Hand Forged Steel Laguiole Steak Knife Handmade Pocket Knives French Knife Steak Knife USA Made | BMK-613

Description

This is the Laguiole we point people to when they ask what American forging looks like applied to a French pattern.

The case for it: a steak knife that is made rather than assembled. The pattern is French and two centuries old; the forging, grinding, fitting and finishing happen in our Memphis workshop. Overall it measures 10 inches, the plain edge 4.5 of them, and it weighs 3.5 ounces.

Forged, not stamped

A factory table knife starts as a blank punched from sheet and ends as a blank with an edge on it. This one starts as bar stock, is brought to heat, moved under a hammer, normalized, hardened and tempered in oil, then ground and fitted by hand to a spring that is fitted to that blade and no other. The reason the action on a hand-fitted slip joint feels different is that the tang and the spring were finished as a pair. Swap them between two knives and neither works properly. Each one is forged, hardened and tested in the same building by the same small group of people, and that traceability is the only reason we are willing to put a lifetime warranty behind a moving part.

The handle

Rich reddish-brown timber with a tight, close grain and a faint stripe running the length of the scale. Dense hardwood like this takes a burnished polish straight off the buffing wheel rather than needing a thick film finish, which is why it feels like wood in the hand instead of feeling like varnish. Over years at a table it deepens toward oxblood and the areas under your fingers go glossy. It is the material that ages most visibly of anything in this range.

A plain edge against a plate

Serrated table knives exist because a blunt one still saws. A sharp plain edge does not need to saw, so it goes through a rested steak in one pull with no tearing and no noise against the china. It also means you control depth — you can cut a slice thin enough to share rather than hacking off a chunk. The condition for all of that is keeping it sharp, which takes a few passes on a fine stone once or twice a year.

Care: dry the blade after use, keep the pivot clean, and put a drop of light oil in the joint occasionally. Hand wash only. Store it closed and dry rather than in the leather, which holds moisture against steel.

FAQs

Does it lock? No, it is a slip joint held by spring tension.

Is it genuinely made in the USA? Yes, forged and finished in Memphis, Tennessee.

Is it sold as a set? Individually, so you can build a set with mixed handles.

Read hand forged versus factory, see our American made knives, or start with the complete Laguiole guide.

Model: BMK-613