How sharp is a rockstead really?

N

nick_30

Joined
Aug 21, 2011
Messages
616
Just curious, what hht level would it be at for instance. Could it spilt hairs or pop them off.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
Factory edge is ultimately kind of irrelevant.
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Exactly!!! It’s pretty much up to the person doing the sharpening before hitting the market. I’m assuming the op is referring to the blade steel since he mentioned hht (heat treat???). ZDP-189 is a really hard high quality steel that can take a nice keen edge but without good sharpening equipment, it can be a pain to sharpen. I think it’s hardened to 64hrc.
 
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I've seen all the videos but I am wondering from members who have actually handled the knife.
 
nick_30 said:
I've seen all the videos but I am wondering from members who have actually handled the knife.
Click to expand...
Well, if it's not sharp, send it back to Japan (if you are the original owner that is) to get it back sharp as hell again.

Iirc there's a thread specifically for Rockstead on all this.
 
I was going to say several things.
Maybe I will skip those and make an attempt to educate young minds for the benefit of the planet and future generations of budding engineers.
This ten dollar kitchen knife not only whittles curls off a single hair but comes that sharp from the factory.
Every time.
I know because I have purchased three of them . . . from different batches over a considerable period of time.
Think about that when you buy a four hundred dollar knife and it is not only dull but has grind problems or you have to reprofile it to cut decently let alone whittle hair.

IMG_4997.JPG
Heat treat doesn't have much to do with this. These in the photo aren't all that hard or fantastically well heat treated though quite good for the price.
Heck you could take a piece of un heat treatable mild steel and make it hair whittling sharp. Obviously it wouldn't last long.

The thinness of the knives in the photo only has a limited effect on the sharpness; I have made 54° inclusive edges even more sharp and can do it every single time with no effort with my sharpening jigs.
I hope this gives some perspective.
Buy the knife you like.
If you want it sharp sharpen it or get it sharpened.
Sadly though . . . unless you are buying one of the Cold Steel Kitchen Classic ten dollar knives shown above . . . don't expect the knife to come sharp from the maker.
It's a weird world . . . don't you think ?
 
Maybe there's an emphasis on out of box sharpness because almost none of them are used.

Wowbagger said:
I was going to say several things.
Maybe I will skip those and make an attempt to educate young minds for the benefit of the planet and future generations of budding engineers.
This ten dollar kitchen knife not only whittles curls off a single hair but comes that sharp from the factory.
Every time.
I know because I have purchased three of them . . . from different batches over a considerable period of time.
Think about that when you buy a four hundred dollar knife and it is not only dull but has grind problems or you have to reprofile it to cut decently let alone whittle hair.

View attachment 937659
Heat treat doesn't have much to do with this. These in the photo aren't all that hard or fantastically well heat treated though quite good for the price.
Heck you could take a piece of un heat treatable mild steel and make it hair whittling sharp. Obviously it wouldn't last long.

The thinness of the knives in the photo only has a limited effect on the sharpness; I have made 54° inclusive edges even more sharp and can do it every single time with no effort with my sharpening jigs.
I hope this gives some perspective.
Buy the knife you like.
If you want it sharp sharpen it or get it sharpened.
Sadly though . . . unless you are buying one of the Cold Steel Kitchen Classic ten dollar knives shown above . . . don't expect the knife to come sharp from the maker.
It's a weird world . . . don't you think ?
Click to expand...

Thin knives cut well. Old fixed blades used more than any "hard use" knife today have thin flexible blades.
 
I have two Rockstead, one sharper than the other.

The two sharpest knives I have ever handled are the Rockstead Kou (currently using daily) and a RJ Martin kodzuka (1998)

Disclaimer: I have handled a fair amount of knives :)
 
I want one of those presses ! ! !
I have been cutting my apples wrong all this time :(

Boy needs to buy a saw though . . . he was wearing himself out trying to cut that bamboo with a knife. Probably just needs to put one of Ankerson's 400 grit edges on there. That'll saw through the stuff ;)

Edge longevity :
Just shows what a decent cutting board / surface will do for you.
I swear by my white plastic cutting boards ! ! ! Note the white plastic cutting surface in the first vid.
Look how sharp this forty dollar knife is after a year of daily kitchen use. It'll hang on the thinnest touch to the skin of this apple. Which is one of my sharpness tests off a stone.
IMG_4999.JPG
IMG_5002.jpg

All kidding aside. The Rockstead is a stellar knife ! ! !
Buy one . . . buy three.
Enjoy ! ! !
 
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Wowbagger said:
I was going to say several things.
Maybe I will skip those and make an attempt to educate young minds for the benefit of the planet and future generations of budding engineers.
This ten dollar kitchen knife not only whittles curls off a single hair but comes that sharp from the factory.
Every time.
I know because I have purchased three of them . . . from different batches over a considerable period of time.
Think about that when you buy a four hundred dollar knife and it is not only dull but has grind problems or you have to reprofile it to cut decently let alone whittle hair.

View attachment 937659
Heat treat doesn't have much to do with this. These in the photo aren't all that hard or fantastically well heat treated though quite good for the price.
Heck you could take a piece of un heat treatable mild steel and make it hair whittling sharp. Obviously it wouldn't last long.

The thinness of the knives in the photo only has a limited effect on the sharpness; I have made 54° inclusive edges even more sharp and can do it every single time with no effort with my sharpening jigs.
I hope this gives some perspective.
Buy the knife you like.
If you want it sharp sharpen it or get it sharpened.
Sadly though . . . unless you are buying one of the Cold Steel Kitchen Classic ten dollar knives shown above . . . don't expect the knife to come sharp from the maker.
It's a weird world . . . don't you think ?
Click to expand...

I got mine for $8 at the gun show. One of the best deals around for a knife that you'll use every day. Pretty easy to get sharp with a diamond steel or anything else for that matter.
 
I was asking mostly because I had held them in such high reguard when I saw them for the first time years and years ago before I had REALLY gotten into knives. I have been able to achieve a hht4 with a pm2 so now my mentality of what sharp is has changed a bit. What I thought was once UNBELIEVABLE, now is able to be obtained myself on a much cheaper knife. So I was asking if they were much sharper than say my pm2 .01 micron at hht4 or was it about the same edge keenness
 
nick_30 said:
What I thought was once UNBELIEVABLE, now is able to be obtained myself on a much cheaper knife. So I was asking if they were much sharper than say my pm2 .01 micron at hht4 or was it about the same edge keenness
Click to expand...
Way to go on the sharpening ! ! !
It's fun isn't it !
 
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