I have seen a few semi-oblique comments after my posting, and let me say this:
In biotech we have a certain number of folks who twist themselves in absolute knots over “the best” vs “good enough.”
A classic non-example would be that you, OP, may have a Honda Civic. You may even have a Prius. Why not a Tesla? Because what you have is “good enough.”
For me, that box-cutter fits like a prosthetic. I have a couple opinels, a swiss army double-bevel, etc., there is literally NOTHING I use with more comfort. And the shitty thing? I tried a couple other box-cutters…and hated them.
My box-cutter probably doesn’t cut as clean as ANY knife Tina makes. I have a 30-06 that will never outshoot a 6.5 Creedmoor either. What I care about is I can get 95% takes or more with apples (an easy fruit) and at least 50%+ with anything easier than peaches. All while feeling comfortable, not worried about stitches, and with another $50 or more in my pocket for other stuff.
I want to be clear, REALLY clear: I am not saying my way is even remotely “better.” I am saying there’s many, many ways to skin a cat. By all means, work with the knife you have…do so with an open mind. And at the end, use the tool YOU can use most effectively. We all make our choices of where we will or will not spend, grafting as an art form was defined over a thousand years ago, and yes, better tech gives better results, but a better comfort factor ALSO gives better results, and honestly, I see a lot about clean cuts, and they are unquestionably better, but a good parafilm wrap, a SECURE cut on both sides, etc. can go a long way towards making up for a slight concavity in cut…
I’ve used one of the cheap Victorinox folding grafting knives for years with good results. A couple years ago I read about using a carpet tack strip cutter for grafting, so I went to Menard’s and bought one. I’ve had great results with it too.
The Ken Coates grafting video is really instructive. I’ve tried making my cuts the way he does(from watching other grafting professionals on YouTube) but I was still making scooped cuts. There are two details he mentions (towards the end of the video) that I think will make the different. First is the locking of the wrist with the forearm, and using the “pop your mother in law movement”. The second is the angle of the blade/knife…you’ll notice he doesn’t hold it at a right angle to the locked wrist/forearm. He has the blade angled more like 135 degrees.
What all these professionals, who use this way of making the whip cuts, seem to be able to do at will is make long (1.5-2") flat cuts. I’m hoping these two details will make the difference between flat and scooped.
Oops, I just noticed that I repeated what Carot had already said earlier in this thread. Has anyone tried this cutting style and found a noticeable improvement?
Not yet, but I’ll be using a new Tina T605 this spring when I begin grafting. I discovered the cheap grafting/budding knife I was using last year was beveled on the wrong side. So this spring I’ll get to see if I can get a nice flat cut. I’ve been getting the scooped out cuts myself, and actually got better cuts with an Opinel beveled on both sides. Hopefully this Tina with proper beveling will help me get better cuts.
@anon47724557, I see those red handle Clauss knives for sale on Amazon for $18 for a 10 pack. Do they come sharpened with a single bevel? I don’t have the skill to reprofile a blade.
Thanks for the input. I’m going to try my hand at grafting for the first time this year, so just trying to get the necessary tools together. Looks like the Victorinox goes for about the same price so maybe I’ll go that route… or use a utility knife for my first go around and see if I catch the grafting bug (I’m pretty sure I’ve already caught it just following posts on the forum😉)