As a home baker who bakes a lot of sourdough bread, I’ve collected quite a few bread lames over the years to score designs on top of my loaves. One lame that I kept seeing people use over and over, especially on Instagram, was the UFO lame from Wire Monkey Shop. This little lame was small, round, and different than all of the other long-handled lames that I was used to. I was intrigued.
After I had purchased my own UFO lame and used it for a while, I decided to test out this lame and compare it to a few other popular bread lames on the market (as any sane sourdough blogger/YouTuber would do, right?). So, I tested and compared five different popular bread lames, and today I want to give you my complete owner’s review of the UFO lame.
To see the full comparison of the five different bread lames that I reviewed, check out this article here.
First of all, why do bakers score bread with a lame?
As a general rule, bakers use bread lames to cut slashes into bread dough in order to let the dough expand and rise in the oven along a predetermined score mark. If the dough isn’t scored, it will usually bust open in an unpredictable and unnattractive manner. Bakers score dough with a lame (razor blade) so that they can control what the bread looks like when it comes out of the oven.
High-Level: Who should buy a UFO lame from Wire Monkey Shop?
The UFO lame from Wire Monkey Shop is perfect for home bakers that bake sourdough bread regularly. If you bake sourdough bread on a regular basis, if like to attempt decorative scoring patterns on top of your loaves, and if you seek out products that are made in the USA, the UFO lame is the perfect choice for you.
There are a lot of knock-off UFO lames out there on the internet, so if you’re looking to purchase a UFO lame for yourself, make sure you only get one from the actual Wire Monkey Shop or one of their certified retailers. I prefer to buy directly from their website, which you can do right here.
Table of Contents
– What Makes the UFO Lame Unique?
– How to Change the Blade on a UFO Lame
– My Overall Rating of the UFO Lame
> Safety
> Simple Scoring
> Decorative Scoring
> Is the Lame Fun to Use?
UFO Lame Overview – What Makes This Lame Unique?
The shape and size of the lame
What makes the UFO lame most unique is its small size. Most other bread lames have a long handle with the blade fixed to the end of the handle. The UFO lame, on the other hand, is small and round. The blade of the UFO lame is stored inside two small, interlocking, circular plates.
This means that, with the smaller UFO lame, you hold the entire tool between your thumb and forefinger instead of just holding the handle. It’s basically like holding a bare razor blade between your two fingers, except that you actually have a layer of protection between you and the blade.
Made in the USA
While many companies outsource their production to countries with cheaper materials and cheaper labor, authentic UFO lames are actually made in the USA by a small, family-owned company in Connecticut.
Here’s what the company, Wire Monkey Shop, has to say about supporting their brand:
Insist on original Wire Monkey products, and here’s why: we use only eco-friendly packaging, pay fair wages, are made in the USA and support the sourdough community. Feel good about what you buy.
The Wire Monkey Shop Website (source)
Price and Styles
At the time of writing this article, there are eight different styles of UFO lames available on the Wire Monkey Shop website. Most are made of wood, and some, like the one I own, are made from recycled paper. UFO lames cost anywhere between $27.95 and $39.95 depending on the particular model.
If you’re looking for a lame that’s a little more affordable, but still high-quality, check out the one bread lame that I would buy if I could only have one. Here’s a link to it on Amazon.
Something to keep in mind with UFO lames is that, since most models are made of wood, you shouldn’t put them in the dishwasher. For best results, Wire Monkey Shop recommends cleaning their lames with a small wire brush and fracturated coconut oil, which they also provide on their website.
So, now that we’ve explored some of the basics in this UFO lame review, let’s talk about some of the specifics you’ll want to know if you’re considering buying one. I’ll tell you how to change out the blade of a UFO lame, and I’ll go through my complete rating of this lame, with a score from 0 to 40.
How to Change the Blade of a UFO Lame
To change the blade of a UFO lame:
- Grasp the two circular plates carefully and firmly between your thumbs and index fingers.
- Apply a bit of pressure and spin the top plate counter-clockwise until it begins to move.
- Unscrew the top plate from the bottom plate and carefully remove the old blade.
- Add a new blade into the middle of the two plates and let it catch on the screw.
- Screw the top plate back onto the bottom plate until it is tight.
- Now your new blade is installed!
Note: You can store the blade inside of the lame for storage by loosening the plates a little bit and slipping the blade inside until it dissappears and the corners are no longer exposed. To close, spin the plates to tighten them again. Now, your lame is ready for storage.
UFO Lame Review – My Total Rating: 38/40
For my scoring system, I gave different bread lames a rating from 1-10 on the following four factors: safety, simple scoring, decorative scoring, and how fun the lame was to use. I gave each lame a final rating out of 40 total points. The UFO lame was my highest-scoring bread lame with a final score of 38/40.
Safety – My Rating: 9/10
When it comes to safety, the great thing about the UFO lame is that you can completely store the blade inside of the blade-holder itself. You can close up the blade inside of the two plates so that the edges of the blade aren’t exposed at all. This is a very safe way to store a blade.
Unlike other lames, where you might have to store the blade inside a case, or make sure you keep your blades out of reach of children, the UFO lame provides another solution. Simply close up the blade safely between the two plates, twist them tightly to close, and then you can leave your lame almost anywhere without worrying about someone accidentally cutting something.
Because you need to cautiously manipulate the two plates of the UFO lame quite a bit to get the blade in and out, I rated the lame a 9 out of 10 for safety. Once the blade is stored it is absolutely safe, but closing the blade is where there’s a little bit of risk. Still 9/10 isn’t much to worry about. This is a very safe lame to keep in a kitchen drawer.
Simple Scoring – My Rating: 10/10
Even though people usually use UFO lames for decorative scoring patterns, it performs perfectly well with simple scoring patterns too. I’ve scored “X” patterns on top of round loaves, and simple slash patterns on top of oval loaves. They always turn out great. I gave the UFO lame a 10/10 for simple scoring in my rating system.
Decorative Scoring – My Rating: 10/10
The UFO lame works great if you want to score decorative or intricate designs on top of your loaf of bread. Because you hold the lame between your thumb and index finger, it offers you precision and control when making tiny decorative cuts. It allows you to essentially hold the razor blade between your fingers, but it gives you an extra layer of protection.
If you’re the type of person who likes to make small, precise cuts on top of your loaves of bread, the UFO lame is probably the lame you’re looking for. I rated the UFO lame a 10/10 for decorative scoring.
Is the UFO Lame fun to use? – My Rating: 9/10
The UFO lame is extremely fun to use. Especially if you like to make decorative designs on top of your sourdough bread, there’s nothing better. However, there is a lot of spinning and shuffling involved to change out the blade, so I can definitely see some people wanting a simpler option. I often find myself grabbing for one of my other favorite lames instead of the UFO lame, just because I know that its blade is already exposed and I can get to it quicker.
Changing out the blade is really not a big deal, but it’s enough to mention. I gave the UFO lame a 9 out of 10 when it comes to how fun it is to use.
Video Review
Conclusion – UFO Lame Review
I wanted to give you some final thoughts for this UFO lame review. All in all, the original UFO lame is an amazing little tool to buy if:
- You make a lot of sourdough bread
- You like to make decorative scoring patterns on your bread
- Supporting USA-made products is important to you
When I reviewed five different bread lames, the UFO lame actually received the highest rating. BUT, if I could only have one bread lame ever, for the rest of my life, I would actually choose a different one. Click here for my article where I share the one lame I would buy if I could only have one.