Thread: Scalpel vs straight razor

Just out of curiosity, how does a scalpel compare to a SR for sharpness or keen edge?
I also suppose scalpels are disposable, rather than re-honed.

Modern scalpels are disposable and are pretty much just razor blades like an X-acto knife.
Older scalpels that you have to sharpen are about the same as an SR. I honed some up last year for a middle school biology teacher and I ended up using the same honing pyramid as I do on carbon steel straights and ended up finishing them on .5 diamond. I tried a few on .1 diamond to really give them an edge, but the edges started rolling. Same thing happened with the .25 diamond. Maybe the human surgery ones are made with better metal and can go sharper than educational anatomy ones, but the ones I sharpened could slice a hotdog into tissue thin slices.

I remember a discussion on a knife forum about scalpels and more specifically “surgical steel”. It was pointed out that surgical steel isn’t actually that good ! What it does do is take a very fine edge that only has to stay a fine edge for 1 or 2 cuts before its sent to the bin (I’m no surgeon but from what I have seen on TV they don’t seem to be in the habit of making lots of cuts). My guess would be that they are probably sharper / more keen than a razor but would dull way before you would have chance to do a single shave pass !

Another thing that came out in that thread was that some surgeons apparently use obsidum blades which reportedly have an edge no steel could ever match !

This is a very interesting question. Modern scalpel blades are incredibly sharp, but although their sharpness is perhaps comparable to some razors (microtomes come to mind), they're probably more akin to knives in terms of how they're ground. Skin, fascia and other tissues are incredibly tough, and it's sometimes necessary to change blades during surgery; I'm not sure that a true razor edge would hold up very long.

Originally Posted by mike1011

I remember a discussion on a knife forum about scalpels and more specifically “surgical steel”. It was pointed out that surgical steel isn’t actually that good ! What it does do is take a very fine edge that only has to stay a fine edge for 1 or 2 cuts before its sent to the bin (I’m no surgeon but from what I have seen on TV they don’t seem to be in the habit of making lots of cuts). My guess would be that they are probably sharper / more keen than a razor but would dull way before you would have chance to do a single shave pass !

Another thing that came out in that thread was that some surgeons apparently use obsidum blades which reportedly have an edge no steel could ever match !

That's pretty much on the mark, mike 1011!

Both obsidian and diamond blades have their uses. Eye surgeons are fond of diamond in particular because it cuts cleanly, with minimal trauma to delicate tissues. Obsidian glass has similar benefits.

Originally Posted by Dzanda

That's pretty much on the mark, mike 1011!

Both obsidian and diamond blades have their uses. Eye surgeons are fond of diamond in particular because it cuts cleanly, with minimal trauma to delicate tissues. Obsidian glass has similar benefits.

Do you get diamond or obsidian razors? I've seen vidoes of people shaving with obsidian flakes, but never heard of diamond before.

I would think that older scalpels would be very similar. I had posted this razor and it was suggested it might have been used in a surgical setting due to the scales and spacer being all aluminum. I take it for face value though. Who knows the true history of it.

http://i.imgur.com/K8TpgsR.jpg

Originally Posted by docatduq

I would think that older scalpels would be very similar. I had posted this razor and it was suggested it might have been used in a surgical setting due to the scales and spacer being all aluminum. I take it for face value though. Who knows the true history of it.

http://i.imgur.com/K8TpgsR.jpg

Most likely yes, it was a surgical prep razor. Used for cutting hair, though, not flesh. I've got a 1956 Soviet-made one that's quite similar.

Originally Posted by Amenrab

Do you get diamond or obsidian razors? I've seen vidoes of people shaving with obsidian flakes, but never heard of diamond before.

Neither; my practice doesn't require anything so exotic. Plain surgical steel is all that I've ever used.

I've witnessed surgeons changing blades from half of an incision to another. What is left out of the tale is that human tissue/serum will erode the fine edge of a knife blade. Disposable scalpel blades are made for single use so no one is tempted to reuse them on another patient, and as cheaply as possible, so they are not perfect, but good enough.