March 29, 2019 - 12:44pm
Wondering why all the bread lames I find have such a short handle....
Hello everyone!!
I am just curious as to why I can't find a longer handle bread lame... All the lames I find are so small and cheaply made. Is this a problem for anyone else?
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Tradition seems to dictate that a "professional" lame is a broken coffee-stir-stick, with a cheap razor blade threaded onto it. Apparently only an oversensitive newbie would think of using an entire unbroken stir stick. The Scotch-tape grip enhancement appears to be optional. ?
There are a few "nicer" ones being made, but they seem to be trying awfully hard to faithfully build in all the defects of the broken-stir-stick approach. It wouldn't be that big an engineering challenge, you know, to design one where the razor blade is clamped in securely and the handle is reasonably comfortable to use. But nooooo, couldn't chance that. ?
Edited to add: You and I should go into business making The Ultimate Ultra-Deluxe Lame, Mark III... a broken stainless-steel chopstick with a grip wrapped in sparkly Scotch tape! $600, or two for only $1199.98! ?
Great idea!! Using the chopstick could cut our cost down 80% Lol.
I've never really had a problem with the blade staying in place. But i'd like to be able to wrap my entire hand around the handle instead on using the hoovering the handle technique.
Maybe I should make one according to my hand size and boom problem solved haha
There is/was a user here on the forum that developed a rather nice lame which is available online: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/56948/better-lame It's pretty sturdy, all stainless, and the blade is held in place with a thumb screw instead of tension. Works very nice for me.
I also have this one (straight lame): https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00B3L8P70/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
My hands don't cooperate with me anymore and both of these lame's make it much easier for me.
That last one is at least getting somewhere!
I can't exactly tell how the blade is held in, but mold that out of plastic (with maybe a better handle shape, because you're no longer constrained by the fact that an asymmetrical handle would waste too much wood), slash the price, and it could be for everyone.
Thats a good idea. I was wondering about the weight of the stainless steel lame being a problem for me. Plastic would be alot lighter.
but the stainless steel weighs in at a hefty 94g/3.31oz (with blade). Similar in weight to one of those heavy duty steak knives you may have used in a restaurant. Has a nice heft to it.
The wood one (black walnut) is a mere 29g/1oz (with blade). I can barely feel it in my hands, but the handle is very comfortable to me. The blade fits into a very fine slot that has been machined into the handle itself. The two thumb screws clamp the blade between the wood. And of course, the decorative brass etched top piece helps protect the wood from the thumb screws.
Do you find that the screws sticking out the back of the wooden one make it harder to slash bread?
The screw heads themselves don't stick out very far. But the thumb nuts do stick out a good amount. If you are right handed (like me) it's not an issue. But if you are left handed the thumb nuts would certainly get stuck in the dough. I remember reading somewhere that the screws can be reversed for lefties.
I put a few photo's up on google. May give you a better idea... https://photos.app.goo.gl/mTYcoYeGKL2MmeZaA
And I stand corrected. The decorative brass top only protects the wood from one of the thumb nuts, not both. My mistake.
I had read a review (probably from a left-hander, according to what you say) that criticized this aspect - that was why I asked.
There are so many designs of actual razors, in which the blade obviously has to be held perfectly steady - including some strange designs, including asymmetrical, and so on... It's unfortunate that there have to be clumsy or difficult-to-use designs involving the classic safety-razor blade. I can see that the one in question is designed as it is because it doesn't require any factory parts other than the screws - being able to build by hand with no real outsourcing is good for the small-scale operation.
Japanese companies have spring-loaded slip-on mechanisms to securely hold their proprietary blades in a straight razor type of configuration... worth study. ?
(Also worth study, perhaps even more so, are the "Shavette" and similar methods of holding the common type of safety-razor blade in a straight-razor-like configuration.)
I've been pretty happy with this one since I learned to cock the razor blade at an angle rather than the way they show it on Amazon. I've tried a lot of other ones...plastic...chop stick...metal....and this one is safer for me and unlike the others...it should last a lifetime. It hangs on the side of my refrigerator with a leather strap, out of the way...but in reach. I still use a serrated bread knife for really wet doughs. Not perfect...but it works most of the time.
I agree with all the comments made regarding lames. My daughter in law bought me this one as a birthday gift expensive but I really like it
Preferences certainly vary, but I like these a lot...and something like this is what I see most other professionals using (they also have the advantage of sticking to a magnet mounted on the wall wherever you slash and load)...
https://www.sfbi.com/baking-supplies/blades
Those are exactly the type that I essentially ridicule as just a stupid stick. I believe that the only reason any professional would use such a clumsy contraption is that they saw another professional (probably someone considered higher ranking than themselves) using one, and they don't want to be the one who's different.
It's as if all professional drivers steered their cars simply by dragging a stick on the ground, so no one is brave enough to suggest that a steering wheel might be more effective.
Or, to use a baking example, it's as if all sheet pans had always been made out of cleverly folded newspapers, and because "all professionals use the newspaper method", metal pans get laughed at.
Now I have an even better excuse for screwing up my bread. I’m left handed and I have a a lame lame. I love blaming my equipment. Thanks for all the laughs David R and others.
There's a difference between blaming your equipment, and agreeing to put up with (and even praise!) ridiculously stupid equipment, when reasonable equipment would be cheap and easy to make.
By one edge and slash away. I sharpen the razor blade occasionally :) When that stops working, I pull out another blade.
Well...
Even your method might be better and safer than the threaded-on-a-stick nonsense. At least when you cut yourself it'll be your own fault rather than an unpredictable accident. ?
This lame has been serving me well for almost 10 years.
Split the handle end of a bamboo chopstick, strap on two mini-zipties (ends trimmed), slide double edged razor blade into split. Trim length of chopstick to suit. Swap out blade when it seems to be getting dull (rarely, baking once/week). I prefer a short handle for better control. YMMV.
Tom
It's not something everyone would do a proper job of making, but it's a lot better than the so-called standard. You can "see" lots of blade for making any kind of cut you want, and the blade is held straight (I mean, not bent) and secure.
I like the end of the blade to stick out as much as possible so I just make them using some drink stirrers (craft sticks) or popsicle sticks and some superglue. For the curved lame, I soak the sticks in some boiling water for a while to soften them up and then carefully put a curve in with my fingers. It helps if you spray come superglue activator on the wood to speed up setting.
Also for the blades, I use Feather blades because they are so sharp (actually too sharp for me to shave with).
You just gave me a reason to go buy a latte...LOL! I generally don't go to coffee shops...but a free lame...and a cup of joe...Win win!
:-) Makes me think about getting a double espresso.
I like those for shaving! But I've heard many others also say they're too sharp.
I wonder if you'd even notice the difference, on bread dough.
Probably not but I had a bunch around that I wasn't using.
Been using this contraption. Hasn’t disappointed or failed me yet. And simple to change blades.
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/56948/better-lame#comment-413766