-
The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is available! Price is $250 ea (shipped within CONUS).
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/
How sharp can it be?
- Thread starter Fred.Rowe
- Start date
Fred.Rowe
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
- Joined
- May 2, 2004
- Messages
- 6,848
In the illustration below are four blades with four different bevel grinds. From the left side the first blade was ground with a three degree bevel on each side. The second a six degree bevel. The third a nine degree bevel and the last one a twelve degree bevel, or as some would call it a scandi grind. The blades are highlighted in yellow. All four blades are ground to a zero edge.
Each of these blades was sharpened using a 12 degree angle per side or 24 degrees inclusive.
Even though all four knives have distinctly different bevel grinds and thicken at the spine as the degree of grind increases, all four of them will cut exactly the same along the edge of the blade. Each will cut the same with exactly the same pressure applied. The two main differences is how the blade looks in profile; The three degree bevel grind will show little indication of the sharpened edge where as the 9 degree ground blade will show the top portion of the sharpened edge going halfway up the bevel.
Secondly, of course a knife is not just an edge of sharpened steel there is the blade and its geometry to consider. How thick, how wide how long. How does the blade perform when cutting in the real world.
Back to my original premise; A knife can be sharpened without knowing what angles were used in grinding the bevels; or for that matter the angle used to sharpen it, a twelve degree edge is just that two intersecting planes with an inclusive angle of 24 degrees. But knowing the angles adds a lot to the users knowledge of the knife. Knowing the angles of the bevels allows the person to make the best sharpening choice for a specific blade and its use.
This thread and all threads I start are never posted, looking to condemn or marginalize anyone's technique or manner of making knives. They are posted with the hope of generating discussion and the sharing of knowledge. There is a huge amount of collective knowledge that makes up the knifemaking community, the small amount of knowledge I possess does not stand alone.
Fred
Each of these blades was sharpened using a 12 degree angle per side or 24 degrees inclusive.
Even though all four knives have distinctly different bevel grinds and thicken at the spine as the degree of grind increases, all four of them will cut exactly the same along the edge of the blade. Each will cut the same with exactly the same pressure applied. The two main differences is how the blade looks in profile; The three degree bevel grind will show little indication of the sharpened edge where as the 9 degree ground blade will show the top portion of the sharpened edge going halfway up the bevel.
Secondly, of course a knife is not just an edge of sharpened steel there is the blade and its geometry to consider. How thick, how wide how long. How does the blade perform when cutting in the real world.
Back to my original premise; A knife can be sharpened without knowing what angles were used in grinding the bevels; or for that matter the angle used to sharpen it, a twelve degree edge is just that two intersecting planes with an inclusive angle of 24 degrees. But knowing the angles adds a lot to the users knowledge of the knife. Knowing the angles of the bevels allows the person to make the best sharpening choice for a specific blade and its use.
This thread and all threads I start are never posted, looking to condemn or marginalize anyone's technique or manner of making knives. They are posted with the hope of generating discussion and the sharing of knowledge. There is a huge amount of collective knowledge that makes up the knifemaking community, the small amount of knowledge I possess does not stand alone.
Fred
Last edited: