The Blenheim Forge Bread Knife – one of our most popular editions and the only serrated knives we make.
As with all our repeat editions, Jon has made refinements to the design and construction throughout. These range from subtle adjustments to the angle of the serrations and the layer density of the Damascus steel to more noticeable changes, such as adding an extra 110mm to the already enormous XL Bread Swords.
Wider than your average bread knife and featuring a sweeping arc in its profile, both the standard and XL blades are ground with large edge serrations at an aggressive angle.
For the steel, the obvious choice was high-carbon Swedish spring steel—a material developed for industrial cutting tools and bandsaw blades, making it perfect for a robust serrated edge.
During the forging process, Jon aimed for a cohesive aesthetic, with undulations and hairpin turns in the Damascus that echo the teeth and gullets of the scalloped edge. The rippled grain of the handle was also carefully selected to complement this look.
Bread Knife
*Blade length – 250mm
*Overall length – 390mm
*Blade thickness at the spine – 3mm
*Blade Depth – 38mm
XXL Bread Knife
*Blade length – 440mm
*Overall length –615mm
*Blade thickness at the spine – 3mm
*Blade Depth – 40mm
Materials
*Damascus Bread Knife – Different high carbon steels in varying densities
*Mono steel Bread Knife – Swedish high carbon steel
*Handle – Rippled Sycamore, Bog Oak
Price
*Mono steel Bread Knife – £400
*Damascus Bread Knife – £640
*XL mono steel Bread Knife – £680
*XL Damascus Bread Knife – £780
Drop-forged in Sheffield, hand-forged in Peckham. For the next in our series of projects using the unusual combination of forging techniques Rich has made a pair of Pairing Knives.
One is a conventional small petty or utility knife, perfect for intricate off-board work—an ideal companion to a larger chef’s knife during meal prep.
The other is a slightly more specialised “Bird’s Beak” or turning knife. The reverse curve on the edge of this knife makes it an excellent tool for peeling and shaping round fruits and vegetables. Its unique profile allows it to follow the shape of the ingredient, providing great control for tasks such as peeling an orange or shaping the base of an artichoke.
Both blades are forged from 440C stainless steel, an excellent choice for this style of knife. It offers strong resistance to rust when cutting acidic foods while maintaining a fine edge.
As with all of our blades, we have paid particular attention to the geometry of the edge, ensuring that the knife is very thin behind the cutting edge. This allows for effortless cutting with minimal resistance and makes the knife much easier to resharpen for years to come.
THE DROP FORGING PROCESS
These knives are the result of a long-term project we have been developing with Footprint Tools, a Sheffield-based company that has been working with the industrial drop-forging process for over 100 years. Working with them has been a fascinating experience, and the project has presented plenty of challenges for both teams.
The result? The first drop-forged stainless steel knife to come out of Sheffield in over 20 years. Given that drop-forged cutlery was once a major component of Sheffield’s industrial past, we are proud to have brought it back.
*Blade length – 90mm
*Overall length – 205mm
*Blade depth – 30mm
Turning Knife
*Blade length – 85mm
*Overall length – 200mm
*Blade depth – 30mm
Materials
*Blade – 440c High-Carbon Stainless
*Handle – 440c
Price
*Paring Knife – £130
*Turning Knife – £130
Arch 228-229, Blenheim Grove, London SE15 4QL
