Serrated, plain edge or both? - Survey

Serrated of Plain edge blade?

  • I always prefer a plain edge blade.

    Votes: 44 63.8%

  • I always prefer a serrated edge blade.

    Votes: 1 1.4%

  • I use both depending on the application.

    Votes: 24 34.8%

  • It depends whether it is a folder or fixed blade..

    Votes: 1 1.4%
  • Total voters
    69
Mike Jones said:
What sort of grit would you say you might prefer to leave it to be toothy?
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It depends, I guess. I've been using my EDC (D2 blade) sharpened with a 400-grit AO belt and stropped on leather. That's pretty toothy, and I don't think I would like it any coarser than that. It does shave hair, and cuts whatever throughout the course of the day. A skinning or filet knife should probably have a finer edge.

The whole thing is awfully subjective. There's not really a wrong choice, just whatever you feel works well.
 
Serrations might (?) be an advantage to have a slightly dull edge. An expensive custom steak knife could be used against high end china and the owner might not want scratches in the place settings.

Smooth all the way, Craig
 
Several dogs have mentioned that serrated edges are needed to cut bread without smashing it flat. I strongly disagree. I received a set of carbon steel Sabatier cutlery for a gift in 1976. It included a long straight plain edge bread knife. I keep the blade on it razor sharp and have never had a problem slicing bread. If the bread is extremely soft rotate the loaf toward you one quarter turn so you are slicing through the side and bottom. Try it then give your serrated edge bread knives to the homeless.
 
Denton Eller said:
Several dogs have mentioned that serrated edges are needed to cut bread without smashing it flat. I strongly disagree. I received a set of carbon steel Sabatier cutlery for a gift in 1976. It included a long straight plain edge bread knife. I keep the blade on it razor sharp and have never had a problem slicing bread. If the bread is extremely soft rotate the loaf toward you one quarter turn so you are slicing through the side and bottom. Try it then give your serrated edge bread knives to the homeless.
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When cutting garlic bread or bread that has a hard shell I use a serrated bread knife. I need the saw action :)
 
Frstr8, I meant no offense against people who use serrated knives. As a matter of fact, my 3 daughters and my 4 granddaughters always use serrated knives. I think they got them from Ginsu. They also cut things on their countertops without using a cutting board and then put their knives in the dishwasher. I absolutely love their quarter sawn garlic bread.
 
I like the partially serrated blade on my favorite multi-tool (Schrade ToughTool)--the serrations are shallow and sharp and work great on zip-ties, box straps, rubber hose and the like. I don't know about serrations on a fixed blade, though. I don't think I'd care for a totally serrated blade on either fixed blade or folder.
 
Denton Eller said:
Frstr8, I meant no offense against people who use serrated knives. As a matter of fact, my 3 daughters and my 4 granddaughters always use serrated knives. I think they got them from Ginsu. They also cut things on their countertops without using a cutting board and then put their knives in the dishwasher. I absolutely love their quarter sawn garlic bread.
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It's all good. I was just sayin that when cutting something like garlic bread that has a hard shell it works very well. I am not a fan of serrated knives. I own one folder that is fully serrated that is clipped to my day bag. Just in case : )
 
Folks have mentioned that many users cut against very hard surfaces and don't touch up their blades often. In that case, of course a serrated blade will still cut/tear even if the "tips" are dulled from use. I'm reasonably certain that's why almost all steak knives are serrated, for instance.

I do see the point about crusty stuff like garlic bread being easier to "break into" with a serrated edge.

I have a red DMT diamond "stone" on my key-chain and use it often for quick touch-ups... pro chefs and butchers seem to really like old-fashioned honing steels and also use them often, before their knife gets actually dull. But most regular folks don't, and I think that's a big part of why serrated blades are so popular.

Another thought about cutting on a hard surface... on Father's Day my woman and kid took me out for sushi. The chef did all his prep cutting on a stainless steel table/griddle thingy with a VERY thin, very sharp knife. All the veggies, fish and meat were cut extremely cleanly; I was really impressed by his knife-handling. (Plus the food was awesome :) )

Point being, he was so skilled that he could cut rapidly and accurately without mashing/dragging his edge against the steel surface and I doubt his knife needed much more than a couple wipes on a steel when he was done. Again... Joe Schmoe doesn't have that kind of skill or care and generally uses a knife like a battering ram, not a precision tool.
 
Never liked a serrated blade. I wasn't sure how to sharpen those little serrations but it didn't stop me from picking up a Buck 110 similar to this one... :running dog:

serrated110.jpg
 
I use a partial serrated SS blade for my work knife. the serrations are nice for cutting plastic zip-ties and the like but almost always get hung up on everything else that is pliable like plastic bags and stuff when cutting in haste. Besided it gets dull quickly when cutting lots of cardboard boxes. If i did purchase another serrated, it would not be in SS.
 
I like partial serrated knives for my hunting knives. I tend to unzip a Whitetail all the way up to the neck. This makes cutting out the organs a lot easier. I then like to open the pelvis. This can be hard on a plain edge but a good serrated edge makes quick work on these. For skinning and processing, I prefer a plain edge. I just don't see a need for serrations when skinning and processing.

In camping mode, a serrated blade comes in handy and makes quick work for a lot of chores.
 
I prefer a plain blade just because I never have been able to sharpen a serrated blade and a plain is easy to touch up.
In most cases a plain can do the same job as a serrated but sometimes serrated blades come in handy.

As too partially serrated or full, I like either a blade with a plain edge or full serrated edge but thats just me and I rarely carry only one knife (usually Leatherman charge, Ontario RAT 1, and a Gerber EAB box cutter)
 
I carried a serrated Spyderco for a long time and absolutely loved it. I work in IT and there has been many times when I've had to cut cables and the serrations are really up to the job.

I recently started carrying a Bench-made 990 that has a plain edge. And while it's a beautiful knife I miss my serrated Spyderco at times.

So I put down on the poll that it depends on the application.

And as far as sharpening the serrations I've found that the Spyderco Triangle Sharpmaker does the job. Just takes a little bit of time.
 
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