The anatomy of a knife

Knives are perhaps the most important part of a chef’s tool kit. Think of a chef and a few images of a knife are bound to come to mind. Chefs spend a lot of time and money in order to get their hands on the perfect knife. The idea is to own a knife that can undertake a particular task with ease. Many of the knife owners go for specially-designed knives because they want to own a knife that can help them cutting and chopping tasks with ease. There are those who go for knife blade blanks in the UK because they want to get custom knives made.

Custom chef knives can also be chosen by those who wish to get a specially-designed knife. But before we go into the different kinds of knives, we need to understand the anatomy of a knife. The different parts of a knife aren’t known to many people. Let us take a closer look at the various parts of a knife.

Parts of a Knife

Understanding the various parts of a knife is crucial for you if you are planning to buy a new knife. This would allow you in your bid to know the knife inside out.

Bolster: The bolder is only found on forged knives. It is a thick band of steel between the hell and the handle that helps balance the weight of the knife and prevents the user's hand from slipping. In simple words, it is a band of steel that lies between the handle and the hell. It helps the user to balance the knife’s weight and prevents the user’s hand from slipping. It can only be found in knives that are forged. 

Butt: The end of a knife’s handle is known as butt. 

Edge: The edge is nothing but the sharpened side of the blade that is used to cut. You need to take care of the knife’s edge if you want it to go the distance. 

Handle: The handle is used to hold the knife. Many people go for custom-made handles because they want knives that can be easily held.

Heel:  The rear of the blade. It is used while undertaking cutting tasks that require a considerable amount of force. 

Spine: The unsharpened side right opposite the edge

Tang: It provides balance. That is why knives with full tang are preferred by people.

Tip: The tip is defined as the quarter of the blade that lies in front and is used to undertake cutting and separating tasks. Pointed tips are considered perfect for accomplishing cutting and piercing tasks.

Knives are not as ‘straight-forward’ and simple as they might appear to the naked eye. If you are looking to buy a brand-new knife for yourself, then keep this anatomy in mind.