Teeth size?

Maybe somebody from the shop could chime in here....

But one thing I have been told in the past is that the size of the teeth depended in large part on the amount of wear on the wheel over time, with smaller teeth being possible when the wheel is newer, and larger teeth being produced as the wheel wears down. True or not...

It would also seem likely that the spacing and therefore the depth of the grind on the teeth are likely influenced by both (a) the size of the blade itself, and (b) the work style of whoever is grinding them into the blade.

As far as anyone has ever said to me, there is no "shop standard" for the number of teeth-per-inch or the depth of cut.

The only two things that probably matter are (1) that the teeth are not outrageously large or small for the particular blade--aesthetics and maybe functionality, and (2) the teeth on a particular knife are consistent in depth and spacing.

Given all the variables, I suspect that the style of the teeth on a given knife depends on who ground them, with what wheel, and when they did it. That seems to go with "hand made"--and, yes, at least in the days of Steve Johnson in the 14 Room they were hand-ground. I suspect they still are, although some would think that a milling jig might be set up to do the chore.*

Larry

*Which brings me to a side story. Back in the '80's I had a friend in the shop where I worked grind saw teeth into the cutting edge of one of the two blades on a Case knife that I thought I would use when deer hunting. I never used it and eventually took it to a show and put it on the table for sale. The buyer never asked me about the teeth, plunked down his money, and as he was walking away I heard his friend tell him, "Yes, they did make a few like this and you were lucky to pick this one up!"