Well let me try to get through all these questions...
Why not go with a true stainless?
D2 might not be the best choice...If you like damascus, stainless damascus bolsters can be an option.
What handle material do you plan on using?
Pink G10, if she is such a kind of lady (like my GF), beautifull burl wood?
I like wavy olive wood in a kitchen, myself.
I really like the looks of damascus, but am open to suggestion. She isn't the super girly type, but I do know what she likes.
Some comments on professional cutlery:
Don't go for looks....go for function. Make it ergonomic and make it tough.
Don't go for thick....go for thin....and then make it thinner than that. When you think the blade is too thin, it is getting close.
Forget damascus and fancy woods. Use stainless steel and composite materials. There are stainless steels that will take a screaming edge, like ZDP-189 or Cowry X. But, don't pass up the other great culinary stainless steels like CPM 154.Handles need to be grippy and washable. Canvas Micarta and G-10 are good choices....wood is not and burl is worse.
Edge geometry is everything...blade finish is almost nothing......Make the blade a full flat grind and leave it a satin finish....then spend the time getting the edge right.
If your skills are still a bit undeveloped...Scroll down to the bottom where the VG-10 and ZDP-189 blades are.
http://www.jantzsupply.com/cartease...egories.primary&string=Cutlery&string2=Blades
Stacy, your comments never go unheard. My thinking for going 5/32" or maybe 1/8" is I would do a distal taper to reduce some of the tip weight. Also I like the rigidity of a slightly thicker spine. This knife would be more of a presentation gift, than an every day work horse. She has some very nice knives already for that. I like those choices offered by Jantz, something to think about.
Xander,
I am just about to launch a line of kitchen knives myself. Stacy is right about thin, I would recommend 3/32" rather than 5/32". I can make carbon steel damascus in that thichness and in the dimensions you requested, or I can make it in stainless damascus with a stainless core. I can also make a fully finished blade for you to handle if you wish. You might want to think seriously about this option, I know you want to give your wife the best and a quality kitchen knife is a really tough place to start. The edge geometry is very critcal to the knifes performance.
Thanks,
Del
www.ealyknives.com
Please send me a PM or an eMail, I would like to know more
Also, unless you REALLY want to surprise her, it might be a good idea to talk with her and ask her - "If you had 1 perfect chef's knife, what would it be like" - you may not be able to make THE perfect knife, but you'd probably end up closer than by guessing.
Well it isn't a total guess, I actually have spent more time in a professional kitchen than she has (not including her school) and I do ALL the cooking at home. I maintain all her knives for her because she is bad about doing it herself. I know she loves the size and balance of her 8" santuko, but utilizes the shape from the 10" chefs knife more. So when I combine those two I come up with a 8"-9" chefs knife with a 4"-4.5" handle, balanced just before the bolster.
... you said she "chokes up". Is she really choking up? Or is she holding the knife in a pinch grip? Someone who is not familiar with really working in a kitchen may not realize that a "choked up" pinch grip is actually the correct way to hold the knife.
third, chefs knives are not not easiest knives to grind...it is in hand 5 to 8 hours a day, so even small things can make it very uncomfortable.
Yes she "chokes up" a little too far past a pinch grip. She really has to slow down her knife handling with the big knife to maintain control. She doesn't think anything of it, being her size she just tends to deal with things not designed for someone her size, but I don't want it to develop into a bad habbit and cause an accident in the future.
I did some thinking about this a few weeks ago, I took her to our local high end chefs supply store and got her to handle several of the different brands and styles. I asked her some specific questions to get an idea of what she did or did not like about each one. I can try to incorporate what she liked into one knife.
yep you really need to know the style of cooking she will be doing...
im a big fan of cpm154 and if you want a nice classy knife a 600grit hand sanded finish is great (mirror finish are often all scratched up on the first trip to the sink for washing) with nice stablized burl handle (you can even get in in afew colors if you like )
She really likes baking more than anything and is trying to get into a commercial bakery, but with her family having 62 years in the returant business I know that she will never get away from gormet cooking completely.
As I have said above I am not 100% sure of steel choice yet. I do agree about the finish though, I remind her every time I grab my 6" chefs knife with all the diagonal scratches up the side from when she tried to sharpen by hand the first time.
I usually read only, on this forum, but as a professional chef myself (with obbviously little english skills, LOL), I would recommend to:
- go thin. The only really chunky knives in a pro kitchen are choppers. We don't use them much anymore.
- If I had the choice between a sharp or a durable edge, I'll take the sharp anyday. Professional kitchens usually have a knifesharpener coming in once a week, the rest is done with your sharpening steel.
-Make it as unique as you can. Knives are tools, and tools "disapear", if you know what I mean. Personalize it with an engraving or something.
-No manufacturer offers sheeths. I believe that it makes a LOT of sense to have something to protect your blade. Some kitchens have a designated drawer for knives, and that drawer turns into a clusterf&%k really quick. You wouldn't believe how some old cooks treat their blades. Again, it is just a tool.
-Your idea with the smaller handle is good, just to avoid that every apprentice in the kitchen will "mistake" that knife for his.
-don't go for anything too complicated. As a married man I can tell you that: if she likes it (and I believe she will), you'll have to make more, different shapes, and what not. You know... If Momma ain't happy, nobody's happy.Regards
J-L
I do appreciate your real world professional input. I think I can get away with 1/8" with a full distal taper and flat grind on a roughly 2" high profile to keep the inclusive angle of the primary bevels low enough while maintaining some stiffness in the backbone.
I will definetly make it "her knife" in one form or another.
I kind of like the idea of a sheath for it but I wonder about using leather.
Currently she uses these
when storing her knives or when putting them away in her case.
Oh how true...
Hopefully I have made some of my thinkings more clear and would really appreciate any input you guys have.
Xander-
