In particular, Project Farm does an edge keeness (BESS) test for all the things. This test is almost entirely testing the edge geometry rather than the knife itself. If you resharpen the blade to be thinner, it will get a higher BESS score. A butterknife will roll into a useless edge after just a couple cuts due to the soft steel, but will score incredibly well on a BESS test because the blade stock is already so thin.
A more accurate review would focus much more on things like whether your knife steel will chip easily if you apply lateral pressure (a lot of high-edge retention steels do this, but will last practically forever between sharpenings if used well) or how long will this steel hold a working edge? ("D2 takes a lousy edge and holds it forever") or "will this knife rust too easily in my profession" (rustproof steels like o1, LC200N, and Vanex exist, but tend to be on more specialized knives and generally make other tradeoffs). Can I sharpen this knife without spending a ton of money on diamond sharpeners? Is the knife comfortable for long cutting sessions or are there hot spots? Is this knife going to be a bit small or large for an average hand? Do the pieces fit together well and are they milled well? What kind of locking mechanism is used and is it one that works well for me (especially in gloves)? Is the blade shape and size designed for my kind of cutting tasks?
There's thousands of radically different knives not just because of personal preferences, but because the changes make a difference in how the knife performs at different jobs.
If you want general knife reviews on youtube, Metal Complex, Nick Shabazz, and Slicey Dicey are probably the top three. Cedric & Ada is a great reviewer if you're interested in knife cut testing. Advanced Knife Bro is great if you like a more sarcastic style. They have something to sell, but Knifecenter has some pretty good content too. If you like Swiss Army Knives (or are in a country like the UK that mostly bans the good knives), Felix Immler literally wrote the book on using them for bushcrafting.
Larrin Thomas' site knife steel nerds (and his book) is a must-read if you're interested in the really in-depth knowledge about steels and how they relate to knives. His new supersteel (MagnaCut) is doing really crazy things in the knife world at the moment. Science of Sharp also deserves a shoutout for some interesting work on microscopic images of various sharpening techniques and steels.
Be warned that an "all-arounder" midrange, drop point knife will be $100-250 and it may be hard to buy just one.
Thanks for the detailed guidance to future HN readers!
> Larrin Thomas' site knife steel nerds (and his book) is a must-read if you're interested in the really in-depth knowledge about steels and how they relate to knives. His new supersteel (MagnaCut) is doing really crazy things in the knife world at the moment. Science of Sharp also deserves a shoutout for some interesting work on microscopic images of various sharpening techniques and steels.
Steel quality is also important to physical security (e.g. fasteners, locks, doors) which in turn underpins many assumptions of digital security.
