Fortune Cookie NORA #1367 - 3.5 Inch Chunky Paring - Buy the ticket

KNIFE HIGHLIGHTS

• Blade Type: Paring - Our Thicker Style
• Blade Length: 3.5 Inches
• Total Length: 8 Inches
• Handle Style: Western | Right or Left Hand Use
• Steel: AEB-L Stainless Steel
• Rockwell Hardness: 62 HRC
• Grind Type: Full Flat
• Handle Materials: Black, Gray & Green G10, Arizona Ironwood, Black Micarta Pins

• Thin for Performance (best performance but also more delicate)
• >>>Thick for Durability (tough, built to last for heavier wear-n-tear)
• Mid-Range with Special Geometry (specially ground for food release and glide but blade is kept slightly thicker for durability)

• >>> Heavy in Hand (hefty, durable)
• Light (nimble, maneuverable)
• Not too heavy, not too light (Mid-Range Weight)

GENERAL USES OF THIS KNIFE

The paring knife is often overlooked but the truth is it is one of the single most-used knives in the kitchen.

This blade style was our very first paring knife design and it has a chunkier handle and higher blade height than is usual for most paring knives.  We eventually re-designed our paring to be a bit smaller and more nimble but this profile offers some unique flexibility as it can almost serve as a small utility style knife.  ( It does for us at least!) 

We use this profile pretty much every day for anything from cutting small vegetables, spreading peanut butter and even (cough) opening boxes.  In particular, we have found that this knife also works quite well for skinning and prepping protein.  Its a very versatile little knife and we thought we would make a few of this style as we have really grown to love this one in our own kitchen.

ENGRAVING:

This knife falls into a small batch we made that we dubbed our "fortune cookie" batch.  All of the engravings in this batch are located on the spine of the knives and all have some form of text.  The text isn't necessarily a fortune, but rather a line, quote or saying that resonates with us for whatever reason.  The hope is that maybe the saying or text will also ring true with whoever adopts this knife.  

This knife's "fortune" reads: 

"Buy the ticket, take the ride"

This saying is attributed to none other than Hunter S. Thompson of "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" fame (among other works.) Thompson seems particularly well qualified to give this advice given his quite colorful life. Although it may not have been the way most people would choose to live, I think very few can say that his life was uninteresting.  Interesting is sometimes good, sometimes bad, but always instructive.  So yeah, at times you just gotta buy the ticket and take the ride.

HANDLE DESIGN & MATERIAL INFORMATION:

Every one of our knives is handmade, unique and numbered. This lil' NORA is a modern combination of colors including Black, Gray & Green G10 paired with a durable piece of Ironwood.  We love the sleek mix of colors on this little knife and the durable nature of both Ironwood and G10 makes this a true workhorse in the kitchen.

STEEL INFORMATION: 

AEB-L STAINLESS STEEL

This knife blade is composed of AEB-L stainless steel which is a high-quality Swedish metal, originally developed for razor blades.  Recently, steel suppliers have made this steel available in thicker sheets and it has proven to be an excellent adaptation for the cutlery industry.

AEB-L has a beautiful balance of carbon and chromium and, with proper heat treatment, this steel produces both a very fine edge as well as excellent toughness and edge stability.  The fine grain structure also makes this steel very easy to sharpen. We believe it is one of the finest stainless steels available on the market today for use with kitchen knives.

As a side note, there are two things we like to mention about this steel:

1.) This steel responds beautifully to honing and if the knife is honed regularly it should need infrequent sharpening.

2.) AEB-L is a stainless steel but just barely.  The concept of stainless steel is very misleading because every steel is, at some level, reactive to water and other elements. 

The higher carbon content in this stainless is what allows it to get a fine edge and higher hardness compared to many other stainless steels but it also has a tendency to sometimes form very fine rust spots on the blade.  If this happens, these are easily removed with a green or red scotch brite pad and usually the rough end of a kitchen sponge will also do the trick. Take extra care to remove any excess wetness that remains on this blade.  Drip drying is NOT recommended.