PHOTOS: JON WHITTLE (MARTTIINI, SOG), RANDY VANCE (2)There are no better tool critics than the
professionals who use them, so we took
our knives to Lombardi’s Seafood, a
wholesale and retail operation special-
izing in hand-cut fresh fish. We asked
the fish cutters to use each knife and
evaluate it. In addition, we asked if they
would use the newly tested knife in place
of their everyday work tools.
SHARPNESS/EDGE HOLDING The
American Bladesmith Society evaluates
a blade’s sharpness and durability by
cutting ½-inch hemp rope and counting
the number of passes through before it
becomes noticeably difficult. With these
knives, that was clearly going to take a
few miles of rope. Instead, we made
12 cuts into a section of hemp, averaging
the strokes it took to complete each cut.
RESHARPENING We resharpened each
blade by first pulling the edge backward
over a 400-grit diamond stone until
we could feel a burr on the other side.
Then we stroked off the burr using
600 grit. We counted the number of
strokes required per side.
SHARPNESS AFTER HONING We made
three cuts after honing, aiming for a
single pass per cut and noting ease. We
scored them as good (2) or best (3).
SLIP RESISTANCE We soaped up our
right hand and gripped each handle while
an associate tried to twist and pull it
from our grip. We scored the handles as
good (2) or best (3).
CORROSION RESISTANCE After testing,
the knives were abused with salt-spray
mist every few hours. At the end of
24 hours, they were examined under a
microscope for signs of corrosion. We
scored the corrosion resistance as good
(2) or best (3).
CUTTERS REMARKS Our test cutters,
Justin Morris and Jose Olivares, work
for Lombardi’s Seafood in Winter Park,
Florida. Their fillets find their way to
restaurants, meat shops and their own
well-stocked seafood store and diner.
Because large salmon and red snapper
were on the duty roster that day, the
thin-blade knives got less of a work-
out than the stiffer blades. Justin and
Jose commented on each after cutting
the fish.
HOW WE TESTED
Sog
Bladelight Fillet 7½-inch
$45; SOGKNIVES.COMBLADE: Made of 8CR13MOV stainless
steel, the knife is similar in strength
to the Australian standard AUS8 most
commonly used in Sog knives, and it’s
hardened to RC 56-61 and honed to a
flat bevel. It has optimum flex for
skinning without tearing and good
stiffness for anglers facing a broad
array of species.
GRIP: With molded rubber around a
nylon frame, this handle has a trick: One
AAA battery powers six LED lights aimed
toward the blade work. The on/off
switch is waterproof. Rounder in nature
than the other handles, it requires more
pressure to hold the blade angle.
IN THE BOX: Its nylon sheath boasts a
line-cutting slot and a knife sharpener.
BEST FOR: Smaller fish with easily cut
ribs; the light is effective for night use.
CUTTERS’ REMARKS: The handle grip
was too round to add control when
slime weakened the grip. The lights
weren’t needed in the shop, but were
well aimed to assist in poorly lit camps.
Strokes to cut ½-inch hemp: 1.4
Strokes to cut hemp after resharpening: 1
Strokes to resharpen: 20
Sharpness after honing:Good
Slip resistance: Good
Corrosion resistance: Good (most, but not
all, was removed in honing)Marttiini
7½-inch Kitchen
$34.99; RAPALA.COMBLADE: Highly polished stainless
steel, honed to a double convex edge,
is curved to work around bones and
pointed to plunge through skin along
spines. It has just enough spine for
cutting ribs and enough flex for easy
skinning. This is a popular blade shape
among anglers.
GRIP: Its diamond-knurled hard-rubber
grip and prominent finger guard give
excellent friction for control and safety.
Jose said it was small but secure for his
large, muscular hands.
IN THE BOX: The blade is not packaged
with a sheath.
BEST FOR: Small to large fresh- or
saltwater fish; optimum flexibility
for skinning and enough stiffness for
cutting ribs.
CUTTERS’ REMARKS: Jose and Justin
both preferred a strong upward-curved
tip reaching up to the spine to slice into
the skin along the backbone. The point
is better suited to plunge cuts.
Strokes to cut ½-inch hemp: 1.1
Strokes to cut hemp after resharpening: 1
Strokes to resharpen: 15
Sharpness after honing: Best
Slip resistance: Good
Corrosion resistance: Good (suffered the
most corrosion in our test but didn’t
affect performance)SHARPNESS3SHARPNESS2RESISTANCESLIP2RESISTANCESLIP2RESISTANCECORROSION2RESISTANCECORROSION294 BOATINGMAG.COM JUNE 2016