Perhaps the reason you can't find that type of knife in a good quality knife is because a serrated blade isn't considered good for vegetables, fruits and raw meat.
Get a decent regular bladed knife and see what a difference that makes.
Or...I suppose you could use a bread knife

Here is a link that might be useful: bread knife

Look for a ''Tomato Knife'', which is a utility size knife that is serrated. I agree with Linda that a sharp knife with a regular blade will be best for other fruit/vegetables that are harder than tomatoes. Most people don't bother sharpening their knives regularly which is sad. Once you start cutting with a sharp knife, it's really hard to use a dull one. THUNK! ;)

I have all those, I have a tomato knife that's great for tomatoes. I have all sorts of knives that are good and sharp but what I want is a tiny toothed knife. Just like my cheapy knife only made of a better quality blade that's not going to be slanted and cut sideways.

And I wanted to extend some. I'm not looking for a "serrated" blade knife such as a bread knife. These knives used to be marketed as the "never need sharpening, will cut through a can or pipe" type marketing. You used to see them on every other infomercial. They have these tiny little teeth. Don't ask me why I like it so much but I just do. I have a drawer full of nice sharp knives but any time I slice onions, I always reach for this. It's also great for slicing up oranges/citrus.

If the price point is a consideration, another type of knife I would like to suggest is a Henckels Santoku. Bed, Bath & Beyond carries a two-piece set. The set includes a 5" and a 7" knife and costs $19.99. If you can find a $5 coupon online you could get it for $15. I think you would be pleased with these knives. They work well and are affordable. Perhaps someone could get this for you for Christmas?

I have a set of Wusthoff knives that I have had for 35 years and paid an arm and a leg for. They still hold their edge just fine. However, I do like these lightweight, inexpensive knives - especially for slicing tomatoes!

Here is a link that might be useful: Henckels 2 piece Santoku Set

"These knives used to be marketed as the "never need sharpening, will cut through a can or pipe" type marketing. You used to see them on every other infomercial."

Are you talking about Ginsu knives? They used to have crazy over the top commercials - no idea if there product is any good.

Here is a link that might be useful: Ginsu

Teresa, I actually saw a three piece set of Wusthof knives at TJ Maxx today for $14.99 just today. Yes $14.99, yes Wusthof! They had the colored blades, they were different sized paring knives. And they also had some of the Henckels Santoku you spoke of, still not the toothed knives I'm looking for. I'll check at BBB and see what else they have though. I have seen them there before a long time ago, maybe they still have them...*fingers crossed, coupon in hand!* HAHA!

Ginsu knives? I don't think that's the one but it could be but I'm pretty sure that commercial was for the toothed knives. They'd show them sawing through a can and then "look it still cuts right through a tomato!" HA!

It's weird because that style of knife used to be all the rage but I guess no more. :(

If you go to Amazon.com and search for "Micro serrated knife", you may find what you are looking for.

I think for people who tend to cut by pulling prefers serrated blades.

dcarch

arkansas girl - check out the edges of the Henckels santoku. It is not a straight sharp edge. While not serrated - it might be something you would like. Personally, I think you would be quite pleased with them. I've been using expensive, professional knives for years. I really like these lightweight, incredibly sharp little gems.

Serrated blades are good for items with a firm skin or outside and a softer interior--tomatoes, bread, cooked steaks.

OOOOK! So the micro serrated knife search did it! Though it's not the as seen on TV knife but it's exactly what I was trying to find. So I found a brand called J.A. Henckels International Eversharp and I can buy it at Bed Bath and Beyond...I guess if they are in stock. Or I'll have to order. But that's exactly what I was searching for. So thanks for all of your efforts as it did pay off! WOOHOO!!!!!!! :)

I know that my mom has a set of Cutco knives. They are all serrated and are toted as never needing sharpened. I wonder if this is what you are looking for.

Stacie

Nah those eversharp ones are what I'm looking for. I didn't know Cutco made the serrated knives. My Mom had a big set of them(from the 1970s) and they were not serrated except for like one long bread knife. I hated those knives....worst knives I've ever used! When my Mother became ill from a stroke before she passed just a few months ago, my sister was her caretaker. She brought her own knives from her house so she could cook for Mom...HA! For regular knives, I've decided that of the knives I've used...I like RADA the best. The two I have are awesome!

In my experience knives that don't need sharpening are like outhouses that don't smell. They live up to their promise until they're used.

I was given a few of those Ginsu "saws" several years ago. I didn't take them too seriously, cut through some random stuff for the heck of it. Didn't take long to dull.

But my biggest disappointment was a set of Henkel's Eversharp that I bought my mom years ago. They worked for a while but once they're done they're done. So for a few years I bought her individual replacements (Wusthof Classic) of her most used knives. They dull down, too, of course but then I touch them up for her. I suspect if you got someone would sharpen those Cutco knives, you'd be very happy with them. I've seen many happy customers here.

MHO about knives, and my experiences:

1. Any metal can be sharpened to shave paper and slice tomato paper thin. It means nothing.

2. Any dull chef’s knife can cut across 10 water bottles if you swing it fast enough. It makes good infomercial.

3. Any knife can stay sharp for a long long time if you are cutting only meat, veggies and fruits and don’t use it to chop.

4. Bad cutting habits can ruin a good knife in no time.

5. For many people, a serrated blade is a very good thing.

6. Yes, you can sharpen a serrated blade. Sharpen it on the non-serrated side.

7. Most cuttings do not require a sharp knife. If you keep a sharp knife away and only use it for slicing, you will not need to sharpen a knife for many years.

8. Why buy knives that you can’t put in a dishwasher?

9. For most people, why buy knives that you cannot sharpen with an electric sharpener?

10. Ignore the above points if you are into making sushi a lot.

dcarch

I appreciate all the suggestion and I'm not trying to be rude or anything(because I appreciate being helped!) but I do know how to sharpen a knife! I have several GOOD SHARP KNIVES but I have certain cutting tasks that I like the micro serrated knife for. I've used my cheapO knives from the dollar store (yes they cost one dollar each) and other than they are flimsy, they still cut great after being probably 10 years old!!!!!!

My Mom's Cutco knives were sharpened with the Cutco sharpener and MY knife sharpener too. They'd cut good for a couple times and then they were dull again. I suppose they needed sharpening after or before each use. To me that's not that great of a knife if it can't hold a sharpening more than one or two uses. Maybe that's wrong? Maybe people sharpen their knives constantly. Like I've stated before and I'm not trying to sound bossy or anything but I already have a great selection of regular straight sharp blade knives and I'm very happy with the selection I've acquired of the many years I've been cooking.

Thanks all for your suggestion on knives. I'm sure someone looking for regular sharp blade knives will appreciate the useful information here!

Thanks again!

OH and I wanted to add that I've seen people say that the micro serrated knives they bought are the worst knives ever...so I want to ask, are you all trying to run these through a traditional knife sharpener? That will totally destroy this knife. Unless you want to sharpen each tooth as you would a saw or a chain saw, do not attempt to sharpen them. They are made to not ever need sharpening. I've seen someone totally destroy an entire set of these trying to sharpen them!

No, I've not run micro-serrated knives through a sharpener. Obviously that would destroy them. I consider them disposable. I'm really surprised you've had so much success with them but good for you!

Re sharpening, I think the answer is no, most people don't sharpen their knives every use. However, people who are serious about keeping their knives in good order will hone them each time. I'd say mine get sharpened once or twice a year.

Good luck in your search!

"I think for people who tend to cut by pulling prefers serrated blades."

dcarch - There was a chef who used to post on GW and he was a self-described fanatic about knife sharpness. He told me he keeps two chef's knives in his arsenal. One which he'd sharpen to a mirror finish with a superfine stone, the other he stopped at the fine stone. He'd use the superfine knife for mincing and chopping, where you pretty much push through the material, and the knife with a bit more tooth was for when more of a slicing motion was used. Makes sense to me, and fits into your statement.

My two cents about metal knives (I have no experience with ceramic ones):

Many cooking tasks don't require a particularly sharp knife. Quartering potatoes and onions, cutting carrots and celery into 1/2'' lengths, cutting a steak into two pieces, etc. These can be done with almost any knife - straight or serrated, sharp or dull, big or little, your old camping pocketknife - they will all work.

A few tasks do require a sharp knife. Slicing vegetables very thin, making neat slices of soft fish, cutting fish against the grain, deboning chicken to get every bit of usable flesh, finely dicing onions, mincing garlic and herbs, etc. A dull, or coarsely serrated, knife will crush and tear its way through these cuts. The diced onions will be watery, the fish slices will be be pulled into odd shapes , the cross-cut fish pieces will be pulled apart on the grain, the chicken will be ragged with meat left on the bone, the garlic will be more crushed than minced, the basil will be bruised and darkened.

No smooth-edged knife will hold an sharp edge indefinitely. To have a sharp knife, the most important thing is that the knife has to be properly maintained. Regularly steeled, occasionally honed, re-sharpened when necessary. Over time, the lower-quality knife that is maintained will be sharper than the higher-quality knife that is not maintained. Over what time? How long the non-maintained knife will hold its edge depends on how heavily it is used but also on the angle of the edge and the hardness and toughness of the steel. For the average knife, used daily with no maintenance, the edge will deteriorate considerably after more than a couple weeks, less than several months.

A serrated-edge knife is different. A pure serrated edge works like a saw blade. The teeth catch the food and "tears" it away. That old wood saw in the garage will still saw through a 2x4, even if the blade is 20 years old and covered with rust. Thus a serrated knife will still cut (tear, if you want to be picky-precise) food, even if not maintained.

Most serrated knives are a cross between smooth and serrated edges. My serrated bread knife, for instance, has a scallop-shaped edge with teeth (the "serrated edge" part) and a sharp, concave edge between the teeth (the "smooth edge" part). Some kitchen knives (e.g. Ginsu) are purely serrated - all teeth, no smooth edge, like a hacksaw or wood saw. Similarly, smooth-edged knives usually have microscopic teeth on the edge - you can see them through a microscope at 40X, on all but the most highly polished edges, but not with the naked eye. Sometimes you can feel them.

Now, on to the real world.

Some cooks do not maintain their knives. They never steel, hone, or sharpen them. They use the same knife to slice soft vegetables and hack chicken bones. They cut on ceramic plates or glass cutting boards, or on the ceramic tile counter. They put the knife in the sink with glasses and dishes, wash it in the dishwasher, then store it in a drawer rattling among other utensils. These cooks should use stainless steel serrated knives. When the teeth eventually wear down, the knife is thrown out, so it should not be an expensive knife.

Some cooks are OCD about their knives. They maintain them religiously, store them meticulously, use specific knives for specific tasks, are fussy about their cutting, always use a wood or plastic cutting board, wash by hand. These cooks should use smooth-edge knives most of the time (with a serrated knife for crusty bread), and preferably high-quality ones, even carbon steel knives. They probably own and use hand sharpening stones, maybe several.

Most cooks are somewhere in between. They give their knives some care and maintenance but they're not really "into" knives and want to minimize the time involved. They should use decent smooth-edged knives and an electric sharpener like the Chef's Choice machines. Or they can use serrated knives, preferably ones with blades like my bread knife.

Again, I don't have any ceramic knives, so the above may not apply there.

A couple more thoughts:
- There is no particular need to wash smooth-edged knives in the dishwasher. Just wipe with a soapy, soft brush, dry with a towel and you're done. A serrated knife might be a different story, if the serrations are so tight that the brush doesn't remove food trapped between the teeth.
- There is some reason to avoid the dishwasher. Regular washing in a dishwasher can eventually cause pitting and rusting in a stainless steel knife blade (recall, stainless steel is not ''rust-proof'', it is ''rust-resistant''). The hardness of the water and the harshness of the detergent makes a difference. The heating of the dry cycle is not good for handles, especially wood but also plastic. A carbon steel knife will rust quickly in a dishwasher.
- A serrated knife has no particular advantage over a sharp smooth-edged knife unless the food is has a hard, brittle shell but is easily crushed, like some crusty bread. A sharp knife will slice tomatoes easily, without any crushing. But, if the alternative is a dull smooth-edged knife, then the serrated knife wins.
- The ''sharpening steel'' is often misused. These should be used just to align the edge. The edge of a knife is very thin, and heavy cutting will bend it to one side or the other - not visible to the naked eye. Running the edge over a smooth steel pushes the edge back into a straight line. However, most steels now are grooved. People think the grooves will sharpen a dull edge. Actually, vigorously running the edge over these grooves makes lots of jagged tears in the edge. You can see these through a microscope, and you may be able to feel the roughness. These jaggies act like serrations, so the knife cuts effectively - but very quickly the jagged bits are torn off, and the knife no longer cuts well. So people who use steels vigorously find themselves re-steeling the knife frequently. You know the old-time butcher who steels his knife so vigorously that it ''sings'', before every workday? That's why he does it every day.
- On Chef's Choice machines: I don't own one, my friends do and like them. Their machines leave the edges moderately sharp with a lot of roughness (microscopic serrations). The bevel is uneven - deep in places, shallow in others - that may be operator error. So, the results are just okay - but the machines are so quick and easy to use, that I think they make a lot of sense for most of us.

I have a set of those! Mine are tagged "Revereware" and have the pistol grip handles like the pots. My parents bought 'em at Price Club (Costco precursor) for me before sending me off to college. We use them ALL the time. They're good for tomatoes, steak, and cheese and they go in the dishwasher. They aren't what I use for most food prep but they are always getting used in my house.

i am guilty of OCD about my knives, i sharpen my knives before they are put away for the next use and kept in a knife block and others are sleeved. they are sharp for slicing tomatoes,or beef or chicken for stir frying,also i hand wash my knives, johnliu got it right on about knives. i too have no experience with ceramic knives, our restaurant chefs like henkels, i have some straight edge and serrated cutco knives . cutco use to offer sharpen your cutco knives free , try cutco.com i have not used this service because i sharpen my own, cutco is a good knife but keep them sharp

If you all could have just one hour to use a ceramic knife your fancy metal ones would be left to rust in the knife holder. My friends now own one at my insistance and all love them and are gifting family members with them this Christmas. Families with more than one cook have ordered a second one to keep peace in the kitchen. Do an on-line search for ceramic knives. Order the Kyocera 5 1/2 inch blade ceramic chef's knife. This will do 95% of your cutting needs every day except for those jobs that require heavy cutting or twisting actions. It is always at the ready and will stay sharp for two years or more before you send it back to the manufacturer for sharpening. Or, you can also order the ceramic knife sharpener that Kyocera is also selling. I have not used it yet so cannot vouch for its performance.

Last I looked Amazon had the best price. Purchase one. Enjoy the ease of slicing bread, cutting tomatoes and meats paper thin and breezing through kitchen cutting chores with the sharpest knife you will ever use. Fits the hand comfortably, too.

Arkansas girl, I appreciate this thread because I am also guilty of not putting to much thought into my knives, and for lots of us carefree is best, even though it's not necessarily the "right" way.

Johnliu, what a thoughtful post; I really enjoyed reading that. I am guilty of falling into that very descriptive category (haha) right after "the real world". I think I'll go hide now.

I've been doing some shopping this month at Sur La Table and having come across this useful thread I decided to look at their cutlery. I really liked this inexpensive set and am considering purchasing. Arkansas I'm posting the link just in case it provides any interest.

I'm not sure when I'll be getting, but for all of us that fall into "that category", I'll let you know how this set works out, unless someone beats me to it :)

Forgot to post link below:

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen knife set

velamina, the link wasn't there.

Well I wouldn't consider myself OCD about my knives but they have their own little drawer with a rubber non-slip pad and they don't touch and have protective sleeves oh and never ever go in the dishwasher EVER. Most of my favorite knives are at least 30 years old. I'm the type that thinks "they just don't make 'em like they used to!" :( Any time I've just had to have a new knife, I'm sorely desappointed compared to my antiques...HA!

never mind, you were posting the link when I said it wasn't there. Thank you!

If you're interested in how to keep your knives sharp, take a look at the site at the link. The guy runs a sharpening service, and gives advice on various sharpening systems. I bought a paper wheel system from him; I like it, and can get a razor edge on a knife in a few minutes. Drawback is, you need a dedicated bench grinder and space for it in your workshop or garage.

While he has a book for sale on sharpening, there's a lot of free info on the web site. He does like the Chef's Choice machines.

Here is a link that might be useful: sharpening made easy

Have a few "good" knives. Use a steel on them periodically... but not lightening fast like you see TV chefs do. Also have an electric knive sharpener that came from my Dad's house that I use 2-3 times a year.

YEARS ago, Dad bought us all sets of Ginzu knives for Christmas. Not close to what I would call a "good" knife... but they DO cut! One of my biggest gripes about vacation rental kitchens is the KITCHEN equipment. BAD pots and pans and BAD knives. Sister has her Ginzus at her rental place... at least they actually CUT!

Chicago Cutlery makes micro-serrated steak knives (set of four for $11.49 + shipping; zoom in to see the serrations), although those are not the ones I prefer. I bought the ones with the smooth blades because I wanted to use them for steak, but these might suit your purposes.

Lars

John - Quick question: You seem to differentiate between steeling and honing. I consider them the same. I would say I hone my knives on a steel. Am I wrong?

I have a ceramic knife, I don�t use it. I like regular knives better. There are many people who will not use anything else.

Keep this in mind, if you drop a ceramic knife, it may break. Ceramic knife can keep a somewhat sharp edge for a long time, but if you are not a careful user, the edge can easily chip. Most people cannot sharpen a ceramic blade.

For regular knives I don�t like to use a sharpener steel. You can�t control the sharpening angle very well and you can�t sharpen the whole edge evenly easily.

Instead, you may like to try this:

Go to HD or a hardware store and get silicone carbide dry/wet sandpaper. I have several grits, 1000, 3000 and 5000-grit. 1000-grid cuts fast, and 5000-grit gives you a razor sharp polish. Lay the sandpaper on your chopping board and use it like a sharpening stone. The sandpaper gives you an even cut and you can control the angle of grind much better. The sandpaper lasts a long time.

dcarch

I'm also a fast worker and was wondering if many of us that are the same way just reach in and grab the next "suitable" clean knife. That would make my purchase sort of useless if I have to be rinsing each time, so I'm considering the colorful paring set by the same maker as well.

I recently bought a set from Ikea that we use as steak knives (and I of course use them for other things as well). They are currently 6 for $3 (haha what a deal). Still it's a great fix for me since I'm sort of "in-between" good knives.

My Japanese knives are dull, two of them started to rust, and this is going on because I have neglected to take them to get sharpened for a couple of years now. Somehow I fell under the apprehension that when you don't sharpen correctly, you ruin, so of course now I don't do my own.

I keep thinking of a distant relative who used to sharpen his knives so much the blades barely had a surface (they were turning into a skewer). They were sharp though, I'll give him that.

The terms are confusing, they seem to be used inconsistently in different contexts. For example, I went to wikipedia and see these two inconsistent uses just a couple of paragraphs apart:

''For example, the blade of a steel knife is ground to a bevel so that the two sides of the blade meet. This edge is then refined by honing until the blade is capable of cutting.''

''The edge may be steeled or honed by passing the blade against a hard metal "steel" (which may be made of ceramic) which plastically deforms and straightens the material of the blade's edge which may have been rolled over irregularly in use, but not enough to need complete resharpening.''

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sharpening_edged_tools#Implements_with_essentially_straight_edges

I guess I think of ''steeling'' as using the round steel to straighten a bent edge, of ''honing'' as using a fine stone to create (or restore) the final cutting edge on a blade that already has the proper bevel, and of a full ''sharpening'' as using a medium stone to create (or re-create) the bevel and then honing the final cutting edge.

But if you call straightening the bent edge with the steel ''honing'', that's not wrong at all.

Some people then would have another step, ''polishing'' the honed edge with a very fine stone (or abrasive paper, or polishing compound, or a strop) to remove (as much as they can) the microscopic serrations that the honing stone leaves. I suspect knife geeks have all sorts of further refinements on the process and the terms - ''pulling a wire'' is one I like.

Interesting, John, thanks!

Johnliu:
I agree on many things you Posted.
Except the 20 year old carpenters saw. If the teeth are not sharp,
( like they will make holes in your finger ) when touched,
it will just wear it's way thru the wood.

My Steak knives are the same.
If I run one lightly across my finger and it just rides across, it's not sharp.
So I'll run one side of the serrations across my Steel.
It is now sharp.

If it doesn't cut Steak, I'll buy a better Grade.
- - - - - - - -

I only cut with the grain of the cutting board, not across.
Unless you don't mind your board all messed up.
- - - - - - -

On the Sharpening thing I do as Dcarch does with the wet and dry paper and
also have a variety of Sharpening Stones , some used with oil and a rotary strop, that I made.
Many years ago I saw a microscope Photo of a knife edge,
( probably in the 50's )
It showed a burr on a just sharpened Knife.
This had to be honed.
I do this on a very fine dry stone, about a 20 deg. angle,
like trying to slice of a piece of the stone.
- - - - - -

I touch up Paperhanger Shears by running them on a hard piece of steel.
Open the Shears all the way, place the piece of steel in
(carbon steel knife blade) and try cutting it in half,
at the same time, pull the Shears out and away.
Do this a few times.

Works on your household scissors, too.
Lou

Johnliu, that was a great write-up, very educational. Count me as someone OCD about my knives. I also want to emphasize that one's "taste" in knives is very individual. So, for me, regarding ceramic knives - I know they are really sharp, and maintain their sharpness much longer than steel knives, and are easier to care for (as long as you don't drop them). Having said that, I cannot stand the hard sound they make when chopping - that sound and how they feel as they strike the cutting board gives me the shivers. Obviously, this is a very personal thing!

One more thing that John briefly mentioned that I want to expand on a bit is the type of cutting board. If you care about your knives, or care about the investment of $$ you've made in your knives, you should not use a plastic cutting board. They will dull your knives in just a few uses. You should use wood cutting boards. No one knows where the idea came from that plastic boards are safer - researchers at the University of Wisconsin have studied this perception that plastic cutting boards are better, and were unable to ascertain why people think this. Their findings were that wooden boards are safer.

"The [University of Wisconsin] researchers purposely contaminated wood and
plastic boards with bacteria and then tried to recover those
bacteria alive from the boards. They also tested boards made from
seven different species of trees and four types if plastic. They
incubated contaminated boards overnight at refrigerator and room
temperatures and at high and typical humidity levels. They tested
several bacteria, Q Salmonella, Listeria and enterohemorrhagic
Escherichia coli Q known to produce food poisoning. The results
consistently favored the wooden boards, often by a large margin
over plastic boards. The scientists found that three minutes after contaminating a board that 99.9 percent of the bacteria on wooden boards had died, while none of the bacteria died on plastic. Bacterial numbers
actually increased on plastic cutting boards held overnight at
room temperature, but the scientists could not recover any
bacteria from wooden boards treated the same way. A major question is why wood is so inhospitable to bacteria. The researchers have tried unsuccessfully to recover the compound in wood that inhibits bacteria, and is continuing the research."

Regarding wood cutting board being more sanitary than other materials, I suggest a more thorough search be done before a conclusion is made. There is plenty of information out there which contradict that believe.

I would think that everyone here knows to keep separate cutting boards for meats and for food that you don�t intend to cook.

For me, it is more important to have cutting boards which are knife-friendly and dishwasher safe.

I also regularly pour boiling water over cutting boards to sanitized them.

dcarch

Akchicago:

I remember when every neighborhood Butcher Shop,
had the old type Maple Butcher Block to cut their meat.
( yes there were Butcher Shops everywhere )

Then the Government came out with what you said, about Bacteria.
I think this started in the 50's

Years later it was reversed ???

Too late they are gone !!!
BUT there are company's making the Old Butcher Blocks.

I thought the bacterial question was resolved ???
- - - - - - - - - - -
Don't do much research on things, just fly by the seat of my pants.
Except when I want to know some thing spacific, like how many flight feathers are on a bird's wing.
Then I apply it to what I'm working on.

Johnliu;
I have a Royal Norfolk Cutlery knife, with a 5 inch Hollow Ground blade.
The front half is serrated with about 1/8 inch half moon serrations, points are towards towards the handle.

I have a very fine stone that fits the half moon serations,
that I use to touch up.

This knife works very good on a cutting board, if I cut with the grain.
If I go across the wood grain, it is like a Saw.
Lou

Dcarch;
Somehow I missed your post.
Maybe because I take a couple of breaks, in between finishing mine.

What is the latest info on hardwood cutting boards ???
LOU

Dcarch - that's the thing. People think there is "plenty of information out there" that plastic cutting boards are safe. But actually there isn't any information. That's what the UofWisconsin researchers found. That on top of their own laboratory research that wooden boards inhibit bacteria, they were unable to find research to the contrary. It's not that they found contradictory research on plastic boards, but that they didn't find any research at all, i.e. no laboratory testing like what they did with actual bacteria, incubation under strict laboratory conditions, comparing various types of boards, using sophisticated instruments to measure, etc.

I apologize for going a bit off topic. Originally it was because I recommended wooden boards as a way to keep your knives sharper longer than using plastic boards.

Dredging up this thread because I took some photos that might be interesting.

They show the micro-serrations on knife blades.

This is a Victorinox serrated bread slicer, pretty new, never sharpened. You can see the factory sharpening is rough (intentionally, I think), and leaves tiny serrations on the wavy edge.

Here is a more magnified photo. It is hard to focus at this magnification, but even so the micro-serrations are clearly visible.

By contrast, here is an old (50 y/o?) carbon steel slicer, about 14'' long, that has been re-sharpened and honed on a waterstone, the last time maybe a couple months ago. Even at lowest magnification you can see the edge is smoother, with minimal micro-serration.

This more magnified picture again shows the relative smoothness of the edge. It also shows that I need to clean my knives better, I think that's a tiny (not really visible to the naked eye) bit from the last meat this slicer cut.

I was given a Chef's Choice 120 sharpener for Christmas. I think I'll return it to the giver (they won't be offended) because it sharpens to a 20-25 degree bevel which is not the angle I use on my knives. I'm going to first try to take some pictures of a knife that has been sharpened on this machine, to see how the edge looks. I need to go to a junk store and pick up a $5 knife to use for this test.