Round Knife Dragging On Cutting Board

[Ran]

I have my round knife razor sharp. I can literally shave the hair off my arm with it. BUT...on the higher quality 8-9oz leathers, I'm having trouble cutting. I have found that my knife is cutting into the poly cutting board more than it should, causing significant drag. If I slightly lift the leather, it cuts like butter, but this of course causes a loss of control.

Is there a better cutting surface than the poly cutting boards? Or is my Wally World cutting board sub par??

[bruce johnson]

I would guess your cutting board is LDPE. I use that to punch on because it has some give and won't crack as fast as HDPE. However the HDPE works better for me to cut on. The knife won't bury as deep. Some leathers can be pretty tough. You end up pushing down as much as forward and that tends to make you bury a knife more too.

[Ran]

Thanks Bruce. That's kinda what I was thinking (that the poly board I have is not dense enough). I'll have to look for something else, I guess. With some of the inferior leathers it cuts just fine. But, as you say, I'm probably not pushing down as hard with those because I don't need to.

[immiketoo]

Hey Randy. A friend of mine cuts on a smooth glass table. Its pretty slick.

[Ran]

Hey Randy. A friend of mine cuts on a smooth glass table. Its pretty slick.

Mike...I've read that a couple of times now. Can't imagine that it doesn't dull the knife prematurely, but I guess you'd have to try it in order to find out..?

[immiketoo]

According to my friend, as long as its smooth, nick free and harder than the steel so that the steel doesn't scratch it, it works great according to him. It certainly looks easy, but you'd have to try it to know for sure. Tempered glass BTW.

[Ran]

I'll give it a whirl, Mike. Thanks..

[Bob Blea]

Hi all,

From my cooking background I was always taught/told never to use a knife on a hard surface like glass (like a plate, corning ware or pyrex) because it would roll the fine cutting edge over and quickly dull the knife. It would seem to me that trying to cut with a round knife on glass would dull your blade pretty quick. Just my 2 cents.

Bob

[immiketoo]

Bob, i could see that from a chefs knifework perspective with all the chopping and banging. But the smooth glide shouldn't mess it up as fast especially if you only glide the tip of the knife. Even if you rolled the knife forward, you'd still only drag about an inch or so, right?

[BondoBobCustomSaddles]

Ran, my wife is a quilter and does a lot of material cutting so, I get her those cutting pads about once a year, that you can buy at Joann fabrics, and she loves them. That way I get her used ones, which I use. They really work well for me to use, don't dull the blades, and are marked off in inch squares as an added plus. They are no good for punching as they are only about a 1/16 th inch thick, but really work good for cutting most everything I do. For long cuts like cutting reins, or long straps, I just cut them on my layout table and slide a piece of leather that was only partially cured (and no good for use in saddles) under it as I go.

Bob

[Ran]

Ran, my wife is a quilter and does a lot of material cutting so, I get her those cutting pads about once a year, that you can buy at Joann fabrics, and she loves them. That way I get her used ones, which I use. They really work well for me to use, don't dull the blades, and are marked off in inch squares as an added plus. They are no good for punching as they are only about a 1/16 th inch thick, but really work good for cutting most everything I do. For long cuts like cutting reins, or long straps, I just cut them on my layout table and slide a piece of leather that was only partially cured (and no good for use in saddles) under it as I go.

Bob

Thanks Bob. I'll take a look at Joann Fabrics. We have one about 40 miles south of here..

[mlapaglia]

They are sometimes referred to as a "self healing" cutting mat.

[Tiara]

Thanks Bob. I'll take a look at Joann Fabrics. We have one about 40 miles south of here..

I'm looking for one right now also. Ebay seems to be much less expensive than the sewing and hobby stores I've checked. I had looked briefly online with several retailers including amazing, Joann fabrics online store, and dropped in Hobby Lobby, Michaels and 2 fabric stores. The prices for the same self healing mats was quite a bit more than some ebay sellers including shipping. I am looking for a small one for some fine detail cutting. http://www.ebay.com/itm/SELF-HEALING-CUTTING-CRAFT-MAT-GRID-LINES-INCH-PAD-DOUBLE-SIDED-9-X-7-5-GREEN-/230818699404?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35bdddd88c A comparable one was about 3 times the price in the stores yesterday.