What kind of cutting tests do you practice?

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Jun 28, 2001
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I'm sure that most of you who keep a sharp bali enjoy slicing and dicing. What kind of cutting excercises do you use to test your edge?

Most of the time I'll work with a single loose leaf of paper standing up on it's end (carefull not to disturb the air or it will fall over), and with one quick motion slice it in half! :D
 
Cleanly slicing a piece of newspaper is my basic test. Shaving the surface of a piece of ordinary typing paper is a good one too.
 
Shaving the hair off the back of my hand is usually good enough for me.

I've heard that long ago, when a Samuri sword was completed, it's first and only test was to be able to cleanly slice off the head of a recently executed criminal with one swing. Although there is often a fine line between myth and legend.
 
Ditto the newspaper. They say that cigarette rolling papers are the hardest to cleanly slice into with no signs of tearing, etc. But notebook paper is a good medium, newspaper a little thinner and harder and an even better indicator of sharpness...

When I test these two new Hossom Fighters I have out on some beef, maybe I'll do some stuff with the BM42 as well. I dunno.
 
I actually pay very little attention to sharpness tests. I use the newspaper test myself just a sort of quality-control check for my own sharpening efforts.

It seems like everytime you read a knife review, the author has to come up with some newer, better, grander superlative to describe the edge. First there was "sharp." Then came "nicely sharp." That was followed by "very sharp." Then started more functional descriptions like "shaving sharp" and "razor sharp." These gave way to more animate terms such as "hair-poppin' sharp." And then we started to appeal to emotions like "scary sharp", "frighteningly sharp," et cetra. Each generation of knife review articles seems to have to trump the last in the terms it uses to express the edge.

Have knife makers really learned to make edges this much sharper?

It seems to me that we're sharpening our prose more than our knives.

I think for my next review, I'll trump them all by declaring the edge "super-califragilistic-expialadosious sharp!" Top that!

The problem with all of these tests and terms is that they're all quite subjective and quite qualitative.

One reason I like the newspaper test is that the technique, while not entirely subjective, is not that difficult and the material used, newpaper, is fairly consistent at least within the US and, in fact, over most of the world (Yes, you have to exclude the Financial Times.)

In researching this issue, I've discovered that there are objective and quantitative tests for edge sharpness, but that they require sophisticated laboratory equipment.
 
Well? :confused:

I like to practice tests like these in order to become proficiant with the blade. I do so with all types of items, even an ink pen. Not necessarily to say I have the SHARPEST EDGE, but to develope the skill of using the blade in the most exteme applications possible. In Kenjutsu cutting tests are used as a way to develope your strike/stroke. Many of you have posted that you carry for defensive purposes, others appreciate the balisong as a tool only, and some prefer not to use them at all. I guess this question goes to the people who are more interested in the defensive employment of the balisong. How many of you practice EXTREME CUTTING TESTS? Don't forget that when you cut something you are manipulating a knife in effort to divide an object in two.

Hey Chuck how about PNEUMONOULTRAMICROSCOPICSILICOVOLCANOCONIOSIS SHARP! Good luck beating that one:D
 
Well I remember reading in a "special projects"(its a Cold Steel) magazine that if you can cut through a 1 inch thick "manila rope" its the same as cutting through someones arm. So I figured that if I could cut through the rope it was :eek: sharp :eek: enough for me. Or I usually just test it on a piece of paper. If I dont have to pull or push very much its good.:D Its always better to have a sharp knife instead of a dull knife. Thats what the benchmade instructions said.:D
 
Anybody seen "Big trouble in little china"? Just saw it yesterday, and I looked at this post and it reminded me. You know the beginning where he tries to cut the glass bottle? Heheh...I've gotta try that someday.
 
Originally posted by Don Rearic
When I test these two new Hossom Fighters I have out on some beef, maybe I'll do some stuff with the BM42 as well. I dunno.

Now THAT'S what I'm talkin about Don!:D Good to hear of someone else doing some extreme cutting. Now are you talking about a dangling side of beef?:cool: What fun! I run several online stores and usually end up with a lot of boxes lying around. Most of the time I make targets for various throwing excercises I practice around the office, when I have some time on my hands I'll build a cardboard dummy to work with and see if I can slash/jab/dismember as accurately and quickly as possible. My MA buddy thinks I could probably slice your shirt open without even cutting you, but I've never tried that. :eek: I would hate to really cut somebody:eek:

"Understand that even your strongest companion will sometimes fail you, It is our duty to make sure that we do not fail them." -BC
 
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