Tribonet explains why sharp knives are better than dull ones when it comes to cutting tomatoes. It's because dull knives are smooth so they can't grab the tomato skin to pull and tear it.

The easiest and safest way to slice a tomato is to use a sharp knife. The counterintuitive reason a sharp knife slices more easily through a tomato is that it has higher friction, albeit only on the knife’s edge.

Slicing is actually stretching the tomato and, like most materials, a tomato is weaker when stretched than when compressed. Stretching the tomato skin creates a tearing force that opens a crack in the skin, thus beginning the slice.

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

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The host of Project Farm compared the results of using a bunch of different knife sharpeners ranging in cost from nine dollars to $900. It turned out that the $9 sharpener was pretty good. His favorite was the Lansky sharpener, which costs about $45.

From the YouTube description:

Knife sharpeners tested: Lansky, Wicked Edge Gen 3 Pro, Spyderco, Fiskars, Rada, Chef's Choice Trizor Edge, Model 15XV, Edge Pro Apex, and a Whetstone. Knives used for testing: Mercer Culinary Millennia 8-Inch Chef's Knife, which were dulled, then sharpened using each knife sharpener. Stropping leather used on knives sharpened with Lansky, Wicked Edge, Spyderco, Edge Pro Apex and Whetstone. Once sharp, knives were tested using a knife sharpness tester.

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In this video on Pask Makes, he fashions a really lovely utility knife out of brass using nothing more than common shop tools like a saw, drill, hacksaw, router, files, etc.

If you've ever made a tool yourself, you know what an inspired object that tool can become in your shop. Imagine making and gifting one of these to a friend or loved one. They would cherish it for life.

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Machinist-sculptor Chris Bathgate (previously) has unveiled his latest: a vase ringed with razor-sharp knives ("an object that mischievously demands that it be appreciated for more than its precarious utility"). Read the rest

In 2019, knife crime in England and Wales hit record highs with police counting 44,000 offenses over a year span, half of which were stabbings. In an effort to help (and also probably to, ahem, get some press), UK cutlery brand Viners is now selling a line of knives with squared-off tips. From Insider:

Due to be released later this week, (a Viners press release states that the line) has been "repeatedly tested to ensure the tip does not pierce skin intentionally or otherwise."

"With knife-related crime incidents at a record high and a reported 285 fatalities in the last 12 months alone, the UK government has taken the decision to reclassify kitchen knives as an offensive weapon with the new Offensive Weapons Act 2019, leading some retailers to remove single knives from sale in retail stores," a press release for the knife collection stated.

"The new Assure collection from Viners has been created in response to this new legislation, with the team extensively testing a new shape knife that is highly functional for the modern cook but shaped to reduce and prevent injuries, accidents and fatalities."

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https://youtu.be/txoCOebILZk

The best part of this video showing cops tangling with knife-wielding maniacs is it's at least three layers of cultural recapitulation deep: the posed 80s-era "original", the implicitly late-20th-century comic milieux implied by its ironic presentation, the 2000s upload, and its recurring virality in 2020.

Thanks to Everything is Terrible, of course.

Previously: Chinese police explain how to deal with a knife-wielding attacker Read the rest

I have a whetstone, faucet and a knife, but never quite get the results I want. So Cook with E's guide to using them ("the only time I've ever seriously hurt myself in the kitchen was using a dull knife") has sent me right back to the kitchen.

Ethan recommends a fancy japanese model, but I have a less expensive Whetstone-brand stone [Amazon, but I got it from Williams-Sonoma] with both 400 and 1000 grit sides. Read the rest

This lightweight, durable MSR kitchen knife comes sharp and stays sharp.

You can also sharpen it quite easily.

I used to buy camping kitchen knives at the dollar store. I'd use them for a season, or part of a season, and then throw them away. They were cheap but unfortunately also disposable. Years ago this MSR Alpine Kitchen Knife came with a set of cooking kit. I have not needed a new knife since.

Good for chopping, paring, slicing and spreading -- this knife will do it all if I'm camping alone and not feeling like taking out silverware. Sure, I'll eat with the kitchen knife.

I have gotten a lot of use out of this blade and only had to sharpen it once. It holds an edge very well.

The Alpine Kitchen Knife is lightweight and has a bit of flex, but is a pleasure to work with. The knife comes with a lightweight plastic sheath for the storaging, as well.

MSR Alpine Kitchen Knife via Amazon Read the rest

This funny video lampoons the guy in your circle who always, for some reason, has a knife and a pretext to display it. Read the rest

M.N. Projects got a lot of questions about how he etches his initials onto his metalworking projects, so he did a quick HOWTO for those who want to try it themselves. Read the rest

Yes, a PR video and yes, the music is kind of terrible. But man, I learned so much watching this video churned out by the folks at Victorinox. Given the ubiquitous nature of the Swiss Army knife, I'm surprised by how much of the tool's production is still done with human intervention. Being as the video was only produced two years ago, I have to assume that they're still making their knives in the same manner. If anyone knows different, I'd love to hear about it.

If you've ever owned a Swiss Army Knife or want to understand more about how an iconic piece of hardware is created, taking in this 13-minute film is time well-spent. Read the rest

I keep an Opinel No. 8 pocket knife in most of my jackets. This one has been with me for years.

I buy Opinel No. 8 pocket knives for a lot of reasons. They are elegant in their simplicity. The carbon steel blade is excellent, stays sharp and develops a lovely patina. The handle is a simple piece of wood that fits well in your hand. The locking neck ring is pretty ingenious, and down right fool-proof if you use it.

Best of all, they are cheap and I don't mind losing them when I've forgotten to remove one on its way to the airport. The "No.8" 3.35in blade, perfect for most of my camping needs, is not allowed to board a plane on my person. Frequently, like last weekend, the heroic defenders of democracy that are the TSA just let me pass thru, but on occasion they will confiscate it.

I've had this blade since 2012. The patina started out by stabbing a lemon, but over the years has taken on a life of its own. While the ink on the side of the handle has slightly worn off, this knife just keeps getting better.

I hope I don't lose this one, it has ranged from Baja to Canada.

You can decorate, carve or otherwise modify the handle to your liking.

Opinel Carbon Steel Folding Everyday Carry Locking Pocket Knife via Amazon Read the rest

Kiwami Japan tried modding a cheap kitchen knife with serrations so it can cut through rock-hard foods like China Marble hard candies, macadamia nuts, and katsuobushi. Read the rest

So, there's this skeleton that archaeologists discovered in Italy during the mid-1990s. They reckon the man, who became the skeleton, was alive somewhere between the sixth and eighth century. Those were hard times. Life was short and seldom sweet. In the case of our man the skeleton, somewhere along the line, he lost his hand. Archaeologists say that it was taken off with a single blow. Maybe it was because he was involved in a war or being punished for a crime. It could have been removed for medical reasons. Anyway, BOOM, gone. It's amazing, in an era where antibiotics didn't exist, that someone would survive an amputation. Sure, it happened but it was rare. The recovery process must have been terrible. But did our pal from so long ago allow the lose of a hand and acquisition of a new stump get him down? Hell no. He did what I'd like to believe anyone of you reading this would do: HE REPLACED HIS LOST HAND WITH A FRIGGING KNIFE BLADE.

According to a paper published in the Journal of Antrological Sciences by Ileana Micarelli, Robert Paine, Caterina Giostra, Mary Anne Tafuri, Antonio Profico, Marco Boggioni, Fabio Di Vincenzo, Danilo Massani, Andrea Papini and Giorgio Manzi (something something Too Many Cooks.) Once the Middle Ages bad ass healed up, he found a way to lash a knife blade to his stump using a leather mount that he tied in place with his teeth. The paper makes for pretty dense reading, but Gizmodo's George Dvorsky does a great job of digging into it:

Further analysis of the man’s bones points to the use of a prosthesis.

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I can't speak as to how good/sharp/functional these knives are** but they sure do look cool. This is the Cosmos Series by Chef's Vision and each knife in the set is printed with a "stunning color image of the unfolding universe." Incidentally, they're the number one "Amazon's Choice" for the search "knives for men."

**A set of six of these knives costs $49.95, which I think tells you everything you need to know about their quality.

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kiwami japan (previously at Boing Boing) shows us how to turn a pack of kitchen foil into a ready-to-chop kitchen knife. See also the pasta kitchen knife and the chocolate kitchen knife. Read the rest

What does this DeWalt knife, posted to the "midly interesting" subreddit by turltlecam_son, look like?

a) a chicken b) a unicorn c) a fish d) a knife Read the rest