Deburring– The act of removing a burr. This can be done by many means, but the common method is to cut into something like cork, rubber or ultra-rock-hard felt, as these substances provide pressure on all directions and the friction to pull the tiny burrs off. The immediate result of deburring is that the burrs formed are literally torn off, so if you deburr after sharpening on a lowgritmedium, it is advisable to continue on to higher grits, deburring after each stone, and building up a minimum burr on the next higher stone. It is theoretically possible to sharpen and raise a burr so tiny it is undetectable before stopping intentionally, but it is NOT possible to meet both planes of abevelon thecutting edgewithout raising any kind of burr, at least not using sharpening stones. Removal of awire edgeis the same as deburring, since a wire edge is a type of burr.
Deformation– A more specific word for dulling, refers to the loss of the proper structure of the edge, be it through chipping, bending, rolling, or otherwise.
Diamond Plate– A steel plate coated in synthetic diamonds of varying grits. These plates are extremelyaggressive, and are often reserved forlappingandbevel setting.
Differential Heat Treat– A process in which one section of a single piece of steel isheat treateddifferently than another section. This process was created for swords, to enable a single piece of high quality steel to be hardened on it's edge and maintain a sharp, durable angle, but the steel on the spine would be soft, allowing for flexibility to prevent the sword from breaking in high-impact situations. In kitchen knives, it is mostly tradition and aesthetics, though there are some who profess to notice a feeling of “liveliness” in blades treated this way.
Dishing– The slow, inevitable formation of low spots on a sharpening stone, due to uneven surface wear. A dished stone, when used as normal, will create a more convexed edge than intended, and mightroll the edge. Usually dealt with bylappingor occasional flattening with a variety of coarser mediums.
Edge– The part of a knife that is physically altered to improve the cutting characteristics of a knife. The purpose of an edge is to provide a strong, sharp, and easy to maintain interface between the knife and it’s target. An edge is made up of 1 or morebevels
Edge Failure– The sudden dulling of acutting edgethrough chipping, bending, or any other deformation. This can be a sign of defective steel, but almost always indicates a poor quality or erroneous sharpening job.
Edge Geometry– The shape and angles of the Bevels. This is one of the aspects of a knife's design that is most commonly altered on a knife. Simply using a different angle than the factory used is changing the geometry. Also seeBlade Geometry
Edge Grain– A piece of wood that is cut with the grain so that the grain is parallel to the surface. This is common in less expensive cutting boards, because it is easier to make—planks of wood typically are cut with the grain, since that is how the tree grows.
Edge Profile– The general design and shape of the edge, as seen when looking directly at theface. One of the most important qualities of a knife. The qualities that make a great edge profile are nuanced and depend largely on the appliedtechniqueand personal preference. The edge profile is often altered, providing for more/less/differentbelly, but is best left to those with experience with such alterations, as it is easy to create a problem with the symmetry of thebevelsor anovergrind.
Edge Retention– The quality of a blade to resistdeformationof any type.
Edge Test– Any of a wide variety of cutting tasks that a knife is put through to determine it's cutting characteristics. While many tests can be useful and informative, the only surefire test that a knife is working well is to use it to cut what it was intended to cut.
End Grain– A piece of wood that is cut across the grain so that the grain is perpendicular to the surface. This is common in the very best cutting boards, because the grain can separate to allow a knife to cut into it without damaging the wood too severely, and without abrading the edge unnecessarily.
Face– The side of the blade above theedge, usually emblazoned with some kind of logo. The face of a knife is not always flat.
Fat– Slang for a very thick knife, perhaps too thick.
Figured– Refers to the quality of wood having a visually interesting grain structure. Wood with very unusual or complex patterns is referred to as “highly figured”. Plain-looking wood can be said to “not exhibit much(or any) figuring.”
Filework– Decorative grooves and patterns ground into the edge of a bar of metal, usually on the tang and/or spine. While aesthetically pleasing, it serves no function, and may actually house food particles, and therefore frowned upon for professional food service use
Finger Point– Agripin which the handle is grasped with 4 fingers around the handle, and the index finger is place, pad first, on the spine of the knife. This is a good grip for slicing, but does not provide a lot of security, so inexperienced cooks are advised against this grip. Very common for sushi chefs, where there is not any downward pressure needed to make cuts.
Fit and Finish– The level to which an object is functionally and aesthetically refined. Usually refers to level of polish, tightness of the fittings, quality of the overall grind, any extra time and effort spent at the end of the knife making process.
Fittings– Everything on a knife that is not a blade, tang, or scale.
Forge– Either an object or a process. A Forge is a very hot(thousands of degrees) oven, used by [URL”http://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/showthread.php?2023-Kitchen-Knife-Glossary#bladesmith]bladesmiths[/URL] to heat steel to make it malleable. Forging is the practice of using a forge to make a knife. Technically, any knife that is heated for the purpose of shaping through impact or pressure can be called “forged”, and it is often used as amarketing term.
Freehand– Sharpening knives by hand, without the aid of a stabilizing device, or jig. With time and practice, sharpeners improve in their ability to maintain a steady angle, and create a more precise edge. Due to the complex nature of the human body, a perfectlyflat bevelis impossible to achieve. This does not necessarily mean that the edge is less precise, as a certain amount ofconvexingis considered acceptable or even desirable.
Front of House– The areas of a restaurant customers are allowed to be in.
Full Tang– Handle design in which the tang shares a silhouette with the handle scales, and is visible all the way around. Often touted as better quality for kitchen knives, but this only helps in heavy abuse situations, like sword fighting, and is kept around in kitchen cutlery for tradition's sake and aesthetic appeal.
Grabby– The quality of an edge to cut into food instantly when slicing.
Grantons– shallow indentationsbehind the edgethat are intended to keep food from sticking by allowing air between the blade and the food. The effectiveness(or lack thereof) of grantons is a subject of debate.
Grit– A scale denoting the average particle size of an abrasive. The higher the grit, the smaller the particle, and the finer a finish it will leave. American and Japanese Grits are not the same, and there are many different grit ratings, even in the same country, and not all manufacturers' stated grits are accurate. There are many charts available to convert different grits intoMicronsize, which is a much more reliable scale. Generally, 'rough' grits are about 25-200 Microns, 'medium' grits are about 5-25 Microns, and 'fine' grits are less than 5 microns.
Grind– The way a knife is shaped, formed orforgedat different parts. A blade can have different grinds, such as a hollow ground blade with a flat edgebevel. Ex: “a convex grind”. SeeHollow Ground,Convex, andFlat grind.
Grip– The method of holding a knife. Does not refer to the handle itself. Common styles areHammer Grip,Pinch Grip, and theFinger Point.
Guide– A (usually small and simple) object that is attached to a knife that helps to maintain a steady angle. The angle will change depending on how wide the blade is and where the guide is attached. Specially tailored guides can be helpful, but there is no guide that will work for every size, shape and style of blade.
Hammered Finish– A texture created on thefaceof a knife by repeated striking, usually with a metal punch. Mostly aesthetic value, as it does not really keep food from sticking. Food does not get stuck in the dimples so long as basic knife hygiene and safety are applied.
Hammer Grip– Agripin which the knife is held with all five fingers wrapped around the handle, like one would hold a hammer.
Hammer-In– An organized social get-together of knifemakers at a shop, for the purpose of making and discussing knives, sharing good company, and eating and drinking.
Hamon– A line created in the steel when a piece of uniform steel isdifferentially heat treated. Not to be confused with aclad line
Hanging Hair Test– Anedge testin which a single hair is drawn across a motionless blade, in an attempt to break or at least whittle it
Haze– A contrasting finish left on akasumiblade, achieved through careful honing/polishing. The abrasive needs to be hard enough to scratch the softcladding, but small and evenly distributed enough to polish thecore steel. An ideal Kasumi finish would be one in which the soft steel cladding and hard core steel contrast each other, without deep scratches.
Heat Treat– The process of heating and cooling steel, in varying patterns and ranges, to produce desirable characteristics in the steel. Differs from the forging process, because the steel is not being heated for the purpose of being shaped or hammered. Any shape change during heat treating is referred to aswarpage.
High-Carbon– Any Steel that contains more than .5% Carbon. Often this term is just marketing, since .5% carbon is really not much(some go as high as 3.8%[MPL-1]), and many steels qualify for this term, despite beingheat treatedpoorly or even made up of an altogether undesirable alloy.
Hole in the Edge– Slang for the area that is no longer creating desired board contact when anovergrindaffects thecutting edge.
Hollow Ground– A feature of a knife that has agrindthat has a rounded inward curve.
Hone– A generic term for sharpening, but often used to denote use of ahoning rod.
Honing Rod– A cylindrical rod used for minor touchups and maintenance of an edge between sharpening sessions, to keep the edge at peak performance. While it is a common item, it is very rare to see one used correctly, on television, in pro kitchens, or anywhere. The purpose is to gently re-align theteethof a knife that are bent through normal use, making the edge feel “fresh” again. Steel rods are made of a steel hardened to aroundHRC61, which is hard enough to align teeth on a knife of soft steel, about HRC 59 or less. Harder knives do not respond well to steel hones, because they are often harder than the hone itself, or they become dull through micro chipping, literally breaking *teeth* off instead of bending them. These knives benefit from glass, ceramic or borosilicate rods, though many prefer to simplystroptheir hard steel knives betweensharpening.
House Knives– Restaurant industry term for the knives the restaurant owns, as opposed to the knives cooks bring and maintain themselves. Typically these “beaters” are inexpensive, poorly cared for, and make up the bulk of what is used to prepare your food outside your house. Rarely, there are restaurants that supply good quality knives to their staff.
Jig– Any device used to mount either the knife, stone, or both, to aid in maintaining a precise angle, and remove the element of human error from the sharpening process. Given hard sharpening media, a “dead flat”bevelis achievable, but this does not necessarily mean the edge is more precise, as a certain amount ofconvexingis considered acceptable, or even desirable. There are many, many of these available, but only a few work well enough to use on a wide variety of quality cutlery.
Kasumi– Japanese for 'mist', also the name forclad construction. It refers to the [URL=http://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/showthread.php?2023-Kitchen-Knife-Glossary#haze]haze traditionally left on the blade.
Kata-Ha– The Japanese term for a style of single-bevel knife construction. Often pronounced “Kah-tah-bah”.
Knife Callous– The internationally recognized sign of a working cook. A small rough patch of skin on the index finger that is caused by abrasion from using a knife for hours at a time, day after day.
Knifemaker– A person who makes knives. Does not denote any specific method of knifemaking.
Kuro-Uchi– A “rustic” finish where thescalefrom the forge is not removed in the process of making a knife. Provides a moderate amount of corrosion resistance, similar to apatina. This also allows the maker to skip a step in finishing the blade, and can help to reduce cost, making otherwise pricy steel a little more accessible.
Lapping– abrading astoneduring a sharpening session with a flatter, coarser medium, to make the stone flat, and/or to quickly build upmud. Not everyone laps their stones, but flattening at least occasionally is advised to preventdishing.
Laser– Slang for a knife that is very sharp and very thin. Often this is a subjective assessment.
Lineup– A particular progression ofsharpening stones,hones,stropsand other sharpening tools. A person's chosen “lineup” is so named because often the stones are laid out in a row on a table, and used one after another. Does not imply that these are the only stones the person owns, just the ones being used.
Loading– Can mean 2 things, but both with the same basic meaning—having a rough surface coated with tiny particles. (1) The act of coating a strop with acompoundto aid in edgerefinement(2) The effect ofswarfbeing left behind and depositing on aSharpening Stone, which can damage the stones cutting speed and apparent grit size—this is never a desirable occurance.
Marker Trick– Asharpening aidprocess in which a permanent marker is used to color over the entireedgeup to thecutting edge, and given a few seconds to dry before proceeding with normal sharpening. The hone being used will abrade away the surface, and will reveal what part(s) of the bevel is making consistent contact with the stone, by removing the ink. Be careful not to not shade it too high if you don't want any of the marker left on thefaceof the knifebehind the edge.
Marketing Term– Legitimately useful words whose meanings is either vague or obscure enough to allow them be used by unscrupulous vendors to misrepresent an item. When a knife's ad copy says something like “100% forged german steel with a tempered blade”, it is like saying you are selling a soccer ball that is “100% stitched American leather with a high-pressure inflated bladder”. They are designed to sound overly impressive to a casual user, and combating the deception they are used for is one of the purposes of this list.
Micarta– A heavy-duty handle material made with fabric that is layered and impregnated in a vacuum with plastic resin. Good micarta will not shrink, warp, crack, absorb water, or wear easily. Can be made into many different colors or patterns. Common on outdoor knives.
Microbevel– Abevelthat is very small, and never theprimary bevel. The purpose of a microbevel is to increase the strength of thecutting edge(because it creates a less acute angle), and the process of adding one can help in the removal ofburrsand
