Why Use DiATOME

Justification

The DiATOME knives are the only knives that can cut all types of materials from biological to materials (hard and soft alike). The DiATOME diamond knives are the only diamond knives that are constantly mentioned in all professional journals and books and are the only knives that are proven to work consistently for any type of sectioning specifications.

Much research has been done that supports the claim that the DiATOME knife is the only knife that can be relied on. Testing of other knives on the market proved to be futile and it was impossible to achieve success with them. The DiATOME was the only knife that was able to successfully cut all types of materials and allowed us to achieve the desired results like no other knife did.

The specific characteristics and properties of the DiATOME diamond knives that support the above claims are as follows:

DiATOME is the only manufacturer to use a 2-point diamond edge with a radius of curvature less than 2nm. This specification allows the DiATOME knife to be far superior than any of the other manufacturers and affords the knife a much longer life than any other knives on the market.

However, the main reason to buy a DiATOME diamond knife is that in the long run it is less expensive. The reason for this is that the durability of the DiATOME diamond is far longer than any other knife. That is to say that once a DiATOME knife is purchased it is good for a lifetime with the need for resharpening only every 2-3 years with proper use. All other manufacturer's knives must be resharpened much more frequently. Within a very short time the DiATOME knife becomes half of the price of all others on the market and on top of this it does a far superior job in your research.

Characteristics

1. DiATOME offers incomparable durability of the diamond edge. DiATOME knives have been known to last for many years without resharpening.
2. All DiATOME diamonds are of the highest possible quality diamonds with a regular crystal structure. The crystal orientation of the diamond that we have chosen permits a final polishing parallel to the cutting edge, which gives you a perfect nick free edge.
3. Uniform sections are easily reproducible.
4. DiATOME knives are guaranteed for an unlimited amount of resharpenings.
5. When we resharpen our diamond knives we restore them to their original condition. Your resharpened DiATOME diamond knife will have the same length, the identical cutting edge and carry the same guarantee of quality as the day it first left our factory.
6. Our diamonds are fastened into a metal shank which is securely screwed into the boat and then sealed. The sealing material is hydrophilic, allowing for easy wetting of the cutting edge, and has no effect on the stability of the knife.
7. For our cryo knives we use a special epoxy resin for sealing which is chemical and temperature resistant.
8. Before delivery each knife, new or resharpened, is subjected to extensive testing for its ability to cut accurately without scoring or compression. Only if its performance passes our tests will we ship it to you.
9. The DiATOME boat is designed in such a manner that the water surface is horizontal when the clearance angle is set. This results in stationery water surface and good reflection.
10. DiATOME's universal knife boats are designed to fit all brands of ultramicrotomes without the need for an adapter.
11. The shape of the DiATOME boat offers you the advantage of easy pick up of the floating sections.
12. For well over 35 years DiATOME has been the innovator in the manufacture of diamond knives covering the entire microtomy spectrum.
13. DiATOME offers special testing services without charge. If you are having problems sectioning a particular specimen or you are not sure which knife will perform the best in your specific application, just submit a sample block to our testing division. We, in turn, will do all of the necessary testing for you and make our recommendations to you.