# Cut Brooklyn pass around.....



## tgraypots

I received it last Friday and immediately drove to the coast to visit with my family and fiancee. As I am a craftsman not a chef, I figured my usage and review would be very different from others on this forum, especially as I was more interested in aesthetics than edge holding, etc. 

My first thoughts were how handsome the knife was. The fit and finish - the hand polishing, the fit of the handles scales, the sculpted aspects and the saya I really appreciated.

After cutting a variety of stuff with it, I was equally impressed by the edge and the grind. It didn't do well with potatoes, too much stiction, but other than that it was a fun knife to use. Although my experiences have been with knives that are usually pooh-poohed here (my reprofiled, rehandled and thinned down Mac 9 1/2, a 240 AS Moritaka) plus quite a few of my own, I'm an avid home cook, and can be very opinionated. No scarcity of that around here, huh? So, my pluses were the F and F and the great edge. I did not sharpen it when it came to me nor did I before I sent it to FL with Rick. Instead, I ran the edge under a fairly hard buffing wheel loaded with chrome oxide. It should arrive clean and sharp.

On the other side of the table, the profile is very similar to Bob Kramer's European knives, with the handle dropping toward the rear. I use the back half of my knives for chopping veggies for stir-fry, soups and salads, etc., and found it impractical, for me. The balance point is right where the handle ends, which might be perfect for some, but I like a knife with a little farther forward balance point. Even though I have long fingers, I also found the handle to be a little thick. I think if the scales had been a little thinner it would have pushed the weight forward, which would have been more appropriate for my uses. That still leaves the downward curve to the handle. I do like the non-traditional handle shape and found it comfortable except for the thickness. If the handle had extended straight from the blade it would have been great for me. But then, I think that's what his Journeyman series accomplishes, albeit with a more traditional handle.

I appreciate the opportunity to use this knife -- it gave me some ideas regarding ways I can improve upon my own, but I don't think it's a knife I could use everyday. That said, his Journeyman might be right up my alley.












With the spine a little straighter, it would have fit my needs well, after I thinned the scales too. Thanks Ben! The knife is on it's way to Rick in Pensacola.


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## Pensacola Tiger

Thanks for the heads up, Tom. I'll look for it. 

Rick


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## tgraypots

Rick, it should be there Thursday. Enjoy!


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## Johnny.B.Good

Nice writeup Tom. Thanks for sharing your impressions of the knife, and thanks to Pitonboy for making this happen!


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## Crothcipt

Nice write up. I can't wait to try it out.


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## pitonboy

Hi Tom: thanks for the thoughtful review; I think your point about the balance and the curvature hits the crux issue for this knife. Interesting to see if others agree

Glad it was fun

Formulating next passaround as we speak


Ben


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## tgraypots

http://www.blok-knives.co.uk/index.html

Quite a bit of similarity.


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## Crothcipt

almost to much. He uses twitter to post sales. Same styles. Only thing missing is videos.

Not sure about Brooklyn's steels, but a quote from the site.



> The first is 440C Stainless Steel and the second is 1095 Carbon Steel. They are both brilliant steels for different reasons.


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## GlassEye

tgraypots said:


> http://www.blok-knives.co.uk/index.html
> 
> Quite a bit of similarity.



Certainly quite similar.


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## Johnny.B.Good

tgraypots said:


> http://www.blok-knives.co.uk/index.html
> 
> Quite a bit of similarity.



Wow.

Even the font used for the maker's mark looks the same...


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## blok

just checking my web stats and noticed an influx of views to my site... I guess I can only thank you chaps for that.

Its interesting to hear what people make of the knives and to be mentioned with the likes of Cut Brooklyn and Bob Kramer is in my eyes nothing but a compliment. Being in the early stages of knife making [6 months] the more feedback I receive the better.

Re 'tgraypots' comments about a farther forward balance point... I believe that i've developed this in the blok knife. Maybe you would like to try one.

Crothcipt - twitter is free and a great way for me to promote... seems i'm doing something right.

Everybody gathers influence from the people, products, companies etc. that they admire and yes, Cut Brooklyn Is one of them. That's not to say that i've not spent hours developing my own knives and practicing an art that takes years to master.

Johnny.B.Good - 10 years in the design industry means that i don't view all script fonts as the same! but hey...

thanks again chaps.

Ben


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## TB_London

Interesting to see a few more UK knifemakers spring up. Welcome to the forum. There are some rules about advertising your work that you should note, but this is an excellent place to learn and ask questions.


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## blok

Cheers Tom. Just checked out your collection! All amazing
Knives you have there. Thanks for the heads up!


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## schanop

Is this the old blok from the old forum?


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## Johnny.B.Good

blok said:


> Johnny.B.Good - 10 years in the design industry means that i don't view all script fonts as the same! but hey...



I'm sorry if my comment offended you.

Welcome to the forum.


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## blok

schanop said:


> Is this the old blok from the old forum?



Not sure... This is the only kitchen knife forum is signed up too...


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## blok

No worries. Just don't want folks thinking I've just jumped into this without any thought. 

Looking forward to learning more and more!


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## Crothcipt

Welcome blok,

I was just noticing that you use twitter is all. I am pretty much a non twitter band wagon kinda guy. I just don't like it, but if it is working then great.

It is good to see another knife maker on the forum too!!! Hope you post more.:thumbsup:


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## blok

no worries... I guess your right, twitter is for some folks and not others!

I look forward to chatting with you!


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## tgraypots

Benjamin, welcome to the forum. Sorry for any misunderstandings.

Rick, what are your thoughts on the CB knife?


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## Pensacola Tiger

tgraypots said:


> Rick, what are your thoughts on the CB knife?



My first impression on taking it out of its saya was that it is solidly built. There are no visible gaps between tang and scales, and the mosaic pins add a bit of bling to an otherwise plain knife. The spine was not rounded, but the sharp edges were broken and finger friendly.

The profile is reminiscent of the Haslinger chefs knife that was passed around recently, but when comparing geometry, the Haslinger had more pronounced distal taper, and its tip was thinner. The Haslinger was more comfortable because of its rounded scales. 

I did not sharpen the knife, only stropped it to refresh the edge. 

It performed very well on carrots, bell peppers and scallions; less well on taller foods like Vidalia onions and potatoes. It needs to be thinned behind the edge to really cut well. I noted moderate stiction.

I would have to say that the Cut Brooklyn is competent, but not exceptional. Is it a good value? There are many other knives that are better performers for the same price or less. 
In the end, the knife failed to ignite any strong desire in me to own it.


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## EdipisReks

Pensacola Tiger said:


> My first impression on taking it out of its saya was that it is solidly built. There are no visible gaps between tang and scales, and the mosaic pins add a bit of bling to an otherwise plain knife. The spine was not rounded, but the sharp edges were broken and finger friendly.
> 
> The profile is reminiscent of the Haslinger chefs knife that was passed around recently, but when comparing geometry, the Haslinger had more pronounced distal taper, and its tip was thinner. The Haslinger was more comfortable because of its rounded scales.
> 
> I did not sharpen the knife, only stropped it to refresh the edge.
> 
> It performed very well on carrots, bell peppers and scallions; less well on taller foods like Vidalia onions and potatoes. It needs to be thinned behind the edge to really cut well. I noted moderate stiction.
> 
> I would have to say that the Cut Brooklyn is competent, but not exceptional. Is it a good value? There are many other knives that are better performers for the same price or less.
> In the end, the knife failed to ignite any strong desire in me to own it.



that's really just about exactly what i expected.


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## Johnny.B.Good

Pensacola Tiger said:


> In the end, the knife failed to ignite any strong desire in me to own it.



I wish we had one of his "Journeyman" series knives to try side by side with this one...

Do you think a change in profile might change your overall assessment of the knife Rick? (All other things being equal.)


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## Pensacola Tiger

Johnny.B.Good said:


> I wish we had one of his "Journeyman" series knives to try side by side with this one...
> 
> Do you think a change in profile might change your overall assessment of the knife Rick? (All other things being equal.)



It isn't so much the profile as the geometry. One of the foods I cut to assess a knife is a lemon, a sort of "acid test", if you'll pardon the pun. I trim the ends, then halve the lemon pole-to-pole. If the geometry isn't up to par, the blade just doesn't go through easily.


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## kalaeb

Anyone else have any thoughts on this one. Those of us in a vicarious learning scenario want to know.


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## Mucho Bocho

+1 Very informative thread. Tom, P-tiger any other thoughts? Help's others really understand what makes a knife GOOD.


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## Pensacola Tiger

Eamon's had it since last Tuesday, so I guess we're waiting on his input.


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## Mucho Bocho

Indeed


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## Eamon Burke

I keep forgetting to use the damn thing. I have it though, and will be done with it shortly.


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## Salty dog

If a Hasslinger has more distal taper than the CB, I can only imagine what it weighs? Is it a hefty knife?


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## tgraypots

Scott, I considered it hefty, but with the balance point right at the front of the handle it was not as "wieldy" for me. My major dislikes were the thickness/weight of the scales, which if they had been thinned would have moved the weight forward just enough, and the dropped handle, which made it more difficult for straight up and down chopping. Aesthetically, I think it is very well done, great f and f. I'd love to try a Journeyman 240.


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## pitonboy

It is more of a welterweight, not a flyweight or heavyweight


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## add

Came across one for sale @ BF...

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/985310-FS-Cut-Brooklyn-Carbon-Gyuto

275mm and has a bit of old school appeal.


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## Johnny.B.Good

I want to read more feedback on this knife.

What's the status?


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## stopbarking

The geometry on these looks interesting but fragile. I'm not sure I'd like the handle with my hands and grip.


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## brainsausage

BurkeCutlery said:


> I keep forgetting to use the damn thing. I have it though, and will be done with it shortly.



Alright Eamon- where's yer feedback already! I know yer busy with other stuff, but cmonnnn! I just saw your huge post on arts and crafts! If you've got time for that, you've got time to review this sucker!oke1:


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## sachem allison

hey, I'm still waiting for a wip myself, I know the sanders fixed.


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## Eamon Burke

Lol the grinder ain't fixed, it's replaced. And now I have to find 6x48 grinding belts. It's on the agenda for this month, though.

I will review this thing, but right now, I'm detoxing from caffeine and I no think so good. I will say that I did like the knife though, I was surprised.


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## Eamon Burke

OK I'll take a moment and do this already. No pics. As with every review, for expediency's sake, I will be stating my opinions as fact.

Aesthetics:
With a very pointy looking tip, modern handle materials, and somewhat traditional Euro profile, it will get a range of opinions. My wife hated it. I thought it was ok. My friend thought it was awesome. My wife thought the handle looked cheap and the tip was pointy to the extent of being macho. I liked the F&F on it, it was comfortable and clean enough looking. I found some of the visual lines(in the spine and rear of the handle) to look wonky instead of classically gentle or confidently bold. My friend(a young guy...ok a hipster) thought it looked like a serious knife. He was immediately impressed by it. He thought the handle materials looked durable and the mosaic pin got some notice, probably because of the understated materials used in the handle. The pointy tip played into this too. The finish was obviously a painstaking hand-rubbed finish, and that is an oft-loved hallmark of handmade knives.

Steel:
I didn't sharpen it before it left, but I did after 1 day. It's a middle-of-the-road high-end stainless. Basically not ultra hard wear resistant, and not soft and tough. A normal, reasonable balance, with good qualities as far as edge refreshing, etc, but still feels decidedly stainless. It did take a great edge, so no problems there. I can't comment on edge holding, because I only had it for a few days at home.

Grind/profile:
The grind is good, but not ingenious. Kind of feels like what I would consider a standard American-style grind. The great Euro knives are usually either flat ground, or convexed spine-to-edge, and the great Japanese knives are brilliant and carefully ground, with distinct areas. This was kind of in-between, without a strong Japanese influence. I'm sure he's played with other grinds, and settled on this one, because the grind was entirely consistent the whole way--ground totally on purpose, heel to tip. The thing cut pretty well. I actually found the tip placement to be convenient and it was stiff enough to not feel like a paring knife on a stick, as sometimes happens with ultra-pointy knives. Though it lacked the flatter profile lots of people want to see, I had no trouble at all cutting however with it. It was sticky, as others have mentioned, but I'm not sure this can be avoided. Behind the edge was deceptively thick. It seemed like it would be thin, because usually when you have a knife that is ground that well and with decidedly pointy heels and tips, they are thin where it counts. This thing was not, which is odd to me. It could lose some weight behind the edge, but doing so would make it either a laser-thin knife overall, or would require changing the grind entirely.

Sheath:
Ok I had to say something about this. It was a pretty neat design, very much like a Saya. But, I'm guessing for reasons of production, the poplar slabs aren't bookmatched, they are just made as parts and glued up. The pin only goes through one side, which is a pretty cool idea, and the sheath is made to fit the knife exactly, with the pin right up against the knife. This doesn't pay off in the long run, though, because by the time I got it, the knife had dinged up the pin from shifting enough that it needed to be turned and adjusted to hold up against the knife, and since it's all meant to friction fit together, if it wasn't up against the knife, it'd just fall out. Considering the rest of the knife looks very careful, it looked oddly like an afterthought. Also, it had green smeary stuff on it when it arrived(Marker? Chromium Oxide? No idea).

Overall:
I liked it a lot more than I thought I would. I could use it and feel good about really putting it to work. I didn't feel a kind of blissful synchronization about it, and it doesn't give you that feeling that it's cutting by itself. But is it worth $600? That is the question I've wondered for about 2 years now. The answer, for me, is yes, if it suits your style. If I had one, about all I would change is the thickness behind the edge, and it'd be my ultra-modern looking racecar knife. It has the look of being made intentionally start to finish, and like it's been checked and checked again for every feature being just where Joel clearly thinks it should be. There is no right or wrong answer when it comes to design, only different ways of doing things. So it's all about whether the craftsman is doing what he is doing entirely because he chooses to do it that way, and not because he is incapable of doing other things. I get the feeling these knives are just the way Joel wants them, and he does them very well.


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## Justin0505

Well, that sure was a long time coming, but sure worth the wait! Really, really well done Eamon. Certainly on of the most concise, yet complete and insightful reviews I've ever read: masterfully done and exactly what I (and I think many others) have been waiting to see.

IIRC, this knife is a few years old, so I wonder if he's changed the grind or address the thinness behind the edge. Or, one possible reason that he'd leave it a little thicker is because of all of his mainstream exposure: I'm sure he gets a lot of clueless, non-knut people buying his knives and doing stupid things with them. I few fractions of a mm of extra steel pudge in the right places could make the difference between repairable damage and a totaled blade.


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## Johnny.B.Good

Justin0505 said:


> Well, that sure was a long time coming, but sure worth the wait! Really, really well done Eamon. Certainly on of the most concise, yet complete and insightful reviews I've ever read: masterfully done and exactly what I (and I think many others) have been waiting to see.



+1

Who's next in line?


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## Crothcipt

list is here

http://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/showthread.php/7400-Cut-Brooklyn-PA?p=126188&viewfull=1#post126188



> tgraypots
> 
> Pensacola Tiger
> 
> Burke Cutlery
> 
> Pabloz
> 
> Tk59
> 
> ElPescador
> 
> SpikeC
> 
> Crothcipt
> 
> RRLOVER
> 
> stereo pete
> 
> Edipis Reks
> 
> Iceman91
> 
> Lefty



so Pablo? There should be a list with the addys in the box.


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## Johnny.B.Good

I guess I was just being lazy by asking who's next.

It appears there are many more good reviews to come!


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## Mucho Bocho

Indeed!


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## pitonboy

The saya is pretty basic. PLain poplar-type wood. Crappy pin


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## kalaeb

Where is this?


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## brainsausage

Kinda curious myself. Forgot all about this shindig.


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## Lefty

I opted out, but yeah, I'm curious too.


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## pitonboy

it's over but if you want to try or buy it let me know


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## Johnny.B.Good

I want to hear what some of the other borrowers thought of it...


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## Lefty

$12 and two packs of smoked almonds?


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