How to tell the difference between stamped and forged knives
I know the difference between the process of making these knives, but if you saw two knives -- one stamped and one forged -- how do you tell the difference simply by looking at them?
I guess you could also look up the brand and the model, but shouldn't there be a visible difference between the two types?
I read that if the knife has a bolster, it's probably forged, but that doesn't seem to be a very good indicator if you still can't tell for sure using that one criterion.
Any tips?
Best Answer
Stamped knives are stamped from a sheet of steel- therefore the metal is all one thickness (or thinness).
Forged knives will be thicker at the back and taper to the front.
So- a stamped knife will never have a bolster, a forged knife may or may not.
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How can you tell if a knife is hand forged?
Forged knives are generally heavier and thicker than stamped kitchen knives. Most of these knives get bolsters during the manufacturing process, and it naturally adds some weight to the design.Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Heather Jonasson, Pavel Sadilov, Mike van Schoonderwalt, Mike van Schoonderwalt