Jay Fisher - Fine Custom Knives

"Cygnus EL" Fine Handmade Chef's Knife

• Size: Length overall: 11.4" (29.0 cm), Blade Length: 6.75" (17.1 cm), Thickness: 0.126" (3.2 mm)
• Weight: Knife: 8.1 oz. (230 grams) Prise: 25.8 oz. (731 grams)
• Blade: CPM 154CM high molybdenum martensitic powder metal technology stainless steel blade, T3 deep cryogenically treated with triple tempering to 61.5 HRC, mirror polished
• Bolsters, Fittings: 304 Austenitic Stainless Steel, Mirror polished
• Handle: Horse Canyon Plume Agate Gemstone (California)
• Prise: Hand-cast, hand-dyed, Food Contact Safe, High Strength Silicone
• Knife: The Cygnus is a great design of mine, and this one has a bit of extra length blade, thus the "EL" designation. It's named for the constellation of the Swan, in our northern sky, in the plane of the milky way. The knife has a swan-like appeal, with a smooth, graceful blade and a gentle curving handle. It's just the right size for most kitchen work, a light, strong knife without a lot of heel, but suited to most board work and tasks in the kitchen.
  • The steel I chose for his knife is Food Contact Safe CPM154CM, a powder metal technology tool steel, a high technology steel known for extremely even distribution of alloy elements and a uniform microstructure. It's a high molybdenum stainless steel, and the molybdenum aids in forming nucleation sites for complex carbide development. The moly also increases the toughness dramatically, resulting in a blade that's extremely durable. This allows me to temper the steel at a higher overall hardness, for great wear resistance as well. The high chromium and high carbon results in profuse chromium carbides, increasing corrosion resistance as well as wear resistance. To bring this steel to its zenith, I used my proprietary T3 deep cryogenic process in heat treating this blade; it's a highly detailed, extremely sophisticated process that takes 33 individual steps and takes over a week long. The result of this is an incredibly wear-resistant blade that has extremely high carbide development, fine grain, and extremely high toughness. Asperity is reduced; the microstructure development is superior to any other typical handmade knife, and far above any factory or manufactured knife. This is, simply put, CPM154CM Powder Metal steel at its very finest advanced condition. The grind is wide and uniform, with well-curved grind terminations and a bright, beautiful mirror polish. The blade is clean and smooth with no filework for easy cleaning and an even grip. The tang is fully tapered for balance, and the single bevel cutting edge is razor-keen. I hollow ground this blade with a substantial spine; it's an extremely strong, stiff blade with limited flexibility at the tip only.
  • I bolstered the knife with zero-care 304 high chromium, high nickel stainless steel bolsters. 304 is an austenitic stainless steel, and zero-care, as it's a NSF certified safe kitchen material, used in stainless nuts, bolts, and fasteners as well as most stainless restaurant tools and equipment. The bolsters are rounded and smoothed for comfort, sealed with food contact safe sealant, and permanently mounted to the tang. They are dovetailed to lock and bed the gemstone scales to the handle.
  • The gemstone handle of this knife is one of the most striking agates ever mined, coming from Tehachapi, California. The area is known for this type of moss agate, but nothing you will see can compare with the size, boldness, or depth of this gemstone. It's a true agate, with clear areas and banding fortifications, and a wide range of green. From a distance, it looks like a pastel or pea green, but on closer examination, the mossy field shows fine lines of deep green interspersed. There are mossy ledges, waves of texture, and even crystal pockets. There simply is no way to describe this magnificent stone. Please look at the huge magnifications (5 power, and 10 power) in the photos below. In most of my photos, I use a white top reflector, and in these, the bolsters look white. But this produces some glare on the stone, since the finish of the stone is like shiny glass. In order to see deeper into the stone, I've included some photos without the reflector. In these, the bolsters appear black. These photos show the greatest depth and a truer rendition of the gemstone. It's amazing to think of the geologic and mineralogical processes that happened to be able to create this rock within our earth, It offers endless fascination, even under magnification. What a stunning gemstone!
  • The knife feels perfectly balanced on the forefinger, it's solid and lightweight in the hand. It's smooth and sharp and yet long and substantial enough for most kitchen chores. This is a beautiful mid-range sized knife, ready for decades of work in the kitchen, and is absolutely stunning.
• Prise: New to the field and new to the world, in early 2020, I developed the prise. This is a substantial block of hand-cast 800 psi tensile strength silicone, grippy and tough and completely food contact safe. This nearly 2 pound silicone form is heat-resistant to 450°F (232°C) and is the perfect companion for the fine chef's knife. More than a rest for the knife, it's storage, safety, protecting the knife from other utensils, stopping movement, creating a safe zone for the knife during use (instead of laying it bare on the countertop or cutting board where it could spin around dangerously). It's easy to clean, extremely durable, and won't move on the counter due to its "grippy" nature. Nothing sticks to it, and a quick rinse in soapy water and rinse is usually all that is required to clean it. I took special care to mix and formulate a hand-dyed pattern in this prise, to match the knife in the best way possible. You'll see the greens of the knife handle and the clarity of the agate, with attractive flows, currents, and eddies that reflect the complexity of the handle. There is nothing else like it, and it can't be repeated. This prise is made for a right-handed user, so when the knife is to the right side or at the top of the cutting board, the cutting edge of the knife and point face away from the user for safety. Please take the time to read more about the prise at this bookmark, and see how our own family uses this wonderful adjunct to the kitchen knife.
• A perfect, mid-sized, razor-keen extremely long lasting chef's knife, in advanced technology materials and eternal stunning gemstone, with perfect matching accessory and ready to bring beauty and function to a new level in the kitchen.

Thanks, J. N.!