but whose knives i have ARE sharp includes, Snody, Chew, Davison(T.A.) Erickson, R.J. Martin, D'Holder, Krein, Dozier, Foster, and others.
this posting has been precipitated by the recent ebay purchase of an unused, uncarried, stag, fileworked single blade trapper by a much respected maker(known to all here for sure) whose single blade knives are listed on his website for ~ $500 and 2 bladers for $750-$1000. this knife is close to 'perfection', except for the edge grind which is obtuse and neither side actually reaches the edge. i.e. it is blunt rather than dull. this leads me to wonder if the ability to put a truly sharp edge on a blade is a different talent than that which is necessary for knife 'building'.
i am hoping for a little mentoring on this subject.
thanks, roland
Click to expand...
 
I think its funny we never see custom letter openers cause I'd bet that every maker has made at least one.
 
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