Instagram’s latest round of changes is imposing limits on accounts related to knifemaking, including knifesmiths but also professional sharpeners, polishers, and related. Beginning November 17th, the social media giant reached out to the majority of these accounts, announcing their content would no longer be shown to non-followers. Representing a sudden…

The reddit user u/switchfooter wrote a May 2020 post detailing what a choil shot is and how to take one. If you’re coming to this article without familiarity with choil shots, I recommend you start there. …

Background — The following review is fabricated, but representative of many seen on Internet forums: [NKD] Nikko Sanshi 240mm Gyuto <Eye candy photo showing top-down view of knife lying flat on cutting board> Hey guys! After lurking here for a while and researching way too long, I finally took the plunge and…

There are two fundamental but contradictory truths in kitchen knives: Home cooks prefer buying expensive knives that “the pros” use Most professionals can’t afford expensive knives While kitchen knives aren’t the only hobby/product group to follow this trend, understanding these two principles can help explain much of the sometimes backward…

About three years ago, I wrote Why are the knives all gone?, which explored trends of explosive interest and sales in high-end kitchen knives. In that article, I wrote: The knives are, indeed, all gone. And that’s unlikely to change for the near future. The brand you desperately want to…

This article was originally published to Reddit in September 2022. The language has been updated to reflect the current publication. I first wrote about the production issues facing Japanese knifemaking in late 2020, discussing skyrocketing demand and a rigid business model that kept Japanese craftsmen from adequately responding to lack…

Why don’t Western knifemakers copy the cooperative enterprise model of the Japanese? This question seems incredible the longer you look at it. Specialization and division of labor increase output and lower costs. …

I originally wrote this article on Reddit. The language and content of this article has been updated to reflect current publication date and format as well as include new information about Japanese purchases. Back in the days I was active in r/chefknives, this was one of the top questions we…

This was originally posted to Reddit in 2018. The language has been updated to reflect the current date and location. Hello and welcome to the world of chef knives! This guide is produced in a spirit of angry skepticism and bitterness over past mistakes. It is a no-nonsense introduction to…