Teach me how to grind a kitchen knife without plunges

T

Travis Fry

Joined
Jun 11, 2010
Messages
489
I've tried this once on a 240mm gyuto with some success, but I was only halfway satisfied with the results. I know there has to be something I'm missing. How do the pros do a full flat grind on a chef style knife without any visible plunge, and without grinding into the tang at all?
 
grind half way up the blade(not up to the handle area ) angle tip down 30-45degree angle to the vertical (keeps the handle up and ou tof the way ) grind at angle while workin g the grind up to the spine. continue grinding the spine to with distal taper. you can then blend the transition in front of the handle.

this is one of those things that i really need to make a video of as i do it all the time
 
A radiused plunge works, as does a grind that is angled from the bottom of the tang at 45deg up to the spine then blended in. I have also made full tang knives with the tang ground at the same angles as the bevels. The grind is so shallow on the thin stock and near 2" height that it is easy to blend in.

Edit: Butch beat me to it. :thumbup:
 
Butch,

Your veg cleaver over in the Customs forum was what prompted this post, though I've wondered for a good while and tried it once. Results weren't bad but not perfect either. I get what you're saying, and Willie too. I was on the right track with more of a marginally successful combo between the two. I think I just need more practice.


Here's your cleaver, so folks know what we're talking about:

dsc01035sm.jpg

dsc01037sm.jpg
 
butcher_block said:
grind half way up the blade(not up to the handle area ) angle tip down 30-45degree angle to the vertical (keeps the handle up and ou tof the way ) grind at angle while workin g the grind up to the spine. continue grinding the spine to with distal taper. you can then blend the transition in front of the handle.

this is one of those things that i really need to make a video of as i do it all the time
Click to expand...

Please make a video. Your etching video helped me a lot.
 
revamped the pic to kind of show the grinding steps
DSC01035sm2.jpg
wanted to add i have been doing kitchen knives liek that for about 10 years so i dont even think about it much any more (it comes with time )
 
butcher_block said:
grind half way up the blade(not up to the handle area ) angle tip down 30-45degree angle to the vertical (keeps the handle up and ou tof the way ) grind at angle while workin g the grind up to the spine. continue grinding the spine to with distal taper. you can then blend the transition in front of the handle.

this is one of those things that i really need to make a video of as i do it all the time
Click to expand...

I like very much your kitchen knives...sure i will appreciate a lot a video showing how do you work :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
 
I had the same request for my method on plungeless blades the other day. I told him that I grind a sloppy plunge line and then back over it to make it blend. I also rotate the blade to "sweep" the transition at an angle.
 
Interesting, I'd like to see an example as drawn previously, though a blade with less width. I imagine that's more difficult? Always just plunged mine.....
 
Don't over-think this, guys. Either blend the bevels into a flat tang or just bevel the tang right along with the bevels.

4288AAFD-1213-48D4-A9C4-0614C109DF16_zpsr3cftyup.jpg


(THK knife, photo by Morrow)
 
Lloyd, Please make a video, if you feel like it!
You're one of my favorite knife designers, and it would be great to see some hands-on.
 
We are talking fairly thin stock and the tangs are not that wide. Just grind the way you normally would and make a naturally very shallow plunge line. Then use a contact wheel, perpendicular to your bevel grinds and erase the mild plunge line. No plunges are way easier than actually doing really nice plunge lines.
 
I second the video request. Seeing it would truly help clarify what is being typed. Thanks
 
bladsmth said:
I had the same request for my method on plungeless blades the other day. I told him that I grind a sloppy plunge line and then back over it to make it blend. I also rotate the blade to "sweep" the transition at an angle.
Click to expand...
Yep, and it worked swimmingly. However, I dug in a bit accidentally on the front of the tang, so I need to figure out what to do about that now. Overall it worked though.
 
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