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Ultrasonic Chef's Knife

seattleultrasonics.com

21–30 of 697 posts

Re: Ultrasonic Chef's Knife

#21

Maybe I'm just a sci-fi nerd who loves innovation, but this is so cool! Clearly, this product is not intended for the mass market, and may find purchase with people who have tennis elbow and who can afford it, etc. . But still, when was the last time someone tried to re-invent something as basic as a knife?

> when was the last time someone tried to re-invent something as basic as a knife?

A year ago? This one is designed for woodworkers.

https://www.bourbonmoth.com/shop/p/the-bourbon-blade-origina...

Re: Ultrasonic Chef's Knife

#23
post #13
post #3

What happens when you “oops”? All the way through the bone?

Same as a really sharp knife. In general though, dull knives are more dangerous. You have to cut with more pressure and they're more likely to slip.

There must be a limit though. Surely a light saber is not more safe than a dull knife.

Re: Ultrasonic Chef's Knife

#24
If you have a sharp knife and a wet cloth under your cutting board chopping is a joy, otherwise it's a dangerous, tedious, and exhausting task that turns so many people away from cooking entirely

Re: Ultrasonic Chef's Knife

#26
post #25

Its capabilities don't look any different from what I've seen in TV ads over the last few decades.

The bit that looks actually interesting to me is buried in the middle of the video - while the ultrasonic switch is on, food visibly falls off the knife instead of sticking to the sides.

Re: Ultrasonic Chef's Knife

#27
post #13
post #3

What happens when you “oops”? All the way through the bone?

Same as a really sharp knife. In general though, dull knives are more dangerous. You have to cut with more pressure and they're more likely to slip.

You say this from any special knowledge or is it just your opinion from the video? Looks to me like it will go through your flesh and bone like they're not there, in a way even a razor sharp knife won't.

Also, while it's true that dull knives are in some ways more dangerous than properly maintained ones, that doesn't mean safety increases monotonically with sharpness. I sharpen my kitchen knives every weekend and I'm perfectly capable of achieving an edge I could comfortably shave with, but I deliberately don't (I skip the highest-grit step and leather stropping needed for that) because it's not optimal for the vast majority of cooking tasks. The only thing that happens regularly in my kitchen that needs razor sharpness is scoring the top of a sourdough loaf, and my wife uses actual razor blades for that.

This strikes me as more of a competitor to electric carving knives than something I'd want to replace a standard chef's knife with. It looks like it needs to be used with very great care.

Re: Ultrasonic Chef's Knife

#28
A good quality well sharpened knife already works incredibly well, doesn't cost $500, doesn't need to be recharged, and isn't going to be e-waste in 5 years (when the battery fails).

It's a cool idea, and I hope it is commercially successful, but not for me.

Re: Ultrasonic Chef's Knife

#29
post #28

A good quality well sharpened knife already works incredibly well, doesn't cost $500, doesn't need to be recharged, and isn't going to be e-waste in 5 years (when the battery fails). It's a cool idea, and I hope it is commercially successful, but not for me.

The battery is comes out for recharging, so replacing a dead battery should be trivial

Re: Ultrasonic Chef's Knife

#30
post #23
post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same as a really sharp knife. In general though, dull knives are more dangerous. You have to cut with more pressure and they're more likely to slip.

There must be a limit though. Surely a light saber is not more safe than a dull knife.

If you’re used to sharp knives then it’s probably safer than applying more pressure which could yield in surprising ways. Getting used to it is the dangerous part, especially if not forewarned or the user doesn’t heed the warning.

Lightsaber would be different because doesn’t have a blade to guide.

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