NORA #1662 - 7 Inch Line Slayer - Spalted Maple
$ 340.63
10% of the purchase price from the sale of this knife will be donated to Family Promise. Family Promise works to help families who are homeless or on the verge of being homeless. Their mission is to keep children with their parents and provide resources so that every family has a home, a livelihood, and the chance to build a better future. It is a 4 Star Charity, as per Charity Navigator, and has affiliates throughout the entire country.
KNIFE HIGHLIGHTS
- Blade Type: Japanese Styled Utility Knife - “Line Slayer”
- Blade Length: 7 Inches
- Total Length: 12.25 Inches
- Handle Style: Western | Right or Left Hand Use
- Steel: AEB-L Stainless Steel
- Handle Materials: Stabilized Spalted Maple Wood, Black G10 Liners, Brass Pins
- Rockwell Hardness: 62 HRC
- Grind Type: Full Flat Hybrid - Performance Grind (3 different bevels blended)
- This Blade is Ground...
- Thin for Performance (best performance but delicate)
- Thick for Durability (tough, built to last for heavy wear-n-tear)
- >>> Mid-Range with Special Geometry (specially ground for food release and glide but blade is kept slightly thicker for durability)
- This Knife Feels...
- Heavy in Hand (Hefty. Durable.)
- Light (nimble, maneuverable)
- >>> Not too heavy, not too light (Switzerland. Fitting weight for the size of the knife.)
GENERAL USES OF THIS KNIFE:
"LINE SLAYER"
We affectionately call this style blade our "line slayer". This is really an all around great utility knife. It is an extremely versatile knife that is a jack-of-all-trades worker and should serve you well in the kitchen and on the line. It's compact and sleek but also tough enough to handle some of the heavier lifting in the kitchen, including protein breakdown.
Be aware that this knife excels at push and pull cuts along with chopping. What it does not excel at is rocking. There is very little belly (none actually) on this knife so if you prefer a rocking motion when cutting then we would suggest our chef or gyuto design. Also important to note, we angled the handle upwards on this knife to account for knuckle clearance for most people but if your have larger hands and do not use a pinch grip when cutting then this may not be the ideal handle for you as knuckle clearance may be limited.
HANDLE DESIGN & MATERIALS:
Every one of our knives is handmade, unique and numbered. This NORA is as simple and classic as they come. We took a beautiful piece of stabilized spalted maple and we added black G10 liners. The liners help with overall durability of the knife and they also accent the various veins of spalting in the wood.
Spalted wood is any form of discoloration or lines produced by fungi. Even more interesting is the fact that the black "zone lines" in the wood represent competing forms of fungi setting up barriers to prevent other fungi from invading their territory.
Before stabilization, spalted wood is usually light and punky and not fit for use which is why it is frequently thrown out by mills. In the wood-working world, however, spalted wood is prized for all of the crazy variations and we fall into that fan group. Wood stabilization is an added feature that we offer with our knives and spalted wood, in particular, benefits greatly from stabilization. Wood that is stabilized has been injected with a clear acrylic resin under a vacuum process. Stabilization helps to minimize any cracking, warping, shrinkage and/or expanding of the material. Stabilized wood will not absorb water and is generally impervious to oils.
Please note that virtually every piece of spalted wood will have some small voids and cracks. This is just the nature of spalted wood and if it concerns you, please don't purchase this knife You will find very fine cracks in your handle but you will also be able to notice that the stabilization fluid has filled into these areas making the overall handle durable. We let you know this only so that you have full disclosure up front. Some people don't like cracks. We understand. Personally we love spalted wood but, again, we like to provide full disclosure up front so there are never any surprises with your purchase.
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 remain on this blade. Drip drying is NOT recommended.