Hovey’s Knives of China Signature Series Knives Catalog, July, 2016
Because of a WordPress blog-construction artifact my registered domain “hoveysknivesofchina.com” is associated with this blog. For this reason I have attached a copy of the current catalog. There are two other blogs that are exclusively concerned with these knives. An informational chatty blog, hoveysknivesofchinablog.co has articles about the development of the knives and how we make them. The website, hoveysknivesofchina.wordpress.com, serves more of the functions of a catalog and order site for my knives and associated products. The connections between these blogs are that I am a hunter who kills and processes his own game animals. I have written about guns and knives for decades and made knives. When I was introduced to China’s historic knives, I thought how these old patterns, and others, might be constructed of modern materials to introduce some time-proven, yet new, varieties of culinary knives to today’s Chefs and cooks.
Congratulations on considering an order for one of our Signature Knives. Besides having the unique design characteristics of all of our knives, the Signature series is all about producing true custom knives, one by one, designed for the user. Ultimately, you may be able to purchase both licensed and unlicensed copies of my knives produced by any number of makers for much less money. I realize that low-priced products are significant if you are a young cook just starting out. Buy the knock-off knives now if you must, but someday let me work with you and show you the pleasures of owning the real thing.
Hovey’s Knives of China Signature Knives are made only for you and for what you need your cooking knife to do. This is the equivalent to going to London and having a shirt custom made for you by a Bond Street tailor.
Such knives are not inexpensive, and they are not quickly made. You will find that they will perform better than any knife you have ever used, or we will make it so. Our blade steels are the best that we can obtain to sustain your needs. At present all Signature Blades will be made of 440 C stainless. This is a workable standard for modern cutlery use. It will dull, as will all steels, and will need to be periodically sharpened, as any knowledgeable Chef would do.
On some knives the points are very delicate. These are a pleasure to work with. When carving meat they are like pushing a knife through soft cheese. However, they will not accept any bending stress. If you assistant cook tries to break a meat joint with one, the point will likely snap off the first time that stupid mistake is tried. Nor is this point designed for prying open cans. Any assistant cook who tries to cut open cans with one of these knives may find his skills better employed working in a salvage yard. This is the reason that some of my knives are offered without points. If sent back to us, broken points can be restored a few times. However, the ultimate result may be that the knife becomes a truncated-blade knife which is still a very useful and durable shape. It is also safer in that it is less likely to go through a shoe should it fall from a table.
First a few blunt facts. The least expensive of these knives start at $200 for the handle-less Point Square series. The most expensive package that we currently offer is a $10,000 three-knife set where you come to Whitehall for three days. We talk knives and cook together, and you decide which of three of our knives you would like us to make. The knives are roughed out and fitted to your hand and tried while you are here. Once that is done, the three knives are completed and mailed to you along with a video of your visit and how the knives were made. You may bring, at your expense, a companion, who might also be a translator if you speak something other than English.
A feature that we offer with this package is that when you pass on and if two of the knives are returned to us, we will purposefully break the blade of the larger knife and return it to your family, framed with a black flock and corner photo of you that was made while you were here. The other knife will be reconditioned and presented to a young Chef whose cooking style and techniques best match your own. This presentation will be made at the International Blade Show in Atlanta, or some other venue. Not only will these acts celebrate your life, but will also inspire new Chefs to cook dishes of care, quality and spirit using your knife. In return, when the recipient passes on or withdraws from the business, the knife is returned to us for another reconditioning and presentation.
Knife Orders
Small Utility Knife “The Caterer’s Friend”
One of our most popular patterns, The Caterer’s Friend, is offered with a truncated point and choice of either a single ground in right or left-
This prototype version is in carbon steel. Production blades will be of 440 C stainless. The jade-wood grip material is in limited supply. Photo on 1-inch grid.
-handed versions or with a double-ground blade. The single-ground blade is preferred for precision cutting. It is used not only to cut small vegetables, but also to spread mixes on bread, and even the head of the hilt is sometimes employed to grind lumps of salt, sugar etc. to a uniform powder. This product is frequently presented as a gift to a Caterer by a host in recognition of a “job well done.”
Base Price $300
__Single Ground Blade Handle Material
__Double Ground Blade __Jade Green
__Left Handed __Micarta
__Right Handed __Cocobolo
__Cherry*
*Cherry is a natural wood, is not safe for water immersion and may chip if dropped on a hard surface. One grip replacement/exchange will be made for free. Subsequent replacements are $50. Sharpening is $40 and blade regrinding to remove chips $60.
Medium Utility Knife
These prototype versions are in carbon steel with brown Micarta grips, production knives will be in 440C Stainless. Top knife has a double-ground blade and the bottom a single-ground blade. Photo on 1-inch grid.
The larger brother to the Small Utility Knife, this knife has a longer blade and larger grips intended for those with medium-sized hands. It is offered with the same options. The single ground blade version is available in right or left-handed versions. This blade grind is preferred for more precision cutting.
Base Price $350 + $50 if use your grip materials
__Single Ground Blade Handle Material
__Double Ground Blade __Jade Green
__Left Handed __Micarta
__Right Handed __Cocobolo
__Cherry*
*Cherry is a natural wood, is not safe for water immersion and may chip if dropped on a hard surface. One grip replacement/exchange will be made for free. Subsequent replacements are $50. Sharpening is $40 and blade regrinding to remove chips $60.
Bok Choy Chopper
The Bok Choy Chopper shown here with pencil-point blade and cherry grips. This is a carbon-steel prototype knife, production knives will be of 440C stainless.
Photo on 1-inch grid.
In regards to both appearance and general usefulness, the Bok Choy Chopper is my personal favorite of these designs. It has sufficient blade length to be a useful chopper, the version with a pencil point works for very fine cutting on a variety of materials while the truncated version makes for a strong knife that may be used in any kitchen. If broken, the pencil point may be reground a limited number of times; but may ultimately become a truncated-point knife.
Base Price $400 + $50 if use your grip materials
__Single Ground Blade Handle Material
__Double Ground Blade __Jade Green
__Left Handed __Micarta
__Right Handed __Cocobolo
__Truncated Point __Cherry*
*Cherry is a natural wood, is not safe for water immersion and may chip if dropped on a hard surface. One grip replacement/exchange will be made for free. Subsequent replacements are $50. Sharpening is $40 and blade regrinding to remove chips or refresh points is $70.
Pepper and Small Veggy Knife
This prototype knife is shown made of carbon steel, but production versions will be in 440C stainless. The jade grip material is in short supply and may be discontinued. Photo on 1-inch grid.
This cleaver-looking knife is not made for forceful chopping, but is a broad-bladed knife with a thin blade intended to work peppers, medium-sized fruit and meats. It may be used as a spatula, scraper, to stir a pot or even as a server without having to reach for three or four different implements. It is offered as a single (recommended) or double-ground blade with a distinctive scooped out front point so the knife can be grasped at the end of the blade for delicate cutting as well as used for its intended chopping purposes. Of all the knives in this series, this blade, when used for the medium-weight cutting for which it was designed, is the most versatile of these designs in either right or left-handed versions with a single-ground blade.
Base Price $400 + $50 if use your grip materials
__Single Ground Blade Handle Material
__Double Ground Blade __Jade Green
__Left Handed __Micarta
__Right Handed __Cocobolo
__Truncated Point __Cherry*
*Cherry is a natural wood, is not safe for water immersion and may chip if dropped on a hard surface. One grip replacement/exchange will be made for free. Subsequent replacements are $50. Sharpening is $40 and blade regrinding to remove chips is $70.
The Cabbage and Duck Chopper
While this prototype is made of carbon steel, production blades will be made of 440C stainless. Photo on 1-inch grid.
An impressive knife by any standards, the Cabbage and Duck Chopper is the largest knife offered in the Hovey’s Knives of China Series. This knife is designed, as were the original bronze versions, meant to be used not like the cleaver with a forceful downward swing of the blade by using downward pressure applied to the top of the blade and long handle to cut through cabbages and break through duck carcasses. This Chopper, The Cleaver (not ready yet) and the long handled Rib Flipper are made of heavier gauge steel that is cut less frequently that other knives in this series. There may be delays in delivery while sufficient orders accumulate to cut a piece of steel.
Base Price $550 + 50 for using your handle material
Grip Options
__Cherry* __Tea Olive*
__Cocobolo
__Micarta
*Cherry and Tea Olive are natural woods, are not safe for water immersion and may chip if dropped on a hard surface. One grip replacement/exchange will be made for free. Subsequent replacements are $50. Sharpening is $40 and blade regrinding to remove chips is $70.
The Point Series
On left and right are two Point Squares shown with a strong truncated point on the left and a pencil point on the right. These are grasped in the palm of the hand with the index finger resting on the top of the blade. The central knife, The Point, does not have the square cut-out and works well for those with smaller hands, while The Point Square does better for those with medium-sized hands. Not shown is a version of the Point Square for larger hands. Photo on 1-inch grid.
Points are generally overrated on kitchen knives. Most of the work that cooking knives do is slicing or dicing; not stabbing and jabbing. However, there are times when a point is required for carving thin meats or doughs into decorative shapes or for the sportsman to use for skinning an animal. These are very small, light-weight knives that not only have uses in the kitchen, but also in backpackers or hunters packs.
Base Price $200
__The Point
__The Point Square Truncated Blade
__The Point Square Pencil Point Blade
__The Point Square Truncated Blade Large (not shown)
__The Point Square Pencil Point Blade Large (not shown)
The Fish Knife
The fish knife is a derivation of the Eskimo Ulu in that it has a central handle, but one end is shaped as a sharp gut hook to open large fish at the vent and the other with a point to cut out internal organs and scrape them from the body cavity. The blade, with a different grasp, is also useful for scaling. The knife shown is a prototype design that has been improved with the new design of gut hook that may be seen below in the Offset Grip Fish and Shushi Knife. Photo on 1-inch grid.
Base Price $300 + $50 if use your grip materials
__Right Handed Handle Material
__Left Handed __Jade Green
__Micarta __Cocoabolo
__Cherry*
*Cherry is a natural wood, is not safe for water immersion and may chip if dropped on a hard surface. One grip replacement/exchange will be made for free. Subsequent replacements are $50. Sharpening is $40 and blade regrinding to remove chips is $70.
Offset Grip Fish and Shushi Knife
Although not easily seen in this photo there are two bends in this blade, neither of which are at right angles. This is a prototype knife made of T 410 stainless steel. Photo on 1-inch grid.
Related in concept to the Fish Knife, the offset grip allows the knife blade to be held vertically while the wrist is in a more natural, and comfortable, inclined position. This design allows the user to look directly down at the cut, as when slicing Shushi or Lox. The Fish and Shushi knives have the same blade, but the bends in the handle are reversed. In the Shushi Knife the point faces towards the user, but in the Fish Knife it faces away. The angle of the grip may be adjusted by gentle bending, and such adjustments will be made at the table during later Blade Show events in Atlanta and elsewhere.
Starting with flat blanks getting the correct bend of these blades is a complex task, best done with the ultimate user in hand.
Base Price $400 + $50 if use your grip materials
__Fish Knife Handle Material
__Sushi (Lox) Knife __Jade Green
__Right Handed __Cocoabolo
__Left Handed __Micarta
__Cherry
__Your material
*Cherry is a natural wood, is not safe for water immersion and may chip if dropped on a hard surface. One grip replacement/exchange will be made for free. Subsequent replacements are $50. Sharpening is $40 and blade regrinding to sharpen gut hook is $70. Blade bending to reset handle angle is free if done in the presence of the knife’s owner. If necessary to be done by mail order specify the exact number of degrees and direction of the bend. The first re-bending is free. Subsequent ones are $50. Grip re-shaping or replacement is $150 depending on the material required. If suitable, a knife using the handle material that you furnish can be made for an additional charge of $50.
Long Grip Slicer
This prototype blade has a re-ground point that is intermediate between the pencil point and the truncated point designs generally offered in Hovey’s Knives. As with all such points the knife may be grasped at the front of the blade to do delicate cutting tasks. Photo on 1-inch grid.
Available with either a pencil or truncated point this slicer’s grip is unusually long to allow the hand to be further away from the large joint of meat that he may be slicing. The oval ring on the slicer fits in the palm of the hand and allows for unusually good control for well-supported forward and backwards cuts. This knife is offered with a single ground blade (recommended) or with a double-ground blade. The upswept grip and relatively distant position of the hand with the index finger over the forward part of the grip offers unusual control of this relatively large knife. The point allows a slice of meat to be speared and placed on a serving dish.
Base Price $400 + $50 if use your grip materials
__Single Ground Blade Handle Material
__Double Ground Blade __Jade Green
__Left Handed __Micarta
__Right Handed __Cocobolo
__Truncated Point __Cherry*
*Cherry is a natural wood, is not safe for water immersion and may chip if dropped on a hard surface. One grip replacement/exchange will be made for free. Subsequent replacements are $50. Sharpening is $40 and blade regrinding to remove chips is $70.
The Small Butcher
This derivation of the butcher knife is handled in Cocobolo wood and made of carbon steel. Production knives will be in 440C stainless. Photo on 1-inch grid.
Looking somewhat more like regular butcher knives, this knife has a sweeping curve on its blade and a weight-forward feel while positive control is assured by the oval grip fitting in the palm. It is smaller than a conventional American butcher knife to appeal to home cooks and Chefs who feel more comfortable using the smaller knife in a home setting.
Base Price $350 + $50 if use your grip materials
__Single Ground Blade Handle Material
__Double Ground Blade __Jade Green
__Left Handed __Micarta
__Right Handed __Cocobolo
__Truncated Point __Cherry*
*Cherry is a natural wood, is not safe for water immersion and may chip if dropped on a hard surface. One grip replacement/exchange will be made for free. Subsequent replacements are $50. Sharpening is $40 and blade regrinding to remove chips is $70.
Rib Flipper (Billy Joe Roubideaux’s Rib Flipper)
This rib flipper is made of salvaged steel and fitted with a hand-fitting, but non-symmetrical grip. Inspired by those who must make do with what they have, production models of the flipper will be made from 400C stainless steel, have the two square cutouts in the blade and be gripped to fit a horizontal hold by right or left-handed individuals. It will also be offered in two grips. This is the first of a series of open fire and barbeque cooking aids that will be offered by Hovey’s Knives of China. Photo on 1-inch grid.
This tool looks as if it had been made by Billy Joe Roubideaux who is a fictional pit master who made barbeque of questionable legality in the vanishing world of the Mississippi Delta below Lafayette, Louisiana. Billy Joe would have used what he had to make the tools that he needed. This Rib Flipper was derived from a piece of scrap steel shaped like a dog’s leg and is handled with Tea Olive, an unusual native wood. There is no point or sharp edges on this tool. Its grip is non-uniform and is carved to fit into the palm of the hand when held horizontally. The reach of the blade allows it to flip a small rack of wild-hog ribs that are being blackened over a flaming grill.
The blade shown is the prototype and will be offered in two lengths. The length shown here is for home cooks and one with an extended metal section is for those who cook on larger grills. The extended version is made of heavier metal and has a longer two-handed grip. The rib flipper is for small racks of ribs, chickens and the like and not for flipping a whole hog. Another, stronger tool will be made for handling entire carcasses. Extended Rib Flippers will be occasionally run when heavier knives like The Cleaver (not ready yet) and Cabbage and Duck Choppers are cut.
Base Price $350 + $50 if use your grip materials
$425 for extended length version
__Right handed regular length Handle Material
__Left Handed regular length __Tea Olive*
__Right Handed extended length __Cherry**
__Left Handed extended length
*Tea olive is an uncommon wood and nicely figured and wormy material may not always be in stock, but a small amount is available for these and other knives at present.
**Cherry is a natural wood, is not safe for water immersion and may chip if dropped on a hard surface. One grip replacement/exchange will be made for free. Subsequent replacements are $50.
$10,000 three knife custom package
You may select any three of these patterns, a new pattern or we will design knives for your use. Photo on 1-inch grid.
$1,000 deposit to reserve dates
$5,000 after fitting
$4,000 on approval of photos of finished knives prior to shipment
One round of alterations to these knives is allowed at no charge. Subsequent repairs due to normal wear will be charged at customary rates, such as $50 plus shipping for regrinding a point.
You and one other person, if desired, can fly to Atlanta at your expense. I will pick you up at the airport, if desired, and bring you to Whitehall. Room and meals will be provided for three days and your return to Atlanta, if needed. Please bring, or gather, any ingredients that you need to cook your specialty dishes. This cooking together and cooking observations will allow me to make the best recommendations for your knives and for you to try the knives in real-world situations. I live a rustic, rural lifestyle and have one bath in the house. If you wish to stay elsewhere at your expense, there are conveniently located motels nearby.
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Hand Trace
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Order Sheet
Hovey’s Knives of China
1325 Jordan Mill Pond Rd.
Sandersville, GA 31082
hovey@hoveysknivesofchina.com
(478) 552-7455
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A follow-up letter will be sent to confirm the details of the order, including handle materials, blade grind and any special features.
Item and Options
Number Product Price Options Total
Write L by order for left-handed knives
Write S on order for single-ground blades
__ Custom 3-knife set $10,000 _____
__ Small Utility 300 50 _____
__ Medium Utility 350 50 _____
__ Bok Choy Chopper 400 50 _____
__ Pepper and Small Veggy 400 50 _____
__ Cabbage and Duck 550 50 _____
__ The Point 200 _____
__ The Point Square pencil 200 _____
__ The Point Square trun. 200 _____
__ Fish Knife 300 50 _____
__ Offset Fish Knife 400 50 _____
__ Long Grip Slicer 400 50 _____
__ Small Butcher 350 50 _____
__ Rib Flipper Regular 350 50 _____
__ Rib Flipper Extended 425 50 _____
Total ——
Ga. State Tax 8 percent ——
Packing and shipping 10% of order ——
If paid by Pay Pal add 20 percent of order ——
Total cost of order ——————
Payment may be made in cash, by P.O. from recognized company or by money order. Not ready for credit cards at this time.