Knife Grinds: Comparing Hollow, Convex, and Flat Grinds

[@HurleyJ13]

Great video. Very informative. Not lengthy. Perfect.

[@tooterr101oldgeezer4]

I appreciate you taking the time to explain the different grinds you mentioned. thanks for sharing,

[@jmstrings]

I've watched many other videos on different grinds and their uses, yours is by far the best. You really keep it simple and to the point. Another great video.

[@davidsewell7846]

Another great video Walter. Really clear explanation. Keep it up.

[@jordanmahara7513]

I find a flat grind without secondary bevel (where the cutting edge is at the same angle as the flat) is a fairly good balance between hollow and convex but allowing very sharp edges as well. Particularly noticeable in wide blades where the angle of the flat is really steep.

[@FALpwn]

you should do a video on knife points like clip point, drop point, tanto, etc. sorry if you have already done this.

[@zeangelinofishing961]

Realy nice video! great learning videi too !! but didnt you forget the scandi gring? cheers keep the nice work!

[@deanhickmanii5589]

Thank you.

[@KeleMen125]

can you make a video about different flat grinds ? If i'm correct there are a few different grinds that can be made and I think they all fal under flat grinds. Like scandi grind, or duble grind ( secondary grind), U grind ( not as shap but lasts longer, good for chopping, usualy on axes) and some more

[@juanelcazador300]

Thank Mister Walter

[@cheapmovies25]

In my xp, full flat and convex are better at slicing like cardboard and soft stuff, hollow seems to not be as good, but is better for skinning game and cuts well, just not a great slicer. Its why most kitchen knives are not hollow grind. Also, I'm referring to mostly a half hollow grind, one from the spine is on par with flat, maybe more support on spine. Full convex can be sharpened easily with sandpaper and soft pad as well. The nice vid

[@johnnyboy1586]

Yes but kitchen knives are thin over all which makes then good slicers,overall a hollow is the best slicer as the point of contact is at the cutting edge and the spine leaving the hollow part friction free

[@37hud]

I find all the grinds useful in some way or another. But I have to admit that I find the hallow and flat grinds most useful. Aside from chopping witch I don’t do with my knives anyway.

[@mohammedzaidulla8063]

Hello can you tell me how to use water stones and which is the best stone to Sharp knife's and swords

[@jortbaremans4865]

is it possible to make a knife from normal steel instead of stainless steel?

[@Boz1211111]

what if i dont get flat grind perfeclty flat but its not nearly convex as one shown here hmm.

[@Keith_the_knife_freak]

is the scandi grind just a flat grind???

[@pauldayton5285]

Any relation to Burt Sorrells the legendary ADBA dog man?

[@hexaquan]

+Walter Sorrells Instead of using a belt grinder can I use a bench grinder like this one (www.amazon.com/RIKON-Power-Tools-80-805-Grinder/dp/B00H2B78YG) in it's place?

[@patriciusvunkempen102]

katana can't cut armor, except maybe forms of cloth armor, which is true for every sword

[@jaliusw6331]

First

[@johnfroehlich3461]

This was a great video, would you do one on different knife tip types also (i.e. drop point, tanto, dagger, bowie, etc.) Thanks, Johnf

[@Keith_the_knife_freak]

is the scandi grind just a flat grind???

[@RikthDcruze]

I've always been an advocate of the Flat grind. Easy to produce, mentain, & use. Also very versatile. not just that, It's the only blade type you should take on your epic adventures.

[@jarlove]

I love the convex grind :)

[@Rakadis]

Scandinavian grind for life.

[@dieselstruck]

I used to hate the look of scandi knives. That is, till I tried one. Impressed really.

[@christiankirkenes5922]

+Rakadis Til Valhalla!!

[@harrisonking8156]

Scandi is literally a partial flat without a secondary bevel, in theory it sounds terrible but it works so good! Scandi's are awesome for bushcraft :D

[@dscrive]

+Rakadis I recently discovered the scandi when I bought a mora to carve a whole sale order of a few hundred figure 4 traps. easy to keep wicked sharp, and the steel holds an edge fantastically. I love it for woodworking, but I prefer a beefier blade for general purpose.

[@Rakadis]

+dscrive Try the more traditional blades. Most Mora blades are mass produced as disposable work tools. Most are never sharpened. Just discarded. Try the Helle Viking instead for instance. 3.7 mm thick carbon steel blade. With proper care it will last until it is sharpened it in to dust. I have had mine for about 6 years. Perfect knife for the mountainous boreal forest areas in western Norway that I call home.

[@MrGalenkelly]

Like others have noted, this is an extremely easy to understand and useful video! It cleared up a few misconceptions I had instantly. Really great to see how the grinds are manufactured: I think that's necessary for the differences to truly click. Many thanks!

[@colsoncustoms8994]

Scandi grind is also pretty solid.

[@Ponto22lr]

+Colson Customs Scandi grind is my favorite one for utilitary knives

[@rylanreasons7221]

It’s a weak grind but very sharp

[@bosse641]

Why wasn't the Scandi mentioned? Such a great grind. ....and so easy to sharpen. .....even a child can do it.

[@TaskMaster1983]

He did mention it. Scandi grind is also known as a Sabre grind.

[@bosse641]

+TaskMaster1983 ltwrightknives.com/grinds.html

[@daisy8luke]

+TaskMaster1983 I think the one little difference, though, is that the scandi grind doesn't have that secondary bevel for the cutting edge. It goes straight on down from the primary bevel to the cutting edge. I'd prefer the technical saber grind to the scandi grind.

[@LastBastian]

+John Grytbakk Easy to maintain the bevel angle, but it is the most labor intensive and time consuming of all grinds to sharpen.

[@bosse641]

Bastian ....I don't find that to be the case at all. ...it's so easy and quick.

[@AustimosPrime]

I’ve known the pros/cons and the shapes of these grinds for a long time but seeing the techniques used to attain them really solidified my understand. Thank you for this video.

[@Rprecision]

I prefer a fine convex however a full flat grind with a convex secondary works well too! Thanks for getting this video done.

[@gunny4029]

bill moran called it the apple seed grind. convex is best for hunting by far, best for field dressing, i have a 500 dollar masamoto japanese sushi knife and went for free lessons in ny. do not ever attempt to sharpen and i would have to write a book . love full height flat or full height convex from spine to edge. i was brought up by the masters like lile and moran and the first ground was then called the secondary even though it was grinded or forged, but the edge we do after the primary cuting edge that is a sepperate bevel from about a .02 thicknest up frop secodar apex we cut in our pimary cutting ground. why did the terms of sec and primary changed. is the secondary bevel called secondary because it is done after the primary. i would like to see it go back the way it always was. the sec though cut second , of course is still your primary cutting edge. if it is scandi and single beveled then it is a single bevel primary as i said my best for almost anything is a full or close to full height convex down to edge, sometimes if edge is to thick it has to have some soulder of edge taken away or stropping will keep that factory edge to become dullerand duller a mocroscope is a great tool for this kind of reprofiling for making things better on an already good but reparable . knife..

[@Chillykitten42]

Such a well done video. Awesome explanation and examples, thank you!

[@housevollmer9106]

Thin convex for slicing wedgie-er convex geometry for chopping...

[@jackdaniels7913]

Very informative! Thank you for sharing! 🥃cheers🍻

[@dusanpavlovic2201]

yea but flat vs chisel grind why would you use one before another for paper cutting against a ruler should you use chisel?

[@kobedevos5507]

out of sihht! seims. influence vague what's your opinion about vhis

[@GBall_Vision]

Awesome video

[@TheOnyxMage]

Would you make a straight razor for craps and giggles?

[@robertlombardo8437]

Finally! I know what grind to put on my straight razor and my kitchen knife! Also, that transition looks and sounds like something out of Home Improvement. Hehehe!

[@richardstrouth2359]

Thank you. This was a very good video. I wanted to know what a hollow grind meant. One question. How would you classify the scandi grind like on mora knives?

[@BryGuy418]

Holy cow. Simple, clear, and straight to the point. One of the best presentations of information I’ve seen in a while. Thanks for the info, keep up the great work!

[@MaxHarden]

Why isn’t hollow called concave?

[@MrRabarbarabarba]

Great video as always! Quality never decreases on this channel. So i'd like to express a wish for the next knifemaking video. I'm interested in making a Bowie knife and would like to see your "interpretation" of one. Would be nice to watch.

[@bonesjones1658]

Saber grind with secondary bevel and shoulder rounded off = full convex Full flat with secondary bevel rounded = full convex Full convex is the only superior grind. Is is any grind that is made with quality as opposed to made the easy way. It can be very thin, thinner than a full flat grind with a secondary bevel. Or thicker than a saber grind. It will push wood out as good as a scandi, yet with the rounded shoulder will slice better. The only other grind that makes sense is a full hollow, like an I-beam, for something like a razor, because it is ultra thin yet has enough support along the spine. The grind that makes the least sense, by far, is a partial hollow ESP with a secondary bevel. You have a steeper cutting edge, that transitions sharply to the begging of the gring which is almost flat, then that ramps up at a steep angle, then another flat portion along the spine. This is a ridiculously ineffective grind for literally everything.

[@cirinosaldana4289]

Hello, I really love knives and I was wondering, you know the Rambo knife? I was thinking what grind would suit a knife like that, convex or flat.

[@mariaconcepcionrodriguezhe2850]

Rambo knife has a full flat grind

[@MysticKnight38]

Considering I can sharpen my scandi grind (deeper flat grind) in the field with emory cloth pinched between my thumb and forefinger. I'll stick with scandi. The other advantage is you are taking equal amounts of steel off both sides at the same time.... it would be very hard to move the edge off centre. The downside, it isn't as fast as a belt grinder... especially if your knife is a very hard steal.

[@polarweis]

With Hollow grind you also keep a thiner edge right after sharpening? Where a flat grind keeps getting thicker a hollow gets thick and then slim again.

[@jameskirkup1384]

great video - I'd love to see a future video on making a scandi grind bush afr knife!

[@CKKnifeandTool]

Hey there Walter, can you give us a few ideas, tips and references regarding finishes on wood scales? Penetrating oils, stains, lacquer, etc..? Thanks

[@quinntheeskimooutdoors6234]

Thanks for showing us

[@zerocontent3171]

what about the scandi grind there walter?

[@Marcothemillionaire]

jajaja Good one no one putting a gun to head lol

[@Tappar1]

cool video, very helpful as a knife noob I didn't have any idea what the differing grinds were good for :)

[@gabrielemagnabosco8926]

you don't cut armor, enough said

[@ronagoodwell2709]

Did I miss the Scandi grind?

[@gamingninja2842]

is the secondary bevel necessary in a flat ground knife? if it is i would very much like to know.

[@RockerMarcee96]

No, it is not necessary and swords that have full flat ground blades (like many late-14th-early-16th century European swords or the 13th century European sword, the Elmslie type 1 falchion) usually don't have a secondary bevel as it limits the performance. Also many Middle Eastern and Indian swords were made with full flat ground edges without a secondary bevel and most Navy cutlasses around the world and in fact a good portion of sabres also have this kind of edge. And then there are the Scandi grinds for knives, they don't have a secondary bevel either. Hell most knives about 150 years ago that were flat ground didn't have a secondary bevel (when professional polishers were literred through towns like it was the only thing that made money).

[@bibleredpill]

Cleared that up. Thanks.

[@dusanpavlovic2201]

like it's name say wtf is that english?

[@kaizoebara]

Regarding the convex grind, these are fairly easily sharpened by proper application of the 'mousepad-method' - the mousepad is used as a flexible backing for different grades of SiC-paper; a drywall hand sander works even better since it has clips to hold the paper. Once the convex edge is sharp, a strop will give it the final finish and also be useful to maintain the edge for a long time.

[@otobotrecords]

Sharpening a convex grind is pretty easy on a whetstone. That mousepad method is some masochistic but somehow funny phenomenon.

[@paranoy69]

Good video and good explanations... like always... Best regards

[@greasemnky27]

There's a tool for every job 🤘

[@houseoffire72]

My two favorite grinds would be "Scandi" & the "Convex"

[@manbearpig2164]

My grinds look like shit

[@charlesanderson8815]

Appleseed grind is a good one.

[@AdamCraigOutdoors]

i dont make knifes or even care to make knifes. but man i love watching your videos. i do like knifes and own a few custom. thanks for explaining the grinds.

[@walkonking]

Thanks Walter

[@houseoffire72]

My two favorite grinds would be "Scandi" & the "Convex"

[@cameronfuson5400]

What about a scandi?

[@zaidhintzman1935]

scandi all the way

[@samn6201]

what angle would you grind a convex bevel?

[@damionlowther78]

The angle is relative to blade thickness and the desired bevel size.

[@rocktcop]

Good info, however; I would have to disagree on the convex. I find my convex blades and especially those other grind knives with their secondary bevels "converted" to a convex edge the easiest to maintain. No precise angles to worry about. All you need is a somewhat flexible surface and some light abrasive. In a pinch, out in the field, some silty mud from the creek bottom rubbed on your thigh of your jeans and you got an instant strop for that convex edge. Like some of the others have stated, I am also somewhat partial to a Scandi grind as well for out in the bush.

[@frankwoods135]

Scandinavian grind?

[@stizan24]

Oh god it was horible. I got into an argument with a troll on the youtube and he said R Lee Ermy was just an actor and you didn't make real Katanas.

[@NKG416]

+stizan24 umm i dsearch on google r lee ermey is an actor,but yea mr walter make real katanas

[@stizan24]

Try to survive Sg Ermy is decorated veteran. He served in the Marines for 11 years and was a drill instructor. He served in Vietnam and Okinawa. Then he got into acting. That is how he got the role in Full Metal Jacket. He was suposed to teach the actor how to drill but was so good he got the role, and a golden globe for it to boot!

[@jodyfree953]

Great info!

[@TimothyRyanFisher]

What are your thoughts on the Scandi Grind? It's the only grind I can sharpen with confidence, I use a flat stone. How does it compare?

[@jamesritchie6899]

The Scandi grind is the most popular in bushcraft, and most other outdoor uses now. From what I've read, there are millions of people around the world now who won't use anything except a Scandi grind. I prefer it over a flat grind. Also from what I've read, the convex has grown wildly in popularity over the last few years. Now, I know a bunch of people, including coupe of knife makers, who disagree with you about what a sabre grind is. To them, and to me, a sabre grind looks like a Scandi grind, except it has a secondary bevel. The apex of the bevel is the same distance up the blade as a Scandi, but only the secondary bevel is sharpened. In a Scandi, you sharpen the entire bevel each time you sharp[end the knife. In a sabre grind, you only sharpen the secondary bevel. I've never heard a flat grind with a secondary bevel called a sabre grind.

[@waltersmith4743]

hi thanks for all the info,love knife making,GREAT hobby,you have taugh me a lot thank walter smith

[@zaviertay3882]

Is and induction heater ok for knife making?

[@polishavenger1]

+Zavier Tay I would stay away from induction heat....for heat treating, knowing precise temperatures and controlling those temperatures is best done with a heat treating oven.

[@Lars1540]

I would have liked it if he could have compared scandi vs sabre vs full flat. These are the top 3 most common grinds for outdoor knives. I'd like to know the specific advantages and disadvantages to each of those grinds.

[@terrillschneider3778]

Thanks

[@jamessethmoore]

Thank you

[@samaker4]

thanks Walter. I always thought the hollow grind was the only true grind. I'll try some of the others.

[@GreySquirrelly1016]

Great Video! I’ve got a British Army MoD survival knife. I put a Convex edge on it using a strop and progressive grit sandpaper.

[@dtj41]

Walter, how often do you make/sell your swords? They're obviously very high quality; I'd imagine it takes a while to sell them

[@StodOneR]

@Walter Sorrells I wonder if you will see this comment , not to mention it is on an older video , but how would you hand sharpen a convex grind after it is dulled , I am not sure about the blade terminology , but usually on a knife there is a parallel part , then one angle and then third the edge , I know to sharpen knives like that , but when it has a convex grind and only that one big edge , I dont get how to sharpen the knife without making that "third" edge ... I hope you get me xD

[@kerrythetruth5091]

thanks

[@mathiskramer3315]

i started knife making just two or three months ago, but i always used old metal, because i live in germany and i dont know where to buy knife steel. do you know some german shops where i can buy the better steel???

[@sjohnson4882]

+Mathis Krämer Old files are generally made of excellent steel but you need to take the hardness out of them before you grind.

[@mathiskramer3315]

Thanks for the tipp i will try my best

[@polishavenger1]

+Mathis Krämer www.wolf-borger-messer.de/index-material_08.htm

[@michaelrobinson1341]

Walter Sorrel, are you on FM radio anywhere? Seriously dude, the world needs to hear your voice. You would be doing us a favour.

[@josephjasonsantiagolacour]

Much appreciated, Sir Walter. And I absolutely love how you stage your photos.

[@darthfloyd7948]

Thanks for the tips Walter. Could you make a video showing how to do the different grinds by hand and could you include how to make a serrated blade. Thanks.

[@aktrapper6126]

Thanks Walter, your videos "cut through" all the bs and just give pure good information.

[@leetester9170]

Thanks for taking the time to put this video together. Very informative 👍🏻

[@willieboy3011]

Excellent video. The photos of the different grinds, the advantages and disadvantages of the different grinds, and the different blade shapes are both shown and explained well.

[@Ray2001ify]

I do flat by hand, some blades just can't get shaving sharp

[@farmermike9262]

looks like the best knife edge is subject to great debate. I guess ill have to own both a saber and a scandi and take to the woods and let all the hot air out on a piece of wood. Thanks for all the information. Now I can move forward with confidence

[@Demmrir]

Outside of the difficulty of maintenance and manufacture, is there any downside to a convex grind compared to a flat grind for all-around knives? It's sturdier and the same or potentially greater sharpness, isn't it?

[@abstractapproach634]

Demmrir I was just thinking that, but how you would sharpen it is a huge factor. after hardening you can't use that belt at any Kind of practical speed, maybe a rocKing motion on your wet stone, but that would be very precise and time consuming work. any little roots would come out through the thousands of passes you would need to reMove material from that whole edge.

[@Stormcloakvictory]

convex has less sharp end potential than flat grind.

[@mdj391]

Excellent and informative video as always! Domo arigatogozaimashita!

[@patrickgermond2750]

Wow, you are almost at 300,000 subs. I remember finding you 5 years ago when I started making knives

[@mavos1211]

Hi Walter I love your work, what type of grind works best for a carving knife?

[@daisy8luke]

I agree about the flat grind limiting the sharpness. But lately I've been putting the secondary bevel on a really shallow angle, making the cutting edge quite thin and , therefore, sharp. With proper heat treating, I've been able to produce a really good zone between being too thin and not being able to take the beating to being thin enough to get and stay razor sharp through the beating.