Introduction

This page is about the knives I make here at Sharp Instinct Studio for culinary use, specifically chef's knives and cutlery, kitchen knives, cook's knives, professional food service knives, meal prep knives, tools, and accessories comprising of but not limited to cutting tools, knives, choppers, cleavers, used to and for slicking, slicing, chunking, julienne, butterfly, chopping spices, cubing, dicing, scoring, shredding, brunoise, preparing stir-fry, slicing bread, fining, grinding, carving, and separating foods, ingredients, and components. I've included some topics that I think you will find worthwhile, and also included thumbnail photographs in captioned boxes with the name of the individual knives. If there is a featured page about the knife, the name is linked to that page. As with all my pages, I'll continually add new projects and knives as they are completed.

As you read this page, you'll probably begin to realize that a lot of what you think, have heard, or read about common chef's and kitchen knives is the result of mass marketing created to sell volume knives. Volume knife sales is a great idea for the masses; knives can be made cheaply and uniformly, in great quantities, by bulk manufacturing interests (mostly in China). The knives made this way are utilitarian, common, and inexpensive. There is nothing wrong with making and marketing knives this way; you get what you pay for, and it's not much, either way.

These are not my clients. My patrons and customers are interested in the very, very best. They want knives that are built with intelligent, modern materials, methods and techniques. They want the absolute premium modern tool steels, they want modern, scientific, accurate and verified heat treatment and cryogenic processing, they want first-class, contemporary fittings and design, they want the pinnacle of art and functional form for the knife that rests in their most honored place of gathering, nourishment, and sharing: their kitchens.

My personal and professional drive is to make and offer these knives through my own creative works as well as through custom works individually suited to each client. The knives you see on this page (and on all the other pages of the site apart from my "Knives for Sale" pages) are sitting in someone's favorite spot in their kitchen, on their counter, on their dining table, or in their restaurant, at the ready, in a place of respect that is important to them. I consider this the greatest honor I can have: that someone has a fine work of art and precision made completely by my hands in their life, that they adopt it to become part of their family of possessions, that the knife or knives are to be handed down to generations to come. This is why I do what I do.

The difference between the work of a professional custom knifemaker and mass-marketed knives is fairly simple to determine, and it can be summed up in the phrase "Quality vs. Quantity." Because there is so much mass marketing hyperbole on the internet, on media sources, in print, on television, and in advertising generally, I've taken considerable time to illustrate what these differences are generally on my "Factory Knives vs. Fine Handmade Knives" page on this website.

There is much more to these comparisons, mainly how my work, inspiration, art, and professional creations differ from other knifemakers who make kitchen knives by hand. There is a lot to learn here, and my clients deserve to know the difference between my works and the works of others. They have a right to know about the best steels and designs, the best fittings and handles, the best stands, blocks and accessories. They should understand technically, artistically, and aesthetically why this is so. This is the purpose of this page as part of my Service Commitment to my professional trade.

A professional knifemaker's perspective is markedly different from a manufacturer's viewpoint, just as an accomplished chef's viewpoint differs from a line cook's. Additionally, as a maker of top grade weapons, tools, and fine instruments, my perspective is not the same as other knifemakers who use simple, antiquated methods to make knives.

If you are reading this, you deserve to know the distinctions. I'll do my best to lay it all out: the history, the reasoning, the technology, the direction, and the value. By the time you are finished reading this page, I guarantee that you will know more than most other people about truly fine chef's knives, more than most chefs, more than knife manufacturers, and even more than most knifemakers. While others may offer you baseless generalities, notions of great traditional histories, vague and non-specific ideals about their knives alongside tiny photos and very little useful information or specs, I will offer facts, specific descriptions, very clear and abundant evaluations and comparisons for your consideration. Armed with this concrete knowledge, I believe that you will be better equipped to purchase any chef's knife from any source for the purpose you intend.

You deserve a fine knife for your most important and frequent knife duty, task, and passion.

Thanks for being here!

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The Custom Approach

Newer kitchens are equipped with the best appliances, finest counters, floors, and walls, best modern lighting, sophisticated plumbing and sanitary equipment, and newest and most efficient modern cookware, well-designed tools, utensils, and accessories. At the forefront of every meal preparation with fresh, healthy, and delicious food is the knife. Chef's knives, meal prep knives, and kitchen knives are the most common knives seen. Every household has these kinds of knives, and they probably see the most duty of any knife.

The knife is where the meal starts, and I believe it should be the most durable, distinctive, and useful tool in the kitchen, because it is the tool that physically creates prepared food from raw meat and produce. One simply cannot be a chef without a knife. While a good chef can create a great meal with an average knife, a superior knife in his hands can create an exceptional meal and an extraordinary experience. It's about the chef's personal relationship to his knives. How the chef lives through the work of the knife will translate into how the meal experience occurs for others around him. The chef should be eager and excited about the prospect of putting his knife in his hand, working at his board, in his kitchen with his unique tools and appliances to create his distinctive meal. The use of the knife should be a flowing, fluid, and comfortable experience, and when it is, the preparation of the meal becomes a creative and wonderful event for not only the chef, but also his friends and family.

The tools and utensils of the modern kitchen are the most advanced and wonderful they have ever been in history. We are all lucky to be living in our modern world, and the chefs of the past would be astounded at what we have available in even the most modest modern kitchen environment. Though there have been a few new inventions in the culinary world, the major change in the world of the chef in historic times has been refinement. Meat and produce have been refined and cultured, cookware has been improved, and appliances have brought the chef out of the smoky fires of antiquity into the clean and efficient creation space of the modern kitchen. The cooking experience itself has been meticulously and accurately refined as art across many mediums and cultures.

Since the knife is the central tool of the cooking experience, it is important to be knowledgeable and well-informed about chef's knives. Thankfully, we also have refined our information technology to a high degree, and more detailed, specific and clear information is available from worthwhile sources to more people than has ever been available before in history. Right now, you are reading this because of refined information technology. The interpretation, direction, specifics, and art of knives is now available from metals artists and craftsmen like myself for anyone to see, at any time, in the privacy and time frame of their own personal choosing. I feel very lucky and thankful that you are reading this now, and want you to know that I have a great deal to offer based on my own practice, experience, and art in this field. I consider it an obligation and responsibility of the service aspect to my clients, my trade, and my art.

In my field, I have made many, many knives. Every knife I've made has been a refinement of at least one of several attributes. An attribute is simply a logic, quality, characteristic, property, philosophy, or character. On the surface this may seem a heavy group of considerations, but I want you to know exactly why handmade custom knives and my knives in particular are created the way they are.

Logic: My professional logic is that I want to create and supply the finest knives available in our modern world, with modern materials and techniques, to some of the finest chefs and clients, whether they are cooking at home, as a profession, or are determined to become fine chefs. I strive to create designs that are logical, for uses in the real kitchen, with reasonable and dependable geometries, materials, finishes, and accessories.

Quality: My standard is to create the highest quality knife, tool, and work of art that is possible using modern technology and process. Like my fine Tactical Combat Knives, I am determined to make only the very best. I use the highest technology modern corrosion resistant tool steels available, with modern and specific processes of heat treating, tempering, cryogenic processing, and testing with professional apparatus, in house, here at Sharp Instinct Studio. I use the most modern and refined fittings, designs, and finishes on the most durable handle materials possible for each knife. The fit, finish, balance and accuracy of each component is of the highest quality, and the excellence of the knife is matched by any accessory that accompanies it, so and my clients and patrons are assured they are acquiring the very best.

Characteristics of the fine modern chef's knife vary widely, perhaps more than any other type of knife known. Since there are many different processes that the chef's knife must complete, there is a great variety of blade styles and shapes, grinds and finishes, handles and forms. Chef's knives may perform delicate tasks requiring thin, hard blades, other chef's knives may need an improved and refined grip to apply great force with extended blade toughness. The characteristics of each individual knife determine which one you reach for in the block, sheath, or roll, depending on the task you have in the kitchen.

Properties of each knife distinguish them from others. For example, making a knife from modern high chromium, high technology martensitic tool steel distinguishes the knife from one made of 1095 or 52100 plain carbon steel by many orders of magnitude. The property of a gemstone handle distinguishes the well-made fine tool from a factory knife that has a polypropylene molded handle. Properties of fine handmade chef's knives instantly set them apart from mass produced knives in every way: materials, finish, design, balance, embellishment, fit, finish, accessories, and service.

My Philosophy of my chef's knives is unique. While every individual maker may say that his works and philosophy about the knives he creates is exclusive, I actually detail these specific distinctions on this very page, and on the 600 other pages on this very website for all to see. There is no mystery about why I make the knives I do or how I do it, I believe this field should be modern, transparent, evolving, and inviting to all who are interested in fine knives. One could boil down this philosophy quite simply: I am a full time professional knife maker, artist, and writer who does my very best to create the finest modern handmade knife and work of art for each individual client.

The Character of each knife, group of knives, or art project are what sets it apart as distinctive. No other knives look like or have the character of the knives I create, and that specific character appeals to each client, patron, or chef in a very personal way. The character of the fine, modern handmade and custom knife will prohibit it from ever being grouped in the endless clones of production work, replicas, primitive, or manufactured items, and exhibit the personality of the owner who appreciates finely crafted works of art as well as accurate and refined tools.

The only way to experience this personally is through a direct conversation. This is not available from manufacturers, boutique shops, and even other makers may not accommodate this. If you are interested in an extremely fine chef's knife or set, Email me here to discuss your project or idea!

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What are chef's knives and why are they different?

Interest in fine chef's knives is on the rise. Most professional chefs are covetous of their knives and tools; indeed a fine custom knife set can personalize, identify, and distinguish a chef and his kitchen environment. Ask a professional chef what he most values and he'll probably tell you his knives. What kind of knives equip a custom kitchen or chef distinguishes his passion for the culinary arts.

You might also realize that most of the information about chef's knives is based in the past. Historically, extremely finely made knives were distinctly not chef's knives; the knives used to cook in the past were the cheapest, most common sort, made to use, use up, and throw away. Knives do not typically have a historic past of high value in culinary work. Since the very best knives ever made were either for recognition, dedication, or war, it's a new concept that extremely fine knives and accoutrements could be made for the kitchen. This new and exciting concept means that for the first time in history, knifemakers are using premium materials: extremely high alloy, high tech steels, clean, sanitary, and incredibly durable fittings, exotic or rare handle materials, extraordinary artistic blocks, stands, cases, rolls, and accessories.

You might wonder why top chefs are rarely seen with fine custom knives, particularly in public.

• In the public realm, finely made custom chef's knives are rarely seen. This is probably because there are actually so few of them in existence. When you consider how many millions and millions of standard, typical, and manufactured common-pattern kitchen knives exist in the world, it's clear that the fine handmade custom chef's knives by top level knife makers are a very elite, exclusive part of the large picture. They are, quite simply, rare.
• Though in the very public field of cooking you may see many types of common knives, the finest custom handmade knives are often more protected, coveted, and cherished by their owners. Many of these chefs would not flaunt their extremely fine knives any more than they would flaunt their private art collection in the public realm. Sometimes, modesty is a dish served publicly, but refinement is a feast for the home.
• Most people relate to the common knife with more familiarity. They are comfortable with known and established everyday tools, and the top chef may wish to relate to the public and the products of his efforts (his dishes and meals) rather than have them distracted by bold and stunning artwork in the form of a knife. It's not surprising to see how many top chefs in the public realm are marketing their own name etched and stamped on cheap, common manufactured knives. This is basic mass-market manufacturing.
• Most people merely consider a knife as another piece of cutlery, like a fork, spoon, or butter knife. The difference between a stamped-out piece of stainless cutlery and a refined, hardened and tempered instrument is profound, yet most people aren't aware of this.
• Because of the relative rarity of fine custom knife making, most chefs have never even seen a very fine, custom, handmade knife. While they may recognize some factory knives as "top of the line," they can be quite shocked to see just what a really fine knife is.

Extremely fine, well-designed and handmade chef's knives can be works of art. In my own works, every knife is absolutely distinctive, and every creation is first and foremost a cutting instrument. In the form of the knife, you will see the movement, feel the grip, sense the slice easing through the subject of your dishes. The very foundation of a fine chef's knife is the most substantial consideration that not only sets it apart in the realm of knives, but also offers the physical basis and traits that will establish its value. If you want to know the exact basis for the fine knife when compared to inferior knives, I've detailed the specifics in the next sections. As promised, by the time you have finished reading this page, you will know more about fine, handmade, and custom chef's knives than most other chefs, factories, or other knife makers!

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Blades: The Chef and the Steel Rod

Please read the wisdom box above again. This perception (a chef steeling a knife) is a persistent and cultural icon, often played in the media as a defining activity. When one sees a chef, he's wearing a double-breasted white jacket or smock,  a white toque hat, perhaps an apron, and he is steeling a knife. This uniform dates back to French traditions; more on that later.

Why is he steeling his knife? Because it is dull. It starts out dull, and dulls easily, and dulls frequently, so he steels and steels and steels... After a while, he becomes pretty quick at the motions, and may even make it look effortless, like some graceful flourish before the cut. To a maker of fine custom knives, however, this action screams out, "Help! My knife is dull, it's continually dull, and I can't keep it reliably sharp!"

Sharpening a knife before every use is absurd. Do you honestly think that we are unable to make and offer extremely wear-resistant, edge-holding, instrument-grade tool steels in our modern world?

I consider it my duty as a maker of extremely fine chef's knives to help the chef out, but I can not help him if he has a low grade, inferior, and weak knife blade. The reason for every knife is the blade, and the blade is made of fine, modern tool steel (or should be). The fine knife blade should not be a low alloy, old-world style carbon steel, but the finest engineered, most modern, highest quality, refined, clean, and scientifically made and treated, machined, ground, and finished stainless tool steel we have available. In addition, the knife should always be made entirely of Food Contact Safe materials and construction. A good piece of professional chef's cutlery starts with the foundation of an exceptional blade. This doesn't only mean an ornamental blade, although style, appearance, and artistic value can be well-applied here.

In the next topics, I'll cover the specifics of history, the myths of chef's knives, the technical realities, and the specific reasons I make knives the way I do. I promise that when you are done reading these sections, you'll know more than most people, more than most chefs, and more than most knifemakers about what constitutes the very best chef's knives and why. Thanks for being here!

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Carbon Steel and the Myth of History

Look around at what other knifemakers and factories tout as the best chef's knives and you'll notice that many of them recommend and use carbon steels. The term "carbon steel" is usually used to identify and distinguish steels that are NOT stainless. I'll assume that you first want to get this clear as to why these steels are used, why they have been used historically, and why they are claimed to be superior when they are absolutely not. In fact, carbon steels are inferior to high alloy hypereutectoid stainless tool steels in every single characteristic except three:

1. They are cheaper.
2. They are easier and faster to make a knife out of.
3. They sharpen easily since they are softer, less wear-resistant, and dull quickly!

First, the name, carbon steel. All steels have carbon. All of them. This is what makes steel different from raw iron. Iron is the element; add carbon of enough percentage (a tiny percentage) and you will make steel from iron.

When knifemakers, machinists, and layman use the term "carbon steel," they are referring to plain carbon steel. Let's get very clear on what carbon steel contains, so that there will be no confusion: Carbon steel, according to AISI, SAE, ANSI, and machinist's and engineer's references is steel (iron with carbon) that contains manganese limited to 1.65%, silicon limited to 0.60%, and copper limited to 0.60%. That is the official classification for carbon steel. No other alloy elements are added intentionally. Clearly, carbon steels are low alloy, plain steels, without any beneficial ingredients (for some culinary language). Carbon steels are cheap, common, and plentiful steels.

Historically, this is how steels have been for about 4000 years. Only in the beginning of the 20th century have scientists and metallurgists started adding beneficial elements to this recipe to create alloys. The reason they did is to make superior steels; steels that have higher strength, higher wear resistance, higher toughness, and higher corrosion resistance altogether. Carbon steels are notorious for wearing quickly, dulling frequently, bending or breaking, and rusting at the first exposure to moisture. Add a little chromium to carbon steels, and they become harder, tougher, and more wear-resistant. Add enough chromium to the steels and they become stainless steel: resisting corrosion to a very high degree, adding considerable strength and beneficial wear resistance, and increasing toughness substantially.

If high alloy stainless steels are so much better in every way, why have knifemakers, manufacturers, and the public stuck with carbon steels? It's because they are selling a myth, and the public continues to buy it up.

For example, take a look at some major players in the kitchen knife and handmade knife world, and you'll see an almost mystical  fascination with Japanese knives. You'll read and hear words like "mind," "body," and "soul," referring to ancient Japanese techniques and alleged superiority in knives and cutting tools. By the way, there is no Japanese superiority regarding steel, blades, or knives; there has never been; this is a myth. Knife manufacturers and some knifemakers love to use Japanese language and words to describe their blades, the features of their knives, as if Japanese is the only language that has words to describe these things. For example, the phrase "temper line" (originally described in English by John Yumoto in his technically detailed reference book The Samurai Sword written in 1958) is now called "hamon" only because the Japanese word hamon carries some mystique and exotic interest; it's still just a temper line. The phrase "temper line," after all, is so pedestrian...

This is typical of the myth, distraction, and fascination with a culture that is not distinctly known for fine culinary practice. If someone asks you what culture was historically known for the finest culinary refinement, chances are you would answer, "The French!"

So why is it that Japanese-style knives and cutlery hold such a mystique for Americans?  It all stems from the association of Japanese swords, knives, and weapons that were removed from Japan as it was disarmed after the end of the second world war. Our grandfathers and fathers brought home many of these weapons, and marveled at their construction, even though they were poorly made. This is the essence of knife myth; knives, swords, weapons, and tools acquired after battles, imbued with almost reverent awe, completely undeserved in materials and construction. Tales are told, conquests embellished, interest is piqued, and before you know it, later generations of the American culture is pushing out movies and entertainment featuring magical Asian swords and feats of ridiculousness.

Know that as early as 1950, there were more Japanese swords in the United States of America than had ever existed in Japan. This is cultural fascination, originating in the warfare history of the national treasures of Japan, repackaged by Hollywood, the media, and knife makers and knife manufacturers, and sold as some unique, superior concept and product. Media and entertainment marketing interests have even attributed myths originating in other cultures to the Japanese. Myths based on fantasy? Read "The Sword, the Veil, the Legend" page to understand how all this happens.

The truth is, every single culture on the planet has created good knives and dishes, bad knives and dishes, and every type in between. Isn't it interesting that since most mass-marketing comes from the Asian east, Americans tend to adopt that particular style as technically superior, when this has absolutely no basis in historical or contemporary reality?

The Japanese did have advanced techniques for working with steels and producing effective weapons a thousand years ago. So did the Indians. So did the Persians. So did the Chinese. Today, the very best steels are found in the industrial, military, and scientific field. Please don't buy the hype promoted by media and Hollywood, repeated by knifemakers who hammer steel, no matter on what public outlet their "spiritual journey" is sold. Every single culture on the planet produced and used kitchen and chef's knives, yet somehow, here in America, there is almost a worshipful embrace of a failed, long-past 1000 year-old foreign Japanese culture.

I prefer truth to mysticism, and the truth in steels can be found in the most advanced, modern technological, scientific and sophisticated metallurgy in the history of mankind. If ancient, well-documented steel and blade-making techniques were superior, we would see them used in modern industry, where shear blades must cut thousands of miles of tenacious abrasive material, where car bodies must be sheared and pressed, where molten plastic must be injected into forming molds at incredible speeds and volume, and where ball bearings have to pump liquid oxygen into rocket engines.

But nowhere, NOWHERE, is there a blacksmith in any machine shop; nobody is pounding away at layers of different steels to achieve improved performance, because it doesn't. Nowhere in the professional field of metallurgy is any engineer touting the advanced technology of any country in 1600 AD. There are no helicopter gears, machine cutting tools, aerospace tooling, turbine blades, crankshafts, valves, milling cutters, or any significant metal piece that must be hard, wear-resistant, tough, and durable that is made of carbon steel or is hammer-forged.

It's time this myth was put to rest. It's an embarrassing artifact of our tradecraft, and it needs to stop. The only advantage of using carbon steel is because it's cheap and not wear-resistant, so it's easy to steel up an edge with no effort, an edge that quickly wears away (and rusts) and needs to be steeled and sharpened again and again, and again. Carbon steel and low alloy steels are food-unsafe, dirty, weak, corroding steels and their use needs to stop in the kitchen.

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What knifemakers, companies, and manufacturers don't want you to know

Easy to sharpen; Easy to Dull

The people who push carbon steel and damascus knives do not want you to know that the reason a lot of cooks like them is that they are easy to sharpen. That's it! They are easy to put an edge on because the steel is not wear-resistant, not tough, and not abrasion-resistant. It is easy to hone up a fast edge with no skill. The low-information cook will then go on to claim that carbon steel and damascus blades are better, because he can get an edge on them easily.

He needs to do this often, because his blade dulls quickly. He grabs a dull blade, flourishes it across the ridged steel rod, feels that he is now a pro, and goes to cutting. It would surprise him to know that if he upgraded to a premium steel, he could throw away his rod, stop honing, and sharpen his knife once a year or less, and it would always be razor-keen. But then, would he feel like a chef if he didn't have to hassle with the knife blade: honing, wiping, oiling, scrubbing, drying, babying, coddling, and fondling his knife? Or, maybe he just whips the dirty blade on a dirty steel rod, and goes to cutting your food...

The truth is, if a knife blade needs steeled and sharpened often, it dulls easily. If it dulls frequently, it's soft and not wear-resistant. If a knife blade is hard and wear-resistant, it doesn't need constant sharpening or attention to the cutting edge. If a knife is hard to dull, it's hard to sharpen, usually needing diamond hones. If it's easy to sharpen, it's easy to dull, and any old rock or piece of steel will do to get a bit of a temporary cutting edge on the blade.

Who would know this and say, "I like to sharpen my blade often; I need a soft blade that I have to constantly work on to get it to cut correctly. I'll have to worry about cleaning the blade, and cleaning the rod, and storing it all together in a clean place."

Who would say, "I like to pick up my knife and simply cut with it, without worrying about the edge, and focus on preparing my meal."

Which person are you?

More about this sharpening fallacy on this topic on my Heat Treating and Cryogenic Processing of Knife Blade Steels page.

Pretty decor damascus steel; Appearance over Performance

The people who push damascus steel blades do so because they like the look. The look is different, they think the blades are pretty, even though they are inferior in every single aspect and characteristic to high alloy stainless tool steels. They are selling a look, not performance. The only advantage of Damascus pattern welded steel is appearance, all damascus pattern welded steels are inferior in every way to high alloy hypereutectoid stainless steels. More about the severe limitations of damascus pattern welded steel at this link on my Blades page.

That Beautiful Blotchy "Patina"

Knifemakers tend to defend their use of the carbon steels and low alloy steels in the kitchen. When you have and use a non-stainless knife blade in a kitchen environment, the blade will corrode. No one likes the word "corrode." It's a rather abrupt and uncomplimentary word, and means to destroy or damage by chemical action. This is exactly what happens to knife blades in the wet, acidic, or alkaline environment of the kitchen. When carbon steels corrode, they start by a darkening in the surface which is obvious and ugly and can continue to uncontrolled rust. Worse and never mentioned by these makers, the cutting edge corrodes away with every use and exposure in the kitchen environment. Worse, not a one of these steels is a Food Contact Safe material!

Knifemakers know this, and so does everyone who uses a carbon steel knife in the kitchen, but they don't like to admit it. The surface is corroded, but this sounds too harsh. So they opt for a more gentle term. First, they might use "oxidize," but still, this suggests some corrosive action, so knifemakers have settled on the term "patina." They slather mustard, coffee, vinegar, bleach, and ferric chloride on their blades, looking to find an easier way to "pre-corrode" their knife blade into a so-called patina, so it won't look so bad in the kitchen.

I'll get more into this later, but here's the really important thing: the surface of a steel knife blade reacts with its environment. If you choose a carbon steel or low alloy steel, you will have do deal with corrosion. Call it a patina, call it oxidation, or call it corrosion: it will react, it doesn't care what you call it, and it won't stop.

Knifemakers who use these steels often spank the knife owner for not oiling, wiping, waxing, babying, coddling, and fiddling with their blades when the owner complains of rust. They try to make the blade deterioration the customer's fault, claiming he or she doesn't know how to "take care of" a carbon steel knife. This is well-known and common in our trade, and it's insulting and ridiculous, since the maker is at fault for selling an inferior, corroding, rusting, and highly unstable knife blade with steel that easily reacts and corrodes—for use in the kitchen! This would be like selling a carbon steel knife blade to a US Navy SEAL Team member that will use it in the jungle and in saltwater marine environments, and then telling him it's his fault for the knife rusting! Carbon steel is the wrong steel for anyplace wet, including the kitchen! This is the most hideous failing of modern knifemakers, and it goes on and on.

The worst part? How about the guy who sells distinctly food contact unsafe $10,000.00 to $20,000.00 carbon and low alloy damascus forge-welded steel blades for kitchen use, and they rust and corrode at the first exposure? He tells his clients to wipe the blade between uses with a cloth (hey, why does my fruit compote taste like fish?), and then goes on to claim that the patina (oxidation and corroded surface) will protect the steel (no, it won't).  And since it clearly doesn't, he goes on to tell the client to scrub the blade with ScotchBrite®, detergent, Comet®, and Bon Ami® abrasive cleansers to remove the rust. Hey, what happened to my "protective patina?" Then, he goes on to sell his clients a "Home Polishing Kit" and a "Carbon Steel Cutlery Care Kit" for an extra kick in the pants! What's in these "care kits?" How about this, for your $20,000.00 blade: a can of WD-40®, and some sandpaper. Get to work!

Then, when you're done, you can spray your blade with Camellia oil he sells for some exotic flavor. What is camellia oil? It's tea seed oil, extracted from the seed of the tea plant. It's a fatty, organic oil that will go rancid, particularly when left in open air. Helpful hint: mineral oil will never, ever go rancid.

No wonder so many chefs and professionals think knifemakers are uneducated hicks.

Or, you could just get a knife that has a blade made of more wear-resistant, tougher, longer-lasting and premium high chromium high alloy food contact safe stainless steel that won't ever darken, corrode, stink, or rust in your kitchen. You could sharpen it less often, clean it with soap and water, and put it away without worry.

Gee... hard choice.

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Carbon Steel Taste Test!

I dare you. Here is what other knifemakers, companies, and manufacturers of carbon steel knives don't want you to ever know!

If you really need a clear demonstration of the limitation of carbon steel (non-stainless) to prove it to yourself, I've developed a simple test. This was not done with technical help from metallurgists, research scientists, or promotional and advertising professionals. This was developed in a simple moment, with logic, common sense, and clear intent.

After you perform this test, you will never, ever again consider carbon steel of any kind for food service, for exposure use, and possibly for any knife, unless it's surface treated or hot-blued. Even then, you won't want it in the kitchen at all, ever again in your lifetime! You won't want your meal prepared by anyone who uses a carbon steel knife, you will seriously avoid those sushi bars where the chefs slice up raw fish and vegetables with a dark, funny-shaped thin carbon steel Japanese-named knife with a straight handle and a stick tang. You might even start asking your butcher, favorite restaurant owner, and accomplished chef what they use for a knife, only to correct them by suggesting this very test! You think I'm exaggerating?

Read on and pay strict attention; I'm about to change your perception of carbon steels forever!

That's a pretty bold claim, and you might think I'm just trying to sell you an idea, but here's the thing: you will make this transformational decision by yourself, once and forever, and you'll never go back again... ever. Your own experience will be so profound that you will show others. Others will be transformed, instantly. My only request is that you properly credit me for this test by using my name, Jay Fisher, and maybe even include my website: www.jayfisher.com in your repeating of this test.

You don't need any special equipment for this test. You will need a few basic items that you, no doubt, have, since you are reading this text:

1. A knife with a carbon steel blade. Any carbon steel or non-stainless alloy will do: 1080, 1095, 5160, 52100, L6, O1, pattern welded damascus made of any of these, etc. Please feel free to use Japanese "White Steel," "Blue Steel," or any other color of so-called high carbon steels, since, no matter what you may read, they are plain carbon steels. The blade must not be blued or coated with oil, wax, paint, ceramic, plastic, or anything. If it's already darkened with oxidation, this doesn't matter too much, but bare steel is best, since it's the same condition as the cutting edge. For maximum effect, scrub the blade well with a ScotchBrite® pad or lightly abrasive cleanser, since this reflects the condition of the cutting edge. The cutting edge, you see, is never coated or protected in any way, since it's sharpened and any coating would be instantly gone at the first sharpening. So a bare blade is what you need. The blade must be wide enough for safety (see test below). The finish is not important; it can be rough, sanded, or mirror polished. You just want bare steel like the cutting edge will be.
2. A knife with a stainless steel blade. This can be any stainless steel: 440C, CPM154CM, ATS-34, even D2 and 420 stainless. As long as it's a true stainless steel with at least 11.5% chromium (which is the classification for stainless steel). If you don't have a stainless steel knife blade, use some typical stainless cutlery (a butter knife or spoon).
3. Soap or cleanser
4. Your tongue

Take both knives to the sink, and clean them well. Use soap and water (anti-bacterial or dish soap is common and accessible, and what you would be washing the knife with anyway). Be careful not to cut yourself, scrub the blades clean of any oil, fats, or greases. This is just like cleaning your silverware or cutlery in your own kitchen. Of course, be careful of the cutting edge; you don't want to slice your finger. Get the blades as clean as possible, just like your silverware. Dry them.

The test:

1. The blade needs to be wide enough to avoid the cutting edge; stay away from the sharp edge!
2. I like to try the carbon steel knife first, for the maximum effect.
3. Keeping away from the cutting edge, press your tongue against the flat part of the blade and hold it there for one full minute. Time this, if you like, or count in your head to 60, or have a friend count for you. Press your tongue against it, involve the tip and the first inch of your tongue; don't just touch the tip of it gently like a lizard tasting the air; get a good, flat, solid taste of the steel blade. Your tongue will wet some, this is okay; this is what a tongue does; helping you enjoy the taste of the surface. Do not stop after you start to sense something, get the full effect of your tongue reacting with the carbon steel surface for one full minute.

Spoiler alert! Don't read this before performing the test if you want to experience the full effect!

Here's what will happen: Your tongue will start to salivate as the carbon steel reacts with the moisture. You will feel an astringent pull—kind of a dry chemical reaction—before the ever-increasing glow of full iron overwhelms your entire tongue surface in contact with the steel. The bitter iron taste will be strong: stronger than blood when you bite your lip, stronger than you will ever expect. The iron will permeate your tongue, and dry and sour the entire surface of your tongue for at least 30 minutes after you've pulled away in utter disgust. You will slobber, you will pucker, you will hate the taste that is now stuck on your tongue. It's as bad as being burned by hot coffee in a hasty sip, worse than any bad cheese or salty lemon you have ever experienced. You will absolutely hate it; it won't go away until your mouth is fully rinsed and cleaned! The taste effect may literally last for hours! I could still taste the corrosion after 8 full hours and several meals!

Your conception of carbon steel blades will be changed forever and instantly, and you will thank Jay Fisher.

Now, test the stainless knife. Heck, you don't even need a knife, because this will be the same as putting your mouth on your stainless silverware. Nothing will happen. You'll be surprised that there is no taste, no flavor, no iron, no reaction. This is why we have stainless steel cutlery, after all.

What has happened and what it means: The moisture in your tongue along with oxygen in the atmosphere has reacted dramatically with the surface of the carbon steel blade. The steel has immediately broken down in a chemical reaction, producing iron oxide which is essentially rust. The oxygen aided by moisture combines with the metal at a molecular level, forming a new compound called an oxide and weakening the bonds of the metal itself. Rust consists of hydrated iron(III) oxides Fe₂O₃·NH₂O and iron(III) oxide-hydroxide (FeO_OH, Fe_OH3). Surface rust is flaky and friable, and it provides no protection to the underlying steel. You are eating rust, and rust is now bonded to the surface of your tongue. You will probably experience temporary dysgeusia, a distortion of the sense of taste. Dysgeusia (dis-goo-see-uh) is not a pleasant experience, but it will go away.

If you don't clean your tongue-mark off the carbon steel blade, and revisit it in a couple hours, you'll see the contact area in clear discoloration. Sometimes, this only takes minutes. Since rust is permeable to air and water, corrosion will continue. Left alone, overnight, the steel will start to darken more, in another day, you'll see microscopic flakes, followed by pitting.

If you really like the taste of your carbon steel blade, let it pit and flake and start to dissolve into corroded flecks and then use a wire brush to sprinkle them on your cereal, or perhaps your cappuccino, hot dog, or steak. Nice fall colors can be presented over potatoes, a kick can be added to your chilled watercress soup or your mango-lime cheesecake.

If you think I'm being overly dramatic, and realize that chefs and cooks have been cooking with carbon steel blades for centuries—so why would Jay complain—think of this: since the dawn of stainless steels, all table cutlery has been made of stainless for a reason. Sure, there are some gold and silver spoons and forks, and they don't have a reaction with your tongue, either. Nobody is eating with an iron spoon, nobody is using a carbon steel fork to lift their cake to their mouth, no butter is padded onto toast with a carbon steel butter knife. There are no carbon steel cutlery sets for a reason, and because of this test, you now know why.

Why do people still use disgusting carbon steel knives for food?

In man's history, stainless wasn't available until the early 20th century, and then, it wasn't wear-resistant and good for cutting, so we were still stuck with carbon steel knives. That all changed in the latter part of the 20th century, and now we have incredible stainless steels, far superior to carbon steels, but no one has told the chefs, or they simply can't afford them. They naïvely haven't moved into the 21st century, the one where we have the finest stainless tool steels ever to exist in mankind's history. In some cases, they are buying the Japanese "superiority" complex, where hammer and black scale are considered the normal knife finish, because it looks old, and so must have been made by an ancient samurai warrior—corroded and black and foul-looking.

In other words, it's just plain ignorance or bad habit to be using carbon steel knife blades in the kitchen.

Corroded, blackened, or even simply darkened carbon steel is not "protected" by the corrosion, no matter if you call it a patina, an oxide, or a surface finish. If you think carbon still is protected by the oxide, just wet the surface of a darkened blade, rub it a little and smell it. It's not as shocking as the taste test, but you'll understand exactly what your nose is telling you.

The reason for all of this chemical effect in carbon steels is that corrosion instantly occurs upon exposure to air or moisture, and it's detrimental to the dish, the food, and the palate. A knife slicing through a piece of fish may well move fast enough to not flavor the fish with corroded rust, or you may have just gotten used to the hint of steel, so slight as to not be perceived. Perhaps the nasty flavor is overwhelmed by the taste of the fish, but it is still there.

Worse, the carbon steel is corroding at the cutting edge. It's dulling and dissolving quickly and at every slice, so the chef or cook is constantly scraping his cutting edge on a hard steel or porcelain rod, which flakes off the corroded surface (swarf) and deposits it wherever it can. This can be on the surface of the knife blade, on the next piece of food cut. Or it may be on a nasty rag the chef uses to wipe off the metal swarf hanging from his waist or draped over his shoulder.

One more important thing: the test you performed was with the moisture on your tongue. The pH of your saliva is about 5 to 7, slightly acidic. What do you think happens when carbon steel blades are use to cut tomatoes (3-4 pH) or lemons with a pH of 2? How fast of a reaction and how deep the corrosion then?

My point here is... WHY? Why do this when fine, better-made high alloy stainless steel blades are available, and they don't react, rust, pit, stink, or sour your food? Why are makers and foreign (Japanese) knife companies pushing carbon steels?

They are doing it because it's cheap, fast, and easy to make a knife from carbon steel, and you can whip up a cutting edge with a chef's steel (rod) quickly since the blades are so soft to begin with. A good, high alloy stainless steel blade needs to be sharpened only once a year or so, a carbon steel blade once a day (or session).

One more important thing: this very test, the reasons that you can taste carbon steel, the corrosion and dissolving of the metal is why CARBON STEEL IS NOT A FOOD CONTACT SAFE MATERIAL! Please read why the USDA, FSIS, CDC, ASTM, and other agencies very clearly declare that all carbon steel knife blades are NOT FOOD SAFE.

Don't fall into the carbon steel trap! Do the test, make others do the test, impress your friends and family, and be done with carbon steel knives, particularly in the kitchen, the most knife-important place on the planet!

I dare you.

Don't forget to visit: Food Safety in Kitchen and Chef's Knives!

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Let's get into the details of why and how modern alloy stainless steels are better choices overall:

Steel Types

Clean, modern, high quality martensitic high alloy stainless tool steels are the best choice for fine, well-made, and durable chef's knives.

Carbon steels and damascus steels are not a good choice and there are several clear reasons. Plain carbon steels will quickly and easily rust if not meticulously cared for,  and that level of care doesn't happen in the kitchen. What are the bad carbon steels I'm writing about? 1025, 1045, 1085, 1095: these are all low alloy plain carbon steels that are inferior to fine high alloy steels by many orders of magnitude and on many levels. Carbon steels corrode, and the steel that corrodes away goes somewhere, usually into the food. Because the entire blade corrodes, that means that the cutting edge also corrodes, so they dull faster. This is why they are not food contact safe.

Carbon steels often have a greater following because they're the cheapest and easiest to make a knife with, they are forgiving of process errors, and they are cheap to replace if any part of the knife making process fails. They are cheaply purchased, commonly available, and easily ground, easily machined, and easily sharpened. A few well-angled whips over the steel is usually all it takes to sharpen them, and this has to be done often, since they dull so quickly. This is why you so often see the chef reaching for the steel. So the misperception is that carbon steel blades are better, because they seem to sharpen easily, and seem sharper. Why do they sharpen easily? Because they are low alloy steels, and are less wear-resistant and dull quicker!

Standard carbon steels contain none of the alloys that allow the creation of chromium carbides, tungsten carbides, or vanadium carbides that are the extremely hard particles in the structure of stainless tool steels that give these high alloy steels such substantial and profound wear resistance and strength. Carbon steels are not as strong as high alloy stainless steels.

What about alloy steels that are commonly used by knifemakers? Steels like 5160, 52100, and other alloy steels are low alloy, low carbon steels. 5160 has less than 0.7% carbon, making it hypoeutectoid and unable to form complex carbides. It has a little bit of chromium (less than one percent) which helps with hardening somewhat, but not enough to perform well as a knife blade. 52100 is a better steel, and with about 1.0% carbon and 1.5% chromium, it makes a good ball bearing steel, but is vastly inferior to high alloy stainless steels. And, of course, neither of these steels has enough chromium to offer any corrosion resistance whatever! They are also NOT FOOD CONTACT SAFE!

If corrosion resistance is important, why not opt for stainless steels only? It's because not all stainless steels are the same—not even close.

Note that I refer to stainless tool steels, as not all stainless steels are durable and wear-resistant. Stainless steel for chef's knives got a bad reputation in the 1960s and 1970s due to the cheap 420 series stainless blades that were sold as bargain, universal, forever-sharp knives. They're still sold as such, and they are simply thin, weak, stainless springs, and not tools. Steels like AEB-L, 19C27, and 15N20 are also low alloy stainless steels, not the premium steels for knife blade use. I detail this more in the topic below.

Fine, high quality, high alloy hypereutectoid martensitic stainless tool steels, when properly hardened and tempered, will hold an edge many times longer than carbon steels, will not corrode, rust, pit, or stain, are much tougher and more resistant to breakage, and can be made thinner at the cutting edge than standard carbon steel knife blades. They are also many times stronger, with markedly greater tensile strength, shear strength, and compression strength.

What are these fine high alloy martensitic stainless tool steels I'm referring to? 440C, ATS-34, CPM154CM, CPMS30V, CPMS90V, CPMS35VN, CTS-XHP, BG42, and D2. Remember that these modern, isotropic, homogenous, refined and engineered steels are used for extremely wear-resistant, corrosion-resistant ball bearings, valve seats, high speed metal cutting and forming blades, and injection mold dies. They are used in industrial, military, medical, and mechanical field high strength, high wear applications because they out-perform all other steels. If standard carbon steels were better performers, engineers and machinists would be using them for these extreme applications. They don't because they are inferior steels, plain and simple. Please think about that. There are more details about these knife steels on my Blades page.

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Heat Treating

The most important, scientifically controlled, accurate, and technically proficient process performed in the knife making studio is heat treating. Proper heat treating is what makes the steel blade excel in performance, durability, longevity, and value. Heat treating, at first glance, seems to be a simple process. In the very best technical execution of our art and craft, it's a lengthy, detailed, and specific set of steps requiring a sophisticated shop and studio environment.

Heat treating by novices and factories can be a very simple affair. In any blacksmith's shop, a piece of steel can simply be heated to red, quenched, and reheated to a lower temperature, judged by the color of the oxide surface on the steel, by eye, and the steel will be harder than it originally was. This has been done for millennia, and is common practice in third world blacksmithing operations. These operations are limited to low alloy steels by necessity, and that is why smithing is an antiquated craft. No modern machinery anywhere uses blacksmithing techniques when extremely high performance is expected and required.

Factories (particularly foreign) making knife blades may use similar techniques, but with automated machinery to heat up the steel, and quench it in an assembly line. They choose simple heat treating methods applicable to unsophisticated steels, to suit their automation and production lines. They also choose cheap and economical methods to heat treat the steels; no factory is going to use complex heat treatment regimes with advanced steels, because that is not within the cost margin, scope, or profit margin of their production line and delivery schedules.

This is not how the best modern blade steels are treated, and the results are that when properly accomplished, the condition of these steels are tremendously enhanced. These improvements are across the board—strength, wear resistance, toughness, corrosion resistance, asperity reduction, fracture resistance, and microstructure are all improved by technically applied heat treatment and cryogenic processing. So significant are the improvements that yearly sharpenings (or less) are usually all that is required to keep the knife blade razor-keen. The custom knifemaker, then, is also the custom heat treating shop and there should be no question about his experience.

On one knifemaker's site, I smiled when I read the maker claimed he had a 6 hour heat treat process comprising of 7 steps. This is a laughable, inferior process, and I can tell that just from his simple description.

My clients deserve to know exactly what happens during heat treat, what the advantages are of my processing, what is necessary and recommended for each steel type, what to expect from the detailed processing, and how it all happens. This is available on my "Heat Treating and Cryogenic Processing of Knife Blade Steels" page here on the website. A typical processing of a high alloy martensitic, hypereutectoid stainless tool steel takes 15 actual steps, and 95 hours. I take my heat treating very seriously; it's a major part of the professional knifemaker's responsibility.

In 2018, I started performing an extended T3 heat treating process on my select premium blades. This new advanced process takes 30-33 steps and 172 hours!

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Grind Geometry

The part of the knife blade that thins the steel to create a cutting edge is called a grind. Some people and sources call this a "bevel," but a bevel is defined as simply the slant of a line. It doesn't apply because not all knife blades have linear, slanted, flat lines that create the cutting edge, but all of them are ground. So modern professional knifemakers call this a "grind." Novices call it a bevel.

The grind of a knife is extremely important to the chef's knife. If the blade is thick at the spine, or back of the blade, it means that the blade is extremely strong, since a thick spine translates to high strength. Depending on the geometry, the intended use of the knife, the design, the steel choice, and the strength, the maker may choose different grinds to achieve a thin blade at the cutting edge.

The hollow grind, when well executed, creates the thinnest cutting edge that lasts the longest time, when the blade stock is thicker at the spine. When you think of the words, "razor-keen," you are undoubtedly referring to a hollow-ground straight razor of old. The hollow grind is detailed and described, and compared with flat grinds and convex grinds on my "Blades" page at this bookmark. In that section, you can easily see why a hollow grind has such longevity and thinness at the cutting edge, and why it's considered one of the best grinds. With a thicker spine, the hand can be used to apply pressure to the cut without digging into the heel of the hand.

The flat grind is also used in chef's knives, but only when the blade is very thin to begin with. In knives that are less than 1/16", (.0625", or 1.5mm) thick at the spine, a hollow grind can not be accomplished, and wouldn't be of a benefit. So these knives are typically flat ground. The flat grind is usually a long, continuous grind to the spine of the knife, without thinning the spine and weakening the blade, particularly at the blade-to-handle junction, the ricasso. One of the drawbacks for a thin, flat grind is that the thin spine can be uncomfortable to use if bearing down and applying pressure with the heel of the hand. So flat-ground knives are not typically used to apply pressure with the heel of the palm on the blade spine.

Something that is usually overlooked by knife buyers that it is far easier and cheaper to flat grind a knife with automated equipment than to hollow grind and mirror finish. The same can be said of unskilled labor. A flat grind can be done completely by machines and jigs and untrained hands, but the hollow grind can not be, particularly when both types of grinds are finely finished. Any machine can do an initial rough grind, but not a finished grind. Without going into technical specifics, I'll say simply that machine finishes of flat grinds are simpler and cheaper, and manufacturers know this, and extensively hype flat knives to keep their manufacturing costs low. Consider this: there are several firms that sell blade stock pre-ground into flat beveled shapes to further cheapen the manufacturing process. Also, a very thin piece of steel is cheaper overall, so the investment in materials by the manufactures is lower.

A flat grind often has a problem of foodstuffs stick to the flat side of the blade because of surface tension, and the hollow grind can allow air to come between the steel and the material being cut, allowing a cleaner release. Addition of milled holes, slots, and surface texture may help both knives.

In either case, the purpose of the grind is to thin the metal blade so that a fine cutting edge can be created by hand-sharpening. If a blade is too thick, the knife user will often tilt up the spine of the blade when sharpening on a stone, creating a less than optimum angle that does not aid in slicing. A thin blade grind, a low angle sharpening, and very good blade steel properly treated will offer the very best performance.

Both hollow grinds and flat grinds have their place, some of my clients request both.

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Blade Hardness

In most applications, the chef's knife blade must be hard. In knives, the term hard is a not a generalized description, but a specific number (Rockwell), based on the ability of a diamond or carbide point to penetrate the steel when pressure is applied by a calibrated, scientific instrument called a hardness penetration tester. Details about this process are on my Blades page at this bookmark.

When a knife of fine tool steel is properly heat treated and hardened, the high hardness translates to increased wear resistance. If the heat treating and cryogenic processing is performed in-house under the maker's control, he can assure that the proper hardness (and wear resistance) will exist throughout the blade's geometry, and that repeated sharpenings will always yield a hard and wear-resistant cutting edge.

This is where factory knives fall flat on their face. Factories do not use steels that can be both hard and tough, so they settle for tough. Like a spring, they will flex, but not break. But they will dull quickly, and are usually left and used dull, or constantly need steeling to be sharp. This type of knife is one that requires frequent honing on a steel, but a hard knife will be wear-resistant and hold an edge longer, require markedly less sharpening, and therefore last many, many years longer, even for generations!

Who chooses a soft steel? Who wants to constantly baby and tend the cutting edge, abrading it on a steel or ceramic rod, whipping, stroking, and worrying it into shape?

Conversely, who wants to simply pick up their knife and prepare the meal, day after day, reliably and immediately?

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Blade Temper and Toughness

The chef's knife blade must be tough. Toughness is resistance to breakage, or literally, the ability of the crystalline structure of the steel to be ripped apart from itself which is a fracture. For a knife to be tough, it has to be tempered back from full hardness, but tempering a knife back can reduce the hardness and wear resistance. This is another reason for a careful steel choice and accurate heat treating.

Only high alloy steels are capable of being both very hard and very tough when properly heat treated and tempered. This is also a reason for the heat treating to be performed in-house at the knife maker's studio, shop, or establishment. That way, the temper of the knife is created by the maker to his standards and his client's standards for the specific knife requirement, and accurately tested with calibrated instrumentation for certainty. Factories and manufacturers usually temper a blade way back, into the realm of softness and flexibility. Most factory chef's knives are softer than a wood saw. softer than a sewing needle, and many are softer than a box cutter blade. They want the blade springy, so that if it is somehow bent severely, it will not snap.

What experienced chef would ever bend a knife this way? He would know better, so the reason this is done is for the general public. The price of having a springy, bendy knife is loss of hardness and wear resistance. This translates to frequent steeling and sharpening, a short blade life, and an inferior edge. But then, there is the planned obsolescence as the cheap, soft knife is used up and the factory depends on repeat sales.

Some blades can be purposely designed with a bit of flexibility. Boning knives and fillet knives are sometimes created this way so that they can form to the cut using the force of the hand through the meat. Proper deep thermal cycling in the heat treating and tempering process can yield the blade that has limited flexion, while maintaining high wear resistance. This custom treatment is only available from a knifemaker who heat treats his own blades. For more about flexibility, elasticity, and stiffness in knife blades, please take a look at this dedicated page.

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Blade Shape and Type

There are a bewildering number of blade shapes for chef's knives, and this is a good thing. Every task in the kitchen is different, and every chef is different, so it makes sense to offer a variety of knives to the chef. In fact, the chef is the one type of client I have that requires many knives of different designs, suited to his own personal preference, style, and passion.

While a factory and many other makers only offer a small group of similar knives based on their limited manufacturing ability, a true custom knife maker will offer a wide, ever-growing assortment of knife blade shapes. There simply is no singular knife for all tasks and requirements in the modern kitchen and the maker should work with the chef to build a knife to his specific personal needs. This is why I have over 450 different patterns of knife, and add new patterns in every batch. Where will you go to see that many patterns or have custom designed the knife of your choosing and particular needs? This is the realm of an experienced custom knife maker alone.

The neat thing is that as the field grows, so does client and chef's input. While chefs do not have any say in what knives are offered by factories and most other makers, a true custom knifemaker will work with their clients to get them the type of knife they desire. In blade steels, the custom knifemaker is the singular person who can and should answer any question the chef has about his blade steel choice.

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Blade Finish

The chef's knife must be kept clean, and be able to be kept clean. You understand by now how standard carbon and low chromium steels can corrode, rust, and pit, eating away the metal on the cutting edge and on the surface of the steel. These same steels can corrode underneath the bolsters, guard, ferrules, fittings, and handle material: unseen, until an absolute failure of the knife blade, tang, or handle.

There are also other considerations. In many hand-forged and handmade knives, as well as most of the Asian cutlery from Japan and China, finishing is ill-considered, hasty, cheap, and fast. I cringe when I see so-called chef's knives with a finish that is crusty, hammered, scarred, gouged, dented, dark, beaten, and scoured. Most people think that this is done to show some hand-crafted nature of the piece, giving it a primitive look, linking it in concept to some ancient master toiling away at his bellows and coal forge high in the mountains of east Asia (or Appalachia).

The reality is quite different and frankly, sad. This is a dirty finish. This type of primitive finishing is fast, easy, and requires no skill whatsoever to do, and is simply a cost-cutting measure for the knifemaker or factory and of no benefit to the knife owner. The whole idea of making a knife look crude and "handmade" by beating the surface with a hammer is prevalent in mass-manufactured Japanese knives. The huge and looming problem is that these are unclean finishes, they trap and hide moisture, grease, bacteria, fats, foodstuffs, fungus, molds, viruses, and all sorts of nasty things you don't want on your knife blade, and ultimately, in your salad.

A chef's knife has to be able to be cleaned and kept clean. Though a mirror finish on the blade is best, a very fine satin finish will also provide a smooth, cleanable surface that prevents or inhibits bacterial and other growth. Why do you think that professional counters, pots, pans, implements, tools, and objects in the restaurant and medical field have satiny smooth and cleanly mirror or polished finished surfaces in a high chromium steel? You've got to be able to clean them, that's why. This is the same reason that medical equipment is clean, smooth stainless steel.

While a primitive look may go well when hung on a wall as part of a crusty, primal decoration, it does not serve the chef where he preps, cooks, and serves. Would you cook in a pot that has a dirty, scarred, crusty, blackened, and pitted finish? Would you serve with utensils and expect people eating your meal to have dark, pitted, stained, crusty, and rusty cutlery and silverware? Of course you wouldn't, there is absolutely no advantage to the primitive finish whatever, yet you see it on knives all the time. This needs to change in our tradecraft. The chef's knife should be the cleanest type of knife made.

Another consideration is fracture. Metallurgists, machinists, engineers, and scientists know well that all fractures start from surface imperfections. This should then make you consider why anyone would encourage the weaker multi-weld layering of pattern-welded damascus when durability is paramount. More about that here. Why saddle a client and chef with a steel that starts out with surface defects that can encourage this?

If you are a fan of a dirty blade, go ahead and offer your guests stained, corroded, and pitted silverware, scarred and discolored plates, and maybe dark and rusty cups and other utensils. See how they like it.

Doesn't make a lot of sense does it?

Don't forget to visit: Food Safety in Kitchen and Chef's Knives!

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Longevity or Planned Obsolescence

Endurance of the chef's knife or well-made kitchen knife blade is paramount. Please consider this: the chef's knife sees the longest, most active, most continuous and regular use of any knife made for individual use. There are industrial knives that don't see as much use as the common kitchen knife. The person who is an established chef, whether as a hobby, interest, or vocation will use this type of knife daily, with little exception. Imagine any other sort of tool or instrument that is used daily. Wouldn't it be built to the highest standards that the user can afford? Would not the longevity of the knife be a significant, determinant factor in the knife design, style, and purchase? Could it be that short, limited life is built into factory and manufactured knives so that future sales can continue?

Blade Grind Longevity: In blades, the most important geometric attribute to the longevity of the fine chef's or kitchen knife is the grind. This is called a bevel in the common hobbyist terms, but make no mistake; it is a grind. Most manufactured and most handmade chef's knives are flat ground. This is necessary on only very thin blades, as detailed above. Flat grinding means that the cross sectional geometry dictates that as the knife is sharpened, it will become thicker. You can not ignore the fact that every knife must be sharpened over the course of its life, and, as stated earlier, this type of knife sees the most daily use. In order to be significantly thin after repeated sharpenings, a hollow grind is the best for knives over 1/16" thick, and a flat grind (taper grind) for knives less than 1/16" thick. You can clearly understand the reason for this as you look at the grind geometry profiles on my blades page and note the relief face widths and blade thicknesses after repeated sharpenings.

Why don't more makers and manufacturers use a hollow grind in their chef's and kitchen knives? Skill, time, and expense. It takes a very skilled and practiced hand to execute fine, balanced, matching hollow grinds on knife blades, and bringing those grinds to a high level of finish is beyond the skill of most makers (and all manufacturers). No matter how the grind is performed, a thin, long-time, thin serviceable edge is the goal. Sharpening is the only function that the knife owner or chef will perform himself, and to do so, a thin, functional grind is necessary.

Steel Type Longevity: Another important factor for knife blade endurance in the chef's knife is the steel type. Carbon steels are out as they rust and corrode, shortening the life of every chef's knife. Stainless steels like 420, AEB-L, 15N20, and 19C27 stainless are bad choices, even though 420 is the mainstay of nearly all chef's knives in the modern world! This is because 420 stainless, no matter how it's heat treated and processed, can only be 50-52 HRC in hardness. This is softer than a sewing needle, and softer than a wood cutting saw. It's so soft that, in order to be sharp, the steel must be continually sharpened, wearing away the steel at an extremely high rate. This "planned obsolescence" is great for the company that plans to sell you another knife set.

The best knives are built to last for generations. You won't live long enough to wear out a truly fine blade made with modern steel and methods, and will be handing the heirloom down to your grandchildren.

The finish longevity is a serious concern for the modern fine chef's knife. As detailed above, rough or coarse finishes are out, as they will hold moisture, grease, debris, foodstuffs, and bacteria. A fine finish will last a very long time, will resist corrosion, repel moisture, release foodstuffs, and facilitate easy cleaning. This will contribute greatly to the longevity of the knife blade. The very best finishes have always been and will continue to be mirror polishes. This is also the most difficult finish to achieve. Which is why you'll never see it on lesser knives.

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Chef's Knives Fittings

The fittings of a fine chef's or kitchen knife consist of the bolsters, pins, ferrules, guards, pommels, and other fastening agents or mechanisms that mount and solidify the handles, strengthen the blade to handle junction, and protect the vulnerable parts of the knife and handle. They can also create or enhance grip areas, aid in corrosion prevention and create easy maintenance and cleaning. Some fittings allow areas for embellishment, personalization, and distinction.

• Materials: Only the highest corrosion resistant materials should be used for fittings for the fine chef's knives. Some metals, like brass and copper not only can corrode, but also can impart an odor that may end up in the food. Nickel silver is probably a limited choice also, because if you are cooking for the public, you should remember that some people are allergic to nickel. Copper, though traditional in some kitchens for pots or fittings, will tarnish and discolor, and must be continuously maintained. Even though I don't recommend these metals, once in a while a client specifically requests them. As long as they know that it will take daily polishing and meticulous care to keep them maintained, I'll use them by special request. Normally, I use 304 austenitic stainless steel, the same stainless steel that is used to make fine cookware, medical equipment, and high strength nuts, bolts, and fasteners. Other makers usually use 400 series stainless steels, like 410, and their choice to do so is one of ease in machining, and not of real value to the knife owner. Just know that 410 stainless steel is the easiest stainless steel to machine and this is why it's used (more on 410 stainless steel). Many of these steels have more sulfur than 300 series steels, added to make the steel more machinable which also imparts a bit of a yellowish cast, not the bright bluish chromium, and many of them do not reach the toughness and durability of 304 austenitic stainless steel. 304 is also much more corrosion resistant than the 400 series. 400 series stainless steels do not reach their full corrosion resistance until fully heat treated and hardened, something that is never done. More about these materials is detailed on my Handles, Bolsters, and Guards page.
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• Shape and Contouring: The best knives have contoured fittings. In manufactured and poorly made knives, the front bolster face is often simply left flat, or sharply angled, or abruptly machined. Many times, there are no bolsters at all! This shows a lack of care while cheapening the manufacturing process. Chef's knives have to be able to be cleaned and abrupt, coarse, or unfinished surfaces here will make the knife harder to clean and foodstuffs will lodge and cling there. Around the finger placement of the front bolster should be well contoured, rounded, and comfortable. The human hand is rounded and made of soft and sensitive tissues, and any sharp, cornered, abrupt, angled machining in the bolster areas will cause discomfort and possibly chafing. On a knife used only occasionally this might be overlooked, but a chef's knife will see daily, sometimes heavy use, and it needs to be comfortable, particularly where the fingers bear down on the bolster to apply pressure (assuming the knife is bolstered at all!). The heel of the palm will also bear on the butt of the handle, and a sharp, straight, square, cornered, or ill-finished rear bolster or butt will not be comfortable in the hand.
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• Importance of Bolsters: Bolsters are important! They strengthen the handle to blade junction, offer a surface to bear for the fingers and thumb, support and protect the butt of the handle, bed and solidify the handle scales, and can mean the difference between a knife lasting a few years or for generations. Integral bolsters are inferior, mostly because of corrosion. Even the highest chromium, most corrosion-resistant blade steel can rust, because there is no rust proof, completely corrosion-resistant stainless tool steel. So to make the bolsters out of the same material as the blade means they will have the same reduced corrosion resistance. The only way to increase the corrosion resistance somewhat on the integral bolster is to harden it to its highest hardness, but this is never done because the blade must be tempered back for the proper temper or toughness. Even if it were hardened, the integral bolster can never reach the high corrosion resistance of 304 austenitic high nickel, high chromium stainless steel, which will simply last indefinitely with zero care with zero concern for corrosion. Why are integral bolsters touted? It is an artifact of machining cost. It's cheaper to machine a bolster into the blade stock with a computer numerical control milling machine (CNC Mill) than to hand-cut, shape, pre-finish, drill, mount, contour, shape, and finish the small pieces of metal that will become attached bolsters. Attached bolsters are also tougher, that is, they are more resistant to breakage than the blade. Attached bolsters can also offer an improved area for embellishment, which is not possible after an integral bolstered knife is hardened and tempered. More about bolsters.
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• Importance of Ferrules: On hidden tang knives, ferrules should be used. This is one of my main complaints about the popular Japanese knives. A hidden tang is the handle that has a reduced shaft of metal (tang) that is mounted, pinned, or glued through the handle material which is drilled out. On cheap knives, the ends of the handle material is simply unprotected. When the knife handle is made of wood, this is the end grain, and the end grain is always more absorptive than the sides of the handle. So moisture wicks and infiltrates there and the handle swells. Eventually, the handle splits at the end grain, either at the ricasso and shoulders or at the butt. The handle then comes off. Even if the handle material is sealed, stabilized, or made of material that can not absorb moisture and contaminants, without ferrules the handle ends and tang are unprotected from chipping, abrasion, wear, and damage. Moisture will still be able to infiltrate the union between the tang and the handle material. Why make the knife this way? It's cheap. You'll read that it's traditional, but how good is the tradition that shortens the life of a knife? Metal ferrules (Latin for little bracelet), when well made, surround the end grain of the handle, support and protect the ends of the knife handle not only from moisture and contaminants, but also from abrasion and impact. They also make the hidden tang knife handle much easier to clean, and keep it cleaner by preventing moisture, fluids, or foodstuffs from entering the critical junction of the tang and handle materials. They can also add weight to the pommel end and help to balance a large-bladed knife. They should be sealed and permanent, and soldered to the blade shoulders to absolutely seal the area. They can also serve to create a guard or increased diameter that prevents the hand from sliding forward onto the cutting edge.
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• Mounting Methods and Sealing: I mount my bolsters with zero clearance pins, securely peened. They will not, can not, ever come off, loosen, or move. They are sealed between the tang and handle scales with jeweler's quality bedding compounds, and ferrule-guards are soldered with corrosion resistant, lead-free solder. The fittings are mechanically and adhesively secure. In over 30 years of making, I've never had a knife fitting fail. Pins and attachment methods vary greatly in this industry, and it is common to see most manufactured full tang handle scales mounted with large, flat, and often soft rivets. This is simply a cheap and fast method of mounting knife handle scales. A large rivet or screw through the handle scale cuts away a significant portion of the scale, which will eventually lead to cracking between the large rivet and the edge of the scale. Most of us have seen old knives handled this way and notice loose, even sloppy handle mounts. The same can be said for large diameter mosaic pins. While once unique and interesting, these pins are now common and cheap, no matter what "mind, body, and spirit" mystical meaning is assigned to them. They are large in diameter, and often made of easily corroded and soft materials like brass, copper, and aluminum. Just like the large rivets or screws mentioned above, mounting them requires large portions of the handle scale material to be cut away, weakening the handle scales. On hidden tang knives, I always use full length tangs with threaded pommels. I've seen many knives (and most Japanese knives) that have rabbeted tangs. This is the method of cheap and fast manufacturing construction, not one of any benefit to the knife user. Called a blind tang, the tang is a reduced piece of metal that only runs half (or less) the length of the handle. They drill a short hole and notch the tang so that glue will fill the spaces and then simply glue the handle on. This is very weak, in fact, this is the weakest handle mounting method known or ever devised in the history of knives. This is no way to make a fine chef's knife, yet is the common practice. The next step up from that is the pinned rabbeted tang, where a single pin is drilled through the tang and handle near the end of the tang. You'll note this mounting method by the single pin. Though better than the glued blind tang, this is still a weak method of handle attachment. My way, and the best way to mount the hidden tang handle is to drill all the way through the handle material, thread the tang itself at the butt, and mount a threaded, solid pommel that pulls the entire handle together. The best hidden tang knife handles have tangs that are made of metals that differ from the blade stock, so they are tougher, less brittle, and even more corrosion resistant than the blade (such as 304 stainless steel). These metals have to be welded to the blade tang in a high purity controlled process, and they have to be fully annealed for maximum toughness. The entire assembly is filled with jeweler's quality bedding compounds for the greatest moisture resistance, impermeability, longevity, and solidity.
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• Strength of the fittings is important. Metals like aluminum, brass, and carbon steels should be avoided in knife fittings of chef's and culinary knives. The mechanical arrangement of the fittings should increase the solidity of the handle and fittings, not decrease it. On hidden tang knives, significant tangs should be supported by wide shoulder areas at the ricasso. Any welds or reduction of blade thickness, width, or dimension should be accompanied by annealing for maximum toughness, thus maximum fracture resistance. Fittings should be substantial, should add mechanical strength and advantage, and should be adhesively as well as mechanically bonded for permanence. All of my knives are made this way.
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• Fit of the fittings and handle should be extremely tight. This is probably the most noticeable factor in inferior knives. It is difficult to achieve fine fit: where there are no gaps to be seen in any material unions anywhere on the knife. This seamless construction takes many years to master, and it can be noticed even by an untrained eye. It is critical to have excellent fit for several reasons. A tight fit of components assures that the junction between them is well-sealed and solid. This will prevent moisture and fluids from entering these seams and causing corrosion or even failure of the knife. The tight fit also allows a minimum of bedding compounds filling any void, and this strengthens the handle. If these areas only rely upon epoxides or adhesives for solidity, they will eventually fail. While having great shear strength, all of these compounds have great flexibility. Relying upon them to strengthen a seam will mean that sooner or later, through the normal movements and pressures of daily use, they will fracture or come un-bonded, creating a crack where moisture can enter. If the fit is extremely tight to begin with, no flexing can occur, and the knife handle and fitting area will last indefinitely. The most noticeable reason is quality. Fine fit means care and attention to detail and extremely high quality; poor fit simply means cheap and fast production.
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• Embellishment and Personalization: Only a custom knife can be embellished, and often this is done on the fittings. Bolsters offer an area for fine embellishment, as do some guards, pommels, and even ferrules. If engraving or etching is done in these areas, it is of high importance that the fittings be made of highly corrosion resistant materials, as cuts in metal hold fluids and can promote corrosion. This is another reason to use 304 high nickel, high chromium austenitic stainless steels for the fittings. If a blade has integral bolsters, embellishment simply can't be done unless the bolsters are annealed, and that will reduce the corrosion resistance of the bolsters at the handle, exactly where you need it most!
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Chef's Knives Handles:

The chef's knife handle can be an individual affair, and I'm often asked to make very distinctive and specifically designed handles. There is a reason for this. The distinctive and well-made knife handle is what often sets the individual knife apart from every other knife in the world.

• Shape and Size: There are many shapes and sizes for knife handles, and the maker should work with the client to outfit the knife with the handle that suits him (or her) individually. Factories and most other makers will not do this for any client; they simply sell what they have. True customization is no better represented than in the handle. For me, it is one of the most exciting artistic and creative endeavors I accomplish, taking into consideration the desires and wishes of the client and the incredible scope of exotic, domestic, manmade, and gemstone materials available.
  • Handle shapes for chef's knives vary greatly depending on the task the knife is suited to or designed for. A large, hefty handle can balance the blade weight of a chopper, hop knife, cabbage knife, or master chef's knife; a leaner and narrower handle can offer smoother movement on a Sabatier. The bread knife handle must allow a sawing motion, a paring knife often has a shape that allows it to rest inside the palm without extending out the back of the hand. This is an individual choice and each knife and person is different. That is why I have over 450 different pattern styles, and create new ones nearly every batch.
  • The comfort factor of a chef's knife means the difference between a pleasurable experience and monotonous labor or even discomfort. A knife handle should be well-contoured, shaped and fitted to the round nature of the human hand. An typical Japanese-style octagon-shaped straight handle with abrupt corners is not comfortable, no matter how much foreign tradition and culture you try to accept. The human hand is rounded, of moveable tissues, muscle, and bone, and the knife handle is the link to the blade. The knife should feel like it belongs in the hand, and the handle not even noticed, that is, blended, bonded, molded, and formed to the shape inside the hand. Have you ever really looked at the interior grip shape of the hand? There are no square edges, no flat surfaces, no machine marks on your hand, so there shouldn't be any on the handle, either. The only way to have that is have a practiced, experienced maker craft the handle. In poorly made knives, the handle is an afterthought because all of the steps to create a finely tuned, balanced, and finished knife handle are labor intensive and take large amounts of time. So the blade is typically hyped so the knife buyer doesn't notice the poor, weak, and machine-made or poorly finished handle.
  • For individual use, the handle must suit. I offer a hand-sizing method to fit the handle to the individual hand, and have even made custom handles for people who have some limitation or disability of the hand for a custom fit. You won't get that from any factories and most other makers, as I'm committed to the individual client.
  
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• Materials for knife handles abound, and the chef's knife is no different. There are some important considerations here. Since the chef's knife will encounter moisture and daily use, only materials that are up to that exposure level should be used. This requirement eliminates most of the woods, but not all. Naturally oily and self-sealing hardwoods like rosewoods, ebonies, and ironwoods are durable enough, and even some maples, fruitwoods, olive, and nut woods are up to the task. Open-grained woods like walnuts, oaks, cherry, and tropical hardwoods that have to be sealed should be avoided in the handle of chef's knives. Materials like horn, bone, and ivory are simply not suitable for any chef's knife, and it pains me to see factories and individuals offering these on kitchen, sushi, chef's, cooks, and prep knives, because in the long run, they will fail. The only exception is if they are pressure stabilized (impregnated with tens of thousands of pounds per square inch of pressure with phenolic resins), and factories do not do this. Stabilized densified laminate plywoods are a good choice for durability, and no matter what the individual company or maker calls them, they were originally created by Rutland Plywood corporation in Vermont, but now others have gotten into the act. They are dyed and layered birch stabilized with polymers, similar the old name Dymondwood. They are waterproof, and great for the chef's knife, though some of the colors are garish and even offensive (read Fuchsia). Manmade handle materials like Micarta® phenolics, G-10 fiberglass-epoxy composite laminates, and even carbon fiber reinforced polymers are up to the long-haul task of permanent, long-lasting knife handles for the chef's knife. What is not suitable and often seen in inferior knives is the manmade handle material for counter tops, named Corian, or the equivalent. This material is relatively soft, is absorptive, weakens in low heat, stains, is flexible, and is not durable. It is a cheap way to handle any knife. The same goes for acrylic and polyester, the princesses of the hobbyist knifemakers. What is the ultimate material? Why gemstone, of course; not the plastic imposters used by many foreign companies that are supposed to look like gem, but real gemstone. By the way, all of those imitations can melt, smear, abrade, dent, scratch, and even burn. Real gemstone is strikingly and uniquely beautiful, extremely durable, comfortable, solid, and smooth, a delight for the hands and eyes, and will absolutely, positively outlast the blade, fittings, and block. Stone will outlast your kitchen, your home, your life, and your future generations. It will, quite frankly, look the same a thousand years from now as the first day you put it on your counter. The very oldest of man's monuments, creations, or tools are made of stone and only stone. What other material can make that claim?
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• Mounting Methods for full tang chef's, kitchen, sushi, and culinary knives should be carefully considered. If you see a full tang knife from the last century (and even the century before), you may notice two or three large round rivets in the center line of the handle. These are often copper, aluminum, or brass, and this is a poorly crafted handle arrangement and identifies this as a common, cheap knife. Soft metals like copper, aluminum, and brass can and will corrode, deform, oxidize, and much of this takes place where you can't see it, underneath the face of the fastener and against the tang and handle scale. This is because moisture and fluids soak into the spaces there, and are held against the fastener. The fastener will eventually fail. Failure may not be a complete fracture of the fastener allowing the handle scale to fall off the blade, but may present as a loosening of the handle scale. If the handle material moves in any way on a knife, it has failed. Moisture and fluids will continue to accumulate there, and the full, flat tang itself will corrode. That corrosion may end up in your food (yuk!), will weaken the tang and handle mounting, and will mean the loss of the knife, sooner or later. Wetting and drying of the handle area causes many materials to expand and contract with every wet/dry cycle; some materials will expand and contract with changes in temperature. Unless properly mounted and bedded, these handles will fail. Another issue is that a large portion of the handle scale is drilled away to mount the large, bulky, and voluminous rivet, screw, mosaic pin, or fastener, and this weakens the handle scale considerably. Whether wood, reinforced G10, or Micarta phenolic, removing significant portions of the scale weakens the scale. These are the reasons that on full tang knives, I use multiple zero-clearance small pins for mounting. They are made of highly corrosion resistant materials (304 stainless steel is the predominant material) and of relatively small diameter (3/32", .0938, or 2.4 mm) and multiple pins are used (usually at least six). On gemstone full tang knife handles, multiple hidden rivets, keys, and bonds that extend completely through the metal of the knife tang and into both scales secure the scales permanently in place. Multiple attachment methods help to distribute the forces that will be applied to the handle scales while preserving the scale's strength. My reasons can be thought of this way: which is more stable, a large diameter spot weld, or numerous spot welds all along a car body? The numerous welds are stronger and that is why an automobile frame is made this way. One could liken this to the way a garment is put together (with stitches vs. a few rivets), or the way the ironwork of the skyscraper is assembled (with banks of small bolts instead of a couple large ones).
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• Mounting methods for hidden tang knife handles, are as detailed above. I always make and recommend full length hidden tangs secured with a threaded pommel. A short tang (rabbeted tang) is only held in place with glue (blind tang) or sometimes one screw or rivet and is simply a weak way to attach a handle. On any hidden tang knife handle for the chef, there has to be a metal guard or ferrule against the shoulders of the blade to physically anchor the handle material at this high-stress point. That junction has to be sealed (soldered) to prevent moisture infiltration and the shoulders at the ricasso must be sizeable enough for strength. Wide, also, must be the tang: left as wide and thick as possible for a stable, strong, and reliable handle mount. If the handle material is wood, no matter what kind, both ends of the hidden tang handle's end grain must be sealed and in my knives are typically mechanically protected with ferrules, rings, or other methods to prevent swelling and splitting at the end grain. I use highly corrosion resistant ferrules, fittings, and guards on the chef's knives to accomplish this critical task. I've seen many of the so-called finest sushi, eastern, and European knives that have no metal on the guard and butt areas of the knife handle at all! Where do you think that the handle will eventually split?
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• Sealing and stabilization of the handle is critical to the longevity of the knife handle. Any union of dissimilar materials must be accomplished with both mechanical and adhesive methods. This means that a jeweler's quality bedding epoxy (polyepoxide thermoset) created just for these long-term exposures should be used. This is not a hardware store five minute bonder for utility repairs; what I use is an expensive, water-clear, long-term agent that has very high bond strength, attains a high hardness, never yellows, has extremely high shear strength, polishes well, and creates a permanent bond and bedding that will outlast most handle materials (except gemstone, of course, which outlasts everything including the blade). All areas of the inside of any knife handle should be bedded and bonded this way, and mine are. Where two metals meet are either welded, soldered, or physically sealed with these agents so fluids can not infiltrate. Surfaces can be naturally oily and resinous, sealed with agents, and are easy care. My chef's knives, no matter the material, can be washed, dried, and lightly waxed for luster with little other maintenance.
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• Bedding and bonding for strength and force transfer is the trait that assures well-fitted components can transfer the forces and energy from the hand into the handle, and ultimately into the blade. A knife blade works by pressure applied through the blade and handle by the human hand. If there are voids, pockets, or spaces in any of the fittings, that area of void will not help transfer or distribute forces. When voids exist, this means that areas that are in contact will have to endure more pounds per square inch. This is the reason a rifle action is bedded to a stock, to distribute forces. With a rifle, the forces are simply an aftereffect of the shock of the shot, but in knives the forces are the main action that makes the blade work. To properly bed the handle solidifies these areas, evenly distributes forces, and increases the longevity, durability, and stability of the knife for its entire existence.
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Don't forget to visit: Food Safety in Kitchen and Chef's Knives!

Accessories for the chef's knives

Accessories and accoutrements for fine chef's knives are a broad, expansive, and exciting subject. Accessories may include sheaths, slip protectors, blocks, stands, bowls, and even cutting boards exclusively made for the kitchen.

• Sheaths and rolls for the chef's knife can be made of leather or manmade materials, just like many other knife types. One might ask why you would need a sheath for a chef's knife. The sheath protects two things: the knife, and the chef. If a knife is carried from one area to another, some means or method is necessary for this protection. While leather is a traditional material, I also use kydex to make slip sheaths for the chef's knife. Kydex is waterproof, durable, and can allow an executive chef to move his knife or knives from one location to another while protecting the cutting edges and even the handles. The cutting edges are most vulnerable to other knives, utensils, or hard objects in the kitchen. It's best to realize that the most damaging item one knife edge can contact is another knife's cutting edge, because both are hard and can abrade, scour, scratch, or dull each other. While I do not recommend long term storage of knives in sheaths or rolls, for short term storage, carry, and transport, a sheath or roll is essential. The sheath or roll should match the knife in style, function, flavor, and be commensurate with the quality of the knife, and should last for at least a generation. Learn more about sheaths on my dedicated page.
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• Knife blocks or stands are permanent affairs, and the knife is typically stored there. There is no reason a knife block should be a boring square of wood, and some creative and appealing artistry can occur in the stand and block materials, design, construction, and finish. Please look around on this page and on my Knife Stands page for some examples. I create and build original works of display art, as well as durable and functional devices. Each one is an original piece, suited to the specific work of knife art.
• Cases are a specialized affair, and when the highest quality chef's knives demand a very special home, a case appropriate to their storage can provide not only a storage solution, but offer a work of sculptural art in exotic and domestic woods. Fine cases for the kitchen can be a center of artwork on their own, with the beautiful addition of artistic knives resting within. All woods and fittings should be moisture resistant and fittings highly corrosion resistant for longevity. Also, cases should not rest directly on the counter, but be elevated somewhat to allow air to circulate and dry beneath and around them. See a beautiful and elegant chef's knives case here.
• Boards are necessary and critical pieces that accompany the knife. While for many years I left the board choices to the client, I have recently reconsidered this in order to offer well-made and sound cutting boards that compliment and are commensurate with the chef's knife experience. Look for more of these to come!
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Why do you have those crazy serrations on your bread knives?

If you look long enough at this page, you'll be able to spot my bread knives by the serrations on the blade. This type of serration has evolved in my own work and from use and customer feedback over the decades. The shape of the blade is specifically suited to penetrate hard crusted loaves, yet cut through soft bread with a minimum of tearing. Bread is especially difficult to slice, because of the differing hardness of in the loaf. If a knife edge were super-thin and smooth, it would be perfect for cutting thin slices of the softer parts (like a scalpel), but would merely glide over the hard and sometimes tough crust. Add nuts or other hard or tough material to the loaf, and the task becomes even more difficult. The shape of these arcing theatre curtain serrations creates enough localized pressure to penetrate the crusts, and offer enough angled edges to slice inside the softer parts. The edge is hand cut and extremely thin, sharp and keen all along the serration curves. The feedback from these knives has been great. You won't see this much on factory knives, as the blade shape and grind can only usually be hand-made and must be hand-sharpened. Factories are only interested in serrations that can be milled on automated machinery, thus the frequent appearance of small, machine-cut teeth to create a more aggressive cutting edge. Factory serrations created this way will tear through most breads creating plenty of crumbs. Great for the knife manufacturer, not so great for performance.

Why do you have holes in some of these knife blades?

On some of my larger chef's knives: master knives like the Saussure and the Vega, you'll see an arrangement of holes through the blades. These have several purposes. The first is to create a means of breaking the surface tension (some call it vacuum) that happens when cutting wet vegetables, fruits, and some meats. You've no doubt experienced this problem and had to take the time to drag the flat part of the blade over the edge of the cutting board, or bowl or even use your fingers to clear the blade. This is never a good idea, because dragging the blade over the corner of anything can mar, scuff, or scratch the finished surface of the blade or the object, and the cutting edge can slice into the bowl, board, or pan. Obviously, the fingers should keep clear of the razor-keen chef's knife's cutting edge, unless you want some personal flesh in the recipe!

Other makers (mostly factories) grind a series of gouges in the blade surface to do the same thing (clear the blade). They do it with coarse grinders, and the gouges are rough and ugly. The modern factory Santoku is usually made this way.

By drilling and milling (rather than grinding) several advantages are noticed. First, the additional milling has removed unnecessary material and significantly lightened a thicker blade without sacrificing the great strength of this type of blade.  Secondly, the release of clinging foodstuffs is easier, as a hole completely through the blade allows air to break the tension. Thirdly, the decorative and custom aspects of the knife are exhibited.

The reason you seldom see holes through the blades of factory knives and other handmade knives is that the steps of drilling and/or milling these holes is an additional production step requiring layout, tool work, machinery, time, and stress relieving process in the heat treat to make sure that the integrity of the blade is sound. Most factories take the why bother approach, and eliminate this step altogether. They still recognize the clinging problem and choose to assign the task of gouging some repeating grooves in the blade surface as a cheaper and simpler approach. By the way, these gouges do not work very well, because they are not deep enough or abruptly machined at the surface (simply lightly ground) and do not release foods as well. Since the factory gouges are washed over along with the blade by surface conditioning abrasive wheels (like Scotch-Brite®), they have soft and non-abrupt edges and do not always release soft foodstuffs well.

The one concern I hear is that with holes through the blades, the chef will have trouble cleaning them. One wonders what the chef might encounter that would be difficult to remove from the blade, as most of these knives only require a simple rinsing to clean. Sticky dried fruits would come to mind. Raisins, dates, figs, dried apricots, peaches, and tamarind might cause a problem here if they are forced into these holes. But what are you doing cutting fruits with a master chef's knife like this anyway, and how are those materials forced into the holes? The knife used for cutting fruits should be a fruit knife, like my very popular La Cocina knife design seen all over this page. Thankfully, I do not mill holes in the La Cocina blade, so this is not a problem. When the master chef's knife has milled holes in the blade, all that is required is a rinsing after use. The mindful chef would be doing that anyway in the typical care regime for his blade.

All chefs are different, and I get plenty of requests for milled blades as well as blades that are not milled, drilled gouged, or textured. This is a custom affair, and I make the knife the way the client wants it.

What about longevity, finish, and service in a fine custom knife?

What kind of knife does Jay Fisher use in his kitchen?

From my email response to a client in January 2007, who wondered how his knife might look after use:

Now, I'm writing this in 2017; another decade has passed, and the knife is still working hard, looking good, and doing the job. 30 years and still counting...

Don't forget to visit: Food Safety in Kitchen and Chef's Knives!

What about gemstone on chef's knives?

Just like most of my other gemstone handled knives, I receive a lot of questions about the use of gemstone for custom knife handles. People have concerns. Are they slippery, are they durable, are they expensive? Why would one use gemstones, when no one else does? I'll will answer all those questions in this section.

Reasons: Probably the main reasons for using gemstone in the construction of a chef's knife handle are beauty, originality, and value. Because the materials, effort, and skill required to mount and finish gemstone on a knife tang are rare and difficult, gemstone is seldom used in any knife handle. Therein also lies the value. Nothing synthetic has the appearance and beauty of gemstone, and each piece is unique. Wood also pales in comparison to gemstone. The investment value of a gemstone handled knife always increases at a greater rate than knives handled with more common materials. So, beauty, originality, and long term value are the major reasons I use gemstone on my finer knives, including chef's knives.

Economy is not a reason to use gemstone on the handmade or custom knife. It is not cheap to acquire, work, construct, and finish gemstone, and this is the reason you don't see more of it used in the larger knife world. Specialized equipment and practiced skill are required to properly fit and finish gem, and few artists and craftsmen have the background or practice of a lapidary and knife maker. If you're looking for an economical or cheap chef's knife, you're in the wrong place at any custom knife maker's web site. Gemstone handled knives may raise the quote for each knife from $300 to $1000, depending on the gemstone used. Some gemstone (like fine Lapis and Pietersite) may add thousands of dollars to the cost of one knife.

Mounting: Though you may see pins used to mount many knife handles, you'll seldom see them used in gemstone handled knives. Pins are necessary to stabilize and support wood, horn, bone, and ivory handles, as they have a large propensity to move, expand and contract, absorb moisture and dry, shrink and swell, work loose from the knife tang, and crack. This may allow moisture to accumulate and remain between the handle material and the tang, further accelerating corrosion, perhaps even allowing the entire tang to crack, snap, and fail. Gemstones are mounted in a different fashion; they use hidden pins or mounts, and are bedded to the handle somewhat like a fine gun action is fitted and mounted to a stock. In an effort to display the gemstone faces completely, pins seldom are brought completely through to the surface of the stone. The bedding allows a sealed joint between the tang, bolsters, and the gem material, and since the gemstone does not expand and contract or react to moisture or contaminants, security and longevity is assured. In the several thousand gemstone handled knives I've made, I've never had one of my standard gem mounts fail. Many of these knives have been in daily use for decades.

Grip security may be an issue on chef's knives, as hands may often be wet. Gemstones are usually smoothly polished, so it would seem that the handle might be slippery when wet. Of course, most other finished handles are also finely and smoothly finished, including plastics, hardwoods, and metals. Though there are some materials that get tacky when moist, they are few. So if the issue of grip security is so large, why is it that the industrial standard for knife handles is a smooth finish? With a rough surface, you face the possibility of skin irritation and abrasion on any type of handle material. If you use a knife for twenty minutes a day (a very long time for the home chef), you probably wouldn't notice the roughly finished handle irritating your skin. But if you are a professional chef who may work with a knife in his hand for several hours a day, you will suffer the consequences and pain of a poor finish and a rough surface texture. I discuss in depth on my Military Combat and Tactical Knife page surface texture verses handle shape, and illuminate why the shape of the handle is more important to grip security than the surface texture.

Many people who ask about slippery knife handle grips refer directly to chicken, and sometimes to fish. Good chefs know well how to handle these two meats and don't complain of slippery hands. How do they do this? First, they handle them carefully. Chicken and fish are best prepped when very cool, even frosty, and they can be sliced with greater accuracy and control. Additionally, good work technique with any knife is key. The hand that is gripping the knife or utensil handle is not the hand that manipulates the food on the board, and thus, the hand gripping the tool is not in contact with the food or slimy. The ingredients are then scooped or scraped into the dish or pan with the knife. Of course, this is prep 101 for most people who are looking at these fine custom and handmade chef's knives.

You can read more details and see many examples of gemstone handled knives on my Gemstone Knife Handles Page. There are more details about Knife Handles, Fittings, Bolsters, and Guards in general on this page.

What about construction of Chef's knives and bacteria?

NOTE: This is a brief, shortened section. For a complete, thorough discussion about Food Contact Safe materials and construction for chef's knives, the data, the requirements, the agency guidelines, and a complete material list please visit my page: "Food Safety in Chef's and Kitchen Knives."

Occasionally, I get asked about the construction method of my (and other) kitchen and chef's knives and the possibility of trapping bacteria and contaminating food. This is a hot topic on many people's minds, one that is regularly covered in the morning network television shows, particularly if they have no other worthy news. I always know when things are going relatively well, because the television networks start the "germs on your kitchen counter and cutting boards" segments. They'll make a great show of swabbing various areas and growing cultures in Petri dishes to illustrate the dangers of bacteria in our homes. As always, fear sells best, and they have done their research to know just what you might respond to in the face of fear. It's important to note that the main commodity they are selling in the advertisers of these programs is soap, cleaners, and disinfectants. I hope you recognize the process.

No one likes bacteria, though we could not live without them. No one likes a dirty or contaminated kitchen, utensils, implements, or hardware. So where does the knife construction come into play in this discussion?

 Here are some points to consider:

• All surfaces can become hosts to bacteria; no surface can be completely sterile unless it is autoclaved before and after every use. Please consider your cutting boards, pots and pans, bowls, plates, silverware, countertops, plastic storage containers, refrigerator doors, drawers, and surfaces, and all of the surfaces that lead to the kitchen tasks of prepping a meal. Consider the sink area, which remains damp, the handles of the faucets, the spigots, the drain board and drainer. Consider the light switch over the counter, the receptacles for the appliances, and the plugs on the cords that are inserted in them. Many of these items are never cleaned, much less decontaminated for sterility. Some of these items are permeable, or even porous.
• Every knife, no matter the construction, can host bacterial growth if not kept reasonably clean. While there are obvious choices that would foster trapping debris (the beaten, rough, blackened, gouged and scoured primitive knife blade finish), there are choices that will make a knife blade very easy to clean and maintain (stainless tool steels, brightly satin finished or mirror polished). Please consider that in the medical field, most surfaces are smoothly finished or polished and not pitted, rough, or scoured. This is because they are easier to clean and keep clean. Note also, that they are all highly corrosion resistant. You won't find any tools in the operating room that are not stainless steel.
• There is no knife without some type of seam, unless you are describing a solid metal knife and handle. These are heavy, uncomfortable to use, and not practical from a construction or user standpoint. If the concern for bacteria was high, this is the only knife you would see. Conversely, this type of knife handle is actually rare. Some knives along this line have hollow handles and are welded in construction, but you might consider what is trapped in that hollow void, how easy it is to dent the "metal balloon" handle, and how uncomfortable this handle is overall. Additionally, due to the difficulty of making this kind of knife, they are only made of lower alloy stainless steels, poor performers overall.
• Even when the continuous metal blade and handle is used, it is often shaped at the handle with cuts and milled grooves to aid in gripping, or with rubber or plastic inserts to improve the grip. These can host bacteria as well as any other void or seam on any other knife, so there is no obvious advantage.
• Integral knives with handle material other than solid polished stainless steel have other handle materials attached. These all have seams, potential voids to trap bacteria. It does not matter whether the handle material is synthetic, manmade, wood, horn, bone, ivory, or gemstone; whether they are ribbing, pads, or plastic inserts, all have seams or microscopic voids and can trap bacteria.
• The knife blade itself can be a trap for bacteria. Consider carefully that damascus blade now. All those welds are seams. Microscopically, those seams can and do often have voids. Those voids can and do trap debris and can host bacterial growth.

Obviously, this could get ridiculous. If one dwells on the subject too long, he'll chance the conversion to an obsessive-compulsive personality disorder like an eccentric billionaire, confining himself to darkness in a Las Vegas penthouse and counting and arranging his peas on the plate while insulating his flesh from the world with layers of boxed tissue. Bacteria exist. Keep your home, your kitchen, and your utensils clean and dry them after use. Just to sooth your fears though, here are some points about my own knives:

• All of the knives I make for kitchen and chef's use are made of Food Contact Safe materials and construction.
• Most of my knives are polished, which makes them easier to clean and keep clean. Polished surfaces also dry quicker. In knives that are not mirror polished, they are finely satin finished, the same finish you would encounter on a scalpel in an operating room. They are very easy to clean.
• Many of them do not have filework, or the filework may be limited to the blade only, making them easier to clean.
• Gemstone is not permeable, so cannot host moisture and contaminates. Any voids, pockets or vugs are sealed with Food Contact Safe sealants. The same can not be said for woods, horn, bone, ivory, and (believe it or not) synthetics and plastics. But I use those materials too, if requested.
• The fit on my knife components and handles is excellent, preventing voids or cracks at seams of different materials. Any junction or union of materials is sealed with Food Contact Safe sealants.
• All of my handles are bedded and sealed with high strength, industrial jeweler's grade Food Contact Safe polyepoxide thermosets, eliminating voids.
• The seams between the bolsters and blades are also sealed with Food Contact Safe epoxides or cyanoacrylate esters.
• Though the storage blocks are wood, just like a cutting board, wood tannins and moisture absorption are proven to inhibit bacterial growth.

If you're still worried about this whole contamination thing, take a coarse bristle brush to your fingernails with a generous dose of surgeon's anti-bacteriological soap. Then do it again, and again, and again... okay, one more time to be sure-

Don't forget to visit: Food Safety in Kitchen and Chef's Knives!

What about wooden, plastic, glass, and metal cutting boards?

This one has stirred up a lot of talk, and it's clear that there are distinctions and unlikely results in the testing of bacterial growth on cutting boards related to their use, environment, care, and application. If you want some high detail about this, please look up (in any search engine) the set of studies done by Dean O. Cliver, Ph.D., of UC-Davis Food Safety Laboratory. He references many other additional studies and they're fascinating and educational. For those of you who want my quick take on this, please know that this is not only an opinion of a professional knifemaker, but also a conclusion from a group of scientific studies by scientists. Please don't write me telling me I'm wrong; do your own research and see if your results differ from Dr. Cliver et al.

• I don't recommend cutting boards of glass or metal. Sharp, hard knives can cut tiny chips of glass, glass is hard and abrasive, and will dull cutting edges. Metal cutting boards will simply dull edges. Don't use glass, ceramic, or metal, just don't.
• Wooden boards should be close-grained woods and hard woods, like rock maple. Preferably, cutting boards should be made so that the knife blade contacts the end grain, but not always. This is because there will be less cuts and nicks in the end grain, since penetration of the end grain is less than a knife blade cutting into and along the grain when offered longitudinally. The end grain is simply harder and more durable than across or along the grain. Additionally, end grain absorbs moisture more readily, and wicking it away means bacteria and pathogens are less likely to thrive.
• Nicks and cuts are important. In any material (wood or plastic) these cuts into the surface can and will harbor bacteria. Every cutting board will have nicks and cuts; it's simply the result of use.
• Bacteria in the cuts in wood cutting boards do not multiply, and dry up and die. There may be many reasons for this, but eventually, the harmful bacteria (the ones we're most concerned about) do not propagate, and eventually die off. The laboratory studies have proven this.
• Bacteria in the cuts in plastic do not die readily, and more bacteria can be harvested from plastic cutting boards than from hardwood cutting boards for a much longer period of time! The studies have proven this.
• More illness is contributed to plastic cutting boards than wooden cutting boards, since the cuts in the plastic surface allow bacteria to thrive, and since all cutting boards will have nicks and small depressions for bacteria to lodge. By the way, these studies have shown that since the plastics cut deeper, the bacteria live longer, offering an even greater contamination risk!
• Though studies have not absolutely confirmed this, to me It makes sense that plastic boards cannot dry out as readily, as the plastic does not absorb water, giving a supportive environment for the bacteria to survive and flourish. Wooden boards tend to wick away the moisture in order to establish equilibrium with the environment and the mass of the board. Additionally, tannins and the natural chemistry of the wood may help to eliminate bacterial growth.
• To clean cutting boards, ALL cutting boards should be cleaned with hot, soapy water and rinsed after use, and periodically given a light wipe of bleach water, and rinsed again.
• However, it's fascinating to know that these detailed scientific studies have shown that the effect of cleaning wooden cutting boards after every use in preparing meat was not statistically significant in the bacterial growth.
• Shockingly, and most important, a case control study of older children and adults revealed that those using wooden cutting boards in their home kitchens were less than half as likely as average to contract salmonellosis, and those using synthetic (plastic or glass) cutting boards were about twice as likely as average to contract salmonellosis. Wow, just wow!

So, here's the grist: Try to stick with wooden cutting boards; they've been used for millennia with little effect. Clean the boards regularly (after every use) and bleach it every now and then. Coat it periodically with a mineral oil-based cutting board oil, since mineral oil will not go rancid. Make sure that after you've cut raw meats, you clean it before using it to cut food that will not be cooked. Current studies have shown that this is the best course.

Microfiber Towels? A Parking Spot

When you are using a fine knife, what do you do with it when you are not actually cutting? In other words, where does it go when it is not in your hand?

If you just let it rest on your cutting board, this is a problem:

• It gets in the way. You might have other foodstuffs to cut, you might want to clear the board. You might want to rinse the board, but your knife is sitting there, grinning at you, sharp and ready to cut. You need to get it out of the way.
• You don't want to put it back in the block, stand, sheath, or case, ever, until it's clean and dry. It's unsanitary to put a knife in a block with food on it because, moisture and liquids from cutting, fats, tissues, and remnants from your cut are still on the blade. Any of this deposited into the block, stand, sheath, or case can contaminate it. That's unhygienic and unclean, and worse, it can cause bacterial growth or even grow rancid. Never put dirty knives back in a block, stand, sheath, or case, never!
• You might be tempted to place it beside your cutting board, on the bare counter. Many counters these days are stone: granite, gneiss, marble, tile or other hard surfaces. While this may not harm a gemstone handle made of agate, jasper, or jade, they will eventually scratch the bolsters, which are stainless steel, but not as hard as rock. If the blade touches the harder stones, it will dull the cutting edge. Some granite countertops contain extremely hard stones (garnet is common in granites) and this absolutely is harder than any steel, so will definitely scratch the blade. Not good!
• Knives are (or should be) extremely sharp instruments, with the cutting edge of a straight razor or scalpel. When placed on a hard surface, even wood, Formica, or manmade materials as well as stone, they can easily spin around. Like the game "spin the bottle," your knife can move and swivel on a smooth, slick surface, and when it points at you, you could be in for a nasty cut! Don't play spin the bottle with a knife; the knife will win every time!
• Any surface you place the knife can become contaminated with foodstuffs. This won't matter much if you're cutting fresh vegetables that have been washed, but what if you have been cutting raw meat or fish? These must be considered, and just as you should wash a cutting board after cutting them, you should do so also with the knife.

How to answer all these questions and issues? Enter the modern microfiber towel. Don't have one? If you purchase any of my knives starting in 2020, you will have one or several in your kit. If you don't, be sure to get them for your knife use!

Microfiber Towels serve several purposes:

1. In use, between cutting, it’s good to place the knife on the microfiber towel, to have a place to “park” the knife before it’s cleaned. This prevents the knife cutting edge from scarring a cutting board or counter top, and establishes a safe area where the knife can wait during use. Don’t put a dirty knife blade back in the block, case, or stand; park it on the microfiber towel.
2. The knife can't move, helicopter around, swivel, or spin when on the towel. You won't be playing spin the bottle, you will be aware of the location of your knife because the towel establishes a "safe area" boundary, a zone where you know the razor-keen blade is waiting.
3. The microfiber towel will absorb any moisture, fluid, or liquids while the knife rests on it. Then, when your session is finished, you just throw the towel in the washing machine. Easy.
4. The knife can be parked on a second (clean) towel while it dries, after washing. This also establishes a “safe” area around the knife as it dries, since the blade will typically cut anything it touches! You'll know not to put anything—cups, utensils, flatware, pans, pots, lids, dishes—in that towel zone, since ceramics, metals, and glass can damage the cutting edge and the knife. Once dry, the knife can be returned to the stand, case, or block. The dry towel can take it's position for the next cutting task while the dirty one is being washed.
5. You can use your microfiber towel for wiping the handle, but not the blade! The blade will cut right through any material or cloth, and there is no reason to wipe a knife blade. If the blade needs cleaned, use a soapy brush, and not a rag, cloth, sponge, or towel, ever. A sharp knife blade can cut right through cloths and sponges and into your fingers!
6. If you have a smaller cutting board, or a board with a slick bottom, it can tend to slide around on the countertop. Simply dampen one of the microfiber towels, and spread it out, between the cutting board and the countertop, and it won't slide.
7. The reason microfiber is special is because it absorbs much faster and holds more water than a regular towel. The microfiber towels can be laundered on a regular cycle and tumble-dried, along with the rest of your kitchen towels. Microfiber towels last an incredibly long time, taking at least 500 washings.
8. Once you start using these towels, you won't want to have anything else. Your knife deserves its own safe zone, and it deserves to be resting on an absorbent material to aid in drying.

I'm the only knifemaker to answer this problem because I care about my clients. This is part of the Service aspect that I describe on my Knife Distinctions Page. I hope others will follow; it's the best thing for knife users!

Sell the blade; the handle's crap!

This subject goes hand-in-hand with the previous subject, and addresses the most prevalent knife sales practices used today to mislead, trick, and even lie about knives, all in the singular effort to get uninformed, ignorant, careless, or low information people to purchase a knife. The subject is false advertising, and it happens all the time.

There was a time when Madison Avenue advertising gimmicks were all the rage, when companies would pay large sums of money for the ad men to come up with catchy, short, punchy, and clever phrases to hawk their wares. It was like standing on a street corner, screaming at the passersby, hoping to get a little attention and have just enough of an advantage to make a potential customer (the mark) choose their brand over others. Typically, this is done with toilet paper, shaving cream, or soap, as there really is little difference in these products. They figured that if they could just plant a seed of brand name into the mark's mind, then when the mark was standing at the row of 40 different selections of the toiletry, they would simply choose what was stuck in their mind, rather than look for any real advantage or superior product or performance. This is fine for low end, similar, low cost, common everyday stuff, but how does this translate to knives?

Because most companies consider the practice of selling stuff a simple carryover from text, television, and radio an identical process on the internet, they figure the same short, punchy spew will be enough to make their mark go to the effort to buy their products. So, rather than even make an attempt to produce and offer a superior product, they come up with a gimmick, a trick, a feint, a ploy, ruse, and outright hoax to sell their knives. This happens all the time, and it's time it was stopped. Thankfully, the internet does not run on a pay-by-word or pay-by-second advertising pricing structure. The internet is so different that it is literally revolutionizing the way people buy things. The internet is doing this in a precisely opposite fashion than print or broadcast media advertising. While the other forms of advertising purposefully neglect this one factor, the internet, instead, puts it in the very forefront of consideration, and makes what was once completely unavailable to the customer the first thing the customer expects. That factor is information.

The web runs on information. In fact, it is the greatest information tool ever to exist, and it's exploding with a constant influx of knowledge, facts, points, opinions, and features. This is laying waste to other forms of advertising, and it's all because of information. No longer does a customer have to settle for a "best choice" among identical items, businesses like mine have a direct conversation with a customer to create just what they want. It's my job to answer EVERY question they may have, to give them all the information they require to help aid in their purchase, and this is the perfect medium for this. Still, companies try the quick hustle to sell their stuff, and knives are no exception to this.

Take the company that sells knives with blades made of what they call "amorphous metal alloy" knives that never corrode. Let's look into the information they don't offer to their potential marks, yes, I mean marks because they are being deceived. I'll go point by point to detail these tricks and misleading claims, and expose them for what they are. This is strictly informational, so you know from a professional knifemaker's experience how the public is duped into thinking these products are worth your money. Then, at least, you will have more information than when you started reading this section, and will likely understand the difference between solid, detailed descriptions of products and misleading, short, lacking and slippery sales advertising techniques.

They use the term "Amorphous" to describe the metal in the blade. Amorphous is a big word, but it has a simple, clear, and plain definition. It means without form. What? The definition is strictly having no determinate form, formless, shapeless, irregular shape, without developed organization, an anomalous character or form. How do I make this clear? What in the world does this have to do with a knife blade? Okay, the only possible meaning here is that the metal is of a non-crystalline form. Still, what in the world does this have to do with a knife blade? Nothing, that's what, not a thing, except a big word to assign a material to make you think it's somehow more than metal, more than other knife blades, and tempt you to buy it.

They claim that this special material (just like the special designation topic above) was "perfected in space by NASA." Wow. Really? Just what does that mean? Does NASA now manufacture knives in space? If so, this really attests to the misguided governmental organization's modern directives, as earth is a better place to make a knife due to the cost of lifting everything up there. I'm sure you're saying, "Well, Jay, you know, it's just a phrase letting you know that this material is "space age" and modern. Really? Just what is this material, and what is its origin and use? They wont' tell you on their website, no, they want to mislead, misinform, hint, suggest, and influence. Please read this section about about not revealing a knife blade steel and why it should never be omitted. So what is the material? A titanium/nickel alloy, that's what. What is that? Simple, the same as SM-100, Talonite, Stellite. These are not good materials for knife blades, and I go into great detail in the linked section describing why. But let's go on to the advertising hype to tear it apart, and try to make sense of why they're making these claims and just what the claims are. They list five reasons to purchase their knives:

1. Stronger: They claim that their material (Titanium/Nickel) is not brittle like ceramic. Just how is that measured? Brittle? Is the word brittle a new measurement of metals listed in engineering sources? Is there an index of "brittleness?" No, this is a vague and unspecific claim, plying on the hopes that when you read the word "ceramic" you'll be thinking of your mom's china plates, and how you dropped one as a kid and watched it shatter. They don't specify what ceramic they're comparing it to, just planting the seed in your mind that ceramic is brittle and this is not. Now I will state that nickel/titanium alloys are very springy. Springy, springy, springy, detailed in that section above. In their first reason (titled "Stronger), they claim that their "edge is six to ten times more durable than steel." What? Where is the "durability" number of steel alloys? There is none. Durability is a subjective measurement, and can encompass a bewildering number of individual interpretations. It's not a word that scientists and metallurgists use in anything but a general way, but here they actually throw out a number (six to ten times) that is done to make you think that "durability" is something that can be measured! What a ploy! And what kind of edge? Edge geometry is a science in itself. To top it off, they don't even mention what steel they are comparing it to! There are literally thousands of different steels, made by thousands of different sources, with thousands of different arrangements and applications. Even the title of this "reason to buy" is a trick. What type of strength are they trying to compare? Is it tensile strength, yield strength, compressive strength, fatigue strength, or impact strength? These are specific, measurable terms that engineers use to compare materials, not simply the word "strong." They should be ashamed of this hype.
2. Inert: They claim that because their metal is inert, there is no metal taste imparted to food. This is a good take on why you should not have and use plain carbon steel knives in the kitchen, but their statement is entirely misleading. First, there is the term inert. Let's get this clear; there are only six inert elements: helium, neon, argon, krypton, xenon, and radon. That's it. No more. Everything else can react with its surroundings and exposures. I've got acids on hand that will easily etch pure titanium, gold, and all stainless steels. However, let's forgive that ridiculous claim and hope that they just mean that the surface of the nickel/titanium will not react to most foodstuffs. Of course, they didn't use that phrase, that's not as cool as the word inert, which is, of course, misleading. So how is this  metal different than any other stainless steel used in the kitchen? Has your flatware imparted some flavor you didn't expect to your pasta? Has any stainless steel blade ever imparted metal tastes to your food? Of course not, and that is why materials like 304 stainless steel are approved by the National Sanitary Foundation for food service work and meal prep and service. Hey, so is that ceramic material supposedly inert to food. Their claim is then ho-hum,  meaning little.
3. Impervious: They go on to claim this third major reason to buy. They claim their blade does not corrode and greatly increases the durability and longevity of the knife. Let's be clear; this is exactly the same as the previous claim, "inert." This is because any reaction with another substance (food) would be in the form of corrosion, so there's really nothing new to claim here. Just to rehash old words, they throw out "durability" again, which is subjective and pretty much meaningless, since there is no scientific measure of the subjective and relative description of durability. They throw in longevity too, but every single knife and every single piece of stainless steel flatware, even the most poorly made, has high longevity. How long does most silverware last? You'll only throw it away because it's scratched, not because you've worn down the tines of your forks and can no longer poke your pork chop! This then means that it will probably last as long as your flatware.
4. Antibacterial: Oh, no, not the new age stuff! They go on to use the word holistic (really!) to describe the "glasslike surface that does not harbor bacteria like steel." Really? What steel in particular? I do agree that hammered, pitted, and damascus steel blades do not have a place in the kitchen because they are hard to clean, but what do you think operating room equipment is made of? Huh? It's made of stainless steel. I'll profoundly state that it does not harbor bacteria either, especially when cleaned with anti-bacterial chemicals or when it's autoclaved and sterilized. So, again, by not describing what steel is supposed to harbor bacteria, the ad copy is written to make this stuff sound superior to all steels. If their claim is true, why haven't they replaced all  operating room and medical equipment with this stuff? By golly, they could make a fortune, much more than simple kitchen knives would sell for. This, then, is a weak claim, and very similar to the two previous. By the way, do you sterilize your vegetables before you cut them up? What? No? Not very holistic, are you?
5. Dishwasher safe: Okay, you can throw it in with your other stainless steel flatware, and clean it up. Unless, of course, you choose the wood handled model for $150 more. Then, you're back to hand-washing, or the wood will shrink and crack.

They go on with a bunch of testimonials by people who make unsubstantiated claims, innuendo, and suggestions, but offer no real substance. The knife is presented with a plastic handle, and they don't even tell you what the plastic is. They even call one plastic handle "jade," which appears to me to be a pale green acrylic or polyester. One of the most offensive comments is that this company represents "the most dramatic advancement in knife technology in 1000 years." Really? If so, why aren't all industrial cutting tools replaced by this stuff? Why aren't high pressure dies, valve seats, ball bearings, and shear blades replaced by this stuff? Why are real advances like stainless steels, high speed steels, carbides, cermets, and powder metal technology steels somehow not worthy of note, when all these steels represent actual major advances in steel and materials technology that have been proven by decades of superior performance? Why must this earth-shattering material be leaked out in relative trickles to the wannabe chef community for mediocre consumption at a couple hundred dollars a blade? With no sheath, stand, case or accessories of any kind? And a plastic handle of unknown material?

Guess what? This is a knife company that appears to have started on an internet project promotion site. You know the type: set a goal, heavy on the hype, promotion of unsubstantiated claims, a new mousetrap... and if it really was that good, you wouldn't need an internet donation fundraising campaign. Asking for donations and making misleading claims? They should be ashamed.

Make your own decision, armed with information, based in reality.

Please help to stop wives' tales, knife myths, and misconceptions in our trade through education.

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Some Insight About Factory Chef's Knives

A client sent me an article clipped from the New York times about knife sharpening and the legendary skills of the Japanese in making blades and having a better cutting edge. It was the usual knife hype from a mass-market industry, and I evaluated and wrote:

Want to learn more about the astounding differences between factory knives and fine handmade and custom knives? I've dedicated a special page to this topic.

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Making Chef's Knives for Professional Chefs

From one professional to another, I get asked continually to make professional chef's knives for the professional chef. This is a very important service that I offer here in Sharp Instinct Studio, one of my most important duties and skills: to be able to take another professional's design ideas and preferences and build them into the tool that he will use daily in his trade and passion. Like my combat knives, I take the commissions and trust of the professional chef seriously, building the chef the very best knives possible. A good portion of the knives you see on this page and the related pages on the site are for professional chefs.

The great thing about working with professional chefs is their ideas, input and passion for their art and craft. Since they use knives probably more than any other accomplished trade, they have a special and deep relationship with their tools. They have given me great insight over the years as to what constitutes the very best chef's knives, whether for general use or for specific tasks in the full service kitchen. These ideas, designs, patterns and features are then not only incorporated into their knives, but also offered to other clients as well, just as my combat and tactical knives benefit from the input of serious combat and rescue professionals. This relationship between the metals and tools artist and the professional who uses his knives to feed his own family through his daily passion and art is very old and honorable, and I'm proud to carry on this historic tradition.

Though there are many kitchen and chef's knives in the world, and many claim to be the top of the line, the best, and the finest, please take a very close look at those claims, the knives, and the company or person who offers them. Most of what is offered for kitchen, professional, or chef's use is clearly cheap and low grade. Even the so-called best standards of the chef's knife fare pale and wither when compared to a truly fine handmade and custom knife by an experienced craftsman with decades of practice making fine knives. The makers or manufacturers may claim superiority by nebulous historic relationships to old warriors or practices of the past or they may claim that the knives originate in the classic European guilds or locations that were once revered for the finest cutlery (but no longer exist). You may see claims of superior and yet mysterious steels and processes, but know this: most of the chef's knives and kitchen cutlery made in the world today is made in China, Taiwan, India, and Pakistan, no matter who claims to historically run the manufacturing firm. Of special interest seems to be Japanese knives, which are poorly made, stick-handled pieces of hammered plain carbon steel; the very worst type of knife for the kitchen. More on these on an upcoming page on the site.

Compare this to the artist and craftsman who works with the finest, highest alloy ultra-modern tool steels and practices, a craftsman who is responsible for every component, piece, part, operation, and interaction of the custom knife experience, and you cannot ignore the glaring truth that the very best knives made in the world are made in the modern metal artist's machine shop and studio, not in a foreign manufacturing plant. It is my goal to pull back the curtain on knives and the knife industry in very specific, clear, and definitive language, without any hype, mystery, or claims of historic relationship to once-great industries or traditions. On this very page, I go into great detail to clarify what makes a very fine knife compared to a factory or lesser knife, and it should then be clear to anyone who has read this that today, the very best knives in the world are handmade.

Sadly, many of the finest chefs in the world do not use the finest knives. Since the price of these fine knives are well within their reach, there are several reasons why they may not acquire and use the finest knives:

• They have never seen or experienced a truly fine chef's knife. You would think that with all the knives in the world for the best chefs to try, they could have their pick of fine knives. This is not the case. Extremely fine knives are hard enough to find, and extremely fine chef's knives are even harder to find. They won't pop up in kitchen supply catalogs, on television, or even on the internet without a detailed search. They simply are very rare. They are rare because most companies and individuals who make knives are focused on one thing: volume of units. The more knives they can sell, the better. A knife making artist is focused on extremely high quality, not volume, and even if he has made thousands of knives in his career (like I have), please remember that there are millions of knives made and sold annually. The percentage of the very best chef's knives are incredibly small. I'll go so far as to say that there are many more chef's competition and cooking programs on cable than there are knife makers who make these exceptionally fine pieces.
• Some of the best chefs use the worst sort of tools. Yes, it might hurt a bit, but it's true. I've seen these so-called best chefs whip a blade over a striated steel rod with obvious careless abandon, as if this is some great flourish before the cut. To the maker of fine knives, this is the result of years of suffering cheap, inferior knives. Only a cheap knife needs to be constantly sharpened, and even the honing steel has a specific and careful application on those cheap blades, detailed by a true expert on sharpening, John Juranitch, who quite literally wrote the definitive text on sharpening knife blades. How many of these accomplished chefs have even read the book on how to sharpen a knife? They haven't learned by watching other chef's sharpen cheap knives on a steel rod, have they?
• Some chefs do not consider a fine knife important. To them, it is simply a tool, like a spoon, whisk, or pot. Since there are no custom handmade fine spoons, why would they be interested in a knife made this way? This is probably the saddest attitude, because it does not persist because of unavailability of the tools or ignorance of the tools, but because the tools and equipment of their trade (cooking) are simply not important to them. From a craftsman's standpoint, this is one that I can not fathom. The tools of the trade, in many ways, dictate the quality of the result of the artist's or craftsman's work. To compare, a knife maker can make a knife with a hand-drill, file, torch, and sandpaper, so why would he need anything else? It's because if professional results are expected, a professional tool set is required as well as a professional's attitude, practice, and skill using those tools is necessary.

If you are a professional chef reading this, please consider the role a fine knife or fine knives can play in your profession. If you do not order a knife from me; that's fine, but please consider getting just the knife you want from another custom knife maker who can answer your questions and build you a knife suitable for your passion, your life's work, and your career.

Professional Chef's Evaluations

I consider it very important to have worthwhile evaluations of chef's knives by the professionals who use them. You'll see several of those on this very page, and just below, I've included a highly detailed knife evaluation of "Cybele," a boning and fillet knife owned by Ulises Magana. He's been kind enough to give detailed points about the Cybele, and honored to consider all the specific points in upcoming projects. It's extremely important to knife makers to encourage this conversation and continue to grow in their pursuit of the ultimate professional and investment knives. Since we, as knife makers, do not have the experiences of a chef, nor can we in the short time we are alive, it's critical to continually evolve and improve our service and our potential. Otherwise, all we will offer is what everyone else is making, the 8" Sabatier with three rivets in the handle.

Why do the knives you classify as Chefs knives have sheaths?

You will notice a lot of sheaths with the knives on this page. Conventional wisdom is that a sheath knife is for the "field." The truth is, a sheath protects the knife and the owner. If you're going to store your knife in a drawer banging into other knives and kitchen tools, your expensive custom knife is going to get dinged, have the edge dulled, and get torn up. The sheath will offer protection. The worst enemy of a knife is another knife and other metal kitchen tools.

Also, many of the knives shown are dual purpose, that is both utility knives and chef's knives. Some are well suited to boning, dressing, and carving. Some have more elegant displays. There is no "rule" about knives, and some of my clients insist on taking a fine sheath knife to even the best restaurants, where all they have to offer to carve a thick steak is a worn-out thin stainless steel spring saw the restaurant calls a steak knife.

When the knife owner pulls out his fine custom knife, people at the table (and sometimes other tables) beg him to use it when they see it glide through the meat. Some of the knives have blocks or stands, some have sheaths. Some sheaths are kydex, some are leather. Protection for the owner and the knife is important, and sometimes a big bulky counter block takes up just too much precious counter space. Since this is a custom affair, I strive to make the client just exactly what he needs and wants.

Read details, see more pictures of these fine boning, carving and fillet knives on special pages here and here

Evolution of the Prise

When we had chef Tommy Badger Brown and his production crew (Ken Korpi, Matt Levinson, and Todd Westphal) visiting early in the spring of 2020, we discussed chef's knives and all of the uses, accessories, and necessities of the typical chef's knife.

I use the singular word "knife" because a chef can only use one knife at a time. As the chef uses the knife, he (or she) picks it up, and puts it down many times during the preparation. Most people will just lay it on the counter or on the cutting board. They wouldn't put it in a block or holder, because it has not been washed. The knife can move, spin around, and present a razor-scalpel edge to the chef's hand, since it doesn't have a secure place to rest.

This issue is one of the reasons I first created the microfiber towel set that I include with my chef's knives. The towel gives a resting place for the knife, while in use, and another place for it to dry. Read more about the issue and the microfiber towels at this link.

Another issue is where to store the knife, particularly if the knife is singular and doesn't have a block or stand. Sometimes, the knife might need to be put in a drawer, and this would be dangerous to the hand reaching in, and brutal to its cutting edge and other stainless utensils. The fine knife is razor-scalpel sharp and needs to be respected. A dedicated slot in a drawer is precious and limited real estate in most kitchens.

This is how I came up with the idea for the "prise," (pronounced preeze or prize)The name comes from the French prise de fer, which is a movement used in fencing in which a fencer takes the opponent's blade into a line and holds it there in preparation to attack. The French word prise simply means taken.

The prise is a home for the knife, it is a rest for the knife, it is more than that, it is a trap for the knife that holds it "in a line" in preparation for the next "attack" of cutting and board work.

You might be tempted to call the prise a rest, like a spoon rest, merely a place to plop down a used utensil, but It is so, so much more. A spoon or utensil rest is a temporary fixture, remaining empty most of the time, and it can slide around. It is often in the way, and can be difficult to clean. A spoon rest is not specifically designed for an individual utensil, and it typically only elevates the soiled part from the countertop. A spoon rest is no place to store the utensil, it's not safe, it's not permanent, it's not long-lasting. It rarely fits the utensil, since it is not designed around the utensil.

The prise is an entirely a new concept, one suited to just one individual knife, and molded around it. It's not a holder, block, stand, base, or rest!

The prise is so much more than any of those. I make the prises in food contact-safe high density silicone rubber, and dye them to match the ensemble or knife. This is high strength material, with 800 psi tensile strength. It's resistant to 450°F (232°C) heat, and no food stuff sticks to it. It's flexible, yet stout and thick, and can be easily cleaned, rinsed, and even baked dry. It's also Food Contact Safe.

This is a wonderful material, and I create the mold and hand-cast the prise so that the silicone fits the specific knife. I've designed them with finger holes for easy removal, and the bottoms have a base that grips any countertop or surface they sit on, they are entirely non-skid and non-slip.

Gripping is important! The silicone prise is "grippy." Being of smooth silicone, nothing slides around on it. If the chef is working with his knife, and needs to set it down for a period, he doesn't need to worry about placing the knife precisely in the socket of the prise, just dropping the knife on the prise assures it will not move; it wont' even budge! The knife can sit atop the prise and still be sound and secure. The prise is an elevated safety zone for the knife during use, as well as safe storage and display before and after use.

Even though the silicon is grippy to the knife, the silicone will not bond to moisture, foodstuffs, or anything else, and usually a quick rinse is all that is required to clean it. Like any knife, board, or utensil, a soft brush-cleaning with soapy water is advisable when working with raw chicken and meats, but that's easy enough. You can even plop it in the dishwasher, but I don't think you would ever need to. The silicone prise dries almost instantly; water and liquids just bead up and flow off of it.

You might have noticed that the prise is designed to have the reverse side of the knife facing away from the user. I do this because my chefs are mostly right-handed. When the prise is stored beside the board, the point is away from the chef, and the cutting edge is also away from the chef's hand. If the prise is placed along the top edge of the board, the cutting edge is away from the right-handed person, when they pick up the knife, the safest arrangement. Of course, I can make these for a left-handed person as well; the orientation will be reversed.

Storage issues are eliminated with the prise. Since they are color-matched to the knife and ensemble, they look great on the counter. Please look at the various and creative matching prise photos in this section. When the knife is not being used, it's nested down in the prise, and the cutting edge and point of the blade can't be touched. The knife won't fall out; it won't move; it's safe, and yet immediately available. The tough silicon will resist cutting since it flexes, and because of the grippiness, the prise will not slide or move on the counter; it clings to any surface it sits upon. If there is a need to store the knife in a drawer, the prise can be a dedicated, rectangular safe, a nested receptacle for the knife, assuring it does not move, and does not contact any other utensil.

The prise is dense. This means solid, and with some weight, so it's durable and won't bounce around. The prises shown in this section come in at almost two pounds; they are an inch thick and about a foot long. This is why you won't see a prise offered anywhere else; it's a massive, solid piece of high strength silicone. Yet, because of its size and softness, each prise easy to manipulate and clean.

How about longevity. This is the incredible thing about modern silicone castings. The lifetime of this device is as long as the knife, unless it's physically cut to pieces. Have I mentioned that it doesn't cut when the knife is put into it? That's because unless the user purposefully draws the knife in a slicing motion, it doesn't cut; the cutting edge just bounces off. It won't dull the knife either, ever.

The prise a perfect holder/rest/trap/storage device, and it's completely food contact safe. I'm certain I'll be making more of these, and I've cast my maker's mark into them with pride.

The Bottom?

As I continued to make silicone prises, I improved the bottom. Because the prise is hand-cast, the bottom of the prise (as well as the top, sides, and middle) create a canvas for artwork. I know, you may seldom see the bottom of the prise, but it's very cool anyway; just take a look at this matched pair of custom knife prises created for a great client!

The Cutting Board Prise

What about the board? A board to match the project is always a good idea, and here's my take on it: Many wooden cutting boards are large and unwieldy. They are thick and heavy, with heavy handles, heavy feet to elevate them, or they are plastic and slide around on the countertop. This may be fine for some of us guys with large, strong hands, but it can be difficult to move a board to wash it.

In the photos below, you'll also see a hardwood prise for the board. The idea here is that some boards can be heavy, but some people prefer a board that is easier to lift and handle and clean. And since boards are replaceable, there may not be a need for a super-heavy thick board, but a lightweight replaceable board. This is my idea for the board prise.

Like the knife prise, the board prise is a thick, heavy, and strong piece of silicone rubber. It grips the countertop, and won't move. It also grips the board securely, so it won't move or slide around. The board is rigid and immovable when on the prise, and the thick prise elevates the board for easy removal of cut foodstuffs or moving them into containers, pans, or cooking ware. The board prise also has a lip around the edge to trap liquids. The design of raised silicone parts also allow ventilation and proper drying of both the board and the board prise.

Like the knife prise, it's Food Contact Safe, and it's washable and withstands 450°F. It's a tough silicone (this one has a 800 lb. tensile strength), and incredibly long-lasting. It would be an easy think to replace the board or change the board out with another type or material while using the board prise over and over. The board is elevated by the design work inside and I customize it with my maker's mark, since I make them here in the studio, custom fit and dyed to the project.

One more thing: the silicone rubber prise for the board is a high temperature food contact safe material. This means that it can double as a pot rest or cooling pad, and may have many other applications. You could even bake on it! I designed it with a lip around it to retain fluids, yet it flexes easily. You might think that it would be difficult to clean with the floral design, but remember, this is silicone, and nothing sticks to it! A soft brush with soapy water and a rinse is all that is required.

The Sharpening Stone Prise

The knives I make are incredibly wear-resistant. My T3 and T4 cryogenic process for high alloy, hypereutectoid martensitic stainless steel blades produce knife blades that only need to be sharpened occasionally. In the normal home kitchen this means once or twice a year. For the professional chef who uses his knife daily and on very tough, brutal cutting chores (think dried galangal root, acidic tomatoes and lemons, dried fruit, nuts, and seeds), he may need only one sharpening a month. But every single knife, no matter how wear-resistant, will, sooner or later, need sharpening.

In order to provide my clients with the tools for this, over the decades, I've recommended books and techniques, methods and descriptions, and knife care instructions. These are helpful, but I wondered if I could do more.

It's important to realize that standard sharpening stones—silicon carbide, aluminum oxide, ceramic, novaculite, Japanese stones, etc.—will not reliably sharpen these ultra-hard knives. Sure, they can be used, but it will literally take many hours to sharpen my cryogenically treated knives with the conventional sharpening tools often destroying the stones and hones themselves! What is required to do the job quickly and reliably is diamond abrasive.

Nothing is harder or more abrasive than a diamond sharpening "stone." These are not stones, per se, but a field of industrial grade diamond abrasive particles embedded in a nickel plating on a substrate that is usually steel or a very durable phenolic. Some of the best diamond stones are made today, and they are expensive, but much less costly than 10 years ago. DMT makes some great, professional diamond hones and this is what I use to produce sharp edges on my knives. Some of these stones are double-sided to allow a coarse removal of steel followed by a fine honing of the edge.

I've included small versions of double-sided diamond hones in my ultimate tactical knife kits for years. I also had to include a heavy, thick nylon stitched bag and pad with them. This is because diamond abrasive will absolutely ruin everything it touches. If placed on a counter, desk top, bench, table or other surface, the diamond will scar, tear, and rip the surface to shreds. Remember, the bottom of a double-sided diamond hone is extremely abrasive as well as the top. Also, the diamond stone/hone can slide around on the table or surface, making it unstable and unsafe to use for a sharpening. DMT and other companies know this, and often include a paper-thin sheet of silicone rubber or other soft plastic to help control this, but it's not enough.

This is why I started building the silicone prise for the stone. It's a thick (about 1/2") piece of hand-dyed, hand-cast molded food contact-safe silicone rubber, and it has a dedicated, perfectly-sized pocket to nest and embrace the sharpening stone. The silicone pad is laid on the surface, protecting it from the abrasive diamond particles. The stone is placed inside the pocket, pressed in, and then sharpening begins. The silicon flexes a tiny bit, but holds the diamond stone securely, and the stone can be flipped over for the final stages of sharpening. The silicone (and the diamond stone) can be washed with soap and water; they both quickly dry, and can be stored. In the photos below, I've made a special drawer to store the sharpening kit. Genius!

Everything's a Prise (or Prize)!

The prise is a fantastic addition to the fine custom knife that will be used by a professional chef. Beyond the microfiber towel, more secure than a block or stand, and creating a safe zone for the working knife in the kitchen, the prise is a prize! Custom dyed and hand-cast, the prise can match the project, knife, environment, or artistic idea. More to come!

Chef's knives and kitchen cutlery patterns, styles, applications, and photographs

While many different knife shapes can be used in the kitchen and the type of knife varies from chef to chef, there are some standards that have proven track records in the art of cooking and meal prep. These are usually recognizable knife shapes, but not always. There are no rigid rules about what knife to use for each task, so the variety can become bewildering. In my 390+ knife patterns, certain knives have been specifically used by chefs, many other blade and handle designs are used by cooks, but span type styles for other uses. The thumbnail group below gives a general idea of knife styles that are applicable in the kitchen, from fine chef's knives to designs that cross over into other uses. If a dedicated page is available, it will be linked at the caption below the thumbnail photo. Please contact me if you are interested in any fine custom, handmade chef's knives.