right and left handed chisle grinds

J.Wade

J.Wade

Joined
Sep 3, 2004
Messages
775
Hi guy

We are having a bit of a disscusion on another forum about what are right and left hand chisle grind and how they are used,

I would like to hear it from you guys ,

What is a right handed chisle grind?
what is a left handed chisle grind?
and how are they used best?

Thanks
jimi
 
I find a lot of chisel grinds on a right handed knife are ground on the obverse side, which makes them not a great slicer...
I'd rather see them ground flat on the obverse side (makers marked side), but nooo.
 
a chisel grind tends to cut to one side so most left handed people i know like the grind to be on the right side of the blade. since a friend couldnt find one, i made a left hand chisel grind knife last year for him. when peeling potatos with a right hand grind he would always complain about the cutting depth being hard to control. i showed the knife to quite a few left handed people after it was done and most liked it while some said it didnt make any difference to them. as far as their best use, i guess that would be up to the person using the knife and what they plan on cutting.
 
If you're using a chisel on wood the bevel is put on the side the wood is being removed. Removing on the right -bevel to the right. Cutting up veggies is the same - for the right hander slices removed from the carrot are normally to the right so the bevel should be on the right. Bevel ground kitchen knives permit cutting veggies very thin a bit easier.
 
I have little use for any type of chisel grind on a knife. That being said, what Mete wrote above describes it about as well as I have seen. Most knives that I have seen that are chisel ground are ground for left handed users. I think mostly because of the way it looks. The knife is usually shown from the logo side (personal side) and if ground for a right handled person that side would be flat and not show well. To me for a right handed user the grind should be taken off the right side of the blade looking down on the back of the spine with the point, pointing away from you and the left side should be flat. Grind the left side for a left handed user and leave the right side flat.
 
howiesatwork said:
I find a lot of chisel grinds on a right handed knife are ground on the obverse side, which makes them not a great slicer...
I'd rather see them ground flat on the obverse side (makers marked side), but nooo.
Click to expand...

That is a funny thing, Knives are customarily photographed with the point to the left, edge down; so the majority of chisel ground knives made in the West are left hand bevels.
 
I'm seeing it both ways for morticing.... and for carving feehand I mostly see tools made for bevel side down. I still can't find a positive answer on whether which grind is left or right. I guess it depends on the user.

But I'm gettin thirsty thinking about it..... lets discuss this over beer, Jimi.

http://www.rd.com/17903/article17903-2.html
 
If you look at a knife from handle to tip along the spine, it has a left and right side.
If the grind or bevel is on the right and the left is flat, that is a right hand grind and visa-versa.
With a right hand grind, while slicing lets say a cucumber, the flat side will slice straight down, the bevel will force the thin slice away from the cucumber. This allows for a very thin slicing ability and good blade control.
If used by a left handed person a right grind will want to move away from the main body of the cucumber making blade control harder.
So for a left handed person the grind needs to be on the left side of the knife.
I made a right hand grind chefs knife for a friend, he said he can consistently cut potato slices so thin he can see threw them.
Do a test if you have a chisel. slice a cucumber with it with the flat side towards the main body of the cumber, then flip the chisel around and slice with the bevel side towards the main body. You will notice how different your blade behaves.
 
A sushi knife is ground so that the hand holding the knife is on the side that the slices come off the chunk of fish. This produces an even thickness slice of fish.

George
 
The knife that sparked the question was this one....

I made it as a right handed utility knife. If the grind has been deemed "left handed".... so be it. I guess it makes sense seeing that the bevel is on the left side of the knife.... But it is a left hand grind on a right handed knife .... he he he. IMO, it makes no sense to use this knife with a left hand..... but to each his own.


IMG_0012-2.jpg

IMG_0015-2.jpg
 
Last edited:
The original purpose of a chisel grind on a knife I am familiar with is in chefs knives. Of course chisels are a different tool but they would certainly predate these types of knives. In the kitchen the chisel grind should be on the right side of the blade, when in your hand for a right handed person, so that the flat can go right up against the fingers on your left hand. However Emerson sells knives to lots of folks with the grind on the opposite side. I think your knife would sell to lefties or righties without problems.
 
The blade on your knife is a left hand grind.( on a right hand knife). Whittle on a stick with the knife in your right hand then switch to the left hand, you should notice a differance in the way it cuts. The flat chisle point will work the same in either hand.
 
sharpeknives said:
The blade on your knife is a left hand grind.( on a right hand knife). Whittle on a stick with the knife in your right hand then switch to the left hand, you should notice a differance in the way it cuts. The flat chisle point will work the same in either hand.
Click to expand...

I have made chisel grinds on the other side and couldn't get the control that I could with this config...... I assumed it was the correct grind for a right handed grip. Then when I searched woodcarving techniques, "bevel down" was used more often than not, which confirmed my own experience. This knife was made as a utility blade for trap-making and campcraft stuff. I totally agree with the food prep arguement...... but this knife was not made for that.

I would still love to see someone make a concave cut into a flat edge with the bevel up...... that would impress me.

When are we gettin' together, Jimi?
 
AAAAAHHHHHHHHH! That makes sense. Use dictates design. With the grind you have it would work great for, notching traps and making firesticks. I was just trying to answer your questions as far as a left and right hand grind.
By the way The knife looks pretty cool.
 
Well, that J.Wade guy always throws me a curve when it comes to knifemaking.... I'm not up on all the industry standards and terms... I always seem to learn something new while at the same time, reaffirm my own theories. Thanks for all the responses guys..... and the compliments on the knife.

Jimi and I have a "whittle drinkin" to do...... you know, its always good to conduct field studies!

Rick
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top