Traditional French Fry day

Will Power said:
A mail packet actually came through the door this morning! What can Finnish Posti be thinking??? They usually prefer to leave parcels for a month in Hki before touching them :rolleyes:

Anyway, excited by this one and like my other Le Sabot it's a sturdy animal. There is I believe, a type of file called a bastard file....this is the knife equivalent :p Forget dainty elegance, this makes for an excellent Workhorse no mistake. All steel construction, Sandvik blade which is ground sharp and thin- an arm shaver anyway, no hint of blade play (unlike certain expensive Lags) you can pinch it open but closing is a very tough job needing extreme care. Which is good really as it's going to be hard to shut by accident, but if you do....:eek: Think it's 10cm/4" closed, my jury is still out about theHorn slabs, whilst good quality and thick I'm not yet sure about the grey aspects, prefer white streaks in dark or striped Blonde but you can't choose that on the net. If I think of the price, about 45€ it represents very good value and would certainly be at home in a situation where you want a tough and aesthetic work.knife.

kHLYlGQ.jpg
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I like it! And the horn has my stamp of approval, if that means anything.
 
Corto_Malt said:
An ordinary Tiré-Droit (straight draw) from Parapluie à l'épreuve that I've certainly had to show before.
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Does the name "Tiré-Droit" refer to the whole pattern, or just the blade, or handle, C-M??
 
waynorth said:
Does the name "Tiré-Droit" refer to the whole pattern, or just the blade, or handle, C-M??
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Some elements of answer which can be completed by more erudite than me.

It takes its name from the very characteristic design of the shape of its blade with a "straight drawn" line.

The tiré-droit is a knife originating from Burgundy (Morvan mainly). It was the knife of the "galvachers" (carters who hired themselves with their oxen to pull heavy loads). It was a multi-piece knife with bolsters at the top and bottom, with a blade with a folded tip, a punch to pierce the straps of the harness, a saw, and a hoof pick for the animals.

There were also 3, 2 and 1 piece straight draw.


Extract from the book by Christian Lemasson (knife historian) "Couteaux de France - Histoire des couteaux régionaux.

tirzo-11.jpg


tirzo-10.jpg
 
Will Power said:
A mail packet actually came through the door this morning! What can Finnish Posti be thinking??? They usually prefer to leave parcels for a month in Hki before touching them :rolleyes:

Anyway, excited by this one and like my other Le Sabot it's a sturdy animal. There is I believe, a type of file called a bastard file....this is the knife equivalent :p Forget dainty elegance, this makes for an excellent Workhorse no mistake. All steel construction, Sandvik blade which is ground sharp and thin- an arm shaver anyway, no hint of blade play (unlike certain expensive Lags) you can pinch it open but closing is a very tough job needing extreme care. Which is good really as it's going to be hard to shut by accident, but if you do....:eek: Think it's 10cm/4" closed, my jury is still out about theHorn slabs, whilst good quality and thick I'm not yet sure about the grey aspects, prefer white streaks in dark or striped Blonde but you can't choose that on the net. If I think of the price, about 45€ it represents very good value and would certainly be at home in a situation where you want a tough and aesthetic work.knife.

kHLYlGQ.jpg
Click to expand...

I think the streaks make it unique, and a good work knife. My Aurillac by Sabot also has a strong spring, at first I did not like that, but now I like that it takes more to close it and makes it less likely to close on me prematurely.
 
cbach8tw said:
I think the streaks make it unique, and a good work knife. My Aurillac by Sabot also has a strong spring, at first I did not like that, but now I like that it takes more to close it and makes it less likely to close on me prematurely.
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Very true, a tough knife to close is a safer one. Plus, these are easy enough to open :thumbsup:

Already ordered another Sabot....the madness knows no end :cool:
 
Will Power said:
Very true, a tough knife to close is a safer one. Plus, these are easy enough to open :thumbsup:

Already ordered another Sabot....the madness knows no end :cool:
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I already mentioned before that I have another Sabot on order that is on the way, a carbon blade Pradel model, might be slightly smaller than my Aurillac, it is 9.5cm instead of 10.5 as I am not good with metric, but looking forward to it. Pics of it are in the thread.
 
Corto_Malt said:
Some elements of answer which can be completed by more erudite than me.

It takes its name from the very characteristic design of the shape of its blade with a "straight drawn" line.

The tiré-droit is a knife originating from Burgundy (Morvan mainly). It was the knife of the "galvachers" (carters who hired themselves with their oxen to pull heavy loads). It was a multi-piece knife with bolsters at the top and bottom, with a blade with a folded tip, a punch to pierce the straps of the harness, a saw, and a hoof pick for the animals.

There were also 3, 2 and 1 piece straight draw.


Extract from the book by Christian Lemasson (knife historian) "Couteaux de France - Histoire des couteaux régionaux.

tirzo-11.jpg


tirzo-10.jpg
Click to expand...
Thanks!! I only wish I was not so language-challenged!! :rolleyes:
 
cbach8tw said:
So that Pradel is the real deal? From the company long ago? Was the G& R their mark? I just got a Le Sabot version, smaller.
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I'm not 100% certain about the answer to that as the knife was a really valued present from Jolipapa Jolipapa I hope he will be able to clarify? It's about 9.5 cm/ 3.75"
 
Just in time for Traditional French Friday is this simple knife from the town of Chambéry, tucked away in the French Alps.

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Knife nuts are a silly bunch, I paid more and waited for an older version of a knife I could have picked up new last week at the local sporting goods store. Simply because I like the markings better. 🤔

Though unused, the locking collar looks to have mellowed over time to a nice, gunmetal grey.

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cbach8tw said:
So that Pradel is the real deal? From the company long ago? Was the G& R their mark? I just got a Le Sabot version, smaller.
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As often it is a bit intricated.
(most come from Lemasson's book) The typical Normand knife was called rouennais, and was expensive to build, even in Thiers.
In the second half of the XIXth century Etienne Pradel-Chomette of Thiers launched a pattern named "couteau de marin genre anglais # English style sailor's knife" that nearly killed the rouennais (and the Normand cutlers) because it was not too expensive and cut well. Like Sheffield-made knives the blade has a kick.
The Pradel family name is not rare in Thiers, and namesake cutlers copied the knife, other cutlers followed and soon in Western France (Britain, Mayenne and Normandy) the name pradel became common (thus loosing the capital), following a court decision after a lost case against counterfeiters.
Then in1920 Georges Pradel (of the founder's family) rationalized the fabrication and produced again less expensive, good quality knives.
It is now quite impossible to find a genuine Anchor brand one.
An extract of a 1930's Pradel-Chomette catalogue.
(complete catalogue here : https://www.lecouteau.info/catalogues/pradel-chomette/)

par défaut 1.jpg


GR stands for Gilles Reynewater who took the succession of Thiers-Issard in La Monnerie. He used to sign the blades "GILLES" (in caps) but since it was often confused with Fontenille-Pataud's Gilles he established his own GR brand.
 
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