Bevel Angles by Knife Type: The Working Chart

Every knife argument eventually lands on angles. Here is the chart we wish someone had handed us — edge angle per side, the grind that usually carries it, and why — followed by the reasoning. Angles are per side (degrees per side, dps) throughout; double them for the inclusive angle.

How to Read the Chart

The pattern behind every row: lower angles cut better, higher angles survive better, and the steel decides how low you can afford to go. A tough fine-grained steel at sensible hardness holds 15 dps where a brittle one chips; that interplay is covered in Why Hardness Matters. Edge angle also is not the whole story — thickness behind the edge often matters more, as our kitchen geometry guide argues in detail.

Angle vs. Grind

The primary grind (full flat, hollow, sabre, convex, scandi) sets how the blade thins from spine to edge; the edge bevel sets the final cutting angle. The chart’s grind column is convention, not law — but conventions earned their place: a hollow-ground machete or a 25-dps fillet knife both fail their jobs quickly.

Deep Dives by Knife Type

Each row of that chart has its own guide with the reasoning, stock thickness, steel pairings and grinding notes: bushcraft, kitchen, EDC folders, hunting and skinning, fillet, choppers and machetes, tactical and utility, and straight razors — plus microbevels, the cheat code that lets one blade play two rows.

Measuring What You Actually Ground

An angle cube on the platen tells you what you set; a marker test on the stones tells you what you made. The two disagree more often than pride admits. Set the grinder, verify at the stones, and record what worked — repeatability is the whole game, on the belt as in sharpening.