A ground single edged fullered blade made from flat bar. The shape of the blade is achieved by stock removal i.e. grinding with a bench grinder or with a hand held angle grinder. This involves grinding through or removing different layers of grain structure, therefore weakening the blade. The idea of fullering is to lighten and strengthen the blade at the same time. This works in much the same way as an R S J (rolled steel joist) or H girder. This only works if it is rolled or forged. The majority of production knives have ground blades as they are generally easier and cheaper to produce.

A forged single edged fullered blade made from round bar. The shape is achieved by the process of forging or "smithing", hence the name blacksmith or smithy. Firstly the bar is heated in a forge until red hot, removing it and striking it with a hammer on the anvil until it resembles a knife blade. This usually requires several heats. The fullers or grooves are made using tools called top and bottom fullers (I wonder how they came up with that name!) The bottom fuller fits in the anvil, the red hot blade is laid on it and the top fuller is held on top and then hit with a big hammer. During the forging and fullering process there is no material removed from the blade, it is only displaced, which is why a forged blade is intrinsically superior to a ground blade. Theoretically the piece of steel that you start off with should still weigh the same when you have finished. These descriptions are somewhat over simplified, ( I'm only a simple person) ..