Scientists Make Hardened Wooden Knife That’s 3x Sharper Than Stainless-Steel

[Grim Reaper 6]

The sharpest knives available are made of either steel or ceramic, both of which are man-made materials that must be forged in furnaces under extreme temperatures. Now, researchers have developed a potentially more sustainable way to make sharp knives: using hardened wood. The method, presented October 20^th, 2021, in the journal Matter, makes wood 23 times harder, and a knife made from the material is nearly three times sharper than a stainless-steel dinner table knife.

https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-make-hardened-wooden-knife-thats-3x-sharper-than-stainless-steel/

[quiXilver]

As a life long woodworker, I'm a bit overwhelmed.

Thanks for sharing!

[Grim Reaper 6]

59 minutes ago, quiXilver said:

As a life long woodworker, I'm a bit overwhelmed.

Thanks for sharing!

I know what you mean, I have also worked with wood for a large portion of my life. I used to build Custom one of a kind Full Splice Pool Cues, but I had to give it give it up completely when I moved to Korea in 2014 I really miss it. 

Below is a cue I made years ago!

Edited October 23, 2021 by Manwon Lender

[quiXilver]

Respect my friend.  It takes time, patience and skill to craft something like that.

 

[quiXilver]

7 minutes ago, Manwon Lender said:

I know what you mean, I have also worked with wood for a large portion of my life. I used to build Custom one if kind Full Splice Pool Cues, but I had to give it give it up completely when I moved to Korea in 2014 I really miss it. 

Below is a cue I made years ago!

 

[Grim Reaper 6]

6 minutes ago, quiXilver said:

Respect my friend.  It takes time, patience and skill to craft something like that.

 

Thank you, I use to have two metal Lathes, and all kinds of equipment. At that time I also had around $20,000 in exotic woods, the cue in photo had an Gabon Ebony butt. But, I sold my entire shop in 2014, I made close to 400 cues over the years it was truly a labor of love. 

Peace my friend. 

Edited October 23, 2021 by Manwon Lender

[Tatetopa]

2 hours ago, Manwon Lender said:

Below is a cue I made years ago!

So excellent!   

[Grim Reaper 6]

3 minutes ago, Tatetopa said:

So excellent!   

Thanks my friend, but that was the past!

But, I still miss the work, I always will.

[Commander CMG]

3 hours ago, Manwon Lender said:

Thanks my friend, but that was the past!

But, I still miss the work, I always will.

You really shouldn't let a skill like that go to waste. Amazing and much respect. 

[Grim Reaper 6]

23 minutes ago, Iilaa'mpuul'xem said:

You really shouldn't let a skill like that go to waste. Amazing and much respect. 

Thanks my friend, I was self taught and it was my only hobby. In the 1970s I used by play pro-level pool, so it was just natural that I wanted to build my own cue. After many years of reading and trial and error, I got pretty good at it, but in all honesty I was a rank amateur compared to the big cue makers. I made around 400 cues over many years, if you like maybe tomorrow I can post some addition cues I made. 

Thanks again. 

[Commander CMG]

2 hours ago, Manwon Lender said:

Thanks my friend, I was self taught and it was my only hobby. In the 1970s I used by play pro-level pool, so it was just natural that I wanted to build my own cue. After many years of reading and trial and error, I got pretty good at it, but in all honesty I was a rank amateur compared to the big cue makers. I made around 400 cues over many years, if you like maybe tomorrow I can post some addition cues I made. 

Thanks again. 

Please, I would really appreciate that, and would love to see them.

[Tatetopa]

9 hours ago, Manwon Lender said:

But, I still miss the work, I always will.

I hope you can find a way to use some of that skill again.  Do it soon.  I will tell you from sad experience that what you gain in knowledge and technique is a trade off with eyesight and steadiness of hand as the years progress.  

I agree with @Iilaa'mpuul'xem pictures  would be good.

[quiXilver]

13 hours ago, Manwon Lender said:

Thank you, I use to have two metal Lathes, and all kinds of equipment. At that time I also had around $20,000 in exotic woods, the cue in photo had an Gabon Ebony butt. But, I sold my entire shop in 2014, I made close to 400 cues over the years it was truly a labor of love. 

Peace my friend. 

I play some... never well enough to get a cue of my own though. 

Nearly all my woodworking has been in the theater, television and film venues.  Nearly all of it ends up in a dumpster at the end of the project, or in some cases repurposed into pulp.  Quite the process to watch something you've labored on for nine months to get pulversized.

It's an exercise in 'non attachment' that I've always appreciated and kind of abhorred about my industry.  Reminds me of the incredible sand mandalas the monks spend months chanting and making, then brush into the wind when finished.

[Grim Reaper 6]

2 hours ago, quiXilver said:

I play some... never well enough to get a cue of my own though. 

Nearly all my woodworking has been in the theater, television and film venues.  Nearly all of it ends up in a dumpster at the end of the project, or in some cases repurposed into pulp.  Quite the process to watch something you've labored on for nine months to get pulversized.

It's an exercise in 'non attachment' that I've always appreciated and kind of abhorred about my industry.  Reminds me of the incredible sand mandalas the monks spend months chanting and making, then brush into the wind when finished.

Well you must be very good at what you do, but I understand your feelings on the subject. When, I started building cues I really had no wood working skills to speak of, I had to do a great deal of reading and I joined a internet site where World Renown cue makers shared their experience. It started in the 1990s in my Garrage, my first purchase was a Metal Lathe. Wood working lathes are limited and can not maintain the precise measures need to turn wood when you need to remove two or three thousandths of an inch over a 30 to 40 inch wooden dowel and also precisely taper the dowel in the same process. 

In the beginning I used a lot of cheep Maple Dowels for practice and I wasted a lot of wood. Not only because I was learning to use the lathe, but also because in the process of turning wood you must also learn how to do so without stressing the wood and causing warpage. Take a cues Shaft for instance, when you purchase your wood you must buy the best straight grained Canadian Maple you can. It will come in 34 or 35 inch long square cut pieces that approximately 2 by 2 inch diameter, first you have to do an initial turn to make them round once completed you must hang the dowels and let the wood breath and rest. 

Approximately two months after the first turn, you can begin the actual turning and tapering process. Generally I would remove no more than 10 to 20 thousands per turning and tapering session, and then I would rehang the Shaft material again and wait approximately 2 months or more to remove any more of the material. Well to make a long story short the Shaft wood will be ready for its intended purpose approximately 1 1/2  to 3 years after you start the process. So like I said above a metal lathe is a must, but it's only the beginning of a process that takes a lot of patience along with love for what you are doing.

Thanks very much for your posts if it wasn't for your first post I would have never brought this up on this forum. It's brought back some fine memories that I truly miss.

Peace my friend. 

[Grim Reaper 6]

8 hours ago, Iilaa'mpuul'xem said:

Please, I would really appreciate that, and would love to see them.

I will try to post some additional photos later today, but I can't make any promises because sometimes I have difficulty resizing them for use on this form.

Thanks guys. 

4 hours ago, Tatetopa said:

I hope you can find a way to use some of that skill again.  Do it soon.  I will tell you from sad experience that what you gain in knowledge and technique is a trade off with eyesight and steadiness of hand as the years progress.  

I agree with @Iilaa'mpuul'xem pictures  would be good.

Take those days are past sadly, it takes to much space and equipment to start again here in Korea. I wish that wasn't true, but I must face the facts of life sadly.

Peace. 

Edited October 23, 2021 by Manwon Lender

[Duke Wellington]

21 hours ago, Manwon Lender said:

The sharpest knives available are made of either steel or ceramic, both of which are man-made materials that must be forged in furnaces under extreme temperatures. Now, researchers have developed a potentially more sustainable way to make sharp knives: using hardened wood. The method, presented October 20^th, 2021, in the journal Matter, makes wood 23 times harder, and a knife made from the material is nearly three times sharper than a stainless-steel dinner table knife.

https://scitechdaily.com/scientists-make-hardened-wooden-knife-thats-3x-sharper-than-stainless-steel/

People may be surprised to know that you can made bullet proof armour out of toilet paper which is better than steel plate.

If you compress it (such as in a 100 tonne press) then at the microscopic level it changes the toilet paper in edition to compressing it. It destroys the fibres, removes the air gaps, squeezes out the water, and what you are left with is something extremely hard. More like graphite than wood or paper. Its also fireproof and you can make fire bricks out of it.

Just food for thought.

[Tatetopa]

2 hours ago, Cookie Monster said:

People may be surprised to know that you can made bullet proof armour out of toilet paper which is better than steel plate.

I would choose toilet paper over a steel plate any day.

[Grim Reaper 6]

Here is a simple cue I was finishing back in 2008, some of the cues I built for customers or friends did not have a linen wrap. They just liked the feel of a wrap less cue. The cue pictured is signed and dated between the forearm points and it has a Birdseye Maple Butt, with a Purple Heart center and points along with Mother of Pearl inlayed rings and a Mother of Pearle Butt Cap the cue weighed 18.75 oz . I will try to post some more cues throughout the day and into tomorrow. I am having a difficult time sizing my photos to post on this forum, is anyone has any suggestions or know a good resizing software please let me know I would grateful. Hey my friend Iilaa'mpuul'xem I tried to put your user in to mention you but it doesnt work.  

12 hours ago, Iilaa'mpuul'xem said:

Please, I would really appreciate that, and would love to see them.

@Tatetopa @quiXilver 

More to follow guys.

[Grim Reaper 6]

 Here is set of cues I completed for a customer, the cue in from is much shorter and thinner in diameter than a standard cue they call these cues Jump Cues. Both cues have Brazilian Rosewood sections, with Birdseye Maple and more Mother of Pearle rings, the Jump Cue has an Ivory Butt Cap.

12 hours ago, Iilaa'mpuul'xem said:

Please, I would really appreciate that, and would love to see them.

@Tatetopa @quiXilver  

[Grim Reaper 6]

Here is a picture of 3 cues I was working on, I would often start 3 or 4 cues to keep myself busy and because there is only so much you can do as parts are drying. I thought you guys would like to see cues in different stages of construction.

@Tatetopa @quiXilver

12 hours ago, Iilaa'mpuul'xem said:

Please, I would really appreciate that, and would love to see them.

[Tatetopa]

12 hours ago, quiXilver said:

I play some... never well enough to get a cue of my own though. 

Nearly all my woodworking has been in the theater, television and film venues.  Nearly all of it ends up in a dumpster at the end of the project, or in some cases repurposed into pulp.  Quite the process to watch something you've labored on for nine months to get pulversized.

It's an exercise in 'non attachment' that I've always appreciated and kind of abhorred about my industry.  Reminds me of the incredible sand mandalas the monks spend months chanting and making, then brush into the wind when finished.

Still awesome. It becomes like a Platonic ideal.  The material form is gone but the ideal remains in eternity.

[Grim Reaper 6]

49 minutes ago, Tatetopa said:

Still awesome. It becomes like a Platonic ideal.  The material form is gone but the ideal remains in eternity.

You know the best part for me, is long after I am gone someone out there will playing with a cue I made. They will look done and see the name and date and think who the hell was this guy!

Thanks

[Commander CMG]

12 hours ago, Tatetopa said:

I would choose toilet paper over a steel plate any day.

Yes but not Izal, I hated that stuff at school 

[Commander CMG]

12 hours ago, Manwon Lender said:

Here is a simple cue I was finishing back in 2008, some of the cues I built for customers or friends did not have a linen wrap. They just liked the feel of a wrap less cue. The cue pictured is signed and dated between the forearm points and it has a Birdseye Maple Butt, with a Purple Heart center and points along with Mother of Pearl inlayed rings and a Mother of Pearle Butt Cap the cue weighed 18.75 oz . I will try to post some more cues throughout the day and into tomorrow. I am having a difficult time sizing my photos to post on this forum, is anyone has any suggestions or know a good resizing software please let me know I would grateful. Hey my friend Iilaa'mpuul'xem I tried to put your user in to mention you but it doesnt work.  

@Tatetopa @quiXilver 

More to follow guys.

Incredible, I have no words. Outstanding skillset and such a beautiful end product. Thank you for sharing @Manwon Lender 

[Tatetopa]

Well this is ending up to be about the most uplifting thread we have had in a while.  Thanks.