# Kitchen knives



## kweinert (Feb 20, 2013)

OK, so I've not done knives before and it's still a while until Christmas, so I thought I'd post what I'm thinking of and get some advice.

I have 5 sets of kids/spouses that I'd like to start a kitchen knife set for. With 5 of them I don't think that starting out with complete sets is going to be in the budget.

If you were doing this, what would be the minimal set of knives that you'd start with?

Is there any type of finishing for handles that's better in this environment? I've looked at one company that uses Dymondwood for handles (that's what they have available.) In my case the handles will be different (I've gotten feedback from a general 'what kind of wood' question that includes cherry, mahogany, 'dark', etc) so something that will work and be available for future additions to the set would be nice.

Would it be a good idea to get all the scale material at one time so it's there when I add to the set?

What's a good place to look at for this kind of blades? There are a lot of places to find them, but I don't want to a) take out a loan, or b) have the sets be "Oh, Ken's coming over, put them out on the counter so he doesn't feel bad" types of knives either (ie, useless for their intended purpose.)

Hopefully this is making sense to someone out there :)

Basically I have a starting place and a destination but could use some guidance finding a path between the two.

Thanks.


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## Steelart99 (Feb 20, 2013)

Minimal set = one chef's knife or paring knife (4"-8" length). Your wood should be stabilized to help prevent water retention. Get good quality knife blanks ... you'll only regret getting poor quality. That is why I suggest a single knife per family ... the better blades are usually more expensive.

That said, I don't buy pre-fab blades so I'm at a bit of a loss to suggest a source. Look at knifemaking suppliers instead of wood suppliers for sources.

Dan


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## kweinert (Feb 20, 2013)

That may be why the one company I've looked at uses the Dymondwood.

And I was hoping that I'll get some suggestions on where to look for blades - but all input is greatly appreciated.

Thanks.


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## scrimman (Feb 20, 2013)

How about Green river blades? I love mine. They are high carbon steel, so they're subject to rusting or staining. But, that's what I gave my sister and brother for Christmas 2 years ago and they've turned into their go-to knives in the kitchen.
Oh, yeah...and they're relatively inexpensive, too.
http://www.trackofthewolf.com/List/Item.aspx/453/1


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## Mike1950 (Feb 20, 2013)

kweinert said:


> That may be why the one company I've looked at uses the Dymondwood.
> 
> And I was hoping that I'll get some suggestions on where to look for blades - but all input is greatly appreciated.
> 
> Thanks.



I made some for Kathie for Christmas and thanksgiving. the paring is from premium knifes- It is a very nice blade and the santako?? is from woodcrafters. Nice knife also- paring is stablelized rosewood and the santako is olivewood. She has small hands and the olivewood is her go to knife. 

[attachment=18753]

[attachment=18752]

They are addictive to make!!!!!!!


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## NYWoodturner (Feb 20, 2013)

I have found Jantz to be a pretty good source of knife supplies. They also have a good assortment of kitchen knives from one end of the spectrum to the other. I linked their cutlery blades here.


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## kweinert (Feb 20, 2013)

This is the one company I've looked at most - mainly because they were the first ones I found that had kitchen blades when I was searching.


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## Steelart99 (Feb 20, 2013)

Try these guys too. I contacted them to insure that the blades were in fact made in japan.

Damascus kitchen knives:

http://www.knifekits.com/vcom/index.php?cPath=2_486

Jantz is a good company, and the Woodcraft blades seem to be decent also just from looking at some of the specs. The Zhen brand is what I'm talking about.


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