Cleaver Dimensions Please! (help a woodworking project)

[captaincaed]

Hey all, I’m a hobby woodworker, have some shop time set aside, and I’m prototyping a countertop knife block that’s elegant, economic, and holds both gyutos and cleavers.

Since I’m one of those weirdos that likes a tip on his knife, I’ve never actually owned a cleaver, but I hear some people like them (mostly kiwis who were practicing animal husbandry until someone caught them at it ), but still it seems the passion is out there.

SO! Cleaver heads! Could you help me out with the dimensions of your favorite cleavers please? I want to be able to accommodate the top 90%, knowing that there will always be some crazy big sizes out there, but I can at least capture the vast majority. Thanks in advance!

 

[chiffonodd]

I assume you are talking about veg cleaver and not bone choppers, right? If so, a full size ("No. 6") cleaver is usually about 220x110, give or take. Might want to build it up to 225x115. As for stock/thickness, that really depends. But a production cleaver will usually be about 3.50 - 4.00

See example from sugimoto here: https://en.sugimoto-hamono.com/products/4006

And here is a Migoto "No. 6": https://migotocutlery.com/collections/migoto/products/migoto-blue-1-chuka-6

This video from cktg has some additional stats on a no. 6, including thickness:



EDIT: Here was my No. 6 (recently sold) for added data about height at the heel, maximum curve, and tip:

 

[captaincaed]

Awesome thank you! I’ll do some homework on common specs, but I’m especially interested to hear about customs with oddball dimensions that might be harder to find, or have been pulled down from websites.

I’d love to hear about any ‘cleaver’ that people use often enough to want one on the counter. I know most are for veg, but if there are some serious carnivores out there who break down big cuts, I’d love to hear from them too.

 

[stringer]

The biggest one I keep on the block is about 7-8mm at the spine. Chinese meat cleaver. Next to a Forgecraft boning knife spine for reference.

 

[captaincaed]

That’s chonky. Also that built-in rack can’t be beat. Grandma had a block like that and it was in contention among the aunts and uncles after her passing.

 

[chiffonodd]

I’m especially interested to hear about customs with oddball dimensions that might be harder to find, or have been pulled down from websites.

Fun project then, good luck! As a dude with too many rectangles to store easily, I'll be watching to see what you come up with.

 

[Rideon66]

Okubo 254 x 118mm.
Shibata Tinker Tank 189mm x 89mm not true cleaver, but has a tip so up your alley.
Cheap Wokshop #2 project cleaver 203 x 89mm
Isasmedjan Jonas custom 203.2mm x 95mm

Unfortunately I don’t keep any out on the counter. The wife doesn’t like it.

 

[pavhav]

the block

That is a lovely piece. It looks like you don't want to move it around much due to its weight. Those dovetail joints on the blocks are a nice touch.

 

[pavhav]

As for cleavers, @Rideon66 pretty much covered the left and right boundaries. By far the largest I have is the Okubo (I think he even makes a 270 "nakiri"), and the smallest is the Tinker Tank.

 

[captaincaed]

Ok, so it sounds like 260 x 120 x 9 would get a true monster covered. Do we have any other challengers to the throne?

Also 255x118? Judas Priest that’s a shovel.

 

[pavhav]

Judas Priest that’s a shovel

It is a monster, but a strangely likable one. I posted this pic in the cleaver chat, but I'll repost here. This is the Okubo overlaid by a 242x54 Morihei Hisamoto:

 

[Pie]

270x140, but not a true rectangle.

A real pain in the ass to store for accessibility.

 

[captaincaed]

Crikey. What the thickness on that breast? Beast. Thanks autocorrect.

 

[Vertigo]

Crikey. What the thickness on that breast?

Caught in 4k

 

[tostadas]

Length: 205-215mm
Height: 85-95mm
Approx 2mm height difference between midblade and heel/tip

 

[Pie]

Crikey. What the thickness on that breast? Beast. Thanks autocorrect.

7.03mm about 10mm in front of the neck. Maybe not as thick as one would think.

Truly inspires confidence vs bone of all kinds I have encountered so far tho. It’s got a weird S grind thing going on so it’s super fat at the “shinogi”.

 

[BillHanna]

Accommodate sujis as well, please and thank you. Here’s your first pre-order.

 

[cooktocut]

Caught in 4k

You sound like Skeet Hansen lol

 

[cotedupy]

Hey all, I’m a hobby woodworker, have some shop time set aside, and I’m prototyping a countertop knife block that’s elegant, economic, and holds both gyutos and cleavers.

Since I’m one of those weirdos that likes a tip on his knife, I’ve never actually owned a cleaver, but I hear some people like them (mostly kiwis who were practicing animal husbandry until someone caught them at it ), but still it seems the passion is out there.

SO! Cleaver heads! Could you help me out with the dimensions of your favorite cleavers please? I want to be able to accommodate the top 90%, knowing that there will always be some crazy big sizes out there, but I can at least capture the vast majority. Thanks in advance!

CCK’s website has all the dimensions of their knives. As good a thing to go by as anything I imagine…

http://www.chanchikee.com/Chinese Knives.html

 

[Jville]

Ok, so it sounds like 260 x 120 x 9 would get a true monster covered. Do we have any other challengers to the throne?

Also 255x118? Judas Priest that’s a shovel.

That would hold my large Takeda, which is the biggest I got.