Knife: The "Falcate" is a new exciting design
that I
named for the shape of a leaf; a falcate leaf is curved like a
sickle. I wanted to create a knife
that had a great crossover potential, in an accurate and narrow
carving and fillet knife, a blade that would be useful in slicing,
shaping, boning, and even light cutting board work. The curves of
the Falcate just beg to be used, a unique and beautiful asset as
well as a culinary work of art.
The steel: 440C high chromium
hypereutectoid martensitic stainless steel is an absolutely
excellent steel for the professional chef. The reason this
steel excels is because it's a martensitic stainless steel,
forming an incredibly strong microstructure of martensite,
the acicular, hard crystalline allotrope of the best tool
steels. It also can be treated to form profuse carbides:
iron carbide, chromium carbide, molybdenum carbide and
multi-element carbides. These small crystalline structures
offer incredible wear resistance and high strength along
with excellent toughness. When properly heat treated, 440C
is the most corrosion-resistant of all of the high alloy
martensitic stainless steels, with little to no chance of
corrosion, even in acidic and corrosive environments of the
kitchen. It does not form these components easily, it takes
extremely complicated heat treatment to bring this out. 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 440C at it's very best condition. I tempered
this blade to a wear resistant and tough 58 HRC, allowing
stiff play at
the tip without brittleness. The blade is completely hollow
ground, with a polished edge that is smooth and even. There
is no filework to catch debris and foodstuffs, and the steel
is clean and smooth and completely
Food Contact
Safe.
I bolstered the knife with
zero-care 304 high chromium, high nickel stainless steel
bolsters, which are contoured, rounded and finished for a
comfortable feel. The bolsters are secured with
zero-clearance peened pins and dovetailed to bed the handle
scales. The rear bolsters have a gentle quillon,
allowing even larger hands to comfortably grip the handle.
The handle scales of this knife are
a hard, tough Rhyolite from the State of Durango, Mexico,
called Hickoryite. You might read in some sources that
Hickoryite is a softer stone, and this is flat out wrong.
This particular rhyolite is nearly as hard as a jasper; it's
tough and durable, and brilliantly colored in bands of reds,
pinks, yellows, and golds. There are even some
Cabernet-colored dendritic forms in these handle scales.
Rhyolites are igneous rocks that cool quickly on the surface
with fine-grained texture. This specimen has a bright glassy polish and
will hold it
eternally. The gemstone requires zero care, it's strong and
tough and everlasting.
The knife feels elegant and graceful in
the hand. It's a long, tough, and narrow blade, and begs to
be used, feeing lightweight and keen.
A classic beauty,
this knife is
food-contact safe.
Stand: The stand for this elegant knife had to
be graceful and solid, so chose very striking Paduk
hardwood, with a slip of American Ash for the edge to rest
upon. The knife is easily guided into the slip, and is very stable
once inserted. The handle extending out makes the knife easy to
grasp and use. I mounted the hardwood sculpture to a cut, carved,
and polished base of Paradiso Classico Granite from India. This is
an extremely strong granite, with reds, grays and blacks and has
large phenocrysts throughout. In the bottom of the stone base, I've carved
and inset and attached an engraved black lacquered brass legend
plate to detail the knife and materials, and also set neoprene feet
to protect the countertop and allow air to circulate underneath the
base.
An elegant and tasteful fillet, carving, utility, and slicing knife, with
curved edge and a stunning work of art stand.
Copyright 1996-2024 by The Jay Fisher Company. All rights reserved. Federal copyright law prohibits unauthorized reproduction by any means and imposes fines up to $25,000 for each violation.
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