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Toothy or polished for a working edge?

Do you prefer a toothy or polished edge on your EDC?

  • Total voters
    4
ebidis

ebidis

Joined
Jun 23, 2012
Messages
2,884
I just wanted to make a poll to see where the general concensus lies.

I think I like a slightly toothy edge (600 grit) for my General EDC blade. If I need to cut tough or hard material, it seems to work better than a polished edge ( at least in my own mind).

What do y'all think?

Discuss. :)
 
After lots of going back and forth, I have settled on about 600 grit for most of my blades instead of one that is highly polished. I am not sure about which type of edge lasts longer (I might just have to test that!) but it certainly is quicker to stop at 600 when sharpening!!
 
Ernie1980 said:
After lots of going back and forth, I have settled on about 600 grit for most of my blades instead of one that is highly polished. I am not sure about which type of edge lasts longer (I might just have to test that!) but it certainly is quicker to stop at 600 when sharpening!!
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Yeah, I am kind of curious myself to know which type of edge actually lasts longer. If a polished edge last longer than a toothy edge, then that may be where the advantage of a polished edge lies.
 
I think it depends on what material I am cutting. I have proven to myself that a toothy edge does way better on meat, like cleaning squirrels and deer. It just goes through the flesh way better.
However, I feel that for wood crafting, a polished edge works better and lasts longer. Wood working tools are normally sharpened to a very fine polished edge. Maybe the tougher material bends or deform the micro serrations too much if it is left toothy. I finely finished edge would be more smooth and more resistant to damage from tough fibrous materials.
 
I say polished, not because I've seen a huge difference in performance, but because I just like seeing the polished edges better. If all I had to cut was soft but highly abrasive materials with draw cuts then I'm sure I'd choose lower grit finishes. Or if if I was a simply push cutting though hard but fairly low abrasive materials then I'd choose highly polished. Since I do a fair amount of both draw and push cutting with the same knife, then I'll go with what's aesthetically pleasing and I don't have an aversion to sharpening my knives, then I say polished.
 
Well, for what I do I like polished for cutting cardboard, tape, paper, packages etc.

For most foods, like cutting tomatoes, fruit, etc a toothier edge.
Rope, toothy...
I guess it really just depends in the task.
 
I like a polished edge, mostly because I enjoy sharpening. And the reactions I get when someone wants to borrow my knife.
 
Depends.

My VG-10 kitchen knives I sharpen up to a 6000 grit waterstone. My S30V folders I sharpen up to a DMT fine. My 1095/52100 camp knives I sharpen up to a Spyderco UF. Etc., etc., etc.
 
I like to make draw cuts and slices, don't really like to do push-cuts so naturally a toothier edge feels "sharper" to me. But it all depends... Sometimes I like to shave with my pocket knives, toothy doesn't do so well at that.
 
I voted for either. Mainly because this is very steel dependent for me. Some steels just seem to perform better with a coarser edge, some like a finer edge.
 
Guest5160 said:
I voted for either. Mainly because this is very steel dependent for me. Some steels just seem to perform better with a coarser edge, some like a finer edge.
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Does anybody have any practical experience in which types of steel prefer toothy, and which prefer polished? I find that an interesting phenomenon.
 
Iv honestly pondered this exact thing here recently. I feel best performance is achieved with a "slightly" polished edge. Meaning after stone sharpening 600 or 800 I strop with black compound and leave it at that. I'm using far less green compound as time goes by. I still feel stroping gives that added extra sharpness.
 
I said either simply because i think it would depend on the job. In most cases a polished edge works better for me but if i was laying waste to an army of cardboard boxes i would much rather have a toothy edge.
 
ebidis said:
Does anybody have any practical experience in which types of steel prefer toothy, and which prefer polished? I find that an interesting phenomenon.
Click to expand...

I'm not an expert, but I know what I like. Polished (not mirror) on M390 and M4. A little tooth on S30V and D2. S35VN and 154CM somewhere in the middle.
 
This is a subject that I never think about. When I touch up my edges, I do finish them with green compound. I like the look. I've never noticed any issues with cutting performance from doing so, but the overwhelming majority of my use is cardboard and plastic.
 
I normally using something in the 320 to 600 range depending.
 
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