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What is the sharpest knife in history?

knivesacademy.com - What is the Sharpest Knife in the World? - Knives Academy

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In short, the sharpest knife in the world is probably an obsidian knife. While impractical for use in a kitchen, the thinness of an obsidian blade makes its sharpness unparalleled. In this post, we’ll be exploring what impacts the sharpness of a blade. We’ll cover why obsidian knives are so sharp as well as some more reasonable considerations for use in your kitchen at home.

What Impacts Knife Sharpness?

The main factor that impacts the sharpness of a blade is its thickness. The thinner the blade, the less force is needed for it to cut food – or anything for that matter – effectively. A good analogy to use is to imagine diving into a pool of water. If you ‘belly flop’ into the water, you’re going to have a much harder time actually penetrating its surface. If you dive fingertips first into the pool, however, the thinner, pointed shape created by your body will glide into the water effortlessly.

The same is true for the edge of a knife.

The Sharpest Knife in the World

Obsidian knives are currently the sharpest possible knives known to man. Their staggeringly thin blades are the reason for this. The way that obsidian breaks are known as a conchoidal fracture. This kind of fracture looks very different from the edge of a traditional chef’s knife. When you zoom in very close to a steel blade, the edge looks more like a saw than a straight line. With a conchoidal fracture, the line is much straighter and therefore sharper.

How Sharp are Obsidian Knives?

The edge of an obsidian blade can be just 3 nanometers across. This is around ten times sharper than the sharpest razor blade. In short, obsidian blades are impossibly sharp.

How Strong is an Obsidian Blade?

Obsidian is reasonably strong but is also very brittle. It’s rated between 5 and 5.5 on what’s known as the Mohs scale of hardness. Diamonds clock in at around 10 on this scale, so obsidian is in the middle of the road here. However, obsidian can snap and break very easily as it’s a brittle material.

Why Don’t We Use Obsidian Knives in the Kitchen?

Because they’re so brittle! They also leave glass fragments behind in the things they’re cutting. Obsidian has been tested as a potential material for surgical scalpels but is often swiftly rejected. The debris they leave behind wouldn’t be safe for the human body. The same is true for the foods we prepare.

What are Obsidian Knives Used for?

In short, not much these days. Obsidian blades were a powerful tool during the stone age. While they’ve been used in a medical context in recent history, the unpredictable, brittle nature of obsidian means it’s far less common as a cutting material today. There are plenty of products claiming to be the sharpest but in general, it’s better to focus on:

Sharpening style (double vs single edge)

The thickness of the blade

The reviews you see for specific knives online

With regular sharpening and good maintenance, you shouldn’t have to worry too much about having the ‘sharpest knife in the world.’

World’s Sharpest Knife – Conclusion

While obsidian blades are probably the sharpest in the world, they’re not practical or safe for use in the kitchen. When shopping for commercial kitchen knives, it’s best to focus on the thinness of the blade, the sharpening style used, and online reviews.

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Do knife sharpeners ruin knives?

Even the adjustable ones are not well suited to all knives. Electric pull through sharpeners remove way too much metal and shorten the life of your knife by years. Ceramic wheel sharpeners tend to take chips and chunks out of thin Japanese blades.

chefsarmoury.com - Truth About Pull Through Knife Sharpeners - Chef's Armoury

The sad truth about pull through knife sharpeners is that they’re detrimental to your knives.

Top 8 reasons not to use a pull through sharpener

Pull through sharpeners (not all but most) assume a one size fits all approach. The angle on the edge is different on all knives and most good quality Japanese knives have offset bevels so how can a plastic box with ceramic wheels know the difference. Even the adjustable ones are not well suited to all knives. Electric pull through sharpeners remove way too much metal and shorten the life of your knife by years. Ceramic wheel sharpeners tend to take chips and chunks out of thin Japanese blades. A pull through sharpener will permanently damage any single sided blade like a yanagiba, deba, usuba Because of the mechanics of use, it is impossible to apply the same amount of pressure throughout the blade. As a result, the edge tends to go out of shape changing the original blade profile. There is absolutely no way you can sharpen a knife with a bolster using a pull through sharpener. In some models there is a high danger of cutting yourself. We are not talking a little knick here and there, one of our customers has a scar 15 cm long from an early experience with a pull through sharpener. When you eventually crack the shits and bring your knives to us for sharpening, it is very difficult to realign the blade. If you bought your knives for long term use rather than as a short term consumable, it would be best to avoid the gimmicky gadgets available on the market.

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