HI Chefs Set

[GoodStuff]

I was dreaming about a HI Chef's knife set...

A mini farmcata cleaver.
A mini katana carving knife.
Maybe standard chef's knife.
And a bunch of kardas of all shapes and sizes for paring knives.

Do the kamis ever do work like that? The best karda i have is my favorite paring knife right now.
And my farmcata would chop great if i could only fit it on the cutting board....

Just wondering...

 

[abdelhazred]

Seconding these questions. Especially the Chef's knife. I love my suien cleaver, and the carving knife that was gifted to me is more than adequate, but a thin, flat blade for kitchen use is something I keep wishing for.

 

[kookery]

Brilliant idea! I was thinking the same things, but couldn't put them into words. Thanks for posting it! I am using my WWII like a hillbilly to cut fruit and eat it off the blade, but only because I can and I love my WWII

 

[kronckew]

a khukuri makes a fine chef's knife:

[video=youtube;0DHGlhFJH0g]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DHGlhFJH0g[/video]
(one of our chef members here with his HI khuk)

 

[Dirtbiker]

Brilliant idea! I was thinking the same things, but couldn't put them into words. Thanks for posting it! I am using my WWII like a hillbilly to cut fruit and eat it off the blade, but only because I can and I love my WWII

I'm glad to hear you are enjoying your WWII.

 

[GoodStuff]

a khukuri makes a fine chef's knife:

[video=youtube;0DHGlhFJH0g]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0DHGlhFJH0g[/video]
(one of our chef members here with his HI khuk)

My kukries are meant for chopping and a *bit* thick for cutting food.
Not saying i would not use it for that in the field... but at home i prefer a thinner, finer blade.
Sure beats cutting up a fish with a hatchet though.

 

[sweetcostarica]

My kukries are meant for chopping and a *bit* thick for cutting food.
Not saying i would not use it for that in the field... but at home i prefer a thinner, finer blade.
Sure beats cutting up a fish with a hatchet though.

Key words: thinner, finer.
kronckew is on the right track here in understanding that Himalayan Imports (HI) are good at making the Kukri. If you want to use it like a cleaver, Chefs Knife, etc. you can (some designs do work in the Kitchen). But of course the Kukris strong point is elsewhere.

Opinion Alert: Market share in the Kitchen Knife world is taken by specialized designs already. For HI to compete with that would take serious help from God Himself. I don't have to list all the excellent Kitchen cutlery available today.
Maybe you are asking for just a small production of the "Himalayan Kitchen Set". Would it be profitable to train a Kami or two to make that set with the correct thinness, weight, and balance all by hand? I know just three people so far that might buy it if they like the final product.
An OK idea but HI takes a risk in getting out of their comfort zone by trying to be all things to all men.

What is that your using? Oh no...
For me I use my Swiss Knives in the kitchen and use my Kukris in the field.

 

[kookery]

I think Himalayan Imports could take a page from the Busse business strategy book. HI knives are good enough to be collectible, and many of us are already collecting them. Why not make a few limited runs of interesting knives, once they are sold, continue to make them in custom orders only? The knives don't need to be 100% practical - just look at some of the ridiculous knives Busse makes. Sure, you CAN use them for skull crushing and zombie hunting, but how many people actually do? My guess is exactly 0, and that even includes the military buyers of Busse knives.

Sometimes ridiculous is interesting, and interesting is collectible, and collectible is profitable, and...and...you get the idea.

 

[Howard Wallace]

These are great ideas!

One of the difficulties HI faces with ideas like this is that someone will get one of the items and try to chop down a tree with it. It's not an insurmountable difficulty, just one that keeps coming up.

 

[GoodStuff]

Key words: thinner, finer.
kronckew is on the right track here in understanding that Himalayan Imports (HI) are good at making the Kukri. If you want to use it like a cleaver, Chefs Knife, etc. you can (some designs do work in the Kitchen). But of course the Kukris strong point is elsewhere.

Opinion Alert: Market share in the Kitchen Knife world is taken by specialized designs already. For HI to compete with that would take serious help from God Himself. I don't have to list all the excellent Kitchen cutlery available today.
Maybe you are asking for just a small production of the "Himalayan Kitchen Set". Would it be profitable to train a Kami or two to make that set with the correct thinness, weight, and balance all by hand? I know just three people so far that might buy it if they like the final product.
An OK idea but HI takes a risk in getting out of their comfort zone by trying to be all things to all men.
View attachment 309847
What is that your using? Oh no...
For me I use my Swiss Knives in the kitchen and use my Kukris in the field.

Ah, Sweet .....but *all* HIs are custom made by hand each one is unique. So i don't see your production vs demand concern. Is that not why we are all HI fans, trying to shark our own one-of-a-kind?

I can always buy a production knife bro, but I want hand-forged.
HI makes katanas, and I bet there are more chef's than samurai out there....

 

[GoodStuff]

I think Himalayan Imports could take a page from the Busse business strategy book. HI knives are good enough to be collectible, and many of us are already collecting them. Why not make a few limited runs of interesting knives, once they are sold, continue to make them in custom orders only? The knives don't need to be 100% practical - just look at some of the ridiculous knives Busse makes. Sure, you CAN use them for skull crushing and zombie hunting, but how many people actually do? My guess is exactly 0, and that even includes the military buyers of Busse knives.

Sometimes ridiculous is interesting, and interesting is collectible, and collectible is profitable, and...and...you get the idea.

Don't they already? I have seen several interesting and unique swords, and small knifes come up on DoD.

 

[GoodStuff]

These are great ideas!

One of the difficulties HI faces with ideas like this is that someone will get one of the items and try to chop down a tree with it. It's not an insurmountable difficulty, just one that keeps coming up.

Ok, but....what if i am going to *eat* the tree? I should be able to julianne dice a live-oak with my chef knife then right?

 

[Shann]

I sharpened up a Kumar Karda to a very sharp edge and used it for kitchen prep quite a few times. It worked well. I also used a small Khuk, don't remember which model, to cleave frozen chicken and it worked very well.

Mainly, though I've found them heavy and not sharp enough for efficient kitchen work. That is in part because I am terrible at putting a really good edge on any knife. The Karda really was an anamoly, even I couldn't mess up sharpening that great blade.

 

[sweetcostarica]

I can always buy a production knife bro, but I want hand-forged.

Here you go Bro:
http://www.agrussell.com/hand-forged-cooking-utensils/p/PEQ-UTSET/
and here:

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Here:

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and also:
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a good one:

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Common one:
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Note: I am not promoting any hand forged company just showing that many companies are strong in this area . Although a neat idea of specialized Himalayan Imports Kitchen Knives it doesn't seem practical or smart business (IMO).

 

[sweetcostarica]

I sharpened up a Kumar Karda to a very sharp edge and used it for kitchen prep quite a few times. It worked well. I also used a small Khuk, don't remember which model, to cleave frozen chicken and it worked very well.

Good job Shann. How about using a large Karda like the Kukri below has. Definitely useable in the kitchen.

Photo by shortwinger
I believe Himalayan Imports does make or commission this type of Karda. Some large Kardas are even used on their own with scabbard as utility knives.

 

[GoodStuff]

Here you go Bro:
http://www.agrussell.com/hand-forged-cooking-utensils/p/PEQ-UTSET/
and here:
View attachment 309878
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Here:
View attachment 309882
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and also:
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a good one:
View attachment 309881
[Removed]
Common one:
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[Removed]

Note: I am not promoting any hand forged company just showing that many companies are strong in this area . Although a neat idea of specialized Himalayan Imports Kitchen Knives it doesn't seem practical or smart business (IMO).

-

That is what i am looking for...
but.... Oppa HI Style!

 

[davidf99]

I also would be interested in a smaller version of the Farmcata, but the closer you get to a size and weight that would suit most household use the more you're competing with regular kitchen cleavers or hand-forged offerings like the Japanese versions in Sweetcostarica's photos.

You could custom-order a small Farmcata and specify the desired length and weight. Then it would be up to Yangdu and the kamis to decide if it is practical both in terms of the cost and the amount of labor. There might be a long wait.

Some custom orders become popular and enter the "mainstream" of HI offerings, but most of them are made relatively infrequently or perhaps just the one time. I suppose it depends on which kamis are good at a particular new design and how busy they are making HI's regular models, and of course how much interest there is by forumites. Not casual interest, but interest combined with readiness to buy.

Even though each HI knife is individually hand-made, there are "economies of scale" where a kami is accustomed to a particular design and can make it better and faster than a significantly different size or design. Some of the photos at the HI web site and posted by Yangdu here on the forum show a kami working on one khukuri, with a whole row of similar blades in various stages of completion on the wall behind him. There's nothing mechanized or assembly-line about that approach, it's just the way craftsmen organize their work in order to make a living.

There are also knifemakers who do one-off blades all the time and make a living at it because they have developed a reputation and following. However, those knives typically cost hundreds or thousands of dollars each, and some of them have long waiting lists (more than a few months).

Getting back to GoodStuff's original post, I suggest that you email Yangdu, describe your "dream team" kitchen set to her and see what she thinks.

-- Dave

 

[Karda]

The Biltong also makes an excellent kitchen Duty knife and fits on the cutting board.

If something like this were to come to fruition, it would be a one off thing of your design and special order. We are more than happy to do Special Orders, providing that our normal stock orders are met and usual business will not be interrupted.

 

[falar]

Ah, Sweet .....but *all* HIs are custom made by hand each one is unique. So i don't see your production vs demand concern. Is that not why we are all HI fans, trying to shark our own one-of-a-kind?

I can always buy a production knife bro, but I want hand-forged.
HI makes katanas, and I bet there are more chef's than samurai out there....

Hit the nail on the head.

The fact that everything from HI is hand made and one of a kind makes it the worst (best) addiction I've had yet.

 

[kookery]

After I put a patina on my WWII, I fell in love with it. It is truly 100% unique - nobody in the world has one like it, and it's MINE!