- Joined
- Oct 18, 2001
- Messages
- 20,978
First a pic, then the story:
I was contacted a while back by a cutlery store and asked to make a longer version of my Santoku kitchen knife...something more like what you see on the TV show "Iron Chef".
Rather than invent a pattern out of thin air, I wanted to draw from existing, historic, ethnic styles....and then give it my personal touch. (my modus operandi)
Being a big fan of phillipino knives such as the barong, parang, bolo, golok, etc...I began researching there. That's when I came across the binakoko. It is named after the bakoko fish (which is a lot like a porgy - shown in the pic above). Hopefully, you can see the resemblance/inspiration.
I used 1080 steel because it is a simple low-alloy high-carbon steel that will hold an edge well, yet be easy to sharpen. It is a little tougher than 1095 (what I use for the santoku) - as I expect it to see heavier chopping action at the cutting board.
The biggest advantage this knife has over a french chef style blade is that the tip is heavier, which helps you keep it on the cutting board while chopping veggies...and also acts a bit like a cleaver.
Thanks for looking!
p.s. thanks for the pic help, Coop!
I was contacted a while back by a cutlery store and asked to make a longer version of my Santoku kitchen knife...something more like what you see on the TV show "Iron Chef".
Rather than invent a pattern out of thin air, I wanted to draw from existing, historic, ethnic styles....and then give it my personal touch. (my modus operandi)
Being a big fan of phillipino knives such as the barong, parang, bolo, golok, etc...I began researching there. That's when I came across the binakoko. It is named after the bakoko fish (which is a lot like a porgy - shown in the pic above). Hopefully, you can see the resemblance/inspiration.
I used 1080 steel because it is a simple low-alloy high-carbon steel that will hold an edge well, yet be easy to sharpen. It is a little tougher than 1095 (what I use for the santoku) - as I expect it to see heavier chopping action at the cutting board.
The biggest advantage this knife has over a french chef style blade is that the tip is heavier, which helps you keep it on the cutting board while chopping veggies...and also acts a bit like a cleaver.
Thanks for looking!
p.s. thanks for the pic help, Coop!
