What's the Sharpest and Dullest knives you've received out of the box

This has been an interesting thread. It seem’s like any quality knife brand can end up on someone’s sharpest or dullest list. But, it looks like Spyderco seems to have the “edge” when it comes to opinions about sharpness. I got my first one, a PM2, on the way and can’t wait to see how it compares to my other knives.
 
Years ago I started a thread entitled "the sharpest knife you ever owned." Yes, spyderco and other strong brands were there but for that thread, at that time, the sharpest knives were those coming from custom makers. I can remember only snody but other custom guys were there. That shouldn't surprise anyone. A guy who makes knives with care from start to finish should think about how sharp his product is at the end of the process. Production outfits could have understandable glitches and flyers (unless it's really their policy to crank out dull knives.)
 
Hmm. Spyderco PM3 Spy27 came sharp enough to cut me without noticing it for a few minutes.

Axial Shift and ZT 0470 as well.

It's been many years since I've had a knife come "dull" from the factory.
 
My experience has been that generally speaking, most knives manufactured in Japan are sharper out the box than knives made elsewhere. These include Mcusta in particular, Spyderco, SOG, Falkniven, Al Mar and the old Japanese made Kershaws. As mentioned, Mcusta consistently surprises with very sharp blades out of the box. Sharpest I can recall offhand was a Mcusta Katana.

I’ve been very disappointed with Boker (German made). I don’t even remember the name of the particular Boker butter knife I was sold. A Reeve Regular Sebenza was a notable disappointment in terms of out the box sharpness as was my Lion Steel Ti Spine.
 
DayofReckoning said:
Performance edge if I recall correctly. Perhaps there was an oversight. I ordered mirror polish blade, and it seemed almost as if maybe an edge was put on there, but when the sanding and polishing was done it wiped the edge right off. I'm not sure to be honest.
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Hey there mate- i think you've hit the nail on the head here. The blades go through an initial test cutting stage before moving to final finishing- this way if there are HT issues it's caught once less work has been invested. It was likely overbuffed then the edge issue not caught prior to shipment. In the last few months we've set up some more rigid QC systems for staff to help close up any holes in the net.I'd be happy to sort out a discount on a future order/partial refund to cover the lower standard on your blade. Furthermore we appreciate the feedback- I've sent your post to the team and I think it'll help crystallise how important out of box sharpness is to western customers in developing first impressions.
Take care,
Andrew and the team at Kailash
 
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Sharpest by far was one of Ernie Emerson's knives....it came shipped with a pack which warned of sharp blade and included
a bandaid... I didn't believe it; cut my finger anyway.
Dullest was from Benchmade. I even sent them a knife for their sharpening service, and it came back dull. And I paid for that?
 
Sharpest knife I’ve ever owned : Ban Tang BT4 - that was sort of a custom though. Insane level of sharpness. Literally Hair splitting sharp.

Sharpest factory knife TRC Millie C in Vanadis 4 extra - Scalpel sharp

95% of the knives I buy seem dull from factory.

The worst I’ve experienced consistently - Hinderer XM18’s or Busse’s.

The absolute worst edge I’ve ever received from a factory - Lionsteel made DPX HEFT 6 around 2012 - like they forgot to sharpen it. Horrible. It cut worse than plastic knives and chopped as well as a wooden ruler.
 
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Update. My Biryukov #12 came terrifyingly sharp. I knew it was going to be just looking at it.

Cheburkov Strizh probably the next sharpest.

Brous Bionic was probably the dullest followed by a Dpx Heat and a few Benchmades.
 
I just remembered I briefly owned a Police 4 in K390 when they first came out. Out of the box it had the dullest edge I've ever received on any Spyderco. Sure it came to an apex, but it must have been 50° inclusive! And thick behind the edge, too. But as I mentioned it was also a Spyderco that was my sharpest. Go figure.
 
My sharpest was a Buck 112 in 5160. That edge was fantastic. My dullest was probably a Case trapper...
 
Sharpest: It would be a toss up between a Microtech LUDT or Benchmade AFO2

Dullest: Not counting lower end cheap knives. Spyderco Endura 4.
 
It seems clear to me that anything hand sharpened without a guide (ie. most production knives) have a chance to be either great or terrible. With that being said, I'd guess that the worse edges on average in my collecting history have been from Benchmade.

Spyderco Golden knives are typically more even and sharp for me than knives from other production makers.
 
Sharpest- shirogorov hati gen 3
Dullest- large sebenza Gabon inlay

Sharpest fixed- MLL scandi
Dullest fixed- busse (any of them) they're ridiculously dull.
 
Dullest Spyderco Native Salt. Unusual for a Spyderco but stuff happens.

Sharpest, Magnacut Hogue Deka. I was actually surprised at how sharp it was. The thin blade stock helps but it push cuts through big zip ties like nothing.



Honorable mention, older Benchmades we’re sharp but had a coarse, toothy grind. Lately they have been sharp and not microserrated. You could hear them bumping down the ceramic sticks for the first few sharpenings.
 
Sharpest Knives I ever recieved were my two Oberland arms titan sepp. Unbelievable factory edge. After a decade of sharpening practice I couldn't do any better. After that, any higher end cold steel and spyderco folder.

Dullest knife was the cold steel rifle mans knife, it had no edge at all. Sold this sucker long ago and got a wild west bowie instead. Love it, even the oversized guard😍
 
Sharpest: A Jesse Jarosz JFS (bird and trout knife) in AEB-L. That knife was so sharp it could probably slice a falling eyelash clean in half (maybe an exaggeration, but close).

Dullest: A Tactile Knife Co. Bexar. This was a fluke and the owner of the company apologized, but it was shipped without an edge at all. But I've had several other of their knives and they've all been great (and very sharp).
 
SHARPEST: Customs by Balistreri, Alan Davis, Joel Chamblin, K'roo, and Michael. J. Smith are all super-sharp.

DULLEST: My beloved GEC 36 Toenail Clipper may not have the sharpest edge, but it is a great butter knife.
 
Sharpest was probably the Spyderco PM2 LW. Dullest was no doubt the most recent Old Hickory - 6" boning knife. It made me grateful for the Ken Onion machine.
 
My sharpest was my Custom Shop Buck 112 with oak scales...

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Sadly, my dullest was a Boker lock-back.
 
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