Farm Knife and Farmcata uses?

Joined
Jan 14, 2018
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41
I love the shape of the farm knife and the farmcata, but I haven't pulled the trigger on buying one yet. How is everyone using theirs? Are they too big to use in the kitchen? Cleaver replacement? Camp knife? Regular chopper outside?
 
Just off the top of my head, I've used the FK to skin squirrels and limb cedar trees and I just gave it a sharpening yesterday.

It's tough, and I love it!

Admittedly, the squirrels were a stretch, but it was the sharpest I had, and had to use it to chop off the feet and tail anyway so I gave it a go.
 
I know first hand that Yangdu has one in the kitchen, first thing I noticed right off. I only recently got one of the smaller farm knives and while I've not put it to work yet I know it will work good for any kitchen duty as well as anything outside. I'm thinking it would make a good kindling maker but doubt I'll use it for that, have others filling that role.

Great knife and the possibilities are endless.
 
I asked Ms Yangdu if it will chop like a AK and she said she saw people in Nepal chopping large limbs with it. She said not only will it chop as good but better.
I know the profile of the blade is thinner than an AK so it will chop only as good as the heat treat. Theoretically the blade edge will not stand up to hard chopping because of the geometry of the edge. But if the heat treatment is correct it should chop deeper. I should have put mine to the test before now but had too much on my plate recently.
Anyway I’m repeating what Ms Yangdu told me.
(Edited) I’m talking about the Farm Knife
 
Thank you all for your feedback. I got a CAK and VUK for the heavy chopping outside. I guess I'll just have to pick one up and experiment.
 
I agree with George (and Yangdu) about the chopping. The Farm Knife should chop deeply because of the edge geometry. How long it will last doing that is another question.

As for kitchen use, it depends on the kitchen. In an actual farmhouse, or farmhouse-type kitchen, it might do very well. In urban or suborban kitchens it might be too much for the counters and cutting boards. I recently got one of the smaller, lighter Farm Knives, and that should be excellent for kitchen use, though I haven't tried it yet in my kitchen. Even the smaller HI Farm Knives are pretty massive compared with most kitchen knives, but easier to control than the full-sized Farm Knife model.
 
I intend to keep my recently acquired Farm Knife for kitchen purposes. It’s one of the smaller versions.

A full size, but lighter weight, companion will be ideal. Also for the kitchen. I can wait...
 
They have been tested thoroughly at my house and kitchen and in the kitchen they are fabulous! They are also very capable outside as well but in no way would I compare them to AK. Maybe if all you chop is green wood and or smaller stuff then you may never have a problem but I can almost guarantee you will roll an edge if you are chopping hard through dried live oak or western red cedar or some dense heartwood like that. You can do it but take smaller chunks and be very strategic with your strikes. The edge profiles are so different than on the AK. They are literally opposite sides of the spectrum. Im not distinguishing between the FK and the Farmkata btw. They use the same edge profile from my samples.
 
I agree with ndog. I tried to get Ms Yangdu to make a farm knife with an AK edge on it but obviously it didn’t turn out that way. Instead an AK was made that had the scales on it like a farm knife. I will have to send her a drawing.
 
Stay tuned George. I got something in the works :) Im thinking ...uh nevermind...You'll have to wait:) I already made a model and if I already made a model its coming to life one way or another! Not sure about how the Farm knife came to be but im betting is was truly farm knife used around the house including and prolly mostly the house and the kitchen but also capable of some tree trimming as well. If so it fits its description perfectly. The HI version is perfect however I think It has some advantages with its front heavy weight distribution that ...OK im about to blow it so I better shut up now.. Im thinking what it might look like if it were moved away from the kitchen just a lil bit and capable of some awesome chopping similar to the Gelbu Special. I have a model but I want to make some adjustments and then send a wooden model to Aunti Y so theres no confusion. Handle and drop...well you know me I like Thamar for his traditional shape and...OK ndog shut up now.

Just enjoyed them threads again Howard! Sure brings back some good times!
 
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Stay tuned George. I got something in the works :) Im thinking ...uh nevermind...You'll have to wait:) I already made a model and if I already made a model its coming to life one way or another! Not sure about how the Farm knife came to be but im betting is was truly farm knife used around the house including and prolly mostly the house and the kitchen but also capable of some tree trimming as well. If so it fits its description perfectly. The HI version is perfect however I think It has some advantages with its front heavy weight distribution that ...OK im about to blow it so I better shut up now.. Im thinking what it might look like if it were moved away from the kitchen just a lil bit and capable of some awesome chopping similar to the Gelbu Special. I have a model but I want to make some adjustments and then send a wooden model to Aunti Y so theres no confusion. Handle and drop...well you know me I like Thamar for his traditional shape and...OK ndog shut up now.

Just enjoyed them threads again Howard! Sure brings back some good times!
Ndog, I can’t wait to see what’s in the works! I’ll take 2!!
Looking forward to it indeed!
 
I know exactly what I want George just dont know if I can forge it. First attempt was a bit shy on metal at the tip. I really need Bookies help! Im thinking its prolly best leaving it to the Kamis.
 
FYI: Here is my Farmcata in action dismembering a duck Peking style. Bones are no object! I love it and thanks to Mr. Steve Tall for the privilege of owning this beauty! What a wonderful knife! Balance is everything
!
 
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FYI: Here is my Farmcata in action dismembering a duck Peking style. Bones are no object! I love it and thanks to Mr. Steve Tall for the privilege of owning this beauty! What a wonderful knife! Balance is everything
!
Love the video Danny! And love some Hendrix too!!!!
 
I also love the video, but you came awfully close to your fingers with some of those cuts. Be careful. Fingernails grow back, fingers don't.

I'm really curious about your design idea. I can't think of how to improve on the farm knife design other than to make it smaller. I have one of the newer 13" models, which is a great size for most purposes, especially in the kitchen. Sounds like you're going in a different direction, maybe more of a chopper? I guess we'll find out.

My idea of the perfect farm knife (13" OAL, 19 oz, by Bhakta):

FarmKnife13in-Bhakta19oz-01.jpg

Actually it's not quite perfect. It would be a little better functionally if the handle followed the upward curve of the spine at the junction of handle and blade, then dipped down a bit toward the butt. The idea is that if you're cutting on a table you want your hand to be well clear of the surface. You can still do that with the current shape by angling the blade end downward, but a slight change in the slope of the handle would make it easier.

Something like this shape (ignoring the pointy bit on the spine near the handle):

ScimitarKnife10.5in-HardEdgeKnivesWWoz-02.jpg
 
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OK. I can see what you are saying if the plan is to use it in the kitchen but im thinking more like moving it out of the kitchen since I already got a Farmcata. My Farmcata lives in the kitchen and It will be really hard to beat that one. Im not thinking lighter anything but on the contrary. Im thinking more like AK edge, Gelbu fullered farm knife on a stick! The handle would be more like the farmcata or like a Barong. My model needs to be chopped up a bit more and then Ill make a final model then do it in wood. Then I figure ill send it do Yangdu and see what or if she can do anything about it but if not Ill make one myself. I already started it but didnt have enough weight on the front. I also had a pretty serious accident due to lack of proper forging facilities but luckily we had the biggest snowstorm of the century in Texas so once i burned the hell out of myself I took a dive outside the front door into the snow bank and packed my arm in snow. Thank what ever you pray to for that snow! Man! that hurt for a few weeks. You dont want to see them pics but I don have them. Anyway this knife is going to be made one way or another because it is goin to be a chopper like nothing you ever seen! Prolly more like an axe than a light kitchen knife for sure but I think yall will like it lots! Time will tell.
 
OK. I can see what you are saying if the plan is to use it in the kitchen but im thinking more like moving it out of the kitchen since I already got a Farmcata. My Farmcata lives in the kitchen and It will be really hard to beat that one. Im not thinking lighter anything but on the contrary. Im thinking more like AK edge, Gelbu fullered farm knife on a stick! The handle would be more like the farmcata or like a Barong. My model needs to be chopped up a bit more and then Ill make a final model then do it in wood. Then I figure ill send it do Yangdu and see what or if she can do anything about it but if not Ill make one myself. I already started it but didnt have enough weight on the front. I also had a pretty serious accident due to lack of proper forging facilities but luckily we had the biggest snowstorm of the century in Texas so once i burned the hell out of myself I took a dive outside the front door into the snow bank and packed my arm in snow. Thank what ever you pray to for that snow! Man! that hurt for a few weeks. You dont want to see them pics but I don have them. Anyway this knife is going to be made one way or another because it is goin to be a chopper like nothing you ever seen! Prolly more like an axe than a light kitchen knife for sure but I think yall will like it lots! Time will tell.
Well I tried to get Ms Yangdu to make a farm knife with an AK edge and it got mixed up. I’ll have to send her a photo. Instead I received an AK that looked like a farm knife favoring the vuks but on steroids! I absolutely love the knife! But my design was the farm knife with the edge of an AK.
This knife has a special place in my heart and was gifted to me by some very special people during my cancer treatment! It will ALWAYS be in the top knives in my collection!!

D6C2A703-8572-483F-B684-5293F3E280B1.jpeg
 
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OK. I can see what you are saying if the plan is to use it in the kitchen but im thinking more like moving it out of the kitchen since I already got a Farmcata. My Farmcata lives in the kitchen and It will be really hard to beat that one. Im not thinking lighter anything but on the contrary. Im thinking more like AK edge, Gelbu fullered farm knife on a stick! The handle would be more like the farmcata or like a Barong. My model needs to be chopped up a bit more and then Ill make a final model then do it in wood. Then I figure ill send it do Yangdu and see what or if she can do anything about it but if not Ill make one myself. I already started it but didnt have enough weight on the front. I also had a pretty serious accident due to lack of proper forging facilities but luckily we had the biggest snowstorm of the century in Texas so once i burned the hell out of myself I took a dive outside the front door into the snow bank and packed my arm in snow. Thank what ever you pray to for that snow! Man! that hurt for a few weeks. You dont want to see them pics but I don have them. Anyway this knife is going to be made one way or another because it is goin to be a chopper like nothing you ever seen! Prolly more like an axe than a light kitchen knife for sure but I think yall will like it lots! Time will tell.

I agree that pictures of burn injuries are not the most pleasant to look at. However, if you have the time it might be helpful to describe the accident (only in words) as a warning to metal-working novices like myself who might be tempted to get in over our heads. Actually I'm pretty good at woodworking but have not really achieved novice status with metal. More like a novice-wanna-be. I was thinking of learning to weld, but I started with a highly recommended book on the subject, and that convinced me to hold off on buying the equipment. Maybe I'll take a community college course, once the pandemic is over.

Back on 9/27/2020 I got a blade that Yangdu calls a Palache Villager Farm Knife by Anil that seems similar to what you have in mind.

It's 16.5" OAL and a beefy 36 oz. Very axe-like. I don't care for the "finger guard" protrusion where the handle meets the blade, and I've been meaning to cut it off. That will make the shape more axe-like, which is appropriate since this is clearly a swinging blade rather than a stabber. Here's the picture:

PalacheVillagerFarmKnife16.5in-Anil36oz-01.jpg
 
Thats a khule knife! The shape is almost exactly what i want but add about another 10" of recurve to it and thats about it. The whole blade is "S" shaped pretty much. Ill get a pic of the blade I started but its not near done yet. Right now its very curved because as I draw it out on one side it will start to straighten out. I really dont know what im doing but am trying. Ive made a few smaller file knives and a set of tongs but thats about it. My tongs needed some adjustments that why that hot curved piece of metal got loose and hung on my arm whilest red hot.
Those community college courses can teach you a lot. I took one on stick welding. They also taught oxy acet. cutting in the same class. Still im a pretty crappy welder but nothng like having a good grinder! I am getting better. I have a stick welder but I really want a TIG welder. A good one is expensive as hell tho.
 
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