Contrary to rumor, Ken Onion knives are not named for the singular task of chopping onions. That’s really the designer’s last name. Ken Onion is one of the most sought-after custom knife makers in the world. He has won more knife awards for design than any other single designer, and with the partnership of Kershaw he has done more to change the pocket knife industry than any other individual. Ken Onion custom knives can be found in some of the most prestigious private knife collections as well as in the pockets of his multitude of fans.When Ken was asked to design a knife for use in the kitchen, he realized that he had no real culinary experience to draw from. Ultimately, this turned out to be an advantage because he addressed the challenge from a totally fresh perspective, without any preconceived notions. Realizing he had a lot to learn, the first thing Ken did was subscribe to Food Network and start studying the chefs. At the time, two shows featuring a lot of knife skills were Bobby Flay’s and Sara Moulton’s. Ken also chose to watch these two because of their difference in height and dexterity (Bobby is right-handed and Sara is left-handed). Ken recorded their shows, then watched them frame-by-frame and, using a grease pencil and protractor, measured the angles at which each of them worked. The goal was to create an ambidextrous knife that could be comfortably used by people of any height.
His next step was to study the chefs and students at the Culinary Academy of the Pacific. Ken discovered that the first thing that students were taught was to hold the knife by pinching the blade just in front of the bolster between the thumb and index finger. Although this gave the students the best control of the knife both vertically and horizontally, it also caused a lot of other problems. First of all, this type of grip places the index finger directly over the spine of the blade. When cutting for several hours per day, this creates a callous on the index finger, which can be very painful. Another problem this grip often causes is tension in the forearm, which can result in carpal tunnel syndrome.
Ken realized that for his knife to be truly ergonomic, the bolster and the handle had to work with the hand to release the tension in the forearm while at the same time giving the user complete control. He achieved this by first angling the bolster and extending it over the spine of the knife. Now when the user pinch-gripped the knife, his index finger would be over the smooth and rounded bolster, not the rough spine of the blade. Ken also created an inner curve on each side of the bolster, which formed perfect thumb and index finger rests. This, put together with the widened bolster, meant perfect control without having to pinch tightly, releasing all unnecessary tension in the forearm.
Another concern to Ken was the way a traditional knife handle always left a gap between the palm of the hand and the handle. This could result in less control over the knife. He remedied this by curving the handle downward, to arc into the space in the palm, and adding a bump to the bottom side of the handle. By naturally wrapping one’s fingers around the handle, it is pressed into the palm, eliminating any gap. This resulted in much more control and comfort for the user.
The shape of the blade is also unique. Ken designed this curve through measuring those angles at which Sara and Bobby were using the knife. He wanted to maximize the glide of the blade across the cutting board, for someone who was any height. He also blunted the nose of the blade like a santoku, so that you could use the spine of the knife to easily scoop chopped ingredients off of the board.
Clad Construction
The wavy pattern on our blades is called a Damascus look; what gives it that pattern are 16 layers of SUS410 High Carbon Stainless Steel pounded to 3/1000th of an inch and then "clad" on each side of the VG10 core. This combination of materials gives the blade strength, stain resistance, and incredible cutting performance.
The Cutting Edge
Shun's cutting edge is ground to an angle of 16 degrees making them extremely sharp; compare this to the best German knives which are only ground to only 22 degrees. The exotic Japanese steels used in the cutting core of our knives allow them to hold these razor sharp edges without the need for excessive re-sharpening.
VG10 "Super Steel"
VG10 is a new type of stainless steel that has a higher density. This allows the steel to be tempered to a Rockwell hardness of 61, and still have the flexibility and strength to take and keep a perfect edge. VG10's natural tendency is to remain straight and true, so when it is used, the edge of the blade naturally straightens out and stays sharper longer.
