features perforated sheet metal and resembles a food grater. A surform tool consists of a steel strip with holes punched out and the rim of each hole sharpened to form a cutting edge. The strip is mounted in a carriage or handle. Surform tools were called "cheese graters"[2][3] decades before they entered the market as kitchen utensils used to grate cheese.[4][5] Surform planes have been described as a cross between a rasp and a plane.[6]
Although similar to many food graters made of perforated sheet metal, surforms differ in having sharpened rims. Also, a surform typically is used to shape material, rather than grate it.