How are serrations made?

[David Lowry]

I just wondered how serrations are made on Spyderco's?

I've seen how they do it in the Buck factory. They have a grinding wheel that looks like it does about 4-6 serrations at a time.

I just wondered with Spyderco, or even other manufacturers, how they do a fully serrated blade.

Do they have a wheel that does "X" amount at a time and they have to do it many times on each blade? Does it do the entire blade at once?

Just curious :p

[Jimmy_Dean]

my bet would be they only do a small section at a time, say like one big, two smalls and one big. Would make more sense in thea harder to grind shapes, like the Dodo, or anything combo-edge.
Don't quote me though

[David Lowry]

Hmm....so with 56 views and 1 response, is it just that nobody knows?

[Ted]

Hmm....so with 56 views and 1 response, is it just that nobody knows?

I've been tempted to ask the question myself also several times. It might indeed be one of Spyderco's secrets....

[d.g.g]

I don't know how they make them.

I wonder if they are stamped into the blade when it is made and then sharpened or cut into the blade later.

They sure work good however they are made!

Let's have a plant tour/picnic. I'll bring the Coors!

[David Lowry]

Anyone?....

[Chucula]

they just have a bunch of sharpmakers in a row. someone works on the first serration, finishes, then passes it down for 2nd serration.

in other words i dont know

[STR]

I was at a gun show in Tulsa one year and a guy was there that was offering to serrate plain edge blades for people with his machine. If you've ever seen a key cutting machine like the ones they use in hardware stores to cut keys that is what it reminded me of. He took an already serrated knife and locked it in place and then locked the plain edge in place in the next clamp over. Then he turned on a a water spray on the blade being cut and turned on the machine. In a matter of about a minute it copied the serration pattern of the first knife onto the second one with a diamond wheel. I stood there and watched him do like 5 or so and moved on.

I never saw the guy again after that though. So, I can't say where he got the machine or where he was from. It was pretty cool to watch though.

[sal]

Hi David.

We use a formed wheel and the serrations are ground into the blade after bevel grinding. Each model has it's own formed wheel.

I really don't want to say much more than that. We have, IMO, the best performing serrations on the market at this time.

sal

[VWTattoo]

Has the serration pattern evolved over the years and per model at all? The reason that I ask is that on the early 90's Centofante Serrated models, the serration pattern was a bit different than on later G-10 knives, and than other models as well. It had a more rounded tooth setup, instead of pointed like the serrations we all know.

What kind of tests do you perform to evaluate the effectiveness of a particular pattern? It's the knut in me that want to know. :D Thanks!!

[pjrocco]

We have, IMO, the best performing serrations on the market at this time.

Ain't that the truth! :D

[greencobra]

I was at a gun show in Tulsa one year and a guy was there that was offering to serrate plain edge blades for people with his machine. If you've ever seen a key cutting machine like the ones they use in hardware stores to cut keys that is what it reminded me of. He took an already serrated knife and locked it in place and then locked the plain edge in place in the next clamp over. Then he turned on a a water spray on the blade being cut and turned on the machine. In a matter of about a minute it copied the serration pattern of the first knife onto the second one with a diamond wheel. I stood there and watched him do like 5 or so and moved on.

I never saw the guy again after that though. So, I can't say where he got the machine or where he was from. It was pretty cool to watch though.
I'm wondering if this would interfear with the integrity of the heat treatment and cause the steel structure to change in the area of the serrations. I imagine the serration machine generates more heat than a key cutting machine, after all, key material is so much softer to cut than a hardened knife blade.

[David Lowry]

Thanks for the answer Sal. I appreciate it very much.

I would agree....Spyderco does have the best serrations on the planet.

:spyder: --------> The Stuff.