Knife Blade Grinds

What is a Grind

The “grind” of a blade refers to the way in which it is finished for sharpening and eventual sale. Typically, a knife is only ground once, as the grinding process removes a great deal of metal. The knife will periodically need to be re-sharpened, and if it is particularly abused, it may need to be reground. Regrinding is only successful once or twice, as it eats away large portions of the blade.

Chisel Ground Blade

A chisel ground blade is a blade which is only sharpened on one side, creating a classical chisel-like shape in cross section. When a chisel ground blade is produced, one side of the blade is left totally flat, while the other is ground down to make a sharp wedge. One of the primary advantages of a chisel ground blade is that it tends to be extremely sharp, since the cutting edge of the blade has one angle, instead of two.

Edge Ground Blade

An edge ground blade is straight sided and an edge is ground directly onto it.

Flat Ground Blade

A flat ground blade is a knife blade which is evenly sharpened from the spine to the edge. In order to be considered a true flat ground blade, the knife must be entirely lacking in bevels. Typically, a flat ground blade is V-shaped in cross section, reflecting a grind which gets thinner towards the edge so that it will be a more effective cutting implement. Because a flat ground blade is not beveled or shaped, it is very easy to sharpen. They are heavier and tougher than a hollow ground knife.

Hollow Ground Blade

Hollow ground blades have concave, beveled edges that are ground starting midway down the blade, instead of at the spine. Hollow ground knife blades are manufactured with a process that fuses two separate pieces of metal together. After the pieces are fused, a beveled blade edge is created. Although these blades often have very sharp edges, the blade lacks the balance and longevity of a taper ground blade.

Taper Ground Blade

Taper ground knives are manufactured with a single sheet of metal and are ground so that they taper smoothly from the spine to the cutting edge. This type of blade can be found on knives that are used frequently. A taper ground blade gives the finest edge possible and the consistent tapering blade allows it to glide easily through food.