Paring Knife question

Chris Railey

Chris Railey

Well-Known Member
I have been asked to create a Paring knife as part of a set. I have two questions for my kitchen knife making brethren. What thickness stock do yo use for the paring knife? Also, do you have a template you would be willing to share for the paring knife?

I have some 15N20 in the .064 range which I was considering but that may be too thin?
 
Sounds like a good size to me. One thing I always do is use corby bolts on them because they are flexed more than normal.
 
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That’s a good thickness. I use .070 because that is common for AEBL.

As far as templates go, don’t get wrapped around the axle on design. It needs a tip for piercing and coring and a little curve in the belly for peeling.

There’s no standard for a paring knife. Paring just refers to any cutting up in the air instead of down on the board. I sell my 4” blade as a paring knife / Petty. it’s a great all around knife that my customers really like. Ultra basic.
 

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Customer specified HC steel so I figured I would use what I have. The last really thin, really sharp knife I made was a fillet from 15N20 and I still use it so that should work fine.
 
Some carbon steels leave tastes behind in certain foods. I know for a fact I can taste metal if I cut an apple with an O-1 or 52100 blade. Bugs the heck out of me. Not everyone can taste it.

Regardless, I'd say rub a piece of apple on your steel for a moment and test it for metal taste. I don't know what nickel will do versus chromium.
 
I don't see any reason you can't use .125. A full flat grind and you have a great slicer/pairing knife. I'm of the opinion that paring knives do not need to be flexible, but I like stout knives.
 
opaul said:
I don't see any reason you can't use .125. A full flat grind and you have a great slicer/pairing knife. I'm of the opinion that paring knives do not need to be flexible, but I like stout knives.
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Actually, that is a good point. Perhaps they are made thin because the steel is cheaper? Since I am gonna make a thin really sharp edge I really kind of wanted to use 80CRV2, I need to dig around and see what thicknesses I have in the shop.
 
Paring knives tend to be thin because they are often used for delicate work on fruits and soft vegetables. A thick blade will become a wedge at some point no matter how sharp it is, which will damage anything delicate and will become a poor slicer on harder materials because of the fat geometry.

For general use, a thicker blade is fine. You can peel and slice soft foods. The thicker (or wider) the blade the more difficulty you’ll have cutting curves or peeling round things. The best thing to do is make one and try it.

If you have time, check out youtube videos of street vendors. You’ll see a lot of amazing cutting being done with repurposed hacksaw blades. When it comes to slicing, thinner is better in every regard. The only reason for thickness is strength.
 
Bruce McLeish said:
I have some skinny 26c3 ifin ya want me to send ya some.
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Thanks Bruce I do appreciate that. I am going to use the 15N20 first and see how I like it. My fillet blade has a fine edge and has held it well so I will start there. John is right, the knife will be intended for soft material cutting off of the board so thin and hard seems a good place to start testing.
 
opaul said:
A nice distal taper can take care of the delicate work. Of course I don’t do much delicate work. ;)
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With the AEB-L being cut out after shaping and Heat-Treating if you do a full flat grind to the spine you get distal taper. The AEB-L is a relatively new material for me and it warps if you look at it cross-eyed!
 
Gliden07 said:
The AEB-L is a relatively new material for me and it warps if you look at it cross-eyed!
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and even sometimes when you don’t!

I love the stuff, but you do get good at straightening if you use it a lot, that’s for sure.

With really thin kitchen knives, making straightness adjustments throughout the whole making process is just part of it. I have found that the best time to do straightening on AEBL is after the plate quench when it’s cooled enough to take it out of the foil. It’s still malleable but cool enough to hold the position you put it in. It’s not rock hard for quite some time after the quench.
 
John Wilson said:
and even sometimes when you don’t!

I love the stuff, but you do get good at straightening if you use it a lot, that’s for sure.

With really thin kitchen knives, making straightness adjustments throughout the whole making process is just part of it. I have found that the best time to do straightening on AEBL is after the plate quench when it’s cooled enough to take it out of the foil. It’s still malleable but cool enough to hold the position you put it in. It’s not rock hard for quite some time after the quench.
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John how do you straighten I've been using 3 pins in vice. But like you said sometimes I just keep chasing and chasing!
 
Gliden07 said:
John how do you straighten I've been using 3 pins in vice. But like you said sometimes I just keep chasing and chasing!
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If you have a warp after the temper then that’s what you have to do. Some blades it does seem like I chase them over and over through the process. It’s rare, but it does happen. I’ve tried to nail down why some pieces do that and what to do to avoid it. I have some ideas but I’m still trying to prove it to myself before I go making any claims or handing out advice.
 
I do not use aeb-l.......does it still warp if you are heat treating the blade before grinding the bevels? I grind all my thin blades post heat treat.
 
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