Mastercraft 4 Piece Hand Forged Chef Knife and Cleaver Set, 9" Chef Knife, Fish and Steak Cutter, High Carbon Steel

The Mastercraft is a professional chef knife set of four hand forged blades: two cleavers, a fish and steak cutter and a 9" chef knife. Between them they cover the heavy chopping through to fine steak slicing, all in high carbon steel on hardwood handles held with heavy steel pins. Find more sets in our knife sets collection.

At the Board

The Sheep Foot Cleaver is for heavy downward strikes through dense cuts and bone. The Drop Point Cleaver has a curved belly that rocks through thick meat and heavy vegetables. The Fish and Steak Cutter handles butchering, scaling and slicing steaks or large fish. The Chef Knife is the workhorse for slicing, dicing and mincing, with a long edge that does a lot per stroke.

This is a big set of big knives, and it asks for counter space. If you only want cleavers, the Butcher's Trio is the leaner choice. If you only need the one knife you reach for every day, pick from our chef knives.

A Gift That Gets Used

This is the set for someone who cooks for a crowd and does it properly. It makes sense for the angler who fillets his own catch and then grills steaks for everybody afterwards, since one knife here is built for fish. As a wedding gift it is a strong group present, the sort several friends chip in on. It also works for a retirement or Christmas. See our gift collection for more options.

Every Xcutlery blade is high carbon steel, hand forged one at a time in the Serbian style: thick stock, a lot of hammer work, and the forge finish left on the flats.

Serbian style forging starts with thick stock and a lot of hammer work, and this set shows it in different ways. On the sheep foot cleaver the flats are hammer textured high carbon steel with the forge scale still on. The chef knife is drawn out long, a 9 inch blade on a 14 inch overall length, the biggest piece in the set. Each one is forged on its own, so the four never come out identical.

Why high carbon steel

It takes a very fine edge and comes back quickly on a whetstone. The price of that edge is a little care. This steel is not a rust resistant alloy, so water left on the blade will mark it. Wash it, dry it, wipe on a light coat of oil, and it will be cutting long after the cutting board has given up.

Patina

With use the steel darkens to a grey or blue patina. That is normal for high carbon steel and it helps protect the blade. Red rust is a different thing, and it comes from a knife left wet.

• 4 hand forged blades: 2 cleavers, a fish and steak cutter and a chef knife
• 7", 8", 8" and 9" blades
• Hand forged high carbon steel
• Full tang with heavy steel pins
• Rosewood, black rosewood and pakka wood handles
• Hook spine on the fish and steak cutter

Specifications

• Sheep Foot Cleaver: 7" blade, 12" overall, 400g, hammer textured high carbon steel, black rosewood handle
• Drop Point Cleaver: 8" blade, 13" overall, hand forged high carbon steel, rosewood handle
• Fish and Steak Cutter: 8" blade, 13" overall, 380g, hand forged high carbon steel, black rosewood handle, hook spine
• Chef Knife: 9" blade, 14" overall, hand forged high carbon steel, pakka wood handle
• Construction: Full tang, heavy steel pins
• Warranty: Lifetime, against defects in materials and craftsmanship

• Sheep foot cleaver, 7" blade, 12" overall
• Drop point cleaver, 8" blade, 13" overall
• Fish and steak cutter, 8" blade, 13" overall
• Chef knife, 9" blade, 14" overall
• Lifetime warranty against defects in materials and craftsmanship

Each blade is forged by hand, so the forge texture, hammer marks and wood grain on yours will be its own.

Wash each blade by hand and dry it at once, then wipe on a light coat of food safe oil. No dishwasher, and do not let them soak.

Every time you use it

• Hand wash it right after use and dry it straight away
• Wipe on a light coat of food safe oil before it goes away
• Cut on wood or plastic boards
• Touch up the edge on a whetstone when it starts to drag

Keep it away from

• The dishwasher, and a sink full of water overnight
• Glass, stone or metal cutting surfaces
• Prying, twisting or throwing

The full routine is in our high carbon steel knife care guide, and the edge work is in how to sharpen a meat cleaver.

Every Xcutlery knife is covered for life against defects in materials and craftsmanship. If a handle works loose from the tang, a pin comes free, or there is a flaw in the steel or the build that came from us, we repair or replace it free of charge.

It does not cover normal wear such as a dull edge, damage from misuse, or rust from the dishwasher or soaking. Slight differences in forge texture, hammer marks and wood grain are part of a handmade knife, not defects.

To make a claim, email sales@xcutlery.com (Australia: sales@xcutlery.com.au) with your order number and photos. Separately, you have 30 days from delivery to return an unused knife. Engraved and custom knives cannot be returned for a change of mind. Full terms are on the warranty page.

What knives are in the Mastercraft set?
A 7" sheep foot cleaver, an 8" drop point cleaver, an 8" fish and steak cutter and a 9" chef knife.

Is it good for fish?
Yes. The fish and steak cutter has a hooked spine and is shaped for scaling and slicing large fish as well as steaks.

What is a Serbian chef knife?
It is a thick, cleaver shaped chef knife with hand hammered flats and a raw forge finish. The name refers to the forging style and the look.

Between the sheep foot cleaver and the 9" chef knife, this set goes from heavy chopping to slicing steaks and large fish. See how our knife sets compare for the Mastercraft next to the other three.