Deluxe knife racks - feedback please

[Nomo4me]

Hi All,
First, this is not a FS thread, though I do hope to move that direction within the rules of the Forum if there is a market at the price I need to generate.

A couple years ago I was looking for a vertical free standing rack to display & access my knives at the cutting board.

Extensive searching on Etsy, Amazon, Ebay etc didn't yield what I was looking for.
I eventually bought a $39 Bamboo rack on Amazon and lived with it for a year and discovered the flaws it presented in daily use:
- It allowed edges and spines to contact each other
- The magnets were far too strong
- It was difficult to clean around the base plate near the upright
- It was so commercial, so blah looking as a backdrop against my lower mid-tier hand forged knives

The pics you see here represent my design to solve these issues.
- The uprights are cantilevered so that each knife has it's own plane - each spine buts against wood
- I'm pleased with the retention force of the magnets
- It snaps together and apart easily; you can wipe the base off and snap it back together
- As you can see, I'm a lifelong lover of very fine woods and the richness they bring to our daily lives
- Finally, I wanted a place to rest my cell phone or tablet as I food prepped

The design will also ship in a flat-pack box in 3 pieces: the uprights, the base, and the cell phone/tablet holder. Open the box, snap it together and you are done.
The magnets are completely hidden on the front and back sides. Holds 4 knives each side, magnets are positioned to place the spine a left-side orientation.

That all said, I'd welcome feedback on these.

Thanks!

 

[big_adventure]

Those look beautiful. I'd take 4 is I had counter space to spare.

 

[LostHighway]

Very nice although personally I don't like the mixed woods. I would prefer everything, or everything but the base, made from the same species and at least close in grain and color. Like @big_adventure my available counter space is also an issue.

 

[5698k]

Love them..

 

[tostadas]

I really like it. It looks extremely practical. I have 2 questions:

When removing a knife from the back row, is there issue with it bumping into other knives, or into the front row?
If you accidentally knock into the rack, will the whole thing tip over and fall?

 

[Nomo4me]

Very nice although personally I don't like the mixed woods. I would prefer everything, or everything but the base, made from the same species and at least close in grain and color. Like @big_adventure my available counter space is also an issue.

Thanks LH. Wood choice flexibility is part of my game plan.

 

[Nomo4me]

I really like it. It looks extremely practical. I have 2 questions:

When removing a knife from the back row, is there issue with it bumping into other knives, or into the front row?
If you accidentally knock into the rack, will the whole thing tip over and fall?

Reach back and lift over the handles on the front side. Both sides are cantilevered so you aren't going to hit edge to spine. The heavy, solid wood base makes it a very stable design.

Thanks

 

[tostadas]

Reach back and lift over the handles on the front side. Both sides are cantilevered so you aren't going to hit edge to spine. The heavy, solid wood base makes it a very stable design.

Thanks

It seems like a well though-out design that I'd definitely consider using in my own home, if I didnt live in an area prone to earthquakes. I'd be worried about something falling on it from a higher cabinet and launching knives across the room.

 

[timebard]

These look nice. I'll echo previous comments on the mixed woods in the first example, but the second one shown (darker base and more defined wood grain) looks good. I don't personally see much use in the cell phone/tablet holder and wouldn't really want my phone and knives in close proximity! I would think about a version without that and a smaller footprint, or if the current base size is needed for stability, a small tray/caddy on the front for holding S&P, spices, small tools, etc.

 

[Nomo4me]

a small tray/caddy on the front for holding S&P, spices, small tools, etc.

Thanks for sharing your opinion (fellow Utahn here), but I'm not wanting to create permanent storage that might diminish one of the primary functions of this design - to offer complimentary display of very fine knives.
here

 

[drsmp]

How about just cutting the groove to hold the tablet into the base ? I’d be nervous about tipping a knife on that raised holder. Plus to me a groove would be a cleaner design - the raised holder draws some focus off the knives. Either way I’d make the tablet holder an option.
As built what’s the tallest knife that fits?Many of us have 270mm+ Gyuto (Ferrule to tip). In my case I only have three 210 Gyuto and a dozen 235-270 , so taller sections would be better.

 

[Nagakin]

It's pretty cool minus the phone holder for me. I prefer that separate personally, so I can move it around the kitchen and wash it with my phone in soap and water when I'm done. A horizontal design would be cool for saya owners though. There are only cheap ladder looking ones around.

 

[Nomo4me]

A horizontal design would be cool for saya owners though. There are only cheap ladder looking ones around.

I've been thinking of a horizontal one that would hold 3 knives. You are saying you'd like them resting in Saya rather than magnetic retention?

 

[Nomo4me]

How about just cutting the groove to hold the tablet into the base ? I’d be nervous about tipping a knife on that raised holder. Plus to me a groove would be a cleaner design - the raised holder draws some focus off the knives. Either way I’d make the tablet holder an option.
As built what’s the tallest knife that fits?Many of us have 270mm+ Gyuto (Ferrule to tip). In my case I only have three 210 Gyuto and a dozen 235-270 , so taller sections would be better.

There is a groove to hold the tenon of the phone holder. But I won't do exposed grooves in the base, too hard to clean.
The blond one will hold all of a 240mm in the center. I could extend the uprights another 30mm but would have to consider a wider base.

Thanks for your comments

 

[Nagakin]

I was thinking a combo, saya would go on the holder with magnets that have just enough pull to hold the blades in place, but not support them themselves. I like the way Darkhardt did it with their bags.

 

[DavidPF]

The blond one will hold all of a 240mm in the center. I could extend the uprights another 30mm but would have to consider a wider base.

This board doesn't represent society in general, but for this "crowd" it seems like "barely 300" is a better bet than "barely 240".

 

[Nomo4me]

This board doesn't represent society in general, but for this "crowd" it seems like "barely 300" is a better bet than "barely 240".

Begs the question, from an aesthetics standpoint, as to whether 270 + knives should be stored vertically.

 

[tim37]

Why would you not store 270 + knives vertically?

 

[Nomo4me]

Why would you not store 270 + knives vertically?

Oh I'm good with it if the buyer is. Just a matter of accepting the aesthetic of the handles up so tall from the counter top. I could add adapt this cantilevered design to work handles down with the butts of the handles not touching the base. That would be something interesting to explore.

Do you like the cantilevered aspect of this design?

Though it's quite labor intensive it works very well to isolate edges and I like the aesthetic as well.