Skye Eilers pre-buy

[deltaplex]

They are now listed as sold out. Am I the only one that signed up for the newsletter to check them out then decide this is really really not for me?

I didn't sign up for the newsletter, but I did make it to his page in between the password removal and them selling out. I also decided that while they look very well made, that the package as offered wasn't for me either, so certainly don't feel like you're the only one. Part of what I like about the group here is you get to see what different people who also geek out on their gear get excited about and why that is.

 

[brimmergj]

a relatively low point of entry to satisfy my curiousity, and just a small loss if you sell them on BST.

That's my thought going into this one. I get to try a new to me maker and steel (aeb-l); if I decide it's not for me, I can move on with a small hit. The experience and knowledge is worth the hassle to me at this point in my knife journey.

 

[Matt Jacobs]

That's my thought going into this one. I get to try a new to me maker and steel (aeb-l); if I decide it's not for me, I can move on with a small hit. The experience and knowledge is worth the hassle to me at this point in my knife journey.

For what its worth, in my opinion a knife in AEB-L is always a must for me. I have Jamison Chopp finishing up one for me right now and my wife uses one from DCB customs. Its really easy to sharpen, takes a great edge and its so tough I am comfortable letting visitors use my AEB-L knives. I love carbon but 1 in AEB-L and a stainless Petty will always be in my rotation.

 

[Delat]

I probably should've gone with AEB-L too but plain brushed stainless monos don't really appeal to me visually. I'm planning on dunking my 52100 in coffee to give it a nice black patina.

 

[Matt Jacobs]

I probably should've gone with AEB-L too but plain brushed stainless monos don't really appeal to me visually. I'm planning on dunking my 52100 in coffee to give it a nice black patina.

52100 is awesome and almost stainless, probably the preferred steel by most people. My newest from Nordquist is also 52100

 

[sansho]

i ended up getting a french chef over the gyuto mostly because i liked the look of the handle (got black scales and green bolster). maybe i would have slightly preferred the gyuto profile, but hard to say. especially from only a drawing. i think it would have been easier with an apples-to-apples comparison i.e. i think he should have given a basic outline drawing of the french chef too. my mind plays tricks on me otherwise.

i went with aebl because that seemed like the default choice, and i wanted to go with his 'recommendation'.

he sent this out:

Firstly, steel choice. We had enough interest in 52100 carbon steel to do a batch of those in both french chef and gyuto, so if you ordered that, it’ll happen. However, I had a fair few questions asking for my preference and also for comparisons between the two.
52100 is carbon steel, it will require maintenance to avoid rust, and it will patina. The brushed finish will likely make it very reactive. If that’s your thing, it’s a great option.

Some asked about edge retention. AEB-L has slightly better edge retention and toughness than 52100 (fairly minor difference in real world use), and is stainless. It’s as easy to sharpen as pretty much any simple carbon steel and takes a very keen edge. So if your reason for picking 52100 was ease of sharpening and edge retention, let me know if you want to switch to AEB-L.
I will be making enough of everything (blades and handles) to have spare, so let me know if you want to change blades and handle colours at any point, though ideally the sooner the better.

so first of all, if anyone wants to switch steels, you can do that.

i thought the way he describes the choices is interesting. he's making it sound like aeb-l is the better choice in basically every respect.

 

[NotAddictedYet]

i ended up getting a french chef over the gyuto mostly because i liked the look of the handle (got black scales and green bolster).

Same here, his take on the handle (g10 and micarta) is pretty modernist. I usually prefer wood but the g10 in his pics does look somewhat wood like, so that's pretty interesting. This would be my first french chef profile knife and pretty new to aeb-l also. Another interesting detail is that he is doing sub-zero (cryo) treatment on the aeb-l.

As far as corrosion resistance is concerned, Aeb-l is superior to 52100. Although in real use, 52100 doesn't corrode or patina that easily, especially compared with carbon steel coming out of Japan.

 

[Delat]

Same here, his take on the handle (g10 and micarta) is pretty modernist. I usually prefer wood but the g10 in his pics does look somewhat wood like, so that's pretty interesting. This would be my first french chef profile knife and pretty new to aeb-l also. Another interesting detail is that he is doing sub-zero (cryo) treatment on the aeb-l.

As far as corrosion resistance is concerned, Aeb-l is superior to 52100. Although in real use, 52100 doesn't corrode or patina that easily, especially compared with carbon steel coming out of Japan.

Ditto. The gyuto is more my profile honestly, but then I realized it would look just like every other knife on my rack. For a couple hundred bucks I figure I can afford to try something different.

 

[Skye Eilers Knives]

Hey all, I’ve been meaning to sign up here for ages and finally did so. Thanks @Matt Jacobs for your awesome support. Thanks to everyone who’s ordered one, it means a lot
I don’t wish to interfere with free discourse about my work, the beauty of this craft is that there are so many makers and collectors who all do and like different things. I welcome all feedback, good and constructive. To respond to a few points though:

While it’s been awesome to see the support for the line, they’re definitely not for everyone. That’s okay, I just appreciate you all being interested in my larger body of work.

@Naftoor, send me an email, I’m happy to swap the black g10 bolsters on yours for some green canvas Micarta if you like, it’s no real hassle to do alongside the other handles.

@NotAddictedYet the G10 and Micarta are definitely modernist, and I know that’s not everyone’s preference. The reason for that is the reliability and consistency in look, feel and quality over something like wood where I’d have similar material costs, but significantly more quality control related time. G10 when shaped into a curve has a lovely wood grain look to it, and when flat (Wa handles) has a nice carbon fibre weave look. The Micarta I’m using is made from canvas so it has a nice weave look too. Both are oil, water, acid, heat and light resistant, so are excellent, durable materials that imo suits the user friendly purpose of these knives. I may do some select wooden handles for drops down the line, but wood will be mostly reserved for customs. The sub zero treatment improves the properties of AEB-L. It’s an extra step and cost, but worth it for me.

@sansho I can’t deny I have a slight preference for AEB-L myself, it’s a little shameful to admit as a maker, but I love a good stainless haha. That said, on a spec sheet it does preform better than 52100 in pretty much every category: moderately better edge retention, toughness and of course corrosion resistance. Because of the fine grain AEB-L can attain (very similar to 52100) both sharpen very similarly in my experience, with my heat treat. However, cooking and the enjoyment of knives is not just the result of a spec sheet. People have preferences and many enjoy the beauty of patina and carbon steel care. So I’m offering both. They’re both fantastic steels and will serve the owner well.
Some table references from @Larrin are below to back up those claims.

Apologies for the profile comparison issue. I had both drawings at the very back of the store item images, but it’s an easy thing to miss. Both are below.

@Delat I’m happy to coffee etch yours for you if you’d like

Beyond that, if anyone has any more questions about these knives let me know. Happy to answer any unrelated questions too. Thanks!

Skye

 

[Skye Eilers Knives]

Forgot to explain the tables sorry. The middle tall graph shows edge retention on the y axis, the higher up the graph, the longer the edge lasts. HRC on the x axis.
The other two graphs (sorry for not posting them side by side) show toughness vs HRC relationships as indicated.
As said in my email to those who pre-ordered, these 52100 and AEB-L differences are pretty negligible in real life and therefore, the similarity between them is why I picked them as the two variations. It means owners of either will hopefully be equally satisfied

 

[Delat]

@Delat I’m happy to coffee etch yours for you if you’d like

Thanks, I’d love that! I always worry about coffee getting too close to the handle and getting moisture trapped when I do it myself.

Let me know the best way to remind you when you get closer to finishing these off.

 

[Naftoor]

I just want to say, this is exactly why I love the forums and western makers. Being able to get these kinds of details and communications from the maker, and getting to know the actual makers is amazing. I am somehow even more excited for this, great start to 2023 =D

 

[Skye Eilers Knives]

Thanks, I’d love that! I always worry about coffee getting too close to the handle and getting moisture trapped when I do it myself.

Let me know the best way to remind you when you get closer to finishing these off.

No worries man, I have lots of practice from etching my san mai blades haha. I’ll chuck a note about it on my side of your order, easy as

 

[Skye Eilers Knives]

I just want to say, this is exactly why I love the forums and western makers. Being able to get these kinds of details and communications from the maker, and getting to know the actual makers is amazing. I am somehow even more excited for this, great start to 2023 =D

My pleasure man, connection with people who love knives is a large part of my joy in making. Thanks again for the support

 

[sansho]

hey! welcome to the forum, and thanks for your response!

 

[Skye Eilers Knives]

hey! welcome to the forum, and thanks for your response!

Cheers mate! I appreciate the welcome

 

[Matt Jacobs]

I just want to say, this is exactly why I love the forums and western makers. Being able to get these kinds of details and communications from the maker, and getting to know the actual makers is amazing. I am somehow even more excited for this, great start to 2023 =D

This is 100% why I have moved to western makers

 

[iimi]

I've started off the year with two customs from @MSicardCutlery and a @Skye Eilers Knives gyuto so I guess I'm heading west as well

 

[timebard]

Has anybody who got in on Skye or Simon Herde's series seen any recent updates or deliveries? Haven't seen anything on IG recently from either on those series and IIRC both had planned to start delivering in spring. Not trying to give either a hard time if the batches are running behind, just curious.

 

[blokey]

Has anybody who got in on Skye or Simon Herde's series seen any recent updates or deliveries? Haven't seen anything on IG recently from either on those series and IIRC both had planned to start delivering in spring. Not trying to give either a hard time if the batches are running behind, just curious.

I’m in on both, Skye is bit late due to the problem with CNC set up, Simon got all the batch cut and working on the first batch now. Both of them are students so they are only working half time.

 

[Skye Eilers Knives]

Has anybody who got in on Skye or Simon Herde's series seen any recent updates or deliveries? Haven't seen anything on IG recently from either on those series and IIRC both had planned to start delivering in spring. Not trying to give either a hard time if the batches are running behind, just curious.

Hey dude, @blokey is right. I've been meaning to email the list (will do so today) to update. Basically the knives are cut out and hardened, and I have all the supplies. I've been held up by a couple things: I discovered the electrics in the shop (at my rental home) were below spec so we're upgrading them to not blow up the house when I run everything, and the landlords were remodelling the driveway where I do all my grinding, as we had some flooding in the garage last time it rained heavily. Been a bit of a slow and frustrating slog to get it all up and running but nearly there. I'm hoping to have them all done within the month of June, July at the latest fingers crossed.
Part time too so things get in the way haha. I appreciate the patience and sorry for the lack of updates. I've been unable to do much besides hand work in the shop for the last couple months so progress on everything has been super slow and I've just been working more at the day job in mental health which leaves me a little too wiped out for admin most days lol

 

[Giovanny Torres]

Has anybody who got in on Skye or Simon Herde's series seen any recent updates or deliveries? Haven't seen anything on IG recently from either on those series and IIRC both had planned to start delivering in spring. Not trying to give either a hard time if the batches are running behind, just curious.

Simon Herde started sending fhe first batch he got done, mine was sent last week and is been held by customs atm. I should be getting it soon.

 

[sansho]

Any updates @Skye Eilers Knives ?

 

[Skye Eilers Knives]

Any updates @Skye Eilers Knives ?

Hey @sansho and everyone else on the list, sorry again for the long wait. I’ve got all but two of the Tamashii Gyuto handles shaped, and will be finish grinding the blades for them this week. I’ve had to order more kydex eyelets for those who’ve ordered sheaths, as the ones I got originally were poor quality. Those should be here next week.

Once the blades are finish ground, I’ll be emailing everyone in the order they are in the list. For those with custom orders alongside, I’ll be updating them on individual timelines by next week.

The French Chef knives are next on the list, I should be starting the machining for them this week or early next. The blades are all rough ground, so once the handles are machined, it should only be a few weeks. With any luck, everyone should have their knives with them in early to mid November.

Again, I appreciate all the patience and I massively apologise for how delayed these are. This year has been a slew of back to back delays and issues, and I fully accept that the timelines so far have been unprofessional.
However, I’m confident that anyone with an order will feel it’s more than worth the wait when they’re delivered.

 

[sansho]

did anyone do a writeup yet? fwiw, i'm pretty happy with the french chef i got.

 

[Skye Eilers Knives]

did anyone do a writeup yet? fwiw, i'm pretty happy with the french chef i got.

I don't think I've seen any writeups on here yet no, at least long comprehensive ones. Plenty of feedback directly, which has been greatly appreciated. The outcome seems to be that everyone is happy and impressed. A couple of people passed theirs on here due to not matching personal preferences or collection plans, but otherwise it seems that everyone is keeping and enjoying theirs, which for 58 separate orders I'm pretty pleased with.

I will say for those who have the time and inclination, doing writeups about the makers/knives you have is a great help, far more than you would think. We're a weird little niche of people and word of mouth is by far the best advertising we can ever get. So I'll always be super grateful for anyone's generous words, even if it's just a little simple line saying you love yours etc. And constructive feedback is always fantastic too

 

[Matt Jacobs]

I have had a couple of people reach out to me directly saying they were very happy with them and thanking me for sharing this with them.

 

[Skye Eilers Knives]

I have had a couple of people reach out to me directly saying they were very happy with them and thanking me for sharing this with them.

That's great to hear dude, and thanks again for all the awesome word-spreading you do for me and other makers, it's such a massive help

 

[pitted_soul]

I got one off of the BST and am very happy with it, to the degree that it has sold me on investing more money in your work. I was on the fence but the overwhelmingly positive reviews sealed it. I love supporting makers and getting their name out when I can.

 

[Skye Eilers Knives]

I got one off of the BST and am very happy with it, to the degree that it has sold me on investing more money in your work. I was on the fence but the overwhelmingly positive reviews sealed it. I love supporting makers and getting their name out when I can.

That's awesome to hear, thanks mate! I look forward to the future discussions