Jay Fisher - Fine Custom Knives

"Corvus" Fine Handmade Chef's Knife

• Size: Length overall: 12.63" (32.1 cm), Blade Length: 7.5" (19.1 cm), Thickness: 0.084" (2.1 mm)
• Weight: Knife: 8.6 oz. (244 grams) Prise: 29.2 oz. (828 grams)
• Blade: ATS-34 high molybdenum martensitic 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: Majestic Agate Gemstone (Oregon)
• Prise: Hand-cast, Food Contact Safe, High Strength Silicone
• Knife: The Corvus is Latin name for the family of crows and ravens. I named this design because the shape of the Corvus blade reminds me of the incredibly useful and resourceful beak of the birds, one of nature's very best tools. The Corvus knife reflects that; it's just the right size for most kitchen and chef's work, without being to large and unwieldy. This is a thin, hard, and incredibly sharp knife, with a good heel for the board and a perfect curve for the chef's handwork. Our family likes this design so much, it's our main knife in our own home kitchen.
  • The steel I chose for the Corvus blade is ATS-34, a high molybdenum martensitic stainless steel. The molybdenum aids in forming nucleation sites for complex carbide development, and when properly treated, increases the toughness dramatically, resulting in a blade that's extremely durable. This allows me to temper the steel at a higher overall hardness (61.5 HRC), even while being incredibly thin. This means great wear resistance and less sharpening throughout the life of the knife. 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, ATS-34 at its very finest advanced condition. I achieved the blade grind with a 12" diameter contact wheel, creating a very thin hollow ground blade that stays thin and keen, throughout the life of the blade. This geometry, coupled with the steel type, means a knife that will last through decades of use. Of course, this steel is food contact safe and easy to clean with a bright, beautiful mirror polish. The spine of this knife is 84 thousandths of an inch thick, making a very thin, extremely lightweight tool. I kept the spine and tang smooth for easy cleaning, and the tang is fully tapered for aesthetics and weight balance.
  • 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 a bold, beautiful, hard agate coming from Oregon. It's called Majestic Agate because of the rich purple hues, the color of royalty throughout history. This is an unusual multi-colored cryptocrystalline quartz, with large fields of lavender, hints of black, golden-ochre, white, and reds. Hints of green even flavor the fields of bright color, a rare combination of beauty and variety in this natural gemstone. There are even a few sealed and smooth crystal pockets and inclusions. I chose bookmatched pieces for the handle, and the polish is glassy and smooth. In the photos below, note that most of them have a white reflector above the knife, and you can tell because the bolsters are white. In several others, I've removed the reflector, because it can create a bit of glare on the shiny surface of the gemstone. These show the bolsters as black. In those five-power enlargement photos, you can see into the stone (without the reflector's glare) and get a better idea of the magnificence of this rock. It's astounding to think of what geologic forces and time it took to form this stone, and how many wonderful, eternal things are buried beneath our feet!
  • The knife feels perfectly balanced on the forefinger, it's solid and extremely lightweight in the hand. It's smooth and sharp and yet long and substantial enough for most kitchen chores. If you had to choose one knife of medium size for your kitchen, this would be the prime selection.
• 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 dyed this prise in a light gray, and in bright light, the silicone seems to change color to a hint of blue. This is hard to capture photographically, but the neutral gray will blend well with most light-colored countertops, whether stone, tile, or composite. 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 long lasting chef's knife, in premium materials and fine finish, with perfect accessory and ready to bring beauty and function to a new level in the kitchen.