Serrations always?

[Dr John Meade]

Indeed, learning the medical skill set has a multi-facetted application; it will teach you what to do FOR someone......or more sinisterly what to do TO someone.

Exactly, my friend. As I have mentioned to a few before: If you know where you DON'T want to be hurt, you will know where you WANT to hurt someone else!

[lightfighter]

i like serrations for utility work - they go through webbing etc quite easily.

And I think that, since 99% of the time we are using our knives as tools and not for killing sentries, having serrations on a few of one's blades is not a bad thing.

Ease of sharpening is key but today even the pocket sharpeners can handle serrated blades.

I'll wager a beer that the reason that the ancient warriors and heros didn't have serrations on an occasional dagger length blade ( sword fighting with a serrated blade is kind of dumb) is because they didn't have the capacity or tooling to make them.

[denn1911]

My utility knife has serations, but my defensive folder, carried on my non-dominant side, does not.

[Doug Little]

Serrations=utility knife. Plain blade=self defense knife. I carry both. Remember, use the right tool,for the right job.

[bae]

Serrations=utility knife. Plain blade=self defense knife. I carry both. Remember, use the right tool,for the right job.

Ditto. I carry a serrated Spyderco (which really isn't a pain to sharpen) to get through lines that might be trying to drag me down to Davy Jones' locker. And other misc daily tasks.

And a non-serrated blade or two for more social applications. I must confess to being quite a fan of the new Cold Steel Espada G10 models. Sort of handy to have a folding Bowie in your pocket. And I've gone into saltwater now a couple times with it in my pocket, and it didn't turn into a pile of rust, contrary to Internet lore.

[John Chambers]

Without details, I used to carry an Emerson CQC8 with a partially serrated blade. And it did catch in clothing, and it went down the road to someone who thought Emersons were forged by Elves in Rivendale...

[Chuck Brick]

I have serrated bread and steak (table) knives, but not carry knives. I do carry a small ceramic rod in my pocket that will touch-up the blade any time,and I use a stone (usually a Carborundum, sometimes diamond) to sharpen them (carry knives).

Stay safe,

Chuck Brick.

[ZMB HNTR]

Without details, I used to carry an Emerson CQC8 with a partially serrated blade. And it did catch in clothing, and it went down the road to someone who thought Emersons were forged by Elves in Rivendale...

Ok, that's awesome; even better if it was able to glow blue when the bad guy/orcs came around.

[RDog]

Dull serrations still seem to cut (rip) better than an equally dull plain edge, and I use the Spyderco sharpmaker so it's very easy to keep serrations and plain edges sharp. I don't recall dullness problems with any of my carry knives.

But I know that thrusts are historically the killing blows, not slashes. So I like both.

I feel the same, when I carried a spyderco even when I let the edge go for a while it still "cut" well, better than a plain edge.

I'll wager a beer that the reason that the ancient warriors and heros didn't have serrations on an occasional dagger length blade ( sword fighting with a serrated blade is kind of dumb) is because they didn't have the capacity or tooling to make them.

+1, I think you would win a lot of beers.

For utility work, and I guess it depends on what we mean by "utility" I find a very sharp plain edge to be better...from cutting food to sharpening a pencil. But I think a sharp serrated blade would be my choice if I had to slash a target.

As for snagging on clothes...anything can snag. I now carry a Ka Bar folder with thumbstuds, and several times the stud has caught for an instant, I do believe the spyderco style of thumb hole to be a better design as a result.

In the end I think there are far more important features to a good knife than the type of blade it has.

[3corners]

I used to think serrated was cool, until I had to try and keep them sharp, now I just go with plain edge. Look in any butchers shop where they cut fresh meat (not cooked steak) the blades are plain edge and kept razor sharp!
And for a killing blade I want penetration somethng that is going straight though anything in its way without even the possibility of a hangup.