Blade shapes

The design of your knife will depend on the purpose for which the knife will be used. It’s no good taking a chefs knife out into the wilderness and expecting it to chop down trees. If you’re designing for a specific purpose you’ll need to consider the size, thickness, blade shape and handle material.

Below is a look at some of the main blade shapes.

General Shapes

  • Bowie
  • Sheepsfoot
  • Wharncliffe
  • Recurve
  • Kukhri
  • Persian
  • Clip point
  • Tanto
  • Straight
  • Spear Point
  • Dagger

Kitchen Knives

Edge shape or geometry

The edge profile of the blade should also be chosen with care and suited to the type of knife you are making.

Single bevels are used on chisels and some chef’s knives. Skandi is popular with bushcrafters as is the convex grind. It’s worth looking into this in more details, especially when you are first starting out as some easier to grind than others.

Types of edge grinds used in knife making.

Hollow grinds

Hollow grinds make for great slicers, especially when used on thinner blades – perfect for very fine cutting jobs. They are a bit more fragile so not suitable for knives intended for heavy work. They are also easier to sharpen. Great for skinning knives or razors.

See Designing a Knife